At 6:29, the time when Hamas launched its attack on Israel a year ago, President Isaac Herzog began today's ceremonies with a minute of silence at the kibbutz Re'im. Just nearby, hundreds, mainly young, Israelis and foreign visitors were killed at the Nova music festival during the October 7 attack.
At the same time, hundreds of Israelis gathered outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's home in Jerusalem, demanding a ceasefire and a prisoner exchange agreement, reports The Times of Israel.
"We were alone"
It has been a nightmare year, said Eli Albag, whose daughter Liri is still being held by Hamas in Gaza, in a speech to the gathered crowd.
Time has frozen for me, said Niva Wenkert, whose son Omer is also still in Gaza.
On Monday evening, demonstrators blocked a main street in Tel Aviv, demanding a ceasefire and a prisoner exchange agreement, writes Haaretz.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a ceremony on Monday that the Israelis "stood up as a people, like lions" after the attack a year ago.
This day, at this place, and at so many places in our country, we remember our dead, our prisoners whom we are obligated to bring home and our heroes who fell while defending the homeland and the nation, he said.
In Kfar Aza, near the Gaza border, a memorial service was held early in the morning. In front of a poster of the kidnapped kibbutz members, Rachel Stellman looked back on the fateful morning a year ago.
It was hard to understand. I began to realize that no one would help us, we were alone – wounded, slaughtered, abandoned, and begging for help. There was no rescue.
Hostage killed already on October 7
The ceremony in Kfar Aza was interrupted when air raid sirens sounded after Hamas once again fired rockets at Israel. Those gathered had to flee to bomb shelters.
Over 1,100 people were killed in the attacks and more than 200 were taken hostage. Almost 100 of them are still in Gaza, but it is unclear how many are still alive.
On Monday, it was announced that one of them, 28-year-old Idan Shtivi, who was kidnapped from the Nova music festival, was killed already on October 7.
