Long Island Woman Reflects On Being In Israel When War Broke Out
LONG BEACH, NY — The community turned out on Monday to remember those killed by Hamas a year ago, as they continue to call for the release of the remaining hostages from Gaza.
Several local elected officials joined neighborhood clergy members at Temple Emanu-El in Long Beach for the October 7 memorial service.
“We must get to a place where we go beyond words, that we now have actions that show that we are together,” said Pastor Mark Moses of the New Life Church of Christ.
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The most emotional remarks came from Liat Cohen, a Long Beach resident, who was visiting Israel when Hamas attacked last October 7.
“We’re so grateful that you have found the strength for yourself [and] for your daughter Mya,” Rabbi Jack Zanerhaft said upon introducing Cohen. “I am so moved.”
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Cohen calls Israel her second home, as her parents are originally from there. The trip was for a cousin’s wedding, but she was also able to celebrate her daughter’s bat mitzvah. However, it all changed the next day at her uncle’s house. “He looked at me and said, ‘We’re at war.'”
Cohen’s main priority was her daughter, “to keep her safe, keep her close,” she said.
She sought a way to exit Israel as the war began.
“The chain of events that got us out of there were nothing short of miracles,” Cohen said.
Waiting at the airport for a flight to Amsterdam, before returning to Long Island, “It was the most beautiful sunrise,” she said. “When we got [to Amsterdam], we saw a rainbow.”
Cohen said the symbolism was not lost on her amid the tragedy.
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“I just keep holding on to those miracles and the light,” Cohen said. “Creation, not destruction.”
The service concluded by reading the names of the 97 hostages still being held by Hamas.
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