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Thousands rally in Times Square to demand release of Hamas hostages
(New York Jewish Week) — Ronen and Orna Neutra told large crowd in Times Square that their son, Omer, had captained his soccer team at his Long Island high school and loved the NBA. They last spoke to Omer on Oct. 6 while he was stationed with his tank unit on the Gaza border and he said he looked forward to a restful Shabbat.
“Omer is now considered to be held by Hamas,” his father said. “Omer, we know that you’re alive and you’re strong.”
“We pray for your swift return,” he said.
The parents delivered the speech as part of a massive “Bring Them Home” rally Thursday evening organized by the Israeli American Council and backed by a range of Jewish groups. Thousands Israel supporters packed into Times Square for the event, bearing Israeli and American flags and photos of the 200 hostages held by terrorists in Gaza.
Hostages’ photos were displayed on Times Square billboards at the “Bring Them Home” rally in New York on Oct. 19, 2023. (Luke Tress)
Additional photos of the hostages were displayed on the LED billboards along Broadway and Seventh Avenue.
Community leaders including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, addressed the crowd, vowing to bring back the hostages and defeat Hamas, and leading chants of “Bring them home.” Israeli star Shiri Maimon sang Israel’s national anthem, “Hatikvah.”
“To free the hostages we will persist and persist and persist,” said Schumer, who had recently returned from a trip to Israel.“In every generation they have risen to afflict us,” he said. “But we know in every generation we fight back until we win.”
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The post Thousands rally in Times Square to demand release of Hamas hostages appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Riding Anti-Trump Wave, Australia’s Albanese Secures 2nd term
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks to the media during a press conference with New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon at the Australian Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, Aug. 16, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Tracey Nearmy
i24 News – Australia’s Anthony Albanese claimed a second term as prime minister on Saturday, in a comeback against once-resurgent conservatives that commentators said was powered by voters’ concerns about the impact of US President Donald Trump.
Peter Dutton, leader of the conservative Liberal party, conceded defeat and the loss of his own seat, echoing the fate of Canada’s conservatives and their leader Pierre Poilievre, whose election losses last week were also widely attributed to a Trump backlash.
Supporters at Labor’s election party in Sydney cheered and hugged each other as Albanese claimed victory and said his party would form a majority government.
“Our government will choose the Australian way, because we are proud of who we are and all that we have built together in this country,” Albanese told supporters.
The Australian Electoral Commission website projected Labor would win 81 of 150 seats in the House of Representatives, increasing its majority in parliament, with 68% of the vote counted.
The post Riding Anti-Trump Wave, Australia’s Albanese Secures 2nd term first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israeli PM Netanyahu Postpones Upcoming Visit to Azerbaijan
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Prime Minister’s office in Jerusalem, Feb. 16, 2025. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has postponed next week’s visit to Azerbaijan, his office announced on Saturday, in part due to recent developments in Gaza and Syria.
The prime minister’s office also cited “the intense diplomatic and security schedule” and said that the visit would be rescheduled, without announcing a new date.
Netanyahu was to visit Azerbaijan from May 7-11 and was expected to meet with President Ilham Aliyev. Israel and Azerbaijan maintain close security and energy ties.
The post Israeli PM Netanyahu Postpones Upcoming Visit to Azerbaijan first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Says It Intercepted Missile Fired from Yemen; Houthis Claim Responsibility
Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi addresses followers via a video link at the al-Shaab Mosque, formerly al-Saleh Mosque, in Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 6, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Israel’s military said on Saturday it intercepted a missile fired from Yemen and Houthi forces claimed responsibility for the attack, the third of its kind by the Iran-aligned group in 24 hours.
The Israeli military said sirens were activated in a number of areas in Israel after the missile was launched. No casualties or serious damage have been reported from the missile salvos.
The claim of responsibility, announced by the Houthis’ military spokesperson, came amid an intensification of US airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen.
In March, US President Donald Trump ordered large-scale strikes against the Houthis to reduce their capabilities and deter them from targeting commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
The deadly strikes on the group have been the biggest US military operation in the Middle East since Trump took office in January.
The Houthis say their attacks on Israel and Red Sea shipping are in solidarity with the Palestinians in the war between Hamas terrorists and Israel in Gaza.
The group pledged to expand its range of targets in Israel in retaliation for a renewed Israeli offensive in Gaza launched in mid-March, breaking a two-month-old ceasefire after the mediated talks on terms for extending it broke down.
The post Israel Says It Intercepted Missile Fired from Yemen; Houthis Claim Responsibility first appeared on Algemeiner.com.