Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Florida. (Photo: Jim Watson/AFP)
On Thursday, Israel commemorated the 1,000th day since Hamas’ attack on October 7, 2023, with calls for a state commission of inquiry into the unprecedented attack that triggered the war in Gaza.
A series of commemorative events are being held across the country, along with protests against the government’s handling of events during and after the attack.
The first event began at 6:29 a.m. — the exact time the Palestinian Islamist movement launched its attack on Israel and sparked the war in Gaza.
The attack, led by Hamas, led to the death of 1,221 people, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures. Militants also took 251 hostages to Gaza.
Israel’s military retaliatory campaign in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 people, according to the territory’s health ministry, which operates under Hamas’ control and whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.
Since a ceasefire came into effect on October 10 last year, at least 1,053 Palestinians have died in Gaza, according to the health ministry. The Israeli army says five soldiers and one contractor died in the same period.
The October Council, which was founded by families of victims and hostages kidnapped on October 7, is one of the main organizers of the day’s events.
Rallies are held in front of the Israeli parliament and near the homes of government members.
“The families of the hostages are now demanding the establishment of a state commission of inquiry,” said the October Council on X.
The Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, which became a focal point in the struggle to get hostages released during the Gaza war, will be renamed Memory Square.
(Photo: David Gray/AFP)
A memorial event will also be held at 20:00 in Yarkon Park, where families of victims and prominent figures of the protest movement against the Israeli authorities will gather.
Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, Israel’s army chief, said on Monday that “this day reminds us of our overall responsibility and the weight that rests on our shoulders.”
“We remember, we learn and we prepare for the continuation of battles and the many challenges that still lie ahead,” he was quoted as saying in a statement.
Gadi Eizenkot, former army chief and currently a leading candidate to succeed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the election in October, commemorated the day with a short post on X.
“1,000 days. We will still prove ourselves worthy. I promise,” he wrote.
According to opinion polls, a large number of Israelis across the political spectrum support the establishment of a body to determine who is responsible for the authorities’ failure to prevent the deadliest attack yet on Israel.
However, Netanyahu’s government has long refused to set up such a commission — something Israel has often done in the past to investigate major state failures.