At Evanston unity rally, a call for Gaza cease-fire and hostage release: ‘We need to tell a new story’

About 100 people gathered Sunday in Evanston’s Fountain Square to listen to speakers, sing and call for a cease-fire in Gaza and for the return of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip. The event was organized by Standing Together, a group that aims to mobilize Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel to fight for peace.

Hila Ratzabi, director of communications at North Shore Congregation Israel, said the war in Gaza is personal to her as a Jewish Israeli American dual citizen, and she...