JERUSALEM, Oct 27, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Israelis on Sunday mark the Hebrew
calendar anniversary of the unprecedented Hamas attack on October 7 last year
that sparked the ongoing war in Gaza.

Separate ceremonies will be held at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in
Jerusalem for the armed forces personnel and the civilians killed in the
attack, with top officials expected to attend both.

Flags were flown at half-mast on public buildings, including the parliament,
from 6:29 am (0429 GMT), which marked the start of the attack that resulted
in the deaths of 1,206 people in Israel, according to an AFP tally of Israeli
official figures.

The attack sparked retaliatory Israeli bombardment and ground fighting that
has killed 42,924 Palestinians, according to data from the health ministry in
Hamas-run Gaza, which the UN considers reliable.

"This war of a nation seeking to be free on its territory comes at a high
cost... Today, we commemorate all those who fell on that day that the war
broke out or in the year of fighting that followed," military chief
Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi said, according to a statement.

Two ceremonies were held on October 7, one official and another organised by
the families of victims, to mark the one-year anniversary of the Hamas
attack.

But the government also decided to hold a day of mourning around the Hebrew
calendar anniversary of the attack.

At least 765 Israeli soldiers have been killed, in the Hamas attack and the
ensuing wars both in Gaza and in Lebanon, where the military has been
fighting the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement in ground incursions since late
last month.