The Israeli-American Council (IAC) erected a monument on Friday afternoon in Times Square, New York featuring a table laid out in traditional Shabbat meal style with 224 empty seats, one for every hostage being held by Hamas in Gaza, the organization said in a press release.
The installation was an attempt to raise awareness among the US population of the efforts to secure the release of the hostages and hopes to increase global pressure on Hamas and their supporters.
This followed a separate rally that was held by the IAC a week prior which was attended by thousands of pro-Israel supporters who protested in front of 15 large billboards featuring faces of the hostages.
The monument has since been viewed by thousands of people.
299 individuals are still being held hostage inside Gaza according to the latest data reported by The Jerusalem Post.
A ruthless attack
At least 800 of the over 1,400 people killed by Hamas terrorists were civilians. Many of the bodies were burnt, decapitated, or otherwise disfigured by the terrorists during the assault. The terrorists also burnt down houses in order to kill the families inside.
More than 5,400 have been wounded so far as a result of Hamas’s attack and the fighting that followed.