Thousands march in DC as they call for immediate release of Israeli hostages in Gaza
WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — Thousands of people made their way across the National Mall Sunday to deliver a message to U.S. and Israeli leaders.
“Bring them home,” the demonstrators shouted from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial, demanding the immediate release of the hostages held in Gaza on what marked the six-month anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel.
Jolie Bain-Pillsbury of Arlington was at the march and said she’s friends with one of the hostages’s family – they’ve paid a horrible price since the attack.
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“Her mother was killed by the Hamas horde on October 7,” Bain-Pillsbury said. “Her brother escaped, his wife, and little child. It’s a miracle.”
The invasion resulted in 1,200 people killed and 240 others taken hostage. Israel says more than 130 people now remain captive. The concern of rally organizers is for their safety.
“They are in inhumane situation. The Red Cross can’t even get to them. They don’t have food,” said Tova Rubin, of the Hostage and Missing Families Forum, which helped organize the rally with the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington. “They’re being abused and violated. The longer they’re there, the more chance they’ll die. They’re getting weaker and weaker.”
The demonstration also drew support from outside the District, as opposition party leader Yair Lapid flew in from Israel to join the rally.
The fighting in Gaza has claimed more than 33,000 lives, along with seven members of the D.C.-based World Central Kitchen. They perished in last week’s air raid by Israel, which called the deaths accidental.
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