Empty Shabbat tables symbolize Israelis held hostage in Gaza
Oct. 20 (UPI) -- In Tel Aviv and other Israeli communities on Friday, families of those held hostage by Hamas in Gaza set up empty Shabbat tables set for more than 200, symbolizing the missing.
Setting empty tables for prisoners has been a global Jewish practice of symbolic protest since the 1960s. Friday's empty Shabbat tables were set up in countries around the world.
In Tel Aviv, tables were set up across a plaza outside the Tel Aviv Museum of Art. At some of the tables, they even included youngsters' high chairs with children's cups and white roses.
The project to create the symbolic tables has been joined by more than 30 organizations, including the European Jewish Association, the Boy Scouts of America, the women's organization Momentum, Nefesh B'Nefesh, the World Jewish Congress.
It initially was organized by Mosaic United, the World Zionist Organization and the European Jewish Congress.
"Our Shabbat dinner table will not be a whole until they come home. Time is running out. We must bring them home now," said the Bring Them Home Now movement on its X account.
The World Zionist Organization's Department of Diaspora Activities Chair Gusti Yehoshua Braverman said, "The global Kabbalat Shabbat is a stitch in the fabric binding the Jewish community together. It serves as a reminder of our collective strength, hope, and prayers for peace and safety."
The symbolic displays occurred on the same day during which a Hamas spokesperson announced the unverified release of two American hostages in Gaza.
