Thousands of New Yorkers gathered Tuesday afternoon on the Great Lawn of Central Park for a solemn vigil marking the second anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks in Israel.
The “Circle of Unity” event honored the 1,189 people killed when Hamas militants launched a surprise assault on Israel, as well as the 251 individuals taken hostage, and celebrated the resilience of the Jewish people.
The program began at 4 p.m. with Tehillim (Psalms) prayers, followed by two songs and a symbolic march and sing-along around the Great Lawn.
While many have since been released or confirmed dead, about 48 hostages remain in captivity — including 26 who are believed to have been killed.
Chanting “bring them home,” attendees came to remember the victims, call for the release of the remaining hostages, and urge an end to the ongoing conflict.
“It’s a somber anniversary of a heinous act that continues two years later,” Mark Abrams told amNewYork at Tuesday’s vigil. “We want the world to know that we haven’t forgotten. We want to see all the hostages freed and peace in the Middle East.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu marked the anniversary with a statement, describing the ongoing conflict as “a decisive war for our very existence and our future,” praising Israel’s “remarkable resilience” and the “enormous power of the people of Israel.”
Netanyahu said Israel was “living through fateful days of decision” but that the military will continue to act “to achieve all the war’s objectives,” as negotiations continue in Egypt among officials from Israel, Hamas, the United States and Qatar over a possible cease-fire and hostage release deal.
Speaking from the Oval Office on Tuesday, President Donald Trump said negotiations, now in their second day, showed signs of reaching a deal, which he claims “will bring peace to the Middle East.”
When asked what guarantees he could give his Arab partners that Israel will not resume its offensive after the remaining hostages are released, he said, “We have a lot of power and were are going to do everything possible to make sure everybody adheres to the deal.
Gaza health officials say that roughly 67,000 people have been killed and the territory left in ruins since Israel launched its retaliatory campaign following the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks. A United Nations commission of inquiry reported last month that there were reasonable grounds to believe four of the five acts defined as genocide under international law had occurred during the conflict.
Israel has rejected the allegations it has committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza as “distorted and false.”
The same UN commission previously found that Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups committed war crimes and other serious violations of international law on Oct. 7, while Israeli forces were found to have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
As thousands gathered in Central Park to honor victims of the Oct. 7, 2023, another crowd assembled in Midtown Manhattan on Tuesday afternoon to protest Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza.
Demonstrators gathered outside the Fox News building, denouncing what they described as the media’s role in “manufacturing consent for genocide.” The protest was organized by Within Our Lifetime, a pro-Palestinian activist group that has led frequent demonstrations in New York City.
In a statement, the group called for people to “honor the martyrs of Gaza and all of Palestine,” accusing Israel of carrying out a decades-long campaign of violence. “For 77 years, Israel has waged genocide against the Palestinian people, and for the past two years, Gaza has endured a new stage of that genocide while the world has watched it unfold live on our screens,” the statement read.
The group also accused major news organizations of “lying and dehumanizing Palestinians” and of failing to cover the deaths of hundreds of Palestinian journalists.
“Honoring the martyrs means putting their names and stories right in front of the news outlets that erased them and forcing the truth into the spotlight they tried to bury,” the statement said.
