2 rallies miles apart: Pro-Israel, pro-Palestine groups gather after ceasefire ends

Two different rallies, two different causes.

Roughly 200 people, mostly dressed in black and holding red balloons, gathered Sunday afternoon at Arizona State University in Tempe to call for the return of hostages taken by Hamas after the militant group’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

Also on Sunday, a different crowd of about the same size gathered at Eastlake Park in central Phoenix to decry the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

“Your support is invaluable in demonstrating unity in the face of darkness,” Noam Yakar said as he addressed the ASU gathering. Yakar is with Chabad ASU, a Jewish student group that helped organize the event.

Attendees at the university's Hayden Lawn prayed and sang before taking a moment of silence.

More than 15,000 have been killed in Gaza after the breakout of war over Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel. The militant group released 100 of the approximately 240 hostages after Israel let go of more than 240 Palestinian prisoners. Fighting raged on after Friday marked the end of the week-long truce.

“When we say a number sometimes, we get lost. It’s a lot of people. These are real people with families. We cannot even begin to imagine what they’re going through.” said Amir Glogau, a speaker with the Phoenix Israel Situation Desk, another group that helped organize the ASU event.

“If you know one name, two names, three names, and you remember it, pray for them,” Glogau said of those taken hostage.

ASU’s Hillel Jewish Student Center also helped organize the demonstration.

Organizers remarked many of the attendees were students taking a break while studying for finals, but a lot of those present did not appear to be college-aged.

Valley resident Sam Sternberg, 39, carried a flag split between the U.S. and Israel colors and patterns.

“(Israel) represents democracy in the Middle East, as well as it’s important for Jews around the world that Israel continues to exist,” Sternberg said. “The world needs to hold Hamas accountable for (Oct. 7), and the world needs to recognize Israel’s right to exist.”

After the demonstration, those at the gathering marched to University Bridge and waved at vehicles as they zoomed under.

Pro-Palestine rally gathers after cease-fire end

Ayed Awwad knelt facing east toward Mecca while praying during sundown at Eastlake Park in Phoenix.

Once he concluded his prayer, Awwad stood and joined a crowd of more than 200 who gathered to decry the humanitarian crisis in Gaza during the Israel-Hamas conflict. A Palestinian residing in Arizona for seven years, Awwad, 42, said he felt an urgency to be at the park where participants held Palestinian flags and posters critical of Israel.

“To show our support to people in Palestine,” Awwad said of his reason for attending the event.

Dr. Fidaa Wishah, a pediatric radiologist, stood at a lectern at a small outdoor stage with a banner reading, "CEASEFIRENOW" in the Palestinian flag colors of green, black and red.

Wishah spoke, her voice shaking, as she shared her connection to Gaza.

“Today I address you with a heavy heart, and I stand before you not only as a physician and a compassionate human being but also as a deeply affected and profoundly impacted Palestinian American mother with my entire family in Gaza,” Wishah said.

Wishah was fired from Phoenix Children’s Hospital in June 2021 after her Facebook posts gained viral attention for claiming Israel is a “state based on atrocity, inhumanity, racism and cannibalism,” warning the country that its “end is coming sooner than you think.”

After a lawsuit against her former employers, Wishah told The Arizona Republic through a written statement that she "witnessed the death, destruction and suffering of so many members of my community" while growing up in a refugee camp in Gaza.

A man on stage urged attendees to fear no one but Allah. He explained that the keffiyeh, a black-and-white scarf largely associated with the Palestinian people, could be worn around the neck, as a headband like he was sporting it, or as a mask. Many in the crowd donned a keffiyeh-style scarf.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Pro-Israel, pro-Palestine groups rally at ASU, in Phoenix