Thousands of Israel supporters in Europe call for Hamas to release hostages

Several thousand European supporters of Israel took to the streets of London, Paris and Berlin to demonstrate their support for Israel amid its ongoing war against the Hamas terror organization in Gaza.

European supporters demanded the release of the remaining 136 hostages still being held in captivity by Hamas operatives and accomplices after 100 days.

London was the epicenter of the latest pro-Israel demonstrations in Europe. Thousands showed up with Israeli flags and yellow balloons, which have become a symbol of the remaining 136 hostages in captivity, some of whom are no longer living.

Due to the high-security threat, participants had to undergo strict security checks before being allowed to attend the event at Trafalgar Square in central London.

Common placard messages – “Never Again is now” and “Stand with Israel” – while the crowd chanted, “Bring them home.”

Arthur Goldberg, a retired Londoner expressed the importance of backing the Jewish state during this difficult time.

“I’m here to support Israel, to support our community and our people,” Goldberg said. While he supports Israel, Goldberg also articulated his empathy for innocent civilians in Gaza.

“You have to have empathy with an ordinary Gazan citizen; they are going through a nightmare. However, there are 150 hostages that are being detained,” he added.

Goldberg, nevertheless, argued that Gazan voters who elected Hamas into leadership were responsible for the current difficult situation in Gaza and Israel.

“There are consequences to how governments behave, and they voted for that government.”

In 2006, Hamas won a whopping 76 out of 132 seats in the Palestinian Authority election. By contrast, Hamas' political rival, the Fatah party, led by PA President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank, secured just 43 seats. In 2007, Hamas violently ousted Fatah from the Gaza Strip and has ruled the coastal enclave ever since.

Some friends of Israel traveled for hours to attend the pro-Israel event in London.

Ursula Conlong, a former volunteer teacher from Wales, stressed that Israel supporters are connected via a nationwide network.

“I support Israel. The people that support Israel in England, we know each other, there’s a network,” Conlong said. “Israel is stuck between a rock and a hard place.”

She noted that the high level of security surrounding the event was due to serious threats against those publicly advocating for the Jewish state.

“What’s interesting about this event is how we are scrutinized coming in… but the other marches around the world, pro-Palestinian, there isn’t this security. Israel supporters aren’t trying to kill Palestinian supporters.”

Meanwhile, across the English Channel, Israel supporters gathered next to the Eiffel Tower in central Paris, France.

“I’m hoping to remind the world of the existence of the hostages, still unfortunately living where they are living in Gaza under the conditions they are living in, which is inhumane,” said Israel supporter David Landau.

He condemned the hypocrisy and hostility toward Israel and the Jewish people during this time.

“The Pakistanis have thrown the Afghans back into Afghanistan and the Chinese are doing what they are doing to the Uighur Muslims, but apparently the world is focused on one thing and one thing alone, which is hypocrisy and antisemitism,” Landau argued.

The U.S. Biden administration recently vowed it would continue to do everything in its power to secure the release of the remaining hostages, including six American citizens who were brutally abducted by Hamas terrorists on Israel's southern border with Gaza on Oct. 7.