People across Connecticut are finding ways to mark one year after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
Gov. Ned Lamont spoke Monday night at Beth El Temple in West Hartford, which hosted a community memorial. A variety of synagogues and Jewish community groups partnered to host the event.
Speaking along with faith leaders and members of the Israel Defense Forces, also known as the IDF, Lamont reflected on how communities across the state came together after the attack.
"As I went around to the different synagogues, everybody knew somebody that was there, everybody had a friend of a friend who was there at that music festival, or was serving in the IDF or at risk, and I realized how close and tight the community is and how much that touched our hearts," Lamont said.
Organizers said the memorial is a chance to remember those who have died, to honor first responders and the Israeli military and to “stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Israel."
The event had so many online RSVPs that the Jewish Federation of Greater Harford's website said it could not guarantee walk-in seats due to the security and safety of the community.
Deborah Fish,81, and her two daughters were the first in line for the memorial event Monday evening. Fish reflected on why it was important to mark the attack.
"I'm a Holocaust survivor," Fish said. "That's what is important to support the Israeli Jews for Israel."
Fish was about two months old when she went into a concentration camp with her parents and her sister. She was 2-and-a-half years old when they all left Bergen-Belsen camp, and eventually were able to settle in West Hartford. Her daughter, Michelle Fish, said the events of Oct. 7 made her feel like it was happening all over again.
"Yeah, and the events in the year since then, and the antisemitism and the Jew hatred and everything else, it's just stuff you never, ever ever thought that we would see in the United States and in our lifetimes," Michelle Fish said.
Later during the service, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal sent a video message from Israel, where he had earlier met with officials to discuss avoiding further escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.
Gatherings were also held in Stamford, Greenwich and other cities across the state, in addition to other events over the weekend in support of Palestinians affected by the war in Gaza.
At an event called Day of Action, people gathered in New Haven for a pro-Palestinian rally, joining others in cities across the U.S. and around the world.
Organizers said on Instagram that people in Gaza “showed the world that the colonized can fight against their colonizer and win.”
“As we approach the one-year mark of Israel’s genocide on Gaza, we salute our people’s steadfastness and resistance,” organizers said on social media. “Amidst this genocide, our people in Gaza, across Palestine, and across the world remain steadfast in our resistance.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations said in a statement that it is "long past time" for President Joe Biden to use American leverage to “force the Israeli government to accept a comprehensive ceasefire deal that ends the genocide in Gaza, frees all captives and political prisoners, averts an all-out regional war and addresses the root cause of decades of recurring violence: the illegal occupation of Palestine."
Dozens of Jewish community members gathered Sunday night in New Haven, calling for the U.S. government to “stop arming Israel.”
“This has been a year of profound grief,” Miranda Rector, member of the chapter leadership team with Jewish Voice for Peace, said in a statement. “As a Jewish community member, I choose to honor that grief by demanding that the U.S. government stop sending billions of dollars in weapons to Israel. Enough is enough. We must take action to prevent further loss of life.”
A need for mental health care, official says
The leader of a Connecticut aid group says Palestinians living in Gaza are still suffering in the war.
Janti Soeripto is president of Save the Children, a Fairfield-based nonprofit that provides food, healthcare and education to young people around the world.
Speaking on Connecticut Public Radio's “Where We Live,” Soeripto described her conversation with a mother in Gaza, who was living under a tarp after having moved repeatedly to run away from the fighting.
“We were talking about all these issues — the lack of food, lack of clean water, kids had no shoes — but then she said to me: ‘But what I actually need the most is mental health support,’” Soeripto said. “And she sort of recognizes, she says: ‘When I look at my children they're so traumatized, I would prioritize mental health support over food security.’”
Soeripto says children in Israel have also been traumatized by the horror of the attack a year ago, while also coping with the fear of incoming rocket fire.
Statements from elected officials
U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy said the U.S. will “always stand with the people of Israel against any and all threats” and called for a diplomatic solution that “ensures the safe return of the hostages, an end to this war, and a two-state future.”
“What happened on October 7th was unconscionable, and Hamas must be held accountable,” Murphy said in a statement. “My heart remains with those grieving the loss of their family members and friends, and those still waiting for their loved ones’ return, as well as every member of the Jewish community, which has faced a disgusting rise in antisemitism over the past year.”
U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal said on social media Monday that he was in Israel. He noted that “pain and grief are deep and moving.” He noted he’s part of a bipartisan delegation overseas that’s visiting various Middle East countries and that he’s hopeful that diplomacy may “achieve a cessation of fighting, leading to the return of the hostages and a path toward normalizing relations in the region, along with humanitarian aid and rebuilding.”
“The searing shock, agony and outrage of that day is still raw and deep,” Blumenthal said. “I also remember vividly the resolve and resilience of the Jewish community in Connecticut and around the country.”
