Cabinet to vote tomorrow on holding second national day of mourning for Oct. 7

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is expected to vote to hold a second national day of mourning for the October 7 attack during tomorrow’s cabinet meeting, which will be marked with a state ceremony organized by Transportation Minister Miri Regev.

According to Hebrew media reports, the day of mourning will be held on the 24th of the Hebrew month of Tishrei, directly following the annual Simchat Torah holiday on which the Hamas attack took place last year. It will also be marked by special programs at schools and in the military, the lowering of flags to half mast and the closure of entertainment venues across the country.

Families of hostages and other October 7 victims had vocally objected to Regev’s appointment to oversee this past week’s official state ceremony marking the first anniversary of the Hamas-led onslaught, with several Gaza border communities accusing the government of using the official ceremony to avoid responsibility for its role in failing to prevent the terror massacres, and for not doing enough for the communities in the aftermath.

Regev refused a number of compromise proposals to solve the dispute, dismissing the criticism as “noise” and comparing memorial ceremonies other than the official one to a contentious joint Israeli-Palestinian commemoration event held annually on Memorial Day, which is seen by right-wing critics as equating terror victims with slain assailants and equating Israeli and Palestinian pain.

According to national broadcaster Kan, during a cabinet meeting last Monday, Regev asked about the possibility of changing the name of the alternative “national” ceremony in order to avoid confusion, sparking an angry reaction from Netanyahu.

She reportedly called to hold a memorial on the Hebrew date of the massacre as well, prompting ministers to accuse her of seeking to establish a day of mourning on a holiday.