From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, October 7, 2026
National family-run October 7 memorial ceremony set to begin in Tel Aviv
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleAriela Karmel is a political correspondent at The Times of Israel. She previously reported for Calcalist and Haaretz. She holds an MA in Middle Eastern and African History from Tel Aviv University and a BA in Political Science from the University of British Columbia.
The main national ceremony marking the third anniversary of the October 7 attacks is set to begin at 9:15 p.m. at Tel Aviv’s Yarkon Park, with some 50,000 people expected to attend.
Organized by Kumu (“Rise Up”), the large-scale ceremony was founded by survivors and bereaved families, including relatives of fallen soldiers, people killed in the kibbutzes and hostages who were slain in captivity.
It has stood in place of an official state ceremony for the past two years and is being broadcast live on most of Israel’s main television channels.
One of this year’s hosts is former hostage Eli Sharabi, whose wife and two daughters were killed in their home in Kibbutz Be’eri, and whose brother was kidnapped and killed in captivity.
The state held its official anniversary ceremony on Monday, the date set according to the Hebrew calendar, at Jerusalem’s Mount Herzl military cemetery.
The separate ceremonies reflects the deep divide between many survivors and bereaved families and the government, which has refused to establish a state commission of inquiry into the October 7 failures. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also refused to accept direct responsibility for the disaster.
The Times of Israel Community.