Israel commemorates October 7 attack as Gaza strikes continue before election

Israel marked the third anniversary of Hamas’s October 7 attack with ceremonies at the Nova festival site, Kibbutz Kfar Aza and locations across the country. The commemorations took place as Gaza officials reported that five people had been killed in new Israeli strikes, highlighting the continued violence despite a ceasefire formally in place for the past year. The attack killed about 1,200 people in Israel and led to 251 hostages being taken into Gaza, according to the BBC and France 24.

AFP, cited by France 24, put the Israeli death toll at 1,221 based on official figures and reported that 44 hostages were already dead. At the Nova festival, the BBC reported that 378 people were killed and 44 were taken hostage, with 25 later returned alive. Families and survivors gathered at the festival grounds and at Kfar Aza, where the BBC reported that 64 residents were killed and 19 were taken hostage.

Relatives held silent tributes, played music associated with those who died and spoke about the lasting trauma. Many surviving Kfar Aza residents have not returned to their homes, according to a community leader quoted by Reuters in the BBC report. A national memorial event in Tel Aviv drew several thousand people and was attended by opposition figures, including Benjamin Netanyahu’s principal rival, Gadi Eisenkot.

Netanyahu said the country was united in remembering those killed and pledged to continue pursuing those responsible. Hamas, in a statement reported by France 24, described October 7 as a response to decades of Palestinian suffering. The anniversary comes less than three weeks before Israel’s October 27 election.

France 24 reported that the attack and the government’s response are dominating political debate. Former prime minister Naftali Bennett called the assault a “colossal failure of the state of Israel”, while the Democrats Party argued that a government that had not ended Hamas’s rule was dangerous to the country. Protesters in Tel Aviv called for accountability and an independent inquiry into the security failures that preceded the attack.

The BBC reported that senior defence and security officials had resigned or been dismissed, but that no independent state commission had been established. Netanyahu has rejected personal responsibility and opposed an inquiry led by the Supreme Court, saying the judiciary would be biased against him. The war’s human cost remains a central part of the anniversary debate.

Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures the UN considers reliable, says more than 74,200 people have been killed in Israel’s offensive and that much of Gaza has been destroyed. The BBC said living conditions for the territory’s 2.1 million residents remain dire, while France 24 reported that nearly the entire population has been displaced.