Kol Ami News

SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — Five days after reports of threats towards Jewish centers in Salt Lake were publicized, officials are continuing to take steps to ensure the safety of the city's Jewish and Muslim communities.

Officers of the Salt Lake City Police Department said that they initiated enhanced surveillance of three Salt Lake City Jewish centers beginning Saturday, Oct. 7, following the decrement of war in Israel.

On Sunday, Oct. 8, reports surfaced of multiple bomb threats targeting Jewish institutions across Utah, including at least three Salt Lake City locations. Rabbi Sam Spector of Congregation Kol Ami located at 2425 Heritage Way told 2News that he was holing a service that morning when the institution received an email stating that "there had been a bomb placed in the building" and that they "were all going to die." The synagogue, along with two others in Salt Lake City, were evacuated and swept, all of which resulted in the determination of no suspicious evidence.

Following this event, police announced Thursday, Oct. 12, that they had increased patrol efforts of the three Jewish centers, adding that they were also taking steps to protect the Muslim community and their institutions.

The agency's Intelligence Center has reportedly been collaborating with state, regional, national and federal law enforcement officials to continue to manage the situation. The department as a whole is working in conjunction with agencies across the nation in preventing any further criminal activity and establishing the safety of these communities.

Salt Lake City police said they have been and plan to keep in contact with Jewish and Muslim leaders throughout the city to provide updates on the state of affairs.

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SALT LAKE CITY — Tuesday night, Utah's Jewish and Israeli communities and supporters stood in solidarity on the front patio of Congregation Kol Ami to mourn the thousands of lives lost in the Hamas attack on Israel.

"Innocent people who aren't soldiers could be just taken away from this world are being held against their will and a lot of them don't know where they are. This feels different," said Gabrielle Larsen, a local Israeli who served her country years ago.

Zoe Wood, another local Israeli, says when she first saw the news from Israel, she didn't believe it was real.

"As the time passing by, we understand the massive, massive, massive slaughter, human slaughter that happened there. It's beyond comprehension," Wood said. 

Both Larsen and Wood have spent the last few days praying for peace in their home country. Tuesday night, they were joined by dozens in prayer, song, and loving support to help mend those broken hearts.

"It's more than knowing singing — it's knowing one another, it's knowing you have a community you can rely on. Even if you don't know the person standing next to you, you can rely on them," Wood said.

Rabbi Sam Spector says the past few days have been a whirlwind for the Israeli and Jewish communities, but the support they've seen since Saturday has shown them they are not alone

"We're all here together for freedom and for peace, and there's no amount of terrorism or violence that's going to scare us or stop us from that," said Rock Larsen, Gabrielle Larsen's husband.

State and local leaders like Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson and Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall attended in solidarity. Members of the Israeli and Jewish communities took the podium, pleading leaders and supporters to not let their communities face this heartache alone. 

"This is a concern to anyone who cares about human rights," said one podium speaker. "I'm asking you this as a big sister who wants to hug her little sister in fear and take some of her pain away. I'm asking you this as a daughter who wishes she could relieve her parents of unimaginable concern."

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The culmination of Simchat Torah, a Jewish holiday that celebrates and marks the conclusion of the annual cycle of public Torah readings, is ordinarily a joyous occasion for Salt Lake City’s Congregation Kol Ami.

But this year, in light of the large-scale terrorist attack by the militant group Hamas on Israel on Saturday, the mood at Sunday morning’s service was solemn.

“This year, because of what happened in Israel, it was already a more somber occasion, less festive than usual. We didn’t feel like celebrating with what occurred. And then this threat came in during the service,” said Rabbi Samuel Spector, referring to an anonymous bomb threat he received by email Sunday morning that forced an evacuation.

The threat was a hoax but it compounded the anguish of Kol Ami’s congregation, already mourning the mass loss of life in Israel resulting from the terrorist attack waged by air, sea and on land. According to The New York Times, some 900 Israelis have been killed, while the Israeli Government Press Office said Monday more than 2,600 have been wounded since the start of the assault on Saturday on its social media pages. Another 150 people have been taken hostage.

“Terrorism is nothing new to Israel, but we’ve never seen anything of this magnitude. While 3,000 people died on 9/11, more than 700 died from the events that took place on Saturday. If you were to look at what Israel’s population is, compared to the United States. proportionally, that would be the equivalent of 24,000 people in America being killed,” said Rabbi Spector.

“So this really is for Israelis, a day that will live in infamy, and their equivalent of 9/11 or Pearl Harbor,” he said.

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