Israel marks three years since October 7 as protests over Netanyahu accountability erupt outside parliament

From the Newshound archive · first published 8 October 2026.

Three years after Hamas murdered 1,200 people and seized 251 hostages in the deadliest day in Israeli history, memorials were held across Israel and around the world, with flags flying at half-staff and communities gathering in silence at sites including Kibbutz Kfar Aza and the Nova music festival. Anti-government protesters blocked the Ayalon Highway near Tel Aviv at 6:29am — the exact moment the attack began — demanding accountability for the security failure they blame on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Orna and Ronen Neutra, parents of American-Israeli soldier Omer Neutra, said this is the first year they have been able to visit their son's grave, having spent 421 days not knowing he had been killed.

In Gaza, more than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel's response began, with nearly the entire population displaced.

'It doesn't get easier,' Orna Neutra said, marking the anniversary on television for the first time as a bereaved mother rather than a campaigning hostage family.

Protesters outside parliament held signs reading 'The people will remember October 7 on October 27' — a reference to the Israeli general election now just 20 days away.