Gigi Hadid Condemns “Terrorizing of Innocent People” After Hamas Attacks on Israel

Etan Vlessing
Tue, October 10, 2023 


Half-Palestinian supermodel Gigi Hadid has commented publicly on the current wave of Israel-Palestine violence after the terrorist organization Hamas launched attacks on southern Israel.

“The terrorizing of innocent people is not in alignment with & does not do any good for the ‘Free Palestine’ movement,” Hadid said in a lengthy post on her Instagram account on Tuesday. Hadid, whose father, Mohamed Hadid, is a Palestinian immigrant and practicing Muslim, said she has a “deep empathy and heartbreak for the Palestinian struggle and life under occupation.”

But she added, “I also feel a responsibility to my Jewish friends to make it clear, as I have before: While I have hopes and dreams for Palestinians, none of them include the harm of a Jewish person.” Hadid’s comments followed the deadly attack in Israel over the weekend orchestrated by Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

The attack was followed by Israel declaring a formal war against Hamas, with the escalating retaliation leading to a rising death toll that has surpassed 1,800 victims on both sides since Saturday, according to the Associated Press.

Hadid and her younger sister, Bella Hadid, have a history of supporting the Palestinian cause.

Her Instagram post runs in full below:

My thoughts are with all those affected by this unjustifiable tragedy and every day that innocent lives are taken by this conflict – too many of which are children. I have deep empathy and heartbreak for the Palestinian struggle and life under occupation, it’s a responsibility I hold daily.

I also feel a responsibility to my Jewish friends to make it clear, as I have before: While I have hopes and dreams for Palestinians, none of them include the harm of a Jewish person. The terrorizing of innocent people is not in alignment with & does not do any good for the ‘Free Palestine’ movement.

The idea that it does has fueled a painful, decades long cycle of back & forth retaliation (which no innocent civilian, Palestinian or Israeli, deserves to be a casualty of) and helps perpetuate the false idea that being Pro-Palestine = antisemitic. If you are hurting as I share my condolences today with my loves ones, both Palestinian and Jewish, I’m sending you my love and strength – whoever and wherever you are.

There are a lot of complex, personal and valid feelings, but every human deserves basic rights, treatment and security; no matter their nationality, religion, ethnicity or where they were born. I know my words will never be enough or heal the deep wounds of so many, but I pray for the safety of innocent lives, always.

The Hollywood Reporter

Gigi Hadid condemns ‘terrorising of innocent people’ in statement on Israel-Hamas war

Maanya Sachdeva
Wed, October 11, 2023

Gigi Hadid has issued a statement addressing the deadly Israel-Hamas conflict, after Hamas terrorists and Islamic Jihad launched an unprecedented “massacre of civilians” from Gaza.

Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel was at war and warned Palestinians would pay a heavy price, after hundreds were killed in the attack and hundreds more taken hostage.

The death toll in Gaza from Israel’s retaliatory strikes has passed 900, with around 4,500 wounded. More than 1,200 Israeli’s have been killed.

In what has been called a “complete siege”, Israel has cut off water, fuel and electricity supplies to the Gaza strip, while tens of thousands of Israeli troops have massed at the border.

US supermodel Hadid, who is half-Palestinian, condemned the “terrorising of innocent people” in her statement issued on Tuesday (10 October), writing that her dreams for a free Palestine are not at the cost of Jewish people.

“While I have hopes and dreams for Palestinians, none of them include the harm of a Jewish person,” Hadid wrote on Instagram.

She added that inflicting terror on innocent people is “not in alignment with and does not do any good for the Free Palestine movement”.

“The idea that it does has fueled a painful, decades-long cycle of back & forth retaliation (which no innocent civilian, Palestinian or Israeli deserves to be a casualty of), and helps perpetuate the false idea that being Pro-Palestine [is equal to] antisemitic,” she continued.

Hadid acknowleged a multitude of “complex, personal, and valid feelings” while affirming that every human being is deserving of basic rights and security irrespective of “their nationality, religion, ethnicity, or where they were born”.

“I pray for the safety of innocent lives, always,” she concluded.

Hadid’s sister, fellow supermodel Bella Hadid has not yet commented on the escalating tensions between Israel and Palestine. Their father, American real-estate developer Mohamed Anwar Hadid is a Palestinian immigrant.

