Israel marks Oct. 7 anniversary as all hostages return home

Israelis marked the first Oct. 7 anniversary with all hostages returned, as a former captive recounted his ordeal. The day highlighted enduring grief, Gaza's devastation and a conflict that has spread across the region.

In Short

• Elkana Bohbot described 738 days underground with little food and forced videos
• After release, he rebuilt life, published a book and welcomed a daughter
• Gaza remains shattered, with mass displacement, hunger and daily Israeli strikes

Israelis gathered on Wednesday to commemorate the Oct. 7, 2023 attack that killed about 1,200 people, saw 251 taken hostage and triggered the war in Gaza. In southern Israel, families were set to mourn at intersections, bomb shelters and the site of the Nova music festival that Hamas-led militants overran in the deadliest attack in Israel's history. It is the first anniversary on which all the hostages are back home, marking a new stage of grief.

For Palestinians, the anniversary brings another day of living with the effects of Israel's campaign in Gaza, where tens of thousands have been killed and much of the territory lies in ruins. The day also underlines how the conflict has reshaped the wider region, with Israeli troops occupying parts of southern Lebanon, tensions involving Iran and the United States spreading across the Gulf, and violence rising in the occupied West Bank.

Elkana Bohbot, 37, is marking the anniversary in Israel for the first time since he was released last year after 738 days in captivity. He said that for most of that time he was held 50 metres underground in a dark, damp tunnel.

Bohbot, who was abducted from the Nova music festival, said he was kept in a small cell with other hostages, given very little food and allowed to bathe only once every few weeks. He said his captors also forced him to appear in several propaganda videos, including one in which he acted out a fake call to his family.

In the 11 months since his release, Bohbot has undergone physical and emotional rehabilitation, written a book, begun a speaking career, travelled with his family and celebrated the holidays and birthdays he missed. In August, his wife Rivka gave birth to a daughter, fulfilling a promise he had made to himself in the tunnels to give his 5-year-old son, Reem, a sibling.

The newborn Michele is "not a symbol for my people, she is more of a symbol for the enemy," Bohbot told The Associated Press. "So this child is the message for you that we were here, and we will always be here forever."

No events were expected on Wednesday in Gaza, where Israel's offensive has devastated the narrow strip and displaced about 90 per cent of the population, often more than once. Restrictions on the entry of goods and aid have also contributed to a severe hunger crisis.

More than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the territory's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and militants in its figures but says about half of those killed were women and children. The figures from the ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government, are seen as generally reliable by UN agencies and independent experts.

While a ceasefire that took effect on Oct. 10 stopped the heaviest fighting, Israeli strikes have continued almost daily, targeting what Israel says are Hamas militants. Since the ceasefire, 1,145 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the ministry, while seven Israeli soldiers have been killed in the same period.

Hamas has portrayed the Oct. 7 attack as a response to decades of Israeli military occupation, land seizures and settlement construction. But the Palestinian goal of an independent state appears even further away, with most of Gaza's roughly 2 million people now living in large, squalid tent camps, much of the strip's cities reduced to rubble and more than half the territory still under Israeli military control.

The anniversary also comes as a contentious election in Israel looms at the end of the month. The government's official memorial services were held on Oct. 5, closer to the Hebrew-calendar anniversary of the attack. The separate commemorations reflect deep divisions over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of the war and his reluctance to begin an official inquiry into the failures of that day.

The attack set off a chain of events that led to wars across the Middle East as Israel confronted Hamas, Hezbollah and their backer Iran. Israel has seized territory in Syria and Lebanon, where more than 300,000 Lebanese remain displaced. The United States also joined Israel in two rounds of attacks on Iran's military and nuclear programme, hitting Iran and disrupting global markets far beyond the battlefield.

Violence has also increased across the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where Israel's far-right government has emboldened extremist settlers who have attacked Palestinians and destroyed their property. As Israelis mark the anniversary and Palestinians continue to struggle with the aftermath in Gaza, the conflict's impact remains visible across Israel, the Palestinian territories and the wider Middle East.

With PTI Inputs

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