COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Jewish and Palestinian communities in Columbus said they are each worried about their loved ones more than 6,000 miles away as the war escalates Monday.
"My heart breaks and... there are no words,” Julie Tilson-Stanley, president and interim CEO of Jewish Columbus, said.
At least 900 people have died in Israel following the war that erupted after a surprise attack of Hamas Saturday morning.
"There are some Columbus community members who have unfortunately had family members already die in the war,” Tilson-Stanley said.
Tilson-Stanley said at first, the Jewish community in the greater Columbus area didn’t understand the magnitude of what was happening after the first attack. Now, she said they are horrified.
"Really since the Holocaust this is the biggest massacre of Jewish lives in over 50 years,” Tilson-Stanley said.
Meanwhile, some in the local Palestinian community feel that a resistance movement is justified.
"We can't talk about violence without talking about the violence Palestinians have been living under,” Yasmine Skalli, event coordinator for OSU’s Students for Justice in Palestine, said. "The only way to permanently stop this is to end the occupation which has been killing hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians every year and subjects millions more to systemic racist oppression."
But, Skalli added her organization does not believe violence is the answer for either side.
"The whole reason why we are engaging in this discussion is because we are against violence we are against all violence no matter who is facing it,” Skalli said.
A vigil is being held Monday night at 7 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center to mourn the lives lost and show support for Israel.
Skalli said her organization is also meeting with an Indigenous group Monday night to reflect on how Indigenous sovereignty relates to the current conflict in the Middle East.
Tilson-Stanley added if people are looking to support the Jewish community, they have a list of six ways you can help on their website.
For more information about the Students for Justice in Palestine organization, click here.