In the past few days, celebrities such as Madonna, Natalie Portman, Mark Ruffalo, Amy Schumer, and Sarah Silverman have also shared their stance on the ongoing conflict.

“My heart is shattered for the people of Israel,” Portman wrote. “Children, women and the elderly have been murdered and abducted from their own homes. I am in horror at these barbaric acts and my heart is pounding with love and prayer for the families of all affected.”

Natalie Portman shared a statement on the deadly Israel-Hamas conflict (2023 Invision)

Mark Ruffalo quoted Jerusalem-based American author Nathan Thrall, in response to the “horror [that] is unfolding between the Israeli Government and Hamas today” on X.

“I received a note today from Nathan Thrall, journalist and author of A Day In The Life of Abed Salama that resonated deeply with me,” the Hulk actor wrote. “I wanted to share his words as we all watch in horror what is unfolding between the Israeli Government and Hamas today.

“It is horrific to see innocent civilians killed and held hostage, and there is no justification for it. We pray for their safety, as we pray for the safety of the innocent people of Gaza who are being bombarded and besieged.”

Ocasio-Cortez calls out ‘bigotry’ at pro-Palestine rally in NYC

Lauren Sforza
Tue, October 10, 2023 

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) blasted a pro-Palestine rally in New York City over the weekend as promoting “bigotry” amid the ongoing fighting between Israel and Hamas.

Supporters for Israel and Palestine gathered in demonstrations across the country after Hamas launched a massive attack against Israel Saturday. Groups supporting Palestinians gathered in Times Square — a demonstration that was also denounced by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) and Mayor Eric Adams (D).

“It should not be hard to shut down hatred and antisemitism where we see it. That is a core tenet of solidarity,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement obtained by The Hill.

“The bigotry and callousness expressed in Times Square on Sunday were unacceptable and harmful in this devastating moment. It also did not speak for the thousands of New Yorkers who are capable of rejecting both Hamas’ horrifying attacks against innocent civilians as well as the grave injustices and violence Palestinians face under occupation,” she said.

Adams and Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) also blasted the demonstration after it was met with criticism.

“At a moment when innocent people are being slaughtered and children kidnapped in Israel, it is disgusting that this group of extremists would show support for terrorism. I reject this. New York City rejects this. Do not use our streets to spread your hate,” Adams posted on X, the platform previously known as Twitter.

“I am shocked and disgusted by the rally held here in NY this weekend celebrating death or attacks on civilians and showing swastikas. I condemn any demonstration that does this in the strongest possible terms. We must proceed on the basis of recognizing our shared humanity,” Bowman posted on X.

The Associated Press reported that a skirmish broke out Sunday between people supporting Israel and separate demonstrators supporting the Palestinians near the United Nations headquarters. Members of the Party for Socialism and Liberation also protested Sunday with about 75 people at the Israeli consulate in Atlanta, shouting chants in support of the militant group Hamas and urging the U.S. to halt aid to Israel.

—Updated at 2:30 p.m.

AOC Slams Democratic Socialists of America for Post Supporting Pro-Palestine Rally

Alex Nguyen
Tue, October 10, 2023 

Fatih Aktas/Getty

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) condemned the Democratic Socialists of America’s New York City chapter for promoting a pro-Palestine protest on X, formerly Twitter, in Times Square on Sunday. Amid the Israel-Hamas violence in Gaza, some protesters shouted antisemitic chants, and stomped on and burned an Israeli flag, prompting Ocasio-Cortez to tell Politico on Monday night that they showed “bigotry and callousness.” She continued, saying, “It also did not speak for the thousands of New Yorkers who are capable of rejecting both Hamas’ horrifying attacks against innocent civilians as well as the grave injustices and violence Palestinians face under occupation.” NYC-DSA Steering Committee Member Nadia Tykulsker explained that the group supported the gathering “because we believe in equality and justice for all Palestinians and Israelis, and we know that war will take more lives.” In a separate statement on Monday, Ocasio Cortez called for an “immediate ceasefire and de-escalation” to protect civilian lives. In a late Tuesday afternoon response, the NYC-DSA apologized for the timing of their post in support of the rally, and maintained their position regarding an immediate cease-fire, end to Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the siege on the Gaza Strip, and halt of U.S. military aid in support of apartheid.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez condemns 'hatred and antisemitism' at pro-Palestinian rally

Alex Seitz-Wald
Tue, October 10, 2023 

Adam Gray

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., condemned the “bigotry and callousness” displayed at a pro-Palestinian rally held this weekend and promoted by some of her allies.

