Knesset Speaker Levy remembers Tree of Life victims

Wednesday marked three years since 11 people were shot dead by an antisemite in the Tree of Life Synagogue.

 KNESSET SPEAKER Mickey Levy: We cannot lose our state to baseless hatred.  (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
KNESSET SPEAKER Mickey Levy: We cannot lose our state to baseless hatred.
(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)

Knesset Speaker Mickey Levy commemorated the victims of the shooting in the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh on Friday, marking three years since the event.

"As I welcome in the Shabbat in Jerusalem, I remember the innocent lives murdered three years ago this week, at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh," he tweeted. "A pillar of a community full of light, happiness and sanctity was turned into the deadliest antisemitic attack in US history.

"Antisemitism is not only a Jewish problem but a social evil that erodes our fundamental human values. Almost 80 years since the end of the Holocaust, I still cannot fathom how Jewish people are still targeted for their Jewish identity alone, nor can or will I ever accept it.

"As Speaker of the Knesset, I am fully committed, as I stand proudly shoulder to shoulder with our Jewish brothers and sisters around the world, in this just fight to put an end, once and for all, to antisemitism. May the memory of the Tree of Life victims be blessed."

Wednesday marked three years since a white supremacist and antisemite stormed the Tree of Life Synagogue and opened fire on the congregants. He killed 11 people.

 The now vacant Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh.  (credit: BETH KISSILEF)
The now vacant Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. (credit: BETH KISSILEF)

US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris made separate memorial statements on Wednesday to mark the day and voice their support in the fight against antisemitism.