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Empty strollers in London call attention to child hostages in Gaza as families head to the UN
(JTA) — Empty strollers in London and Shabbat tables with empty seats in at least half a dozen cities represent the latest efforts to bring attention to the hundreds of Israelis held hostage in Gaza since Oct. 7 through striking visuals in public spaces.
Hamas released two hostages, a mother and daughter who were American citizens, on Friday night. Since then, number known to be held hostage has risen, from 203 to 222. Dozens of the hostages are children, including several thought to be held alone after their families were murdered during Hamas’ attack on Israel.
On Sunday, two weeks after the attack, Israeli President Isaac Herzog met with family members of 80 hostages, vowing to “do everything to bring your loved ones home.”
Israel’s foreign minister, Eli Cohen, is flying with representatives of the families to New York City, where he is scheduled to speak at the United Nations on Tuesday. Among those traveling with him are Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin, whose U.S.-born son Hersh Goldberg-Polin was abducted from the site of the outdoor party where 260 people were killed.
Hundreds of Jerusalemites gathered outside the home of Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s parents to farewell them to the US on their journey to seek his freedom
Few dry eyes
pic.twitter.com/8jgBX8YN9P
— Ittay Flescher (@ittay78) October 23, 2023
The United States has reportedly urged Israel to refrain from a ground invasion in Gaza while negotiations, through a third party in Qatar, are underway to secure the release of additional hostages, particularly those with foreign passports.
Activists with the #BringThemHome movement — which aims to make sure the hostages are not forgotten as Israel strikes back against Hamas and leaders discuss humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza — have bought billboards in city centers and plastered public walls with “Kidnapped” posters showcasing the people known to be held hostage.
In New York City, where the posters tend to be removed quickly, often by pro-Palestinian activists, a kosher barbecue company covered its food truck with them before a festival on the Upper West Side Sunday. “Real estate billboards in New York City are a fortune,” Wandering ‘Que wrote on Instagram. “Today we are taking full advantage of every square foot we have.”
Less than a mile away on Sunday, as part of the advocacy efforts, Israeli singer David Broza played a free concert at B’nai Jeshurun Synagogue, which is collecting 201 pairs of used shoes to represent the hostages.
An empty Shabbat table for 200, with high chairs for the toddlers known to be held hostage, drew worldwide attention after it was set outside the Tel Aviv Museum of Art on Friday. Similar tables appeared in Australia and Rome and were subsequently set in other locations, including Paris; Washington, D.C.’s Capitol Hill; and Los Angeles.
A Shabbat table for the Israeli hostages appears in Washington, D.C., Oct. 20, 2023. (Courtesy Scott Lasensky); a similar table, showcasing the names and faces of the hostages, appears in Paris, Oct. 22, 2023. (Remon Haazen/Getty Images)
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The post Empty strollers in London call attention to child hostages in Gaza as families head to the UN appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Benjamin Netanyahu was burned in effigy on the streets of Montreal during a Friday night riot
Justin Trudeau condemned for subsequently attending a Taylor Swift concert in Toronto.
The post Benjamin Netanyahu was burned in effigy on the streets of Montreal during a Friday night riot appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
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Report: IDF targets Hezbollah chief in Beirut
Illustrative. Smoke billows over Beirut’s southern suburbs after an Israeli strike, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Hadath, Lebanon October 19, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir
JNS.org – A massive explosion in a building in Beirut on Saturday killed 11 people and wounded dozens in what Arab media said was a failed Israeli attempt to kill Hezbollah’s head of operations, Muhammad Haydar.
Israel did not immediately claim responsibility specifically for the explosion early on Saturday in the eight-story building in the Lebanese capital’s Basta neighborhood. The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said only that Israel struck an unspecified target in Beirut, the fourth strike in the city in a week.
Basta is situated in the city’s center. The bulk of Israel’s strikes in Beirut have been in the Dahiyeh neighborhood, a Hezbollah stronghold in the city’s south.
Lebanese media reported that at least 63 people were wounded in the strike.
Avihai Edraei, the head of the Arabic-language department of the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, posted a tweet on X on Saturday calling on residents of Dahiyeh to evacuate their homes. They are living near Hezbollah installations, he said, against which “the IDF will act in the near future.”
The targets of Saturday’s strikes “were located by Hezbollah in the heart of the civilian population. Prior to the attack, many steps were taken to reduce the chance of harming civilians,” the IDF wrote in a statement. A headquarters, a weapons depot, “and additional Hezbollah terror infrastructures” were attacked, the statement said.
According to Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies, Israel has killed 2,450 terrorists in Lebanon and Syria. Lebanese health authorities said that 3,365 people have died in strikes by Israel. Those data do not distinguish between terrorists and civilians. On the Israeli side, terrorists have killed 121 people, with 76 of them being soldiers.
The post Report: IDF targets Hezbollah chief in Beirut first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Troubling Details Emerge About Disappearance of Chabad Rabbi, Inaction of UAE Authorities
Zvi Kogan. Photo: LinkedIn via i24 News
i24 News – i24NEWS learned chilling details about the disappearance of Chabad emissary Zvi Kogan, who went missing last week in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Kogan did not show up for scheduled meetings he had during the day. After he failed to make contact, his wife contacted the security officer of the Chabad house, who alerted the local authorities. Information about the incident was also shared with the Israeli authorities.
Kogan disappeared from a location about an hour and a half from Dubai. i24NEWS can report that complaints were made to both the Dubai Police and the Abu Dhabi Police on Thursday, yet no actions were taken by either.
i24NEWS also became privy to the information that although Kogan’s car got a speeding ticket on its way to Oman, in this case too the authorities in the Emirates and Oman did nothing.
i24NEWS can also confirm that there is tremendous anger in Israel at the Emiratis, who did not respond to the suspicious signs and did not act in time. In fact, actions were only taken after the intervention of Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar.
The story has troubling echoes of the abduction by Iranians of German-Iranian dissident Jamshid Sharmahd; he was kidnapped from Dubai to Iran via Oman and was eventually executed.
The post Troubling Details Emerge About Disappearance of Chabad Rabbi, Inaction of UAE Authorities first appeared on Algemeiner.com.