The rally was held Sunday in Times Square as Israel reeled from a massive surprise attack the day before by Hamas militants, who killed and kidnapped more than a thousand Israeli civilians.

Despite a heavy police presence at the rally, there were some clashes between pro-Palestinian activists, whose signs portrayed the attack as a legitimate form of political resistance, and pro-Israel demonstrators, who decried the protesters as antisemitic and terrorist sympathizers.

The rally had been promoted by Democratic Socialists of America, a left-wing group that helped elect Ocasio-Cortez and other progressives, but it faced criticism from some of its own elected officials for endorsing the event, which was held even before Israel had been able to count the dead.

“It should not be hard to shut down hatred and antisemitism where we see it. That is a core tenet of solidarity,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement first shared with Politico's New York affiliate late Monday.

“The bigotry and callousness expressed in Times Square on Sunday were unacceptable and harmful in this devastating moment," the congresswoman continued. "It also did not speak for the thousands of New Yorkers who are capable of rejecting both Hamas’ horrifying attacks against innocent civilians as well as the grave injustices and violence Palestinians face under occupation.”

While the mainstream Democratic Party remains overwhelmingly supportive of Israel, the left wing of the party has grown increasingly supportive of the Palestinian cause in recent years, with some comparing Israeli treatment of Palestinians to Apartheid South Africa and promoting anti-Israeli actions like the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Jewish leaders, including some on the left otherwise sympathetic to the plight of Palestinian, have long expressed concern that that kind of rhetoric and targeted action help normalize antisemitism, creating an ugly point of friction inside the progressive movement and between the movement and the Democratic Party, which has flared up on multiple occasions.

Ocasio-Cortez and other progressives have tried to straddle the divide by expressing support for Palestinians while reaffirming support for Israel's right to exist, but they have often faced criticism for it, being accused mostly of being too soft on Palestinian militants.

Earlier, she called the events of the weekend “devastating for all those seeking a lasting peace and respect for human rights in Israel and Palestine” and said, “I condemn Hamas’ attack in the strongest possible terms.”

But she also called for an “immediate ceasefire and de-escalation,” which is not acceptable to Israel and its allies, including the United States, as Israel now moves to destroy Hamas.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com

Sanders: Israel’s siege of Gaza a ‘serious violation of international law’

Alexander Bolton
Wed, October 11, 2023 

Sanders: Israel’s siege of Gaza a ‘serious violation of international law’

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Wednesday criticized Israeli forces for cutting off electricity, food, fuel and water to the more than 2 million residents of Gaza, calling it a “serious violation of international law” that will cause hundreds of thousands of children to suffer.

“The targeting of civilians is a war crime, no matter who does it. Israel’s blanket denial of food, water, and other necessities to Gaza is a serious violation of international law and will do nothing but harm innocent civilians,” said Sanders, a leading progressive voice in Congress and former presidential candidate, in a statement.

Sanders praised the United States for “rightly” offering support to Israel in responding to the attacks by Hamas militants that have killed more than 1,000 people in Israel, but he insisted Israeli defense forces should not retaliate against civilians in Gaza.

“We must also insist on restraint from Israeli forces attacking Gaza and work to secure U.N. humanitarian access. Let us not forget that half of the two million people in Gaza are children. Children and innocent people do not deserve to be punished for the acts of Hamas,” he said.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Monday ordered a “complete siege” on Gaza and said such severe tactics are justified against “human animals.”

“We are fighting against human animals and we act accordingly,” he said. “There will be no electricity, no food, no water. No fuel.”

Militants from Hamas, the political group that controls Gaza and is recognized as a terrorist group by the United States, attacked Israel on Saturday. Videos of killings of civilians have widely circulated, and Hamas has taken hostages after the incursion.

Israeli defense forces have pummeled Gaza since the weekend with airstrikes on buildings and critical infrastructure.

