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Tens of thousands of people marched on the National Mall in Washington D.C on Tuesday in support of Israel as its war with Hamas entered a second month.
Nammi Ichilov, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of San Antonio, led a group of 150 people to join the March for Israel. Organizers say more than 290,000 people took part, making it the largest Jewish gathering in U.S. history.
"It was a very strong and unifying experience to be able to be with so many people and feel their energy at a time when we really need community," Ichilov said.
He added that the march was meant to show solidarity with Israel in its war against Hamas and share hopes for peace in Gaza.
"As much as we feel the pain of the Palestinian suffering, the reality is they are suffering [in Gaza] because they are under the leadership of a terrorist organization," he said.
Israel's relentless air strikes following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack have provoked international condemnation and calls for elected officials to support a ceasefire, something Israel has refused to do unless all of the hostages taken by Hamas are released.
"What's happening in Israel is difficult enough. What's happening in Israel is a war and the people who need to manage that war are privy to information that we will never know or be privy to," he said. "The challenge we have is in our communities, in our neighborhoods and our cities in the United States — we have complexities and challenges that we're not sure how to address."
That includes a rise in antisemitism across the U.S.
Since the Israel-Hamas war began, the Anti-Defamation League has documented 832 incidents of assault, vandalism, and harassment against Jews in the U.S. That's an increase of more than 300% from the same period last year.
And the Council on American-Islamic Relations documented 1,283 anti-Arab and anti-Muslim bias incidents in the U.S.since Oct. 7— a rise of more than 200% from the same time last year.
"We have to be able to have safe communities for all faiths, for all cultures, for all ethnicities. We can't be living in a world where hate rules and people suffer because of it," he said.
The march was also meant to take a stand against antisemitism — something Ichilov said his organization will continue working on back home.
Editor's Note: This story was updated to reflect that organizers placed the march's total attendance at over 290,000 people.
