The former president joined Jewish leaders in New York and Miami, while the vice president observed the anniversary by planting a tree in her garden.
Former President Donald Trump joined Jewish leaders in New York and Miami on Oct. 7, a year after Hamas terrorists unleashed “an attack on humanity itself,” he said.
As the Republican nominee seeks to regain the presidency in the Nov. 5 election, he repeated his past pledge.
“Here is my commitment to you on the solemn date,” he told an audience at the Trump National Doral in Miami.
“I will not allow the Jewish state to be threatened with destruction. I will not allow another Holocaust of the Jewish people. I will not allow a jihad to be waged on America or our allies. And I will support Israel’s right to win its war on terror.”
About 1,200 people died, and 250 others were taken hostage in the attack on southern Israel; many victims were sexually assaulted and tortured.
Trump also promised to defend the Jewish population in America and to combat antisemitism, which has been on the rise as some people, particularly college students, protest against Israel.
Meanwhile, Trump’s Democratic political opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, said she would continue efforts to release people that terrorists were still holding captive.
Harris, whose husband Doug Emhoff is Jewish, said she wants to “relieve the immense suffering of innocent Palestinians in Gaza who have experienced so much pain and loss over the year.”
The couple planted a pomegranate tree, a symbol of hope in Judaism, outside their residence.
She promised, “to ensure that the threat Hamas poses is eliminated, that it is never again able to govern Gaza, that it fails in its mission to annihilate Israel, and that the people of Gaza are free from the grip of Hamas.”
“We’re not going to stop in terms of putting that pressure on Israel and in the region, including Arab leaders,” Harris said.
She did not directly answer a question asking whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was a “real close ally.” Instead, she acknowledged there is “an important alliance between the U.S. and Israel.”
Remembering ‘The Darkest Day’
The former president and some of his supporters, including political donor Dr. Miriam Adelson, say that if he had remained in office, the terrorist attack would have been prevented.
Adelson, who spoke before Trump at the Miami event, said Oct. 7, 2023, was “The darkest day of my life—of countless lives.”
She told the audience she was certain that enemies “wouldn’t have dared” to attack Israel while Trump served as commander-in-chief.
The audience applauded in agreement and chanted, “Trump!”
Visual Reminders
As candles flickered onstage, representing the souls of people who were killed, photos of the deceased lined a wall. Yellow roses and photographs sat on chairs, placeholders for the hostages.
Referring to those displays, Trump said, “These endless candles, photos, and empty chairs remind us why it’s so important that the toxic poison of antisemitism be condemned, confronted, and stopped … It has no place in our universities, and it has no place in the United States of America.”
Trump said he had spoken with relatives of one hostage from America, and they believe he is still alive now.
Earlier in the day, Trump commemorated the anniversary with members of the Orthodox Jewish community in Queens, New York, at a sacred tomb.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed.
