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First Posted: 7/2/2014 WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Shock waves from tragedy on the other side of the planet have struck the hearts of Jewish people living in the Wyoming Valley.
&#8220;A country that&#8217;s the size of New Jersey, where everyone knows someone who was either killed in a war or injured in a bombing, it hits home every time,&#8221; Rabbi Larry Kaplan of Temple Israel said on Wednesday.
Three teenage boys, Jewish students studying religion, were found dead Monday in Israel&#8217;s West Bank after they had disappeared June 12. They had been hitchhiking their way home from school.
Israeli leaders were quick to point at the Muslim military group Hamas for their deaths.
On Tuesday, the Jewish Community Alliance of Northeastern Pennsylvania (JCA) will host a gathering at noon on Public Square to memorialize Eyal Yifrah, 19, Naftali Fraenkel, 16, and Gil-Ad Shaer, 16, and stand in solidarity with Jewish mourners around the world.
JCA spokesman David Schwager said through the Internet and the group&#8217;s umbrella organization, the Jewish Federations of North America, it hopes through its message of oneness reaches those in Israel.
&#8220;It&#8217;s one thing for combatants, military folks, to die in battle, God forbid,&#8221; Schwager said. &#8220;But these were kids who were kidnapped and killed for essentially no reason.&#8221;
Some Israelis have lashed out against Hamas, and hundreds of Jewish young people marched through the city on Tuesday demanding revenge.
The Associated Press reports on Wednesday 17-year-old Mohammed Abu Khdeir was kidnapped in Jerusalem and a burned body was discovered a few hours later in a Jerusalem forest. Forensic testing continues to confirm if the body is Khdeir&#8217;s, the AP says.
Khdeir&#8217;s family members believe Israeli extremists killed the boy to retaliate, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas demanded Israel hold his killers responsible, the AP says.
The deaths have sparked clashes between Hamas and Israeli military since Monday.
Kaplan spoke against the alleged murderous retaliation and said Tuesday&#8217;s gathering is to be an outcry for peace.
&#8220;I&#8217;m really hoping there&#8217;s no escalation of any kind,&#8221; the rabbi said. &#8220;I hope that cooler heads will prevail, (but) the idea of peace in that part of the world seems so elusive sometimes.&#8221;
The ceremony, expected to last about 15 minutes on Tuesday, is getting some cross-denominational support.
The Interfaith Council of Wyoming Valley, a church network made up of Catholics, Presbyterians, Jews, Episcopals and neo-denominational sects, is co-sponsoring Tuesday&#8217;s gathering.
The co-mingling of groups shows there can be peace among religions, Kaplan said.
&#8220;Everyone in Israel is mourning. I think they&#8217;re angry, too, and I understand that,&#8221; Kaplan said. &#8220;Primarily, right now, they need (to seek peace), and if Wilkes-Barre and the Wyoming Valley can help that process, then I&#8217;m all for it.&#8221;

Local Jewish community gathering in response to Israelis’ deaths