Israel has confronted Hamas many times over the last several years, but the militant group’s stunning attack on Saturday was unprecedented, Consul General of Israel to the Midwest Yinam Cohen said Monday.
“For Israeli nationals and their friends here in Chicago, the past 48 hours have been devastating,” Cohen told the Sun-Times. “Saturday morning, as things unfold right now, turned out to be the worst day in the history of the state of Israel.”
More than 900 Israelis are already confirmed dead, he said, adding that “these atrocities are really unprecedented.”
“They were killed in a very brutal and barbaric way,” Cohen said. “It was slaughter by Hamas terrorists in their homes. Mothers, children, elderly. Two-hundred and sixty partying at a music festival. We are appalled and shocked.”
Israel on Monday increased airstrikes on the Gaza Strip and sealed it off from food, fuel and other supplies in retaliation for the attack. The death toll rose to nearly 1,600 on both sides. In Gaza, authorities said more than 680 people have been killed, the Associated Press reported.
Hamas Monday pledged to kill captured Israelis if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s military targeted Palestinian civilians without warning.
In the war’s third day, Israel was still finding bodies from Hamas’ weekend incursion into southern Israeli towns.
The Israeli military said it had regained control in southern Israeli towns after the attack caught Netanyahu’s military off guard, leading to battles in Israeli streets for the first time in decades. Hamas and other militants in Gaza say they are holding more than 130 soldiers and civilians snatched from Israel.
Since the war erupted over the weekend, Cohen’s office has been inundated with calls of sympathy and support. Referring to President Joe Biden and Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s statements denouncing Hamas’ attacks, Cohen said the political support for Israel’s right to defend itself is palpable.
“This is something that means a lot to us, because America is our best friend, and Illinois is a major pillar in this alliance between the U.S. and Israel,” Cohen said.
Many people have also asked his office: “How can we help?”
“Entire communities have been destroyed, and the recovery process will be very long, and people want to help,” Cohen said.
He cited offers of help from the Jewish United Fund, the Jewish Agency for Israel, and Friends of the IDF.
Around 15,000 Israeli nationals live in the Chicago area, Cohen estimates, with probably the same amount living in the rest of the Midwest. There are also about 320,000 Jews in the Chicago area, many with strong ties to Israel, he said.
Cohen said he also has noticed a third layer of support — people who are not Jewish, but are “just strong friends of Israel and are now reaching out asking how they can help us.
“It’s not the biggest Israeli community in America, far away from that, but very much connected to Israel,” he said.
Cohen, who has family in Israel, said colleagues have kept in constant contact with relatives back home. “Some of us here, even at the consulate, have relatives or friends among the casualties,” he said.
Contributing: Associated Press
