Muslims, Jews on Long Island distraught over escalating violence in Middle East

Michelle Herman is distraught that the violence in the Middle East is not only continuing but escalating as the anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas against Israel arrives. She worries the United States is forgetting about the hostages still in captivity.

But she got some sense of hope when 300 people showed up in her backyard in Melville on a rainy Saturday night last month for an event promoting solidarity with Israel. She invited an active Israeli soldier to come, and when he spoke to the crowd, “you could hear a pin drop.”

“The fact that we are at the year mark I think is sad and disappointing and disheartening, and it’s important to remember that we need our hostages and we also need our land because we are surrounded by people that don’t want to compromise with us,” she said. “The people of Israel deserve to live a life of peace and freedom.”

As the anniversary of Hamas’ attack against Israel that killed 1,200 people arrives Monday, the Jewish community on Long Island is convulsed with angst, anger, pain, division and in some cases resolve during a time when the conflict — instead of winding down — may be turning into a regional war.

Muslims in the region are equally distraught as the death toll — now nearly 42,000 in Gaza, according to Hamas-run Health Ministry officials there — keeps growing. They are planning solidarity events, including a pro-Palestinian rally held on Sunday at the Long Island Rail Road parking lot in Amityville.

Laurice Abdelhalim, an optician who lives in Brentwood and is of Palestinian descent, planned to be at the rally. Born in a refugee camp in Lebanon to Palestinian parents, she said she still has relatives in Lebanon.

“I’m scared for my family,” she said.

She is torn apart by the violence that doesn’t seem to stop in Gaza and now is spreading to Lebanon.

“Nothing has changed,” she said. “I’m disgusted and I’m ashamed that America is helping. They are the ones that are sending bombs. They are the ones that are sending money."

Hamas' attack was the biggest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. Israel has been on the offensive since. Last month, it stepped up its campaign by killing top Hezbollah leaders, including Hassan Nasrallah, and launching a ground incursion in Lebanon. Hezbollah is a powerful Shia Muslim political party and armed group that is based in Lebanon, backed by Iran and hostile to Israel.

In response to Israel's attacks on Hezbollah, Iran joined the fray last week, firing nearly 200 missiles into Israel; most of them were intercepted. Experts contend the combustible situation has the potential to morph into a full-scale regional war.

Many on both sides, including Herman, had hoped the violence would have ended by now. She said the gathering at her home gave her a lift.

“On the one hand, while it is so devastating and there is so much hate and hurt and destruction, there’s also so much love and solidarity that’s been beautiful to kind of see in the community that I haven’t seen before,” she said.

Safed Husein, 39, who is Muslim, called the conflict "horrible."

"I never in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever live to witness anything like this,” said Husein, of East Meadow. “It’s a nightmare.”

Farhana Islam, a Nassau County resident who helped organize the rally in Amityville, said the conflict is “becoming a massive regional escalation of violence. It’s really a failure of humanity that really has allowed this to happen in the first place.”

Rabbi Beth Klafter of Temple Beth David in Commack said the Jewish community is in mourning and surprised the conflict is still going on but is taking action to support people in their homeland.

“Obviously it remains a tragic situation since Oct. 7. None of us ever thought we would still be in the thick of crisis going on a year later,” she said.

She is involved in solidarity gatherings on Monday marking the anniversary during which supporters will hear the story of one hostage and pray for all their release.

Some synagogues, including her own, are placing lawn signs with the faces of hostages, as well as plastic versions of Israel’s national flower, the red Anemone coronaria, which has become a symbol of strength, she said. The gestures are aimed at their brothers and sisters in Israel “to let them know we didn’t forget,” she said.

As Long Islanders send messages of solidarity to both sides, U.S. officials are scrambling to head off a regional war. President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken said they back Israel but have called for a cease-fire in Gaza and the return of the hostages. They have also unsuccessfully urged Israel not to send troops into Lebanon.

Hamas took about 250 hostages, with about 60 believed to still be alive in Gaza and 35 dead, according to Israeli officials. Most of the others were released; less than a dozen were rescued by Israel.

With Hamas now apparently weakened in Gaza, Israel may believe it can launch a knockout blow against Hezbollah after the killings of some of its leaders, according to experts. Israel in mid-September exploded pagers carried by Hezbollah members, killing at least a dozen people and injuring about 2,700, many of them maimed. The next day, walkie-talkies also exploded around Lebanon, killing another 20 people and wounding hundreds more.

Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran contend they are fighting for the rights of a long-oppressed people — the Palestinians — and will continue to resist Israel. Hezbollah last week killed eight Israeli soldiers in Lebanon, and has vowed to keep firing rockets into Israel until there is a cease-fire in Gaza. Iran said it will respond to any violation of its sovereignty with even heavier strikes on Israeli infrastructure.

Opinions differ on strikes

The emotions and opinions in Long Island’s Jewish community run the gamut. Some strongly support Israel’s counteroffensive, saying the country has a right to defend itself despite the civilians caught up as collateral damage.

Others deplore it, arguing that Israel has contributed to the region’s problems and is killing thousands of innocent people. Yet others back Israel’s efforts to respond to the Hamas attack, but are worried about the growing death toll in Gaza, which includes many women and children.

Rabbi Mendel Teldon said he is all in on Israel’s response.

“The only way there will peace in the world and in the Middle East is when Israel is able to do what military strategists declare is necessary and they have a resounding victory, hopefully with an unconditional surrender,” said Teldon, head of Chabad of Mid-Suffolk in Commack.

