At the invitation of the Les Amis de David association, chaired by Robert Chiche, between forty and fifty people gathered at 6:30 p.m. Monday October 7, 2024 in Niort, as part of“a ceremony to commemorate the first anniversary of the tragic pogrom” which took place in Israel.
In homage to the 101 hostages still held by the Islamist movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip, a wreath made up of the same number of roses was placed at the foot of the stele of the Jews deported from Niort, located rue des Trois-Coigneaux, on the train station side. railway: it also symbolizes “both memory and hope”.
A “lock that prevents any peace negotiation”
The audience, which included representatives of the City, the deputy for the first constituency of Deux-Sèvres Bastien Marchive and the departmental council, then observed a minute of silence. And a candle was lit, under a banner bearing the words “October 7 – 1 year – A candle”.
“If the hostages were immediately released, the war would end, said Robert Chiche, on the sidelines of a ceremony during which no speeches took place, as announced. But what Hamas wants is the conflagration of the entire region. » Hence “this lock which prevents any peace negotiation”.
“A date which tends to be invisible”
In the eyes of the president of Friends of David, October 7, 2023 is “a date which tends to be invisible” by those who “only focus on its consequences”.
“What the terrorists are aiming for, he adds, it is to isolate and stigmatize the Jewish community: we observe this in France with the rise of anti-Semitism to frightening proportions. We refuse the injunction to make a choice between victims: we deplore both Israeli and Palestinian deaths. »
