Hundreds Rally in Burlington in Response to Israel-Hamas War 

This story has been updated to remove more specific crowd-size estimates.

Hundreds of people waving flags and signs crowded onto Burlington's Church Street on Sunday afternoon to show solidarity with the people of Israel in the wake of a terror attack — and the nation's subsequent declaration of war on Hamas.

The day before, another flag-waving crowd — smaller but still substantial — gathered around the corner in City Hall Park in support of Palestinians, who are under siege in the Gaza Strip as Israel fights to eradicate Hamas from the territory.

The dual rallies came about a week after Hamas militants killed some 1,400 civilians and soldiers and abducted others in a surprise attack, leading the Israeli military to retaliate. The ongoing conflict has left more than 4,000 people dead, and there's no end in sight. Israel has bombed Gaza, but a ground offensive is reportedly imminent, raising fears of more civilian casualties.

A coalition of local Jewish leaders organized Sunday’s event, which included prominent speakers such as Gov. Phil Scott, Mayor Miro Weinberger and City Council President Karen Paul (D-Ward 6). Representatives also spoke on behalf of Vermont's three members of Congress — U.S. Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.).

Speakers mourned the dead and emphasized that Israel should not be blamed for Hamas’ attack. The Islamist organization, which controls Gaza and is considered a terrorist group by the U.S., advocates for the elimination of the Jewish state and has said the attack was in retaliation for a long-running Israeli blockade on Gaza.

“This massacre of Jews is the worst since the Holocaust, and we will not be silent,” Rabbi David Edleson of Temple Sinai in South Burlington said. “Murder is not liberation. Rape is not social justice.”

In a sea of Israeli and American flags, participants held signs reading “Never again means now,” “Hating Jews is not progressive,” and “Hitler also blamed Jews for their murder.” Some held pictures of those Hamas has taken hostage.

Attendee Naomi Barell brought a poster with the words “This Is Personal” written atop photos of her 23-year-old son Zaq, one of the roughly 360,000 Israeli Defense Forces reservists who have been called up to service.

“It's very scary, and yet, I'm so very proud of him for doing this,” Barrell said. “[Never] in my lifetime have I experienced this fear for the existence of a state of Israel.”

Many speakers made a distinction between supporting Palestinians' rights and calling for violence against Jews. Mayor Weinberger said that while well-intentioned people can disagree about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, there was “nothing complicated or nuanced” about Hamas’ attack.

Gov. Scott also spoke about the conflict in no uncertain terms.

“I know there are some who have said there are two sides to this conflict,” he said. “In this case, the only two sides I see are good versus evil: victims on one side and those who seek to destroy Israel on the other.”

Sen. Sanders has offered more nuanced responses to the ongoing conflict. Earlier this week, in condemning Hamas' attack and the loss of life, Sanders urged Israel to exercise restraint in its retaliation on Gaza. A representative from his office read a brief statement from the senator on Sunday.

“​​There is no justification for this violence, and innocent people on both sides are suffering hugely because of it,” the representative read.

At Saturday’s “Free Palestine” rally, some speakers characterized Israel’s retaliatory campaign as genocidal. Participants carried Palestinian flags and signs reading “End Apartheid,” “Genocide is evil in Germany and Gaza” and “Stand with Palestine! End the occupation now!”

The Vermont chapter of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a socialist political party, and Vermonters for Justice in Palestine — an activist group that for years urged a boycott of Ben & Jerry’s over the franchise selling ice cream in West Bank settlements — organized the event.

Speakers, including local Jews and Palestinians, called for the U.S. government to end its long-standing military aid to Israel, which amounts to billions of dollars annually.

Wafic Faour, a Palestinian with Vermonters for Justice in Palestine, said Americans bear responsibility for Israel's oppression of the Palestinian people.

“Our families [are] dying because of your support and silence in front of your government," he told the crowd. "Are you going to continue to be silent?”

Sara Brooks, a member of the PSL, pushed back on the idea that the attack was unprovoked.

“The war did not start on October 7, even though that’s what politicians and corporate media would like us to believe,” she said, referring to the date of Hamas' attack. “This war has been going on for generations.”

Organizers collected signatures to put a resolution on Burlington's Town Meeting Day ballot that would promise to work to “end all support to Israel’s apartheid regime, settler colonialism, and military occupation.”

Ahead of the event, Jewish leaders in Vermont together issued a statement saying they were “appalled” by the pro-Palestine demonstration, which they said amounted to support for terrorism and would “incite violence against the people of Israel for defending themselves from Hamas.” They called on the rally-goers to condemn terrorism and Hamas’ actions.

Speakers on Saturday did not make reference to Hamas, but some endorsed armed resistance to Israel or said it wasn’t their place to judge Palestinian resistance tactics. They also chanted “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” a slogan Hamas has used as a rallying cry that some see as an antisemitic call to eradicate Israel. Others interpret the phrase as only a call for Palestinian liberation.

For Maya Sobel, a student leader with the University of Vermont’s Hillel, supporting Palestinians and Israelis doesn’t have to be contradictory.

“Anybody who chooses to support only Israeli or Palestinian existence in this land like a sports team is not on the side of peace, and they're not on the sides of humanity,” she said at Sunday’s rally. “You can and should support a free Palestine without inciting murder to Jewish civilians.”