Israeli and American flags in hand, thousands of demonstrators gathered on the National Mall Tuesday to put forward a unified voice against Hamas during a “March for Israel.”
The march comes more than a month after the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by the Hamas terrorist organization.
The Jewish Federations of North America and Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations put the event together.
The rally ran for two hours, starting at 1 p.m., but attendees began arriving on the National Mall early Tuesday morning. While its National Park Service permit expected 60,000 people to attend the event, organizers said a crowd of over 290,000 participated in the march.
According to organizers, the event was “an opportunity to come together in solidarity with the people of Israel, to demonstrate our commitment to America’s most important ally in the Middle East, to condemn the rising trend of antisemitic violence and harassment, and to demand that every hostage be immediately and safely released.” Some 240 hostages captured in the Oct. 7 attack are still being held by Hamas.
Nobody was arrested during the rally, according to D.C. police, and D.C. Fire and EMS reported that seven people were taken to the hospital from the event.
What leaders spoke?
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Speaker Mike Johnson and the House Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries, came together on the stage and, with Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, joined hands. “We stand with Israel,” Schumer chanted.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog also addressed the crowd by video.
“No one will break us,” he vowed. “We will rise again … There is no greater and just cause than this.”
Attendees rally against antisemitism
“I missed school but it’s an excused absence,” said Eleanor Samuel, who attended the march with her mom.
The Samuels are from Los Angeles, California, and traveled to D.C. to show their support.
“The silver lining of all of this is that all of the Jews are finally united and there was a lot of conflict in Israel before the war happened, but now we’re all conjoined as one united people and it’s very special to see so many Jews traveling from all over to be here today,” Samuel said.
One of Sarah Adams’ kids attends the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville, Maryland, and another graduated from the school. She said showing up to the demonstration is part of carrying out the school’s mission.
“It’s a numbers thing to show that outside of Israel there is still support and the more people that show up, the more voice you have,” Adams said.
Jamie Schiffman helped organize the event and works for Hill International, an organization that she said works to help college students “find meaningful Jewish life and experiences.”
“The levels of antisemitism that we’re seeing are astounding,” she told WTOP. “Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but not when it’s violence and not when it’s projecting hate on others.”
Shalom Kolkl is a student from Connecticut attending the rally who said he has friends and family in Israel, including a sister who is there attending school.
“You see on the news, soldier after soldier dying,” he said. “It’s really scary. It hurts a lot and hopefully it’s over soon.”
Outside the rally, WTOP’s Mike Murillo reported a group of counter protesters, who said they were Orthodox Jews against Zionism, exchanged words with those entering or leaving the event.
Just outside the rally, police have blocked off a small area for a group of counter protesters. They say they are Orthodox Jews who are against Zionism. There presence has led to some words being exchanged between those entering and exiting the rally and the group. @WTOP pic.twitter.com/RiCmZN2vbQ
— Mike Murillo (@MikeMurilloWTOP) Nov. 14, 2023
District leaders ready for large crowds
Ahead of the event, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser confirmed that city leaders were ready for a large crowd.
“I think we can expect in the tens of thousands of people,” Bowser said. “I understand they’re calling it a march, but it’s actually a rally. It’s going to be static on the National Mall.”
Earlier Tuesday, the Secretary of Defense approved a request from D.C.’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management to provide 30 members of the National Guard, a spokesman for the department said.
The National Guard assisted D.C. police by “supporting some traffic safety points” for the demonstration, Bowser said, and provided help to D.C. Fire and EMS.
Though the Department of Homeland Security hadn’t identified a specific threat, it designated the march as a “level 1” security event, the highest classification in its system and one usually used for the Super Bowl and other major events, according to The Associated Press.
People that attended the march who want to receive traffic and public safety updates through AlertDC can sign up by texting MARCHDC to 888-777.
WTOP’s Neal Augenstein, Luke Lukert, Nick Iannelli and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
