Dozens of U.S. Congress members from both political parties will convene at the House of Representatives Old House Office Building in Washington on Tuesday to watch footage of the Hamas massacre on October 7 collected by the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit in a rare event that has managed to bring both parties together.
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The U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee approved the requests of numerous lawmakers and, in collaboration with the Israeli Embassy, will screen the video for any representatives and senators who wish to come and view it.
Some, like Tennessee’s Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen, will also attend the briefing that will follow the viewing, meeting with senior Biden administration officials who will detail Israel's policy and the White House's role in the war against Hamas.
"The briefing is no less important," Cohen said. "There's much we still don't know about Israel's goals and how cautious they are being in trying to avoid civilian casualties."
Outside the screening room, the representatives will be able to hear the voices of tens of thousands of pro-Israeli supporters gathered on Washington’s Mall promenade. The event, called March for Israel, began as a joint initiative of the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) along with the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, but has successfully drawn attention from across the country, even from Jewish organizations rarely seen together.
For example, the American branch of Americans for Peace Now, will walk alongside the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA), led by Mort Klein, who believes Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich is too moderate in his ways.
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Pro-Israeli rally in New York
(Photo: SPENCER PLATT / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)
The organizations all put their ideologies aside and joined forces to strengthen support for Israel, calling for the release of Israeli captives and warning about the growing antisemitism on U.S. campuses throughout the country. Accordingly, no organization officially sponsors the march, and none of the organization leaders will deliver speeches during the event.
The march organizers hope to reach the attendance numbers of other significant Jewish demonstrations of the past – for example, in 2002 during the Second Intifada, or in 1987 in support of Soviet Jewry. Those demonstrations drew 100,000 participants, and this time organizations are aiming for as many as a 250,000 participants. Judging by the march's permit request, however, the attendance will likely be significantly lower, at around 60,000 people.
What's certain is that several ultra-Orthodox yeshivas from New York and New Jersey have already, in a rare move, canceled their studies to attend the march. Even Yeshiva University has canceled classes, arranging for 1,400 students and faculty to arrive in Washington via buses. Celebrities like Juliana Margulies, Deni Avdija and Noa Tishby have posted videos and other content on social media to persuade crowds to join the march.