Israel's government on Sunday unanimously approved an annual national day of remembrance for the events of October 7 and the war. According to the decision made at the weekly Cabinet meeting, this year for the first anniversary of the tragedy a ceremony will also be held on the Gregorian calendar date of October 7.
2 View gallery
The funeral of Dana and Carmel Becher, who were killed in the OCtober 7 attack on Kibbutz Be'eri
(Photo: Leon Neal/Getty Images)
The Remembrance Day will be celebrated every year in two state ceremonies: an 11:00 a.m. ceremony in memory of soldiers who fell in the war, and at 1:00 p.m. a ceremony in memory of the civilians killed in hostilities.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, in coordination with Transport Minister Miri Regev, who is in charge of the celebration of the 76th Israel Independence Day, the Ministry of Defense and the set of ceremonies and state events in the Prime Minister's Office set the annual state commemoration events to mark the Iron Swords war. The name of the war is temporary, a permanent name is expected to be chosen at a later date.
Since the upcoming 24th of Tishrei falls on the Jewish Sabbath, the ceremonies will take place in the coming year on the 25th of Tishrei, which is a Sunday, and this will be true every time the Hebrew date falls on a Sabbath.
Also, beyond the National Remembrance Day which will be held every year on the Hebrew date, this year a state ceremony will also be celebrated as a one-time event on October 7. The government announced that "the civil calendar date of the brutal terrorist assault has been etched in the consciousness of people in Israel and around the world."
2 View gallery
The burned out cars of Israelis who attended the Nova music Festival on October 7
(Photo: Gadi Cabelo)
The explanatory notes of the proposed resolution read: "October 7 is etched in the public consciousness in Israel as the day of the terrible massacre. Precisely to mark the first year of the largest terrorist attack in our history, in response to the clamor of the public in Israel, there is a need to commemorate the event in a one-time manner on its civil calendar date, which was etched in the consciousness of the people of Israel and of the world. The expression 'seventh of October' is also related to the Jewish term 'shiva', which indicates the mourning at the end of the first year of mourning for the outbreak of the attack."
The name of the war is still considered temporary, and is indicated as such in official announcements. Although a team was supposed to be formed to consider a new name, its assembly was frozen. Meanwhile, Iron Swords will also join the list of wars for which a state memorial ceremony is held: the Kadesh War of 1956 with Egypt, the Six Day War and War of Attrition, the Yom Kippur War, the 1933 War, the Second Lebanon War and the 2014 Gaza War. The Ministry of Defense will allocate the necessary budget for holding its ceremony , and the Prime Minister's Office will allocate the budget required for its ceremonies and state events.