“Everybody knows somebody who has been impacted by this. It’s heartbreaking.”
Richmond’s Rabbi Yechiel Baitelman was still very emotional when the Richmond News spoke with him on Tuesday, three days after Saturday’s lethal attack on Israel by Hamas.
Baitelman said his Chabad Richmond Jewish congregation is struggling to come to terms with the events on the weekend, when Hamas militants breached a border fence with the Gaza Strip and massacred hundreds of Israelis in their homes, on the streets and at an outdoor music festival.
In a swift retaliation, Israeli war jets have bombarded parts of the Gaza Strip, with an estimated 2,300 lives now lost on both sides of the divide.
One of the dead has been confirmed as 22-year-old Vancouver man Ben Mizrachi, who was at the aforementioned music festival attacked by Hamas.
Mizrachi went to high school with Baitelman’s son and he is mourning the loss, as well as that of the hundreds of other victims.
“What happened in Israel is an attack on every Jew in the world, as well as an attack on every moral, upright and decent human being,” Baitelman told the News.
“These were heinous crimes perpetuated on women, children and seniors.
“(Ben) was a classmate of one of my sons…he was an integral part of the community, he was a kind and special soul and had a big smile on his face all the time.”
Richmond rabbi's friends called up on reserve duty in Israel
Baitelman said he has many friends and family members in Israel, some of whom have been called up on reserve duty.
He attended a rally in Downtown Vancouver on Tuesday evening to show his support for the people of Israel.
“We need to show that this behaviour is completely unacceptable. And to show the people of Israel that they have our unequivocable support to defend themselves.”
Baitelman said he is praying for the “wounded to heal,” for those captured to be returned safely to their loved ones and for those grieving “to be comforted.”
He said he urged the human race to “recommit itself to kindness and decency (and) to defeat any and all vestiges of evil and hatred.”
According to media reports, in the sealed-off Gaza Strip ruled by Hamas, Palestinian suffering has mounted as the Israeli bombardment demolished neighborhoods and the only power plant has run out of fuel.
Meanwhile, militants in Gaza are holding an estimated 150 people taken hostage from Israel — soldiers, men, women, children and older adults — and they have fired thousands of rockets into Israel over the past five days.
The News has reached out to the Canada Palestine Cultural Association for comment but has yet to receive a reply.
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