Matani Ravenna, a 29-year-old Cheyenne resident who grew up in Israel, said he was speechless when he learned of the attack initiated by Hamas against his native land on Saturday.

Ravenna covered his mouth as he watched the images of people who were killed flash across the TV screen — he recognized many of them as fellow conscripts he’d served with during his time in the Israeli army.

All Israeli men are required to enlist by the age of 18, Ravenna said. He had participated in three campaigns by the time he was 26 years old.

“My heart is broken,” Ravenna said. “How can you portray this immense distress, especially being here and not being able to assist in any way?”

Local members of the Jewish and Israeli community gathered in front of the steps of the Wyoming Capitol on a cold Monday night, where a vigil of prayer and song honored those affected by the latest Hamas-Israel war.

“What happened is not a protection of people,” Ravenna said. “What happened (was an) atrocious attack against helpless victims who were just waking up in their beds.”

About 40 to 50 people gathered for the local vigil. Some were Jewish, some were Israeli, and some were simply allies who were there to show their support. Some people held signs that displayed the Israeli flag, while other signs read “We stand with Israel” or “Don’t Justify Acts of Evil.”

Ravenna held a sign that displayed the photos of five men who were killed during the Hamas invasion, all of whom were fellow conscripts he had befriended during his time in the Israeli army.

“I insisted on holding this (sign),” Ravenna told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. “I gotta tell you that, as we speak, more and more names are declassified. And I find myself sobbing throughout the day with every message that is declassified.”

A pain felt from 6,000 miles away

Noam Mantaka is another Cheyenne resident from Israel who helped Ravenna organize the vigil just hours before it was held.

Mantaka, a local businessman who owns a food truck called Noam’s Table, has a son and a daughter who are currently in Israel — both of whom he was able to get in contact with after the start of the invasion.

“It’s hard for me to talk about my son and daughter in Israel,” Mantaka told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. “The war came, and I’m thinking about my son. ... I never had the chance to talk to him, tell him how I feel.”

During the vigil, Mantaka continued to wipe tears from his eyes as he held two signs, one of which read “Bring the families back together.”

“They need to come back in one piece,” Mantaka said to the gathered crowd. “This is not fair, this is not justified ... this is not the way to fight.”

Ashkelon is a city in Israel located just 8 miles from the Gaza border, and it was home to Ravenna before he moved to the United States. His grandmother, who lives in the southern part of the city, was nearly kidnapped during the invasion.

“We saw on the news how terrorists were raiding her neighborhood,” Ravenna said. “Luckily, my aunt picked her up just prior. We had a small miracle; our brothers and sisters did not. There’s a lot of tragedies going on. I am here, but I felt like I need to do something. I felt like I can’t sit quietly.”

In just over three days, at least 1,900 people were killed since the first attacks, according to a CNN report, with at least 100 more taken hostage. Jason Bloomberg, a family medicine doctor from Cheyenne, said this was “the biggest number of Jews killed in a single day” since the Holocaust.

“This is what these mass murderers want,” Bloomberg said.“And they not only murdered Jews. They murdered Arab-Israelis and Palestinians.”

Standing in solidarity with the victims

Before the vigil was held, Gov. Mark Gordon ordered all flags in Wyoming to be flown at half-staff in honor of those who died in Israel.

“Wyoming stands firmly by our ally Israel as she defends her people from the cowardly attacks of Hamas,” Gordon said in a news release. “We vehemently condemn the horrendous actions of these terrorists.”

If there was one message to be taken away from Monday’s vigil, it was the solidarity of people for every life lost during the bloody conflict between Hamas and Israel.

“We’re here not because we have solidarity with the state of Israel or the nation of America, but because there are people, real people, in turmoil,” said the Rev. Elizabeth Mount, leader of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Cheyenne.

Rabbi Moshe Halfon from Mt. Sinai Congregation, a local synagogue in Cheyenne, said it was important to recognize the diversity of victims who died at the hands of the bloody conflict.

“We’re not here — at least I’m not here — just to say ‘Rah, rah, rah’ for our side,” Halfon said. “The Palestinians in Gaza will suffer as a result of this. In a sense, what Hamas has done is killed their own people.”