“While it is difficult and there is a lot of political pressure, there has to be a big boy in the room who is going to say once and for all you can’t stop in the middle of a surgery and let the patient just continue bleeding,” he said. “It’s not for the weak of heart, and war is never pretty.”

He said he believes Israel is conducting the war as ethically as it can, and that part of the problem is that Hamas embeds itself with civilians. In the end, he thinks, if Hamas and Hezbollah are gone, everyone, including Palestinians, will be better off.

On the other side of the Jewish spectrum, Kathryn Levy is horrified that there is no end in sight.

“I am devastated,” she said. “I am in disbelief that nearly 12 months later” with thousands of people dead, Gaza leveled, the West Bank in crisis and Israel attacking Lebanon, “that America still has not limited what Israel is doing.”

“As a Jew and as an American I feel deep shame that we’re doing this,” said Levy, a poet who lives in Sag Harbor. “And I’m not feeling too happy about our putative democracy because the majority of people in the country want this to stop and yet our leaders are unresponsive.

"I’m determined to keep fighting for a cease-fire and justice for the Palestinian people and now for the poor people of Lebanon as long as I can.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his military is fighting to root out a terrorist group that launched a savage attack on his nation and hides among civilians.

But Levy said she's “seeing more and more people among my Jewish friends who want this to end, who understand that this cannot go on and the degree of devastation is unconscionable and intolerable.”

Jiya Kowarsky, 77, a retired teacher who lives in Melville and is Jewish, is somewhere in between those two views. While she supports Israel’s counteroffensive, the death toll among civilians weighs on her.

“I agree with Netanyahu that Israel is in a fight for its existence,” she said. “Although it’s unfortunate that so many people, children, have been killed there, Hamas could end this at any time by releasing the hostages and laying down their arms.

“I don’t think it’s possible to eradicate them [Hamas]. But we have to debilitate them to the extent that they’re not going to be a formidable threat.”

She also thinks it’s time to go after Hezbollah. Israel was “afraid of Hezbollah for a long time. They were afraid to infiltrate Hezbollah, but they did in the last two weeks and it looks like they are winning with Hezbollah. To really land a knockout shot to Hezbollah is not going to be easy, because they’ve been building up their forces in the last 30 years.”

Nationally, some polls show that most Jewish Americans believe the way Israel is conducting the war is acceptable.

A Pew Research Center poll released in April found 62% of all American Jews say the way Israel is responding to Hamas’ attack is acceptable, while 33% say it is unacceptable and 6% were unsure. However, younger and older Jews often view the war differently, mirroring patterns in the broader U.S. public, Pew said. Just 52% of those 18 to 34 found it acceptable, while 42% said it was unacceptable.

Rabbi Michael White said he is angry the bloodshed shows few signs of abating, though he doesn't blame Israel.

“Hamas, they created all of this, and they are monsters and they are cowards,” said White, who heads Temple Sinai of Roslyn. “This war could end in a second if they would stand down and release the hostages. In liberal circles, the belief is that Israel is acting sadistically and disproportionately, and it’s a lie and it’s a dangerous one.”

He said while he and his congregation are praying for peace, calm, security and safety, he supports Israel’s efforts against Hamas and Hezbollah.

“Gaza will only be able to resurrect itself and become a community of safety and security for its residents when Hamas is no longer in charge and no longer has power,” he said.

Conflict goes back more than 75 years

Some Muslims on Long Island said  while they condemn the violence of Oct. 7, 2023, the conflict has a long history which includes aggression and occupation by Israel. They contend thousands of Palestinians have been forced to live in what they call a cramped “open-air prison” in Gaza with limited rights and access to basic needs such as food, water and medical care.

“The attacks were horrific, they were inexcusable crimes against humanity,” said Islam, the pro-Palestinian organizer. “Yet no one wants to rewind further and see” the roots of the conflict. Palestinians had “basic human rights stripped away from them for over 75 years.”

She and others contend Israel's response is way out of proportion to what it suffered, and is punishing thousands of innocent civilians.

"It is a complete and utter massacre," Islam said. "We are funneling money to a foreign nation that is killing children. The crimes they are committing with impunity are completely unforgivable."

Supporters on both sides said they are worried about the rise in antisemitism and anti-Muslim actions, especially on college campuses, where protests over the war have broken out over the past year.

Herman said she is “concerned about campuses and people who are taking a movement that they know nothing about and using it as a venue for hate and destruction. I think it’s really important to build bridges and have dialogue right now.”

Despite the bloodshed in the Middle East, some Jewish and Muslim people on Long Island see glimmers of hope.

Rabbi Susie Moskowitz of Temple Beth Torah in Melville said she has been able to travel to Israel twice over the last year. She found the situation much more nuanced than many Americans think, and came away hopeful peace could come someday — partly because there are substantial numbers of Muslims living today in Israel peacefully with Jewish people.

“When we are here, there are good guys and bad guys, and very strong divisions,” she said. “In Israel, Arabs and Jews live together, do coexist, and there are lots of efforts being done to create a future, a livable future for everyone. I know that doesn’t get transferred into the news and the media here because that is not what sells.”

Husein, of East Meadow, noted that historically, “long before any of this [crisis] happened, Jews and Muslims lived side by side together.”

At an institute where Moskowitz studies in Israel, one initiative is aimed at promoting Muslim-Jewish understanding, she said. Her group visited with some Arab-Israelis to hear their stories and points of view.

“They are proud to be Israelis and want to see a thriving, wonderful Israel,” Moskowitz said, adding that some of them also have family in Gaza.

“Wars end, so there has to be a creative solution on how to live together, even when our views on so many things are so different,” she said. “We have to look for the common ground, and that’s what the people I met with are trying to do.”