News Mania / Piyal Chatterjee / 7th October 2024
To commemorate the first anniversary of Hamas’s devastating attack on Israel, which started the Gaza war, Australians gathered for vigils on Monday. However, the gatherings were scaled back when officials issued a warning about stricter security measures.
Participants clutching Australian and Israeli flags silently listened to a reading of the names of Israel’s 101 captives who are currently being held captive by Hamas at Sydney’s renowned Bondi Beach.
Protests against the Israel-Hamas conflict have been launched by Jewish and Palestinian organizations worldwide, including those in Australia. These groups have issued warnings that the events may exacerbate tensions among communities and disturb social cohesion.
A day after discussions with authorities, certain pro-Palestinian demonstrations scheduled in Australia to coincide with the anniversary were pushed forward, but pro-Israel groups proceeded with the events, from Bondi
“According to Jewish tradition, a year after an event of trauma and loss, we are compelled to cease our mourning, but it’s impossible not to mourn when 101 Israelis remain in that hell,” Alex Ryvchin, of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, said at Bondi.
Ryvchin was speaking of the captives who have not yet been released from the 250 that Hamas militants took along with the 1,200 Israelis who were slain in the bloodiest attack in Israeli history, according to Israeli authorities.
Former prime minister Tony Abbott expressed his regret about civilian Palestinian casualties at an event hosted by the Christian organization Never Again Is Now at Parliament House, but he also praised “the way Israel has been so incredibly fastidious in trying to avoid them”.
In a statement on Monday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he condemned the Hamas assault a year earlier but added, “As we mourn and reflect, we also re-affirm a fundamental principle of our shared humanity: every innocent life matters.”
