Within days of Hamas’ invasion of Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Israeli Consul General Maor Elbaz-Starinsky in Miami spoke at Temple Beth Am in Pinecrest, where I serve as senior rabbi.
Hundreds of South Florida residents, including Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, gathered to hear him mourn those murdered by the terrorists. It was a solemn evening.
As we would learn, the Oct. 7 attack wasn’t just about a distant conflict. There were many families here impacted directly by Hamas’ brutality. Following his remarks, Elbaz-Starinsky went to inform a local family that their brother, a 38-year-old father of four , had been killed fighting Hamas.
Hollywood Mayor Josh Levy’s relatives—a 3-year-old boy, twin 6-year-old sisters and their parents—were also murdered as their house was burned down by Hamas terrorists who shot them dead as they fled the smoke .
When I woke up on Oct. 7 and saw the headlines streaming out of Israel, I knew nothing would ever be the same for the Jewish community. I prepared to address my congregation during the Sabbath prayers. I asked a friend who lives in Sderot, an Israeli city about one mile away from the Gaza border, what was happening.