NEW YORK, Oct 11, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Thousands of people gathered on Tuesday for a show of solidarity with Israel in New York, the city with the largest number of Jews in the world outside of the Jewish state.

Since the militant group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, New York -- home to nearly two million Jews and hundreds of thousands of Muslims -- has been the scene of tense demonstrations of support for the Palestinian cause or to defend Jews and Israel.

"New York stands in solidarity with Israel and the Jewish community," New York state Governor Kathy Hochul told the crowd.

"We stand together to protect every one of you. We will continue to protect you," said Hochul, who has directed the police to increase patrols and outreach.

American Jewish groups organized the pro-Israel gathering of thousands of people just a few yards (meters) from the United Nations headquarters, and invited New York leaders and representatives of Israel's right-wing government to speak.

Israel's ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, was applauded when he proclaimed that "the Jewish people are not divided."

"Our enemies sought to exploit our division. They aimed to butcher us when they thought we are weakest, but they made a mistake," the diplomat said.

"The Jewish people are not divided. The free world is not divided. We are all standing together on a united front, one people, one heart, to battle the forces of evil," he shouted to the crowd waving Israeli flags.

New York mayor Eric Adams, a former police officer who was recently in Israel, also affirmed that "Israel has the right to defend itself. Your fight is our fight."