Wednesday, October 31, 2007

World Jewry rallies for kidnapped troops

From JPost.com Oct 30, 2007, by ABAYE SILBER :

... events ... worldwide ... calling for the release of captive IDF soldiers Ehud Goldwasser, Eldad Regev and Gilad Schalit.

The rallies, petition signings and other awareness-raising events were largely organized by students as part of an International Day of Solidarity, coordinated by the World Zionist Organization and the Jewish Agency.

It marked the largest demonstrations by Diaspora Jews to free the IDF soldiers since they were kidnapped in June and July 2006.

Most of the events took place on college campuses in North America... six in Canada.... more than two dozen events outside of North American, in places ranging from Buenos Aires to Amsterdam to Kiev.

Synagogues recited a special prayer written by Sephardi Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar, and many planned to hold programs dedicated to the missing soldiers.

The organizers of the International Day of Solidarity are determined to prod the world into action. ..... The call to release the soldiers was directed at Iran, Syria, the UN, the EU and human rights organizations.

....Many human rights organizations have taken up the cause, and several countries have raised the issue in their legislatures. ...

....The largest rally took place in front of the United Nations in New York. ...Miki Goldwasser, Ehud Goldwasser's mother, spoke to the rally from Israel via telephone. Ehud's wife, Karnit addressed 20 campuses and communities by live video feed Tuesday night.

The events were launched Sunday at a rally at the Jerusalem International Convention Center. The crowd of 3,200 was addressed by Karnit Goldwasser and Jewish Agency Chairman Ze'ev Bielski. "The world is not doing enough to bring these boys back," Bielski told the protesters.

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