World leaders mourn Israeli victims and call for a ceasefire on anniversary of Oct. 7 attack

(JTA) — Days after calling for a halt in arms shipments to Israel and earning a public rebuke from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, French President Emmanuel Macron expressed his solidarity with “the pain of the Israeli people” on social media and met with the families of French hostages being held by Hamas. 

More than 40 French citizens were killed when Hamas attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

On the first anniversary of the attack, Macron and leaders around the world marked the day, often seeking to strike a balance between acknowledging the victims in Israel — Hamas killed 1,200 people and took hundreds more hostage — and calling for an end to the war in Gaza in which more than 41,000 Palestinians have been killed and most of the population has been displaced. 

Meanwhile, demonstrators around the globe staged outpourings of grief, commemoration, and various demonstrations of solidarity with Israelis and Palestinians and expressed outrage over the expanding Middle East war.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris paid tribute to those killed and kidnapped on Oct. 7 — including dozens of American citizens — in separate statements on Monday. They also condemned antisemitism in the United States and around the world over the past year.

Both Biden and Harris urged a ceasefire deal and noted the scale of death and destruction in Gaza. They did not explicitly blame Israel for that toll, instead saying that Hamas unleashed and exacerbated the casualties by hiding among innocent people. Biden said that he and Harris “support Israel’s right to defend itself against attacks from Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and Iran.”

October 7 in Europe

In Europe, leaders pledged their support for victims of Oct. 7 with varying levels of pressure for a ceasefire. 

The German chancellery in Berlin was draped with a yellow ribbon in honor of the Israeli hostages, as the names of killed and kidnapped Israelis were read in front of Brandenburg Gate. Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that Germany stood by Israel, but also called for a ceasefire and a “political process” to end the conflict. He said that Palestinians in Gaza “need hope and perspectives if they are to renounce terror.”

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer offered his tribute to the dead and said his country “must unequivocally stand with the Jewish community,” while pressing for a ceasefire and “the removal of all restrictions on humanitarian aid” into Gaza.

In Italy, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni commemorated Oct. 7 in a speech at the Great Synagogue in Rome. She expressed strong support for Israel and denounced antisemitism in Italy. She also lamented the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, saying they were “victims twice over: first of Hamas’ cynicism, which uses them as human shields, and then of Israeli military operations.”

The Vatican marked the anniversary with a collection of funds for Gaza. In a letter addressed to Catholics in the Middle East, Pope Francis said, “I am with you, the people of Gaza, long-embattled and in dire straits.”

The Spanish government, which has strongly criticized Israel’s actions in the past, reiterated its condemnation of the Hamas attack and its solidarity with the victims. A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that “a ceasefire, the release of the hostages, access to humanitarian aid for civilians, and an end to the violence are necessary.”

Beyond Europe, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese attended a vigil in Melbourne. Argentina’s Javier Milei, an outspoken friend of Israel, wrote “Bring them home now” in Hebrew and English on social media. Japan’s Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya condemned the Oct. 7 attack and said that Japan was “gravely concerned” about Gaza’s humanitarian crisis.

Other commemorations extended beyond the remarks of heads of state. In Budapest, 1,000 yellow ribbons, a symbol of solidarity with the hostages and their families, hung in public places around the city. And at a rural church in Thailand, the family of Watchara Sriaoun — one of six Thais believed to be held hostage by Hamas — prayed for his safe return. He went to work in Israel four years ago to earn money for his father’s medical expenses and clear his family’s debt.

Across the world, rallies and vigils for Israel competed with demonstrations against the war and outpourings of support for Palestinians in Gaza. 

Masses of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched against Israel’s actions and U.S. military aid in New York City on Monday. In Central Park, thousands of pro-Israel rallygoers called for the release of the hostages.

Meanwhile, about 600 pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered at Lakemba Mosque in Sydney, Australia’s largest mosque, amid a heavy police presence. Protesters demanding a ceasefire in New Zealand clashed with followers of the far-right Christian group Destiny Church.

London saw 40,000 pro-Palestinian demonstrators over the weekend, joined by thousands of others in Paris, Berlin, Rome, Manila, Cape Town and Washington, D.C. A man in D.C. set his arm on fire during a protest on Saturday.

Other rallies in support of Gaza moved through Pakistani cities, the Indian capital of New Delhi, the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, the Moroccan capital of Rabat and cities across Turkey.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, an especially harsh critic of Israel who has praised Hamas, focused a social media statement on the plight of Palestinians. 

“What is dying in Gaza, Palestine, and nowadays in Lebanon is not just women, children, babies, innocent civilians; it is humanity [and] the international system that is expected to serve humanity,” he said.

Although France provides few arms to Israel, Macron said in a radio interview broadcast on Saturday, “I think that today, the priority is that we return to a political solution, that we stop supplying weapons to lead the fighting in Gaza.”

 On Sunday, Macron’s office clarified that a halt to arms exports for use in Gaza was necessary to bring about a ceasefire and to “clear the way to the political solutions needed for the security of Israel and the whole Middle East”.

Netanyahu clapped back in a statement. “As Israel fights the forces of barbarism led by Iran, all civilized countries should be standing firmly by Israel’s side,” it read. “Yet, President Macron and other Western leaders are now calling for arms embargoes against Israel. Shame on them.”