Palestinian health authorities are warning that hospitals will run out of fuel by Thursday, and the group Doctors Without Borders says hospitals are already “overwhelmed” with a huge influx of wounded civilians. More than 1,000 people in Gaza have died.

Sanders condemned Hamas’s brutal surprise attacks on Israeli civilians who were murdered at a music festival, while driving on the roads, waiting at a bus stop or while enjoying a typical Saturday morning at home as “horrific.”

“The gunning down of young Israelis at a music festival is an image the world will not soon forget,” he said.

But he warned the weekend’s attacks “will embolden extremists on both sides” and continue “the cycle of violence.” He urged the United States and its allies to pressure Israel to minimize civilian casualties in any military invasion of Gaza.

“Right now, the international community must focus on reducing humanitarian suffering and protecting innocent people on both sides of the conflict,” he said.

He called the attack by Hamas a “major setback for any hope of peace and reconciliation in the region — and justice for the Palestinian people.”

And he said the attacks will make it only more difficult to improve the conditions of the residents of Gaza.

“For many, it is no secret that Gaza has been an open-air prison, with millions of people struggling to secure basic necessities,” he said. “Hamas terrorism will make it more difficult to address that tragic reality.”

Bernie Sanders says Israel is violating international law with blockade on 'open-air prison' in Gaza

Bryan Metzger
Wed, October 11, 2023 

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont at a hearing on Capitol Hill on April 20, 2023.

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

• Sen. Bernie Sanders is calling for restraint in the wake of Hamas's attack on Israel.

• He says the Jewish state is violating international law by imposing a punishing blockade on Gaza.

• Sanders, a two-time presidential candidate, is one of the most prominent Jewish politicians in the US.

In one of the most strident criticisms of Israel yet by a prominent American politician, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont is accusing Israel of violating international law.

"For many, it is no secret that Gaza has been an open-air prison, with millions of people struggling to secure basic necessities," Sanders said in a statement issued on Wednesday.

Following Hamas's terrorist attack on Israel over the weekend, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced a "complete siege" of Gaza, the densely-populated territory where Gaza rules. Gallant said that would include "no electricity, no food, no fuel" for the territory's roughly 2 million residents.

"The targeting of civilians is a war crime, no matter who does it," said Sanders. "Israel's blanket denial of food, water, and other necessities to Gaza is a serious violation of international law and will do nothing but harm innocent civilians."

Targeting civilians, even during a time of war, violates Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions of 1949.

Sanders also reiterated his prior condemnation of the Hamas attack, calling it a "major setback for any hope of peace and reconciliation in the region – and justice for the Palestinian people."

"The gunning down of young Israelis at a music festival is an image the world will not soon forget," said Sanders.

While President Joe Biden and lawmakers on Capitol Hill have pledged their unwavering support for Israel in the wake of the attack, Sanders argued that the US must also "insist on restraint from Israeli forces attacking Gaza."

Sanders is among the most prominent Jewish politicians in America, and during his presidential campaigns in 2016 and 2020, he was notably far more critical of Israel than most Democrats. He has also previously called for placing conditions upon American aid to Israel, an idea that's radioactive in Washington.

His comments are largely in line with those of progressive "Squad" members in the House, who have called for a cease-fire in the wake of the Hamas attack.

Some of those lawmakers have also used the word "apartheid" to describe Israeli's occupation of the West Bank and blockade of Gaza, a term that's used by numerous international human rights groups but is largely eschewed by American politicians.

As the conflict unfolds, ongoing Democratic divisions over the US relationship with Israel are likely to come to the fore.

ONTARIO

‘It’s not what she said, but what she did not say’: Canadians weigh in on MPP Sarah Jama’s stance on Israel, Palestine

Jama called out "the generations long occupation of Palestine" and what she called apartheid and human rights violations in Gaza on Tuesday

Sarah Jama, 23, a disability justice advocate who has cerebral palsy, poses for a portrait at her home in Hamilton, Ont., on Tuesday, March 13, 2018. Jama is happy that the new Stats Canada statistics on violence against women with disabilities due to come out later this week will give them something concrete to work with. "The numbers will validate what we have been talking about for years," she says. 

