Landmarks around the world have been illuminated in blue and white lights in moving demonstrations of support for Israel following the unprecedehted Hamas attack on Saturday morning.
The Houses of Parliament were lit in stripes of blue and white last night and the Israeli flag has been projected onto the exterior of 10 Downing Street, with Rishi Sunak confirming the UK’s “steadfast” and “unequivocal” support for Israel as well as the Jewish community in Britain.
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Houses of Parliament in London lit up in blue and white on October 9. (Photo: Getty)
In the US, the White House was illuminated by the colours of the Israeli flag last night “as a symbol of the United States’ enduring support and solidarity with the people of Israel in the wake of the horrific terrorist attacks committed by Hamas,” according to the White House Twitter/X account.
Kathy Hochul, Governor of New York, ordered iconic landmarks like the Empire State Building and the One World Trade Center to be lit in blue and white, and raised the Israeli flag at the Governor’s residence in Albany, NY.
“To the people of Israel: New York is with you. We will always be with you. Am Yisrael Chai”, Gov. Hochul posted to X on Monday.
The last time the Empire State Building was lit up in support of Israel was for the nation’s 75th Independence Day. Support for Israel has been demonstrated internationally in the form of landmarks bathed in blue and white lights across numerous cities:
Berlin's Brandenburg Gate was lit with the Israeli flag on Saturday night, and Paris’s Eiffel Tower sparkled in blue on Monday night.
Bulgaria’s Parliament building in Sofia similarly shone the Star of David in blue and white over the weekend, and Romania's Parliament building in Bucharest projected the Israeli flag on its facade last night. In Australia, the Sydney Opera House and Melbourne’s Old Treasury Building, among many other landmarks, have been lit in solidarity.
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People with Israeli flags watch the Opera House while it is illuminated in blue to show solidarity with Israel in Sydney on October 9, 2023 (Photo by DAVID GRAY/AFP via Getty Images)
The European Commission headquarters in Brussels also illuminated the Israeli flag on its exterior, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tweeting: “Today, Hamas terrorists have struck at the heart of Israel capturing and killing innocent women and children. Israel has the right to defend itself – today and in the days to come.”
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Pedestrians cross a street in front of an Israeli national flag displayed on a giant screen in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on October 8, 2023. (Photo by Sergei CHUZAVKOV / AFP)
A large advertising screen in Kyiv, Ukraine also flashed the Israeli flag on Sunday night, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying in a video posted on X that “Israel has the full right to defend itself against terror” and advocating for a show of unity in the international response to the attacks.
Demonstrations of support stand stark amidst a broader landscape of unrest and protest, with rallies both in support and condemnation of Israel taking place in cities across the globe.
