The third anniversary of the attack carried out by Hamas in Israel was observed on Wednesday.
On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas militants from Gaza illegally entered Israel and carried out a brutal attack by air, land, and sea, killing 1,163 people and abducting 251 as hostages. In retaliation, Israel launched a series of military attacks, in which more than 74,200 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip so far.
Tribute events began at 6:29 a.m., the time the attack started in Israel on Oct. 7, at places including Kibbutz Re’im and Kfar Aza, where the Nova music festival was held. At the Nova music festival alone, 378 people were killed and 44 were abducted. Families and survivors who gathered there on Wednesday read out the names of the dead and paid tribute with tears in their eyes.
Amid the memorial events, protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government also intensified. Accusing Netanyahu of continuing to block the establishment of an independent government commission of inquiry into the security lapses on Oct. 7, protesters gathered in front of the parliamentary complex and raised angry slogans. Protesters also brought the charred wreckage of cars burned at the music festival to the parliamentary area and displayed them there.
Protests were also held in front of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s homes in Jerusalem and Caesarea, as well as outside the homes of Parliament Speaker Amir Ohana and key ministers. With political turmoil intensifying in this way, a general election will be held in Israel on Oct. 27.
Meanwhile, although a year has passed since U.S. President Donald Trump announced a peace plan to end the Gaza war, full peace has not been achieved. Even though the ceasefire agreement that came into effect on Oct. 10 last year led to the release of the remaining Israeli hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, the violence has not completely subsided.
More than 1,400 people have been killed in Gaza in Israeli attacks even after the ceasefire agreement. The Israeli military, which initially controlled 53 percent of the area, now occupies two-thirds of Gaza. As a result, about 2 million Palestinians have been pushed into extremely harsh conditions, living in temporary tents and collapsed buildings in a narrow coastal strip.
Efforts to get the Hamas organization to lay down its arms and to establish an international peacekeeping force have also stalled. Although it has been reported that Hamas agreed to hand over its weapons to a U.S.-backed Palestinian technocratic committee, Israel remains adamant that its forces cannot withdraw until Hamas fully disarms.
In this crisis situation, more than 1.2 million people in Gaza are suffering from severe starvation. With reconstruction work there estimated to require about $714 billion over the next 10 years, remarks by right-wing Israeli ministers about expelling Palestinians from Gaza have further clouded the future of the people there.

