Nir Oz gathers to remember, grieve, and continue living – on the 3rd anniversary of the events of October 7th

(haipo) On October 7, 2026, three years after Hamas’ murderous attack on the surrounding communities, hundreds gathered at the local cemetery, in Kibbutz Nir Oz, for the annual memorial service. Families, kibbutz members, area residents, and visitors from all over the country walked among the graves, laid flowers and wreaths, and tried to digest the magnitude of the disaster that occurred that Shabbat and the time that had passed since. The ceremony was charged, both personal and communal, and centered on the names of the sons and daughters of Nir Oz who were murdered and kidnapped that day.

Nir Oz's Murdered and Kidnapped: A Memory That Never Lets Go

The Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, claimed the lives of 17 residents of Nir Oz, and5 more kidnapped in Gaza StripSome of the abductees were returned alive, others were murdered in captivity.

Families of the murdered and kidnapped return to the place where everything changed

Among the participants in the ceremony were prominent family members of the murdered and kidnapped. Boaz Zalmanovich, a resident of Haifa and son of The late Aryeh Zalmanovich – who was kidnapped to Gaza and murdered in captivity, stood by his father's grave, laid flowers and talked with kibbutz members who had known Aryeh for decades.

Carmit Katzir, sister of Elad Katzir, late – who was kidnapped to Gaza and murdered in captivity, and the daughter of The late Rami – who was murdered in his home that morning and whose daughter Hana Katzir Z"l, who was kidnapped and died about a year after being released from captivity in Gaza. For the family, the ceremony was a charged encounter between loss, survival, and memory.

The memorial service: A community trying to heal the broken pieces

The ceremony included memorial speeches by family members, kibbutz members, and representatives of the regional council. The names of the murdered were read one by one, and the cemetery was filled with silent tears and hugs between families who had lost their dearest loved ones.

During the ceremony, it was emphasized that Nir Oz, like other kibbutzim in the enclave, continues a long process of physical, mental and community rehabilitation. Some families still live in alternative settlements, others have returned to the kibbutz, but all carry that day as an indelible scar.

Three years later: memory, pain, and cautious hope

This year's ceremony was different from previous years: less shock, more contemplation. The community is no longer in a state of ongoing emergency, but it is not returning to the starting point either. The murdered and the kidnapped are an inseparable part of Nir Oz's history and the identity of the entire enclave.

Boaz Zalmanovich summed up the feeling of many: "We return here every year to remember, but also to continue. This is the place where we lost our loved ones and this is also the place where we choose to live."