Peter Power (The Canadian Press)



Joy Joshi
·Writer, Yahoo News Canada
Wed, October 11, 2023

MPP for Hamilton Centre Sarah Jama came under fire following her statement on the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in the Middle East with increasing calls from many Canadians demanding her to resign for her stance on the matter.

Sarah Jama, who was elected earlier this year in a byelection in Hamilton Centre, published a written statement Tuesday decrying "the generations long occupation of Palestine" and what she called apartheid and human rights violations in Gaza.

Jama voiced her support for the people of Gaza as part of her post on X, formerly known as Twitter, and the backlash followed soon after.

While Ontario NDP leader Marit Styles called on Jama to take back her statement, Ontario Premier Doug Ford went as far as to call for her resignation saying Jama’s “views do not represent Ontario.”

On social media, Canadians and people from around the world were divided in their reactions to what Jama expressed in her press release.

Many were in complete support of her statement.

But other Canadians are calling for her resignation.

"Sarah Jama MUST be removed," demanded the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs in Canada.

A Palestinian PhD candidate said Premier Doug Ford "will be in the dustbin of history" and "Sarah will be forever respected as a trailblazer."

While Jama chose to remain silent over the hours following her post being made public, the calls for her resignation increased and many discussed if the situation was enough grounds for her to step down.

Yahoo News Canada reached out to experts at the University of Toronto to ask if what Sarah Jama said could possibly serve as the basis for her potential dismissal.

"There is no employment law protection. The party has complete authority. It's not an employment situation as the party has privilege and power. There is no firing process either, there is an election," said Director of the Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Relations Professor Rafael Gomez.

"Her MPP status is not affected by what the party does to her, she'll still sit as an Independent."

Professor Gomez also weighed in on the sensitivity of the matter and how timing plays a crucial role when including opinions and messages in political statements.

"It's not what she said, it's about what she did not say. The timing is critical. If this was said a month ago, no one would have batted an eye. But when you say something like that right after what went down over the weekend in Israel, it resonates as you are not denouncing the killing of hundreds of civilians. The statement had to be contextualized and that's, perhaps, what her party members are trying to get through to her," Professor Gomez told Yahoo News Canada.

“While she will have to face the consequences that the party decides. There is a time to discuss the nuance, perhaps, in this case, right after atrocities have been committed wasn’t the best opportunity or at least that’s what it seems from the larger public reaction. What they saw on Saturday was heinous. Period.”

Professor Gomez was quick to draw a contrast between the Sarah Jama situation and another hot story at the moment that involves Air Canada and a pilot.

Air Canada took one of their Montreal-based B787 first officers out of service on Monday after discovering posts that allegedly showed the pilot at a demonstration, holding anti-Israel signs.

The issue left many Canadians divided.

But "unlike the pilot whose fate will be decided by Air Canada, Sarah Jama's position in her seat will be decided by the people of her electorate," Professor Gomez said.

After almost a complete day of silence, the MPP for Hamilton Centre apologized for her choice of words in the post and issued a follow up statement.

"To be clear, I unequivocally condemn terrorism by Hamas on thousands of Israeli civilians. I also believe that Israel’s bombardment and siege on civilians in Gaza, as was also noted by the United Nations, is wrong. As a member of the Ontario NDP caucus,"

"I stand by the position of our federal party, and believe that violence against civilians is never justified, and that there is no military solution to this conflict," Jama posted on X earlier on Wednesday.

Whether Jama will be pressured further to resign or how her electorate sees the latest development remains to be seen, but what’s clear is that the Canada of 2023 remains divided on the Israel-Palestine issue.

CANADIAN PEACE ACTIVIST
Revered peace activist is missing after sending harrowing text message during Hamas assault

Rich Schapiro and Marissa Parra
Tue, October 10, 2023 a

As soon as she heard that Hamas militants were launching attacks in Israel, Avital Brown sent a WhatsApp message to her friend Vivian Silver, a Canadian-born peace activist who lived near the Gaza Strip.

In less than a minute, Silver, 74, responded from her home in Kibbutz Be’eri.

“It’s absolute chaos here,” she wrote in Hebrew at 7:54 a.m. Saturday, according to text messages shared with NBC News. “Terrorists have infiltrated Be’eri. There is shooting and screaming.”

