Sydney rallies for Israel
FOR 15 seconds a siren was heard around Bondi Mizrachi Synagogue as more than 1000 people stood silently in solidarity with Israel on Sunday morning.
FOR 15 seconds a siren was heard around Bondi Mizrachi Synagogue as more than 1000 people stood silently in solidarity with Israel on Sunday morning.
The chilling moment, which was accompanied by a countdown, emphasised how little time Israelis in Sderot and other towns along the Gaza border have to run into bomb shelters when rockets are fired by terrorists.
More than 500 people were inside the synagogue, and a further 500 flowed out onto the park outside as State Labor Upper House MP Walt Secord, NSW Liberal Member for Vaucluse and the chairperson of the Parliamentary Friends of Israel Gabrielle Upton, Zionist Council of NSW president Richard Balkin, rabbis and youth group leaders addressed the rally.
Balkin said Israel is prepared to offer land for peace, but it has to be a two-way street.
“More than 8000 rockets have rained down on Israel since Israel pulled out of Gaza, constantly threatening the lives of millions of Israelis. And now, there are even more,” Balkin said.
“Enough is enough.”
He then read a letter from Israel’s Ambassador to Australia, Yuval Rotem, who was at a similar rally in Canberra.
“The world’s fastest man Usain Bolt runs 200 metres in under 20 seconds. If Usain is that far from a shelter, if a rocket alarm sounds in southern Israel, he won’t make it to safety in time,” Rotem’s letter said.
“Hundreds of missiles were fired from Gaza into communities in Israel, into homes, highways and schools. Children had to desert their playgrounds to stay indoors, students had to stay home from school to remain close to a shelter. Workers are disrupting their daily routine repeatedly to take cover.
“And yet there were no words of condemnation, there were no words of sympathy, as if Israelis are not entitled to these basic human rights.”
Rotem’s comments were met with bipartisan support.
Upton reinforced the NSW Coalition government’s belief that Israel has a right to live in peace and security.
“Israel is of course, as we want to keep reminding the international community, the only true democracy in the Middle East,” Upton said.
“We have a long and strong friendship with Israel based on shared beliefs of individual liberty, equal rights and the rule of law.”
And Secord, a former AJN journalist, said that he stands side by side with Upton. “While my colleague Gabrielle Upton and I differ on many issues in the NSW Parliament, we are united today as supporters of Israel and the Jewish people,” Secord said.
“We have one voice as we call on Hamas to cease those attacks immediately. No nation and its citizens should have to face such indiscriminate and unrelenting attacks.”
Secord recounted a personal experience he had while in Sderot earlier this year during a trip to Israel. He said his most chilling recollection was a visit to a children’s playground.
“It looks just like any in suburban Sydney, except for the giant caterpillar which snakes through it. As friendly as he looks, he is concrete … and he is a bomb shelter. As a parent, I found that a truly chilling experience. It is a morning I will never forget.”
JOSHUA LEVI
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