New Strikes Mark the Third Anniversary
Israel launched new strikes on Gaza on Wednesday (7/10/2026), coinciding with the third anniversary of the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023. Palestinian officials reported two people killed in the strikes.
Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City reported two people killed in the overnight Israeli strikes. Gaza's civil defense said one victim, Mohamed Tamous, was a rescue services volunteer who died while working to evacuate bodies in northern Gaza. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed a strike in the area without giving details.
The violence came nearly a year after the 10 October 2025 ceasefire took effect. Since the ceasefire, near-daily strikes have reportedly killed at least 1,460 Gaza residents and wounded more than 5,000 others, according to local authorities.
Toll: 74,000 Palestinians, 1,200 in Israel
According to Gaza's Health Ministry data — deemed credible by the United Nations (UN) — the death toll from Israel's war on Gaza has surpassed 74,200 people, with more than 175,000 wounded. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. The conflict has also displaced nearly half of Gaza's population and destroyed most residential areas.
On the Israeli side, the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023 killed around 1,200 people in Israel and took 251 people hostage to Gaza, before the escalation led to Israel's years-long military operation in the Gaza Strip.
Gaza's Health Ministry also recorded 1,467 people killed in Gaza since the 10 October 2025 ceasefire took effect — a figure showing the conflict never truly stopped despite the formal agreement.
Commemorations on Both Sides
In Israel, residents held memorial ceremonies at the Nova music festival site near the Gaza border, where 348 people were killed in the Hamas attack three years ago. Victims' families observed a moment of silence at around 6:29 a.m. local time — explosions from Gaza were reportedly heard as far as the site, according to AFP.
Commemorations were also held at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv. This year was Israel's first commemoration with no hostages remaining in Gaza: all hostages, living and dead, had been exchanged for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, while the last hostage's body was found in January.
In Gaza, civilians were also hit by access restrictions. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered crossings into Gaza and the West Bank closed on 5 and 7 October, and Israel's government coordinator for Palestinian territories (COGAT) stated humanitarian aid would not enter Gaza during the closure.
UN Urges Permanent Ceasefire
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the Gaza ceasefire to be upgraded into a permanent end to fighting. The call was made on Monday (5/10/2026), ahead of the third anniversary of the 7 October 2023 attack, as Gaza's humanitarian conditions remained far from recovery despite nearly a year of ceasefire.
Guterres remembered the victims of the 7 October attack while stressing that the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza must also end. Three years on from 7 October 2023, the war in Gaza continues and has left damage that will be hard to repair — for Palestinians and Israelis alike.
