Hamas attack on Israel: Two years later, Bay Area Jewish leaders hopeful recent peace talks will end war

SARASOTA, Fla. - Two years after the brutal attack Hamas launched on Israel, the Jewish community in Tampa Bay is reflecting on the attack.

The backstory:

Since the attack by Hamas militants on October 7, 2023, there are still 48 hostages, 20 of whom are believed to be alive. Hamas launched an early morning surprise attack on Israel, brutally killing 1,200 Israelis and taking more than 250 people hostage.

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A young woman who has family in Clearwater was among the hostages, taken from a music festival. She was held captive for 246 days, until she was rescued.

The massacre triggered ongoing attacks by both Hamas and the IDF, the Israeli military. The IDF carried out a brutal retaliation, killing more than 67,000 Palestinians in Gaza.

Over the last two years, Hamas has released some hostages and there have been talks to reach a deal to end the war, but it has continued. Israel and Hamas are currently engaged in discussions in Egypt to end the war, and negotiators and mediators work to advance President Donald Trump's proposed ceasefire plan.

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Egyptian officials said the U.S. delegation will join the discussions on Wednesday.

Local perspective:

"It was the worst killing, the worst massacre, the deadliest day for the Jewish community since World War II," Shepard Englander, the CEO of the Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee, said.

Jewish leaders around the Tampa Bay area said the horrific images of the killings will be engrained in their minds forever.

"No one expected that this would go on for two years, that we would still have hostages held captive in tunnels in the dark," Englander said.

READ: Hamas says it agrees to release all hostages under Trump’s peace plan

Leaders said their top concern remains making sure that Hamas releases the last of the hostages.

"It didn't matter who they were," Jonathan Ellis, the chair of the Tampa Jewish Community Relations Council, said. "It didn't matter what they were, there wasn't any military purpose for any of this. This was just to bring killing, slaughter, rape, dismemberment, disfigurement to the Israeli population."

They believe the Hamas attack will serve as a notable moment in Israel's history.

"The fact remains, you still have Hamas in control in Gaza, you still have Hamas terrorizing its own citizens, and you still have a potential threat by Hamas to Israel," Ellis said.

Local leaders said the attack brought the Jewish community together around the world.

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"We have to be more careful, and we have to make sure that we never allow this to happen to civilians, women and children in Israel or anywhere else," Englander said.

They're hopeful these recent peace talks will end with the release of all the hostages.

"If you can wind up having Hamas removed, you may actually have a better area, not only for Israel, but actually for the Palestinian people in Gaza, for the Palestinians in general, and for the entire Middle East," Ellis said.

What's next:

The Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee is holding a remembrance event at 3 p.m. on Sunday at the Moganroth Event Center in Sarasota.

Englander said Israel's former Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant, will attend the event and join in reflection on the October 7, 2023 attack. Gallant was serving as the Minister of Defense at the time.