Crowd calling for release of hostages
(Video: Yehuda Gabay)
Israeli singer Ishay Ribo performed in New York's prestigious Madison Square Garden during which the crowd cried out for the release of Israeli hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza.
Ribo, who filled seats in New York last year as well, did so as part of the Jewish month of Elul, during which the Jewish high holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur traditionally take place.
According to his show's production, approximately 15,000 people attended his performance where he hosted additional Israeli artists Idan Raichel and Eviatar Banai for several songs, including Jewish prayer hymns.
One of the most emotional moments of the concert took place when the crowd called for the release of the hostages held by the Hamas terrorist organization in Gaza.
Ribo is one of Israel's most internationally successful singers. He is married and a father of five who immigrated to Israel from France when he was 8 years old and settled on the West Bank. He had a religious upbringing, studied in a yeshiva and sang in a rabbinical choir during his military service.
"We lived in a mobile home when we first came to Israel. We did not have much but enjoyed our freedom," he told Ynet before his previous performance in New York. "I remember my father, who was unemployed at the time, taking me to school in Jerusalem. We did not own a car so we would hitch a ride and he would wait for me until I finished my school day."