I’ve been thinking a lot about the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attack last week, and how it changed New York City, and the world, forever.
We lost so much on that day and in the years since: thousands of lives cut short, countless families shattered, and many more sickened in the aftermath or killed fighting the terrorist network behind the attack. The raw emotions that united our city in fear, grief, and resilience never truly disappeared, even as lower Manhattan was rebuilt, wars wound down, and life went on.
It’s not lost on me that Israelis are living through similar emotions as the second anniversary of the October 7th terrorist attack approaches. In a country so small, the continued war in Gaza and the fate of the remaining hostages weigh heavily on every citizen. I’ve written before about how New Yorkers were comforted by the solidarity we received after 9/11, but that has been glaringly absent for Israelis. Even in the immediate aftermath of October 7th, the world’s sympathy was fleeting and quickly replaced by hostility. Even before Israel responded, the air was thick with propaganda and false accusations. I’m sure you all recall the media frenzy over Israel allegedly bombing a hospital and the “hundreds of casualties” plastered on every front page worldwide in the initial days of the war, only for it to be revealed in the light of day to be a misfired Palestinian rocket that caused minimal damage in a parking lot.
The most urgent time for the hostages to be returned will always be today. The international community and American politicians deflect with empty debates about Israeli and Palestinian futures while they suffer. Bring them home now.
