As Israel Marks Year Since Oct.7 Slaughter, Hamas Unleashes Largest Missile Barrage In Months

As Israelis mourn October 7, Hamas chose to launch its heaviest missile barrage on Israel in months, which Israel's military says it was mostly able to thwart through its missile defenses.

The terror group even timed its rockets to the coincide precisely with the start of memorial events across the country. Regular rocket attacks had previously largely ceased amid the ongoing ground war in the central and south parts of the Gaza Strip, but for now they've resumed.

"Starting at 6:29 a.m., ceremonies, rallies and ad hoc memorials held across Israel marked the moment a year ago that Gazan terror groups began lobbing massive volleys of rockets, providing air cover for thousands of terrorists speeding across the suddenly pregnable border by land, air and sea and kicking off the largest slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust," Israeli media describes.

"Underlining how much has changed since then, Hamas on Monday morning only managed to fire four rockets to mark the moment at 6:30 a.m." But many more reportedly followed. Three of those initial rockets were reportedly intercepted while a fourth fell in an open area. The IDF wrote on social media: "Sirens sounding in Tel Aviv and central Israel exactly a year after the October 7 massacre."

Family members of hostages also led remembrance events. Some 100 Israelis are still being held somewhere in Gaza, with many of the captives feared dead after a full year of brutal war, and given Hamas has turned to executing some in instances where IDF soldiers get too close.

About 1,200 people were killed in the brutal Oct.7 attack which involved thousands of well-armed Hamas militants invading both the Nova music festival and several kibbutzim near the border.

Concert-goers were randomly shot or dragged away into captivity. Military border outposts were also overrun, and in some cases Israeli troops were dragged out of the tanks they were manning. Later investigations revealed that some Israeli victims were likely killed by 'friendly fire' amid the chaos of the situation as Israel's military belatedly responded to the raids with heavy helicopter and tank gunfire.

There are reports that at least one Hamas missile made it through to strike Tel Aviv, triggering sirens there...

That fateful day unleashed a war in Gaza and has since spiraled to include conflict in Lebanon, and now with a looming showdown and possible direct war between Israel and Iran. Hezbollah in Lebanon has continued its rocket attacks, with projectiles striking Haifa over the weekend and into Monday.

One major hostage exchange deal was successfully negotiated and implemented during late Novermber 2023: Hamas released 105 civilian captives which include 81 Israelis and 24 foreign workers (Thais and a Filipino). Israel as part of the swap released 240 Palestinian prisoners. 

Israeli society has since then been deeply divided given a hoped-for follow-up deal never materialized, with critics of Prime Minister Netanyahu accusing him of prioritizing the military operation over getting the captives home, as well as seeking to ensure his own political longevity. 

Shocking scenes began emerging on Oct.7, 2023 almost in real time...

This divide among the population has been evident during Oct.7 memorial events. Times of Israel observed:

"In Jerusalem’s Azza Street, relatives of the hostages and hundreds of supporters stood down the road from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s private residence and sounded a two-minute siren at 6:29 a.m. Some stood stoically as the klaxon wailed, while others wept quietly."

At the Nova music festival venue, mourners played the lost song heard at the concern one year ago before Hamas swept in on paragliders and gunshots began ringing out. This was followed by a moment of silence.