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Bay Area Vigils Planned After Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting

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A woman prays near the Tree of Life synagogue after a shooting there left 11 people dead. (DUSTIN FRANZ/AFP/Getty Images)

Updated: 5:45 p.m., Monday

Vigils are planned across the Bay Area following the mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, that killed 11 and injured six on Saturday morning.

At least four events to commemorate the victims and survivors of the shooting will be held on Monday night:

  • Walnut Creek: Congregation B'nai Shalom, 74 Eckley Lane, 7:00 p.m.
  • San Francisco: Chabad SF/SoMa Shul, 496 Natoma St., 7:30 p.m.
  • San Francisco: Sha'ar Zahav, 290 Dolores St., 7:30 p.m.
  • Berkeley: JCC East Bay, 1414 Walnut St., 8:00 p.m.

Progressive Jewish organization Bend the Arc is also planning a solidarity rally on Tuesday at 5 p.m. at San Jose City Hall. The American Jewish Community, a San Francisco-based advocacy group, and Bend the Arc held gatherings and vigils in San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Sonoma County and several locations across the South Bay over the weekend.

Multiple Bay Area law enforcement agencies said they were increasing police presence on Saturday in response to the deadly shooting.

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"SFPD has stepped up presence around the various synagogues throughout the city," said San Francisco Police Department public information officer Giselle Linnane.

Linnane could not go into full detail on what this increased presence entails, but she said officers would be driving around various places of worship in San Francisco. Linnane said residents can expect to see more officers than usual in all areas surrounding San Francisco synagogues.

Officials with Oakland and Berkeley's police departments also said on Saturday that they were ramping up patrols in response to the shooting.

A public information officer with the Oakland Police Department said in an email that they had increased patrols and security checks in key areas of the city, including synagogues. The officer added that OPD's Intelligence Unit is in close communication with local, state and national law enforcement agencies about the incident.

Lt. Peter Hong with Berkeley's police department told KQED on Saturday that BPD was taking similar measures. "We are asking our officers to provide extra patrols around synagogues," he said in a statement.

As of early Saturday afternoon, all three departments said there were no known threats in their respective jurisdictions.

"At this time, we can let the public of San Francisco know that there are no known threats to any synagogues or the city and the public," said SFPD's Linnane.

Gordon Gladstone, executive director of Congregation Sherith Israel in San Francisco, said his congregation is re-examining its security after the shooting.

"An incident like this prompts us to go back and re-evaluate the protocols we have in place to improve them," he said.

Gladstone said the reaction among his congregation to the shooting in Pittsburgh has been one of shock and sadness. "I'm trying to come up with an adequate word for how upsetting this is," he said.

"When anybody is struck down in a house of worship, in the act of worship, it is profoundly disturbing. When it's your own faith group, all the more so."

This piece has been updated to include information on the vigils.

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