Nearly 2,000 people who support Israel in its war against Hamas rallied in Brookline on Sunday, according to police in Massachusetts.The large group marched around Coolidge Corner before a block party was held in the area for two hours.More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that started the fighting, and 242 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group.”Israel has every right to defend itself and to exist as a sovereign homeland of the Jewish people,” said Masha Gershman, one of the organizers of Sunday’s rally in Brookline. “We will be loudly, proudly and joyfully Jewish.””It’s important for me to be here because I see very strong similarities between what my parents lived through in the ’30s and the ’40s and what we are going through now,” said Susan Fried, a Newton resident who is the daughter of two Holocaust survivors. “We’re fighting terrorism. We’re fighting terrorism around the globe. We’re fighting antisemitism. We’re fighting hate, and it’s time. This time, we’re not going to be quiet.”Plenty of police officers kept a close eye on the rally. Two large dump trucks kept traffic away from the demonstration while K9 units patrolled the crowd.About 15 miles south of Brookline, a pro-Palestine rally was held in front of Braintree Town Hall. Those demonstrators urged Israel and the United States to allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza.The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war reached 9,700, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.Roughly 1,100 people have left the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing since Wednesday under an apparent agreement among the United States, Egypt, Israel and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas.NewsCenter 5 knows of at least two Massachusetts families who have been trapped in Gaza. A family from Medway has been able to cross the border into Egypt, but a family from Plymouth has been unable to do the same as of Sunday night.Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.Related stories:
Nearly 2,000 people who support Israel in its war against Hamas rallied in Brookline on Sunday, according to police in Massachusetts.
The large group marched around Coolidge Corner before a block party was held in the area for two hours.
More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that started the fighting, and 242 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group.
“Israel has every right to defend itself and to exist as a sovereign homeland of the Jewish people,” said Masha Gershman, one of the organizers of Sunday’s rally in Brookline. “We will be loudly, proudly and joyfully Jewish.”
“It’s important for me to be here because I see very strong similarities between what my parents lived through in the ’30s and the ’40s and what we are going through now,” said Susan Fried, a Newton resident who is the daughter of two Holocaust survivors. “We’re fighting terrorism. We’re fighting terrorism around the globe. We’re fighting antisemitism. We’re fighting hate, and it’s time. This time, we’re not going to be quiet.”
Plenty of police officers kept a close eye on the rally. Two large dump trucks kept traffic away from the demonstration while K9 units patrolled the crowd.
About 15 miles south of Brookline, a pro-Palestine rally was held in front of Braintree Town Hall. Those demonstrators urged Israel and the United States to allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza.
The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war reached 9,700, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.
Roughly 1,100 people have left the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing since Wednesday under an apparent agreement among the United States, Egypt, Israel and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas.
NewsCenter 5 knows of at least two Massachusetts families who have been trapped in Gaza. A family from Medway has been able to cross the border into Egypt, but a family from Plymouth has been unable to do the same as of Sunday night.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
