Jewish community rallies in Central Park to remember 1 year since October 7 attacks in Israel
CENTRAL PARK, Manhattan (WABC) -- Jewish community members will come together in Central Park on Sunday to rally and march ahead of the one-year mark since the October 7 attacks in Israel.
The rally, which will meet at W. 90th Street and Central Park West at 11 a.m., is being led by the family of Edan Alexander, one of the hostages with ties to New Jersey taken during the attacks.
Last October, family members of Alexander and hundreds of others gathered in Tenafly to pray for the safe return of the hostages. One year later, many will come out once again to show their support with the same drive to bring their loved ones home.
Alexander was 19 when he was abducted. He graduated from Tenafly High School and is the son of Israeli parents, and was serving in the Israeli Army near Gaza when the attacks happened on October 7.
ALSO READ: Israelis to mark 1 year since the October 7th Hamas attack
Folks are marching while others are also turning to faith, as memorial events are being planned in light of the one-year mark.
On Saturday night, worshippers at the Marlene Meyerson Jewish Community Center on the Upper West Side prayed for hope and the return of the hostages.
One man, Peter Rabinowitz, told Eyewitness News that he was wearing jewelry given to him by his friend who survived the October 7 attacks.
"It's a sign of the amazing resilience of the people who lived along the border - a sign of the hope that there will be better days ahead," Rabinowitz said.
ALSO READ: Emotional rally held in Central Park pays tribute to hostages killed
It has been a year of heartache and anger that continues on both sides.
Protesters on both sides -- those in support of Israel and those in support of Palestinians in Gaza -- clashed in Times Square on Saturday trying to make their voices heard.
With tensions at home, the crisis in the Middle East continues on several fronts, including Iran, which fired more than 200 ballistic missiles at Israel just days ago.
ALSO READ: NYPD to maintain visible presence amid Iranian missile attack on Israel
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