Brown replied immediately but never heard back.

Silver is among those feared to have been killed on the spot or abducted by the militants and taken to Gaza, a place she knows well.

For nearly 50 years, Silver has worked to improve the plight of Palestinians and create a shared society between Jews and Arabs, having gone so far as to meet cancer-stricken Gaza residents at the border crossing and drive them to Jerusalem for treatment.

The silver-haired grandmother is regarded on both sides of the border as an irrepressible force, according to those who know and work with her.

“I’ve talked to Palestinians who feel completely devastated, like it was a family member who was taken,” said Aziz Abu Sarah, a Palestinian American who operates MEJDI Tours, which offers trips to Israel led by guides from both sides of the conflict.

“I hope that the people who took her realize who she is and what a beautiful person she is,” Abu Sarah added.

While Abu Sarah and other friends and family members don’t know what exactly happened to Silver, the lack of news leads them to believe she is among the Israeli captives in Gaza.

“No one told us if Israeli soldiers got to her house yet,” her son Yonatan Zeigen told Canada’s Globe and Mail newspaper. “So there is the possibility that’s she dead there, inside. But from what we gather she’s in Gaza.”

Zeigen told NBC News Tuesday morning that the authorities were still clearing the kibbutz of explosives and he had yet to hear any news about his mother.

Gershon Baskin, an activist who helped negotiate the release of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier Hamas took captive in 2006 and set free five years later, has known Silver for more than 30 years.

“She has lots of friends in Gaza and in the Bedouin community in Israel who, I am sure, want her to be returned safely to her family,” he said in a message to NBC News. “This is a great tragedy for her family and for all of us. I am sure that she will be there to help the other more than 100 hostages, and I have no doubt that her captors will have great respect for her.”

Silver, who was born and raised in Winnipeg, moved to Israel in 1974.

She first worked for a nonprofit organization devoted to social justice and gender equality. Years later, in 1998, she became the executive director of the Negev Institute for Strategies of Peace and Development, where she launched an initiative to train and empower the local Arab Bedouin community.

She and her Arab partner in the effort, Amal Elsana Alh'jooj, were awarded the 2011 Victor J. Goldberg Peace Prize from the New York-based Institute for International Education. Judges praised their "efforts to promote peace and development within society."

In early 2014, she retired, became a grandmother and found herself in a period of soul-searching.

"I had to acknowledge that after 40 years of peace activism, the Left, of which I was a proud member, had not succeeded in achieving its goal of ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," she wrote in a 2018 blog post. "I decided that I would no longer do more of the same thing, that I must find another way."

She became a leader of Women Wage Peace, a grassroots organization made up of thousands of Arab and Jewish women seeking a resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

“I spent much time in Gaza until the outbreak of the second intifada. We continued working with organizations in the West Bank,” Silver wrote in the post. “That’s why it especially infuriates me when people claim: ‘We have no partner on the other side!’ I personally know so many Palestinians who yearn for peace no less than we do.”

Back home, longtime friends in Canada see Silver as a paragon of activism and moral clarity.

"She is somebody who has always, always worked for what she believes in, and she believes in peace and a shared society in Israel," said Lynne Mitchell, who met Silver at a B'nai B'rith Youth Organization event when they were 15. "She went there for that purpose when she was very young and has remained true to that her whole life."

Silver is a widow with two adult sons. Her American husband died four years ago, friends said.

Silver’s activism went beyond leading marches and rallies.

In addition to ferrying Gaza residents to Israeli hospitals for cancer treatments, her friends said, she also traveled to the border to make sure Arab laborers who worked at her kibbutz got paid during periods when they were barred from entering Israel.

Others who work to promote peace in Israel see Silver as a "titan in our space," said John Lyndon, the executive director of the Alliance for Middle East Peace, a network of more than 160 Israeli-Palestinian organizations engaged in grassroots peace building.

"Its easy to be left-wing and pro-peace if you live in north Tel Aviv. She lives at the Gaza border, right in the most difficult place for Israelis, where you can't escape the reality of the conflict,” he said. “And it's not just about where she lives; it's what she does every hour of every day. She's walking the walk.”

