The following is an extended version of the story published in our latest print edition.

Hundreds of Bronx residents joined various elected officials on Sunday, Oct. 8, for a vigil for Israel at Bell Tower Monument on West 239th Street in Fieldston, organized by Bronx Jewish clergy members, to mourn and pray for the thousands killed, raped, or captured on Saturday, Oct. 7, in a surprise terrorist attack in southern Israel near the Gaza strip by Palestinian Hamas militia.

 

Vigil attendees prayed, sang, and addressed those gathered, condemning the attack, which prompted a swift military response from Israel. Elected officials included Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81), who represents much of the northwest Bronx where many Jewish communities live, District 11 City Council Member Eric Dinowitz, who represents much of the same area, Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15), whose Bronx district stretches from the north to the south, and Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson.

 

Also present were Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark, Assembly Member George Alvarez (A.D. 78), who represents some or all of Belmont, Bedford Park, Fordham Manor, University Heights and Kingsbridge Heights, Assembly Member Yudelka Tapia (A.D. 86) who represents some or all of University Heights, Fordham Heights, Morris Heights, and Mt. Hope, and officials from the Office of Attorney General Letitia James.

 

Most, if not all, had previously condemned the attacks. Assemblyman Dinowitz later added, “Let’s be very clear. The Nazi-like attack on innocent Israelis is 100% the fault of Hamas. The people of Israel share no blame whatsoever for the vicious murders, mutilations, rapes, and kidnappings that Hamas has perpetuated. Any effort to blame Israel for these crimes is simply disgusting.”

 

Dinowitz had previously denounced the Democratic Socialists of America who organized a pro-Palestinian rally “in solidarity with the Palestinian people and their right to resist 75 years of occupation and apartheid” in Times Square on Oct. 8, the Jewish holiday of Simchas Torah.

 

According to the Council on Foreign Relations, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict dates back to the end of the 19th century. In 1947, the United Nations adopted Resolution 181, known as the Partition Plan, which sought to divide the British Mandate of Palestine into Arab and Jewish states. On May 14, 1948, the State of Israel was created, sparking the first Arab Israeli War. The war ended in 1949 with Israel’s victory, but 750,000 Palestinians were displaced, and the territory was divided into 3 parts: the State of Israel, the West Bank (of the Jordan River), and the Gaza Strip.

 

According to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Hamas formed in late 1987 at the beginning of the first Palestinian intifada (uprising). DNI officials said its roots are in the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, and it is supported by a robust sociopolitical structure inside the Palestinian territories. They said the group’s charter calls for establishing an Islamic Palestinian state in place of Israel and rejects all agreements made between the PLO and Israel. They said the strength of Hamas is concentrated in the Gaza Strip and areas of the West Bank.

 

They added that Hamas has a military wing known as the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades that has conducted many anti-Israel attacks in both Israel and the Palestinian territories since the 1990s. They said these attacks have included large-scale bombings against Israeli civilian targets, small-arms attacks, improvised roadside explosives, and rocket attacks.

 

DNI officials said the group in early 2006 won legislative elections in the Palestinian territories, ending the secular Fatah party’s hold on the Palestinian Authority, and challenging Fatah’s leadership of the Palestinian nationalist movement. They said Hamas continues to refuse to recognize or renounce violent resistance against Israel and in early 2008 conducted a suicide bombing, killing one civilian, as well as numerous rocket and mortar attacks that have injured civilians. The U.S. government has designated Hamas a foreign terrorist organization.

 

According to one EU agency, some 4.5 million Palestinians live in the Occupied Palestinian Territories of the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and Gaza. Amnesty International has said of the Israeli government, “Laws, policies, and institutional practices all work to expel, fragment, and dispossess Palestinians of their land and property, and deprive Palestinians of their human rights.” It concludes the treatment amounts to an institutionalized regime of oppression and domination defined as apartheid under international law.

 

Click here, here and here to read our previous stories on this topic, the reaction from various local clubs and elected officials to the initial Oct. 7 attacks, as well as some background context to the conflict. In the meantime, we have also covered reaction from Palestinians and their supporters to Israel’s response to the attacks at different rallies. Further stories will follow.

 

Al Jazeera reported on Oct. 11 that 2,300 people had been killed on both sides of the conflict since Oct. 7.

 

For those wishing to donate to help humanitarian efforts in the region, UNICEF is coordinating aid for those affected by the conflict.