Warsaw synagogue holds service for war-torn Israel

A special service in honour of the war-torn state of Israel has been held at the Nożyk Synagogue in the Polish capital, featuring the chief rabbi of Poland and the Israeli ambassador to Warsaw.

Israel's Ambassador to Poland Yacov Livne (front row, first from right), Wojciech Kolarski, an aide to Polish President Andrzej Duda (front row, centre) and US Ambassador to Poland Mark Brzezinski (front row, first from left) attend a service for the war-torn state of Israel, at the Nożyki Synagogue in Warsaw, on Monday, October 9, 2023.

PAP/Andrzej Lange

The ceremony took place on Monday night, Polish state news agency PAP reported.

Guests included Chief Rabbi Michael Schudrich, Israeli Ambassador Yacov Livne, the US ambassador to Warsaw, Mark Brzezinski, and Wojciech Kolarski, an aide to Polish President Andrzej Duda, among others.

Prayers were said for Israel amid the ongoing war, after the country was attacked by the Palestinian organisation Hamas on Saturday.

So far, Hamas attacks have killed more than 700 people in Israel, according to news outlets.

Over 100 people have been kidnapped by the Palestinian organisation, Israel’s Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said on Monday. 

A further 30 people have been taken hostage by the paramilitary Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the PAP news agency reported.

Dziś w synagodze Nożyków w Warszawie dołączyłem do moich przyjaciół, Ambasadora Izraela w Polsce @IsraelinPoland @YacovLivne i Naczelnego Rabina Polski - Michaela Schudricha, aby uczcić ofiary haniebnych ataków terrorystycznych popełnionych przeciwko Izraelowi w ciągu ostatnich… pic.twitter.com/EkpyuCRn3U

— Ambasador Mark Brzezinski (@USAmbPoland) October 9, 2023

During Monday’s service, Schudrich said that the Hamas attack represented “an attack on every Jew around the world” and stressed that people must not stay silent in the face of “this barbarity,” the PAP news agency reported.

Schudrich added that Hamas gunmen had killed 200 Israeli civilians attending a music festival, while hostages included Holocaust survivors and children.

Livne said that the ongoing conflict constituted “the biggest killing of Jews since the Holocaust.”

The Israeli envoy thanked the Polish president, government and political parties for expressing "clear support" for Israel amid the Hamas attack.

He also expressed gratitude for gestures of support “in the streets of many Polish cities, especially in Warsaw.”

Livne said his country was grateful “to our friends around the world, above all the United States.”

The ambassador stated that Israel had no doubt it would “win this war that has been forced on us” and called for remembrance of the fallen.

During Monday’s service, prayers were said for the state of Israel, for its army and for the people kidnapped by Hamas, according to officials. 

The service concluded with the Kaddish, the traditional Jewish prayer for the dead, after which participants sang the national anthem of Israel, the PAP news agency reported.

(pm/gs)

Source: PAP, Reuters