A year later, the Jewish community in Arizona remembers a deadly terrorist attack

SCOTTSDALE, AZ (AZFamily) – One year ago on Monday, nearly 1,200 people were killed and over 250 others kidnapped by Hamas terrorists in Israel.

Members of Congregation Beth Israel gathered Sunday evening to remember those who lost their lives on October 7, 2023 and the hostages who never made it home.

“It’s extremely important for all of us to remember every single day, every single hostage, and ultimately look at the bigger picture, which is that we have to find a way to solve the wars,” said Martin Shultz, a community member said.

In the year since the terrorist attack, preliminary data from the Anti-Defamation League said more than 10,000 cases of anti-Semitism were recorded in the U.S., the most in a single year since the ADL began tracking it in 1979.

Rabbi Stephen Kahn says many members of his community have found a new sense of purpose and drive in the year since the attack.

“I really started personalizing it. If it was me or my family, I would hope there was someone out there praying for me,” said Allison Kierman, another parishioner.

Kahn suggests that the best way to help and support the Jewish community is to “understand all the nuances of what is going on in Israel right now.”

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