An unknown number of Israeli soldiers and civilians were taken hostage by Hamas fighters who poured into Israel by land, sea and air Saturday to launch a surprise attack staggering in scope. More than 100 people have been discovered dead at Silver's kibbutz, according to the Israeli volunteer rescue organization ZAKA.

On Monday, a spokesperson for the military wing of Hamas said militants will kill one civilian hostage every time Israel targets civilians in their homes in Gaza “without warning."

Three days before the Hamas assault, Silver led a rally in Jerusalem where thousands of women — Jews and Arabs, secular and religious — marched shoulder to shoulder. Dignitaries from Israel, Finland and Ireland also attended, according to Women Wage Peace.

Brown, the woman who received the text from Silver as the attack was unfolding, said she gave her fellow Women Wage Peace member a warm embrace before they bade each other farewell.

Silver told her to come visit her kibbutz. It’s so quiet there, she said, according to Brown, who lives in Tel Aviv.

“I’m glad that I hugged her on Wednesday,” Brown said. “And I’m definitely hoping that it’s not the last time I get to hug her.”

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com




Israeli Humanitarian Who Fought To End Occupation Feared To Be Among Hamas Captives

Sanjana Karanth
Tue, October 10, 2023 at 11:26 AM MDT·4 min read

A Canada-born Jewish humanitarian who dedicated most of her life to helping Palestinians has gone missing after Hamas fighters attacked Israel over the weekend.

Vivian Silver lives near the Gaza Strip in southern Israel’s Be’eri kibbutz. After Hamas fighters launched a surprise attack on Israel on Saturday, the 74-year-old hid at home and communicated with her son over the phone, he told CBC News. She texted him that the militants were in her house.

“She has a really great sense of humor, so we joked up until that point,” Yonatan Zeigen, who is based in Tel Aviv, told CBC News’ Adrienne Arsenault. “We were joking and then we said, ‘OK, it’s time to stop joking,’ and just expressed love for each other, and that was it.”

The attacks by Hamas, the armed group that rules over the millions of Palestinians in Gaza, have resulted in over 900 people killed in Israel, according to the nation’s military. Palestinian officials say that more than 700 people have been killed in sealed-off Gaza and the occupied West Bank since Israel launched massive retaliatory attacks with the support of Western nations.

Many civilians are still considered missing as the death toll continues to climb. Hamas has claimed that it took roughly 100 people captive, and recently threatened to kill one Israeli civilian hostage any time Israel targets civilians in their homes in Gaza “without prior warning.”

Zeigen told CBC that he does not believe his mother is missing, but instead either dead in her house or among the hostages taken to Gaza by Hamas. Authorities were still reportedly clearing the kibbutz of explosives and have not been able to provide an update on Silver’s whereabouts.

Loved ones of Silver have told media outlets that the Winnipeg-born woman dedicated her life to ending the Israeli occupation and is highly regarded by both Israelis and Palestinians as a force who fought for lasting, permanent peace.

“She’s a woman of small stature, but in spirit she’s a giant,” Zeigen said on CBC News. “She dedicated her life to peace work. She came to Israel 50 years ago and just after the [1973 Arab-Israeli War], which is kind of ironic, and since then she was just involved in activities to end the occupation and to solve the conflict.”

Silver was the executive director of the Negev Institute for Strategies of Peace and Development, an organization that describes itself as promoting a society where Arabs and Jews can cohabitate while preserving their respective identity and culture. She and activist Amal Elsana Alh’jooj earned the 2011 Victor J. Goldberg Peace Prize from the New York-based Institute for International Education for launching a program to train and empower the local Bedouin community.

“I had to acknowledge that after 40 years of peace activism, the Left, of which I was a proud member, had not succeeded in achieving its goal of ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” Silver wrote in a 2018 blog post. “I decided that I would no longer do more of the same thing, that I must find another way.”

Silver leads the group Women Wage Peace, an organization of thousands of Arab and Jewish women seeking to end the Israeli occupation and create lasting peace in the region. She also volunteers with Road to Recovery, where she drives sick Palestinians from Gaza ― what human rights activists call an open-air prison with close to no access to medical help ― to Israeli hospitals.

