More than 1,500 members of the region’s Jewish community and local and state politicians somberly gathered Monday night at Beth El Congregation of Baltimore for a ceremony on the anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack in Israel.

Howard Libit, executive director of the Baltimore Jewish Council, said the goal was to bring multiple organizations together. Maryland has the eighth-largest Jewish population and the seventh-largest Muslim population among American states.

”We are hoping for a night of unity, a night of a little bit of mourning, a little bit of reflection and contemplation and hopefully at the end, some inspiration,” Libit said in an interview before the event began at 7 p.m.

Applause erupted as U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin said, “These hostages never should have been taken. We demand their immediate release without conditions.”

Part of the resolve from Oct. 7 is “a future where terrorism is a memory and Israel stands strong. Jews and Palestinians living as neighbors with security, economic prosperity and peace,” Cardin said.

At least 1,200 Israeli civilians were killed and 250 kidnapped by Hamas militants on Oct. 7, some of them still missing. Israel launched an offensive in Gaza, and one year later, hundreds of Israeli soldiers have died. The number of Palestinians in Gaza killed exceeds 41,000, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The fighting has spread into Lebanon and threatens to spread into Iran, which possesses a nuclear weapons program.

Gov. Wes Moore expressed support to the congregation and the wider Jewish community.

”We stand with you now. We stand with you always. We stand with you forever,” Moore said, adding that Maryland denounced last year’s attack. “Maryland stands with the Israeli people, and we support their right to exist in a region with the same sense of safety and security that we would want for ourselves.”

Many other Maryland politicians attended, including Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski, Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, former Gov. Larry Hogan, Rep. Kweisi Mfume and Comptroller Brooke Lierman.

As they approached the metal detectors before the start of the event, attendees were faced with five panels of photographs of all the hostages. Some photos had updates in blue that read “murdered,” “murdered in captivity,” or “released.”

Once inside, the synagogue’s hallway leading to the sanctuary was lined with posters of artistic postcards of hostages, mourners and soldiers created by Zeev Engelmayer, a Tel Aviv cartoonist and illustrator.

As attendees took seats in the sanctuary, they were handed yellow ribbons and stickers as signs of support and solidarity. A moment of silence was held as a candle was lit to honor the lives lost Oct. 7 and in the war since.

One of the most captivating speakers of the evening was a young Israeli woman named Yahel now living in Baltimore. An organizer said Yahel’s last name was being withheld for security reasons.

Yahel said that a year ago she was asleep at her home in Jerusalem. She thought it would be a typical Shabbat. Her mother was out for a jog and her father was getting ready to head to the shul (synagogue).

She awoke to sirens and headed into a shelter with her family.

A year later, she’s living in America as a Baltimore Shinshinit. Shinshinim are high school graduates from Israel who come to America for a year of service, according to The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore.

Yahel told the stories of family and close friends who were taken as hostages. They did not all make it back home, she said.

The congregation broke out in applause as Yahel urged: “We must, must keep the hostages in the forefronts of our minds, feel them in our hearts and continue the conversation.”

”Bring them home,” she said. “Bring them home now.”