Houston woman says family member missing from Israel music festival turned massacre
HOUSTON - The pain of the Israel war can be felt all over the world, especially in Houston.
Marna Meyer is one of the many, wondering where a loved one is.
"They haven't heard from him for three days," she said.
Her son-in-law’s cousin, Ben Uri, went to a music festival on Saturday in Israel near the Gaza border, that reportedly, turned into a massacre.
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"He was at the concert Friday night, and they found his phone. But they haven't found him yet."
It’s reported that 260 people where gunned down by the Hamas that invaded the festival and many others were taken hostage.
"They don't know whether he is one of the dead, because there were 350 people burnt in the auditorium or is he's been taken hostage," she said.
Meyer gathered with hundreds more Houstonians at Congregation Beth Yeshurun for a solidarity rally held by the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston.
"I know we're 14,000 miles, but so many Houstonians have family in Israel and so many Israeli’s in Houston. So just on our team of 32 on the federation," said Renee Wizig-Barrios, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston.
These Houstonians and the U.S. government describe the Hamas attacks on Israel as terrorism. While others, see it differently.
"My initial reaction is grief, but it's not a grief that began on Saturday, it's a grief that's been going on for 75 years," said Fouad Salah, a Houston local Palestinian community organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement.
He says he felt the effects all his life.
"My grandmother, her homes were bombed in 1948. They were forced to take refuge and raise a family of six in a one-bedroom apartment." He said.
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And these attacks are a reaction.
"We condemn the 75-year occupation of our people, and we condemn the fronting of this occupation by the American government," he said. "It's an expression of the violence that's been leveraged against our people for 75 years."
The U.S. government has confirmed at least 11 Americans have been killed in the Hamas attacks.
The White House has expressed unwavering support for Israel and has vowed to provide all the resources they need to defend themselves and locate their missing.
As so many, pray for their loved one’s safe return.
"We just hope and pray that we find him and the other 200 or 350 people that have been kidnapped to be found alive," said Meyer.