A solemn L.A. event celebrated Israel’s independence on Tuesday night, while honoring those still held captive by war.
The Israeli-American Council, Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, Israel Consulate in L.A. and StandWithUs hosted “Israel United: Celebrating Israel at 77” on Tuesday night at Hollywood’s Dolby Theater. The event — just days after the May 21 killing of two Israeli Embassy workers in Washington D.C. — included performances and speeches highlighting Jewish unity and freedom, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and terrorist group Hamas.
Former Israeli hostage Eliya Cohen — who was kidnapped at a Jewish music festival, held in captivity by Hamas for 505 days, and released in February — was a featured speaker at the unity event. Cohen detailed his experience being kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival and being a hostage.
Israeli American and American Jewish communities packed Hollywood’s Dolby Theater – the site of the annual Academy Awards — in Los Angeles on Tuesday, May 27, 2025, for the ‘Israel United: Celebrating Israel at 77’ event. (Courtesy of Eden Shohat) Israeli-American Council (IAC) CEO and Former U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism, Elan Carr, addressed the ‘Israel United: Celebrating Israel at 77’ event at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles on Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (Courtesy of Eden Shohat) Eliya Cohen, an Israeli former hostage of Hamas for 505 days, shares his story at the ‘Israel United: Celebrating Israel at 77’ event at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles on Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (Courtesy of Eden Shohat) Show Caption1 of 3Israeli American and American Jewish communities packed Hollywood’s Dolby Theater – the site of the annual Academy Awards — in Los Angeles on Tuesday, May 27, 2025, for the ‘Israel United: Celebrating Israel at 77’ event. (Courtesy of Eden Shohat) Expand“I may be here, but part of me is still in Gaza. You have united, together, to call for the release of the hostages. You told our stories. You stood up for us. For 505 days, you were fighting for me, while I was in the tunnels under Gaza. And since my release, I’ve been joining you in that fight. Because the hostages still need your help,” Cohen said in his remarks. “It is possible to bring them home — just like I came home.”
The Mideast conflict has seen nearly 54,000 deaths since the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Officials said that over 3,700 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel resumed the war on March 18, trying to pressure Hamas to accept different ceasefire terms. Since early March, Israeli forces have blockaded Gaza, with over 2 million Palestinians on the brink of famine and in need of humanitarian aid. Officials have said it will continue to strike the region until Hamas disarms and releases all of the 58 remaining Israeli hostages.
Fewer than half of the Israeli hostages are believed to be alive since the Oct. 7 attack, in which militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 others.
Tuesday’s packed “Israel United” event took place on the eve of the 600th day since Oct. 7, 2023.
Cohen told attendees that “fighting for the freedom” of the remaining hostages is “the most Israeli, the most Jewish, and the most human thing we can do.”
On May 28, “we will mark 600 days – 600 days that our brothers and sisters are in captivity. 600 days that Am Yisrael (the People of Israel) has not been able to heal… of pain and waiting,” Cohen said. “There are still 58 hostages. We cannot give up. We cannot lose hope.”
Other officials, including the Israeli Consul General, L.A. officials and rabbis, addressed Jewish history and condemned rising antisemitism, while celebrating freedom and community.
The event also featured performances by Israeli singer Itay Levi, who dedicated a song to all former and remaining hostages, and actor and comedian Elon Gold.
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