Residents of Kfar Aza stood in silence as Israel marked three years since the Hamas-led attacks, while Gaza medics reported fresh strikes that killed at least two people.
Israelis gathered in silence on Wednesday in Kfar Aza, a kibbutz near the Gaza border that Hamas-led militants overran on 7 October 2023, Reuters reported. Residents held a vigil, a trumpet played a bugle call, and a resident read a roll call of the dead.
The 2023 attacks killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took 251 hostages, the deadliest day in the country's history, Reuters said. Israel's subsequent campaign in Gaza has killed more than 74,000 people, including at least 1,400 since a US-brokered ceasefire in October 2025, according to the same report. The ceasefire halted major fighting but has not stopped Israeli strikes or secured Hamas disarmament.
In Kfar Aza, community leader Zion Regev said most residents remain displaced. "It's a very emotional day, it's a very difficult day for our community, three years after October 7th," he told Reuters. Protesters outside parliament in Jerusalem blamed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for refusing an independent inquiry. Some signs read "The people will remember October 7 on October 27," a reference to an election 20 days away.
Gaza medics said Israeli strikes in Beit Lahia and Khan Younis on Wednesday killed at least two Palestinians and wounded others. The Israeli military said it struck a militant target in Beit Lahia and did not immediately comment on Khan Younis, Reuters reported. Umm Mohammad, displaced from Gaza City to a tent camp in Deir al-Balah, said the war had split her family across separate shelters.
Netanyahu told a cabinet meeting on the eve of the anniversary that Israelis remember those killed in what he called the War of Redemption and the massacre in Gaza-border communities. He has rejected blame for the security breach. Reuters said polls show neither he nor his main rivals would currently have the seats to form a coalition.
People Sentiments Negative
- Zion Regev said the Kfar Aza vigil was a very difficult day for a community that is still mostly displaced.
- Protester Shaked Arrad said Israelis need a government that cares about the public.
- Umm Mohammad said the war had separated her children across different shelters in Gaza.