Be’eri, Kfar Aza said to join boycott of state Oct. 7 ceremony, planning their own events

Two of the Gaza border towns ravaged the most by Hamas’s October 7 onslaught have announced that they reject the government plans for a state memorial on the anniversary of the assault, instead planning their own ceremonies.

According to Ynet, Kibbutz Be’eri decided to hold its own event even before the government announced plans to hold a centralized ceremony organized by Transportation Minister Miri Regev, which drew extensive criticism from families of hostages and victims and some Gaza border communities.

“This isn’t an alternative ceremony, this is the ceremony of the community,” the outlet cites Be’eri officials as saying.

Additionally, mutiple Hebrew media reports say, Kibbutz Kfar Aza has said in a statement that it is “disappointed” by the government plans while 109 hostages are still in Hamas captivity, including five local residents.

Kfar Aza urges the government to focus its efforts on bringing the hostages home and, in terms of a memorial, “make do with lowering the flag to half-staff and standing in attention at the memorial siren, and not produce grandiose events.”

It says the kibbutz will mark the anniversary with a private community event, “in hopes that by then, we will get to hug our friends who will return from captivity.”