At first glance, plans to rally in New York City on Oct. 7 might seem merely provocative. Then the date sinks in, and the true ugliness becomes impossible to ignore.
The organizers are not condemning the Hamas terrorists who invaded Israel or mourning the victims. They are preparing [1] to celebrate on the third anniversary of an attack that killed 1,200 Israelis, most of them civilians.
Women and children were raped, murdered, and mutilated during the slaughter. Hostages, including people who were seriously injured, were dragged from their homes and taken into Gaza as Palestinian civilians celebrated in the streets.
Some of those kidnapped were publicly paraded before being confined in Gaza. Of the 251 hostages taken from Israel three years ago, many were held in Hamas tunnels, where some were tortured and murdered.
Groups calling themselves “anti-Zionists” are organizing rallies in New York and cities around the world. Their message transforms the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust into an occasion for glorifying the terrorists who launched the attack.
“Glory to the martyrs, victory to the resistance,” say some flyers promoting the rallies. Some materials feature a person wearing a keffiyeh alongside an upside-down triangle, a symbol often used to signify Hamas.
Anti-Zionist groups announce a “resistance” rally outside New York’s City Hall on October 7, criticize Mamdani for “betrayal” https://t.co/jc9PVdDBrS
— Luke Tress (@luketress) October 5, 2026 [2]
This twisted framing condemns Israel for responding militarily after the Oct. 7 invasion. Calling that response “genocide” does not establish that Israel secretly intended to occupy Gaza and slaughter its inhabitants.
Israel voluntarily withdrew all its troops and more than 20,000 citizens from Gaza in 2005 under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Successful Israeli farms and high-tech greenhouses were purchased for millions of dollars by American Jews, including James Wolfensohn and Mort Zuckerman, and transferred to Palestinian ownership.
Rather than using those greenhouses to produce food and export revenue, Palestinians dismantled and demolished them. Soon afterward, the Bush administration demanded a Palestinian election, and Hamas captured control over the Palestinian Authority through armed power and its willingness to use it.
Hamas turned the territory it controlled into a terror state dedicated to eliminating Israel. Its gunmen repeatedly attacked Israel even before the 2023 massacre.
The Hamas government also diverted international aid intended to help establish a modern Palestinian homeland. Millions in cash and building supplies were redirected toward preparations for war, while pipes meant for water and sewage were converted into rocket launchers.
Other materials went into the sprawling tunnel network where Hamas fighters trained and hid. All the international money and goodwill failed to alter Hamas and instead helped it prepare for its invasion.
Hamas has also refused to disarm after promising to do so under President Trump’s widely endorsed Gaza Peace Plan. International peacekeeping and reconstruction plans remain stalled until the terrorist organization fulfills that commitment.
LIVE: Anti-Israel activists hold a ‘VIGIL FOR GAZA’ on OCTOBER 7 in Melbourne despite outrage over the date https://t.co/bwvwtYhkp1
— Avi Yemini (@OzraeliAvi) October 7, 2026 [3]
Those facts have not deterred organizers who claim that “resistance against imperialism changed the fate of our world forever.” As many as 25 activist organizations reportedly back the New York plan, including Students for Justice in Palestine and Within Our Lifetime.
Israeli government officials found 262 events scheduled for Wednesday across 37 countries. The Jerusalem Post reported 45 in the United States, 40 in Spain, 21 in Australia, 19 in the United Kingdom, 16 in Italy, 14 each in Germany and Canada, 10 in France, and eight in the Netherlands.
Many events are planned near Israeli government offices, embassies, and consulates, raising concerns about possible violence. Some organizers are so extreme that they have accused Mayor Mamdani of insufficient commitment to eliminating Israel.
A radical coalition accused the mayor of abandoning its cause, declaring: “The mayor’s claim of solidarity with the Palestinian people is meaningless when it is followed by no action and capitulation to Zionist pressure.” It cited his failure to arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the United Nations General Assembly.
Mamdani wanted the NYPD to arrest Netanyahu for “war crimes” in Gaza, but the United States does not recognize the International Criminal Court. Its warrant therefore could not be executed on American soil.
The mayor still refuses to say Israel has the right to exist as the Jewish homeland and became the first mayor in six decades to skip the annual Salute to Israel parade last May. His antisemitism plan also provides $6.4 million to Partners Against the Hate, whose partners include the Arab-American Association of New York, formerly led by Mamdani mentor and campaign aide Linda Sarsour.