“I spent much time in Gaza until the outbreak of the second intifada. We continued working with organizations in the West Bank,” Silver wrote in her post. “That’s why it especially infuriates me when people claim: ‘We have no partner on the other side!’ I personally know so many Palestinians who yearn for peace no less than we do.”

Aziz Abu Sarah, a Palestinian American who runs a tour company that offers trips to the region, told NBC News that the lack of news on Silver’s whereabouts could be a sign that she is among the captives.

“I’ve talked to Palestinians who feel completely devastated, like it was a family member who was taken,” Abu Sarah told the outlet. “I hope that the people who took her realize who she is and what a beautiful person she is.”

What is a kibbutz? Israel's farming communes were among hardest hit in Hamas attack

More than 100 bodies were recovered in Be’eri Kibbutz alone.

Dylan Stableford
·Senior Writer
Updated Wed, October 11, 2023 at 11:51 AM MDT·3 min read
2.4k



An Israeli soldier walks by a house destroyed by Hamas militants in Kibbutz Be'eri on Wednesday. (Baz Ratner/AP)


During their surprise attack on Israel that left more than 1,200 people dead, Hamas militants targeted several communal settlements known as kibbutzim near the border with Gaza.

What is a kibbutz?

Named for the Hebrew word for “gathering,” a kibbutz is typically an agrarian settlement in Israel. The first kibbutz, a farming commune known as Degania just south of the sea of Galilee, was founded in 1910. It’s now a museum. Today, there are roughly 270 kibbutzim — the plural form of kibbutz — in Israel. Most are now private but rooted in the socialist philosophy of communal and cooperative living.
What was the idea behind them?

“Jewish settlers behind the movement envisioned the kibbutzim as a place where Zionism met Marxism,” the Washington Post explains. “Kibbutzim and kibbutz culture were originally dominated by Ashkenazi Jews, or Jews of Eastern European descent, and were seen as less inclusive of those of Middle Eastern descent. These communities ranged from 50 residents to 2,000 and cropped up in places such as the border with Lebanon, the Jordan River and around the Gaza Strip, and many were originally built on what was then Palestinian land.”
Which kibbutzim were targeted?

Israeli soldiers remove a body in Kibbutz Be'eri on Wednesday. 

(Baz Ratner/AP) 


Reuters reporters who visited Kfar Aza, an Israeli commune just three miles east of Gaza, witnessed a horrific scene:

A baby's crushed crib lying outside a burnt-out home. Corpses strewn on streets. Body bags lined up on an outdoor basketball court. The stench of death everywhere.

Just a few days ago this was the sleepy, scenic kibbutz of Kfar Aza, an Israeli farming community of about 750 people, many of them families with young children. Now it's become a charnel house after Hamas gunmen burst out of the Gaza Strip on Saturday and laid waste to the village.

"Mothers, fathers, babies, young families killed in their beds, in the protection room, in the dining room, in their garden," Israeli Major General Itai Veruv said on Tuesday, the seasoned soldier visibly shaken as troops went door-to-door to collect the bodies of residents killed in their homes.

"It's not a war, it's not a battlefield. It's a massacre," Veruv said. Some victims were decapitated, he added. "I've never seen anything like this, and I've served for 40 years."

An Israeli soldier holds a dog in kibbutz Kfar Azza on Tuesday. 

(Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) 

Reuters: How an Israeli kibbutz 'paradise' turned into hell in Hamas attack

IDF DISINFORMATION/MISINFORMATION/RUMOURMONGERING

CNN: Children found ‘butchered’ in Israeli kibbutz, IDF says

GMA: The 'horrendous' toll on children caught in the Israel-Gaza conflict

Similar horrors were seen in Be’eri, a kibbutz of about 1,000 residents located in the northwestern Negev desert along the Gaza strip.

CNN reported that at least 107 bodies were found there Monday.

“Heavily armed militants arrived in Be’eri on motorbikes around 7 a.m., just half an hour after they breached the typically high-tech, tightly guarded border fence between Gaza and Israel,” CNN said, citing surveillance video showing armed militants taking civilians, including women and children, hostage before killing them.

The attack on Be’eri came around the same time as Hamas militants descended upon the nearby Nova music festival, where more than 260 bodies were later found.

Burned out cars are seen at the site of the rave where at least 260 were killed in a surprise attack on Saturday. (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)