Over 100 days have passed since Hamas terrorists attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing more than 1,200 people and abducting more than 200 individuals.
Many of those hostages remain in captivity today, something which New York leaders reminded the public about in statements this weekend while joining an international call to bring the hostages home.
Though a number of hostages were freed in deals brokered between Israel and Gaza, some 136 people are still being held by Hamas in Gaza, as Israeli forces continue their assault on the territory in an effort to eradicate the terrorist organization before it can attack Israel again.
On Friday, Governor Kathy Hochul and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer joined a rally outside the United Nations’ headquarters on the East Side reminding all of what’s at stake, and appealing for New Yorkers and the world at large to support the immediate release of all remaining hostages in Gaza.
“It’s been 100 days since Hamas’ brutal attacks,” Hochul said in a post on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) on Jan. 12. “100 days of hell for the loved ones of those still missing. 100 days of uncertainty. 100 days of anxiety. 100 days of hoping for the best and fearing the worst. Bring. Them. Home. Now.”
Schumer said he spoke at the rally with Hila Rotem Shoshani, a 13-year-old hostage who had been freed in November. While expressing relief that she’s safe, the New York senator noted that he remains committed to bringing the hostages home, saying that he has “no higher priority.”
Mayor Eric Adams also expressed his solidarity with the Israeli hostages in a Jan. 14 statement: “This must end. Innocent lives should never be lost. The hostages must be released. We must #BringThemHomeNow.”
Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, meanwhile, attended both the Jan. 12 rally at the UN as well as a Jan. 14 event in Central Park in which more than 2,000 people walked and ran to mark the 100th day of the hostages’ captivity.
“Much of the world has shamefully stopped caring about the hostages still held by Hamas. But not all of us,” he wrote on Jan. 12.
Another local elected official speaking in support of the hostages was Queens Assembly Member Jenifer Rajkumar.
“It has been 100 heart-wrenching days since the brutal attack by Hamas. I pray for the release of the 136 hostages still in detention,” she wrote on X. “These are people’s children, parents, siblings taken away. Their families’ pain is our pain, and we will always stand together. #BringThemHomeNow”
