Today marks the two-year anniversary of the October 7 attack in Israel, when Hamas killed 1,195 people and took 251 hostages. Israelis will be gathering across the UK, with families of hostages calling for an end to the war.
A large demonstration will take place in Tel Aviv to call for the release of the 48 remaining hostages. This follows a rally on October 4 and a memorial on October 5, which was attended by survivors of the attack, former hostages, and the families of victims. More events are expected across the UK.
The Prime Minister has urged people not to join pro-Palestinian protests today, warning of “rising antisemitism on our streets”. Keir Starmer said it was “un-British” to hold protests on the anniversary which has been used as a “despicable excuse to attack British Jews”. Universities across the UK are bracing for demonstrations, with students from London colleges planning a joint march. Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Bristol are among other cities expecting student protests.
The anniversary comes as negotiators from Hamas and Israel gather in Egypt, where they are undergoing indirect talks for the release of the 48 Israeli hostages and nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, as well as the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
Benjamin Netanyahu has said he hopes to announce the release of hostages “in the coming days”. Donald Trump has threatened Hamas with “total obliteration” if the deal does not happen.
As of October 1, over 69,100 people (67,144 Palestinians and 1,983 Israelis) have been killed according to the Gaza Health Ministry and Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The GHM count does not include those who have died from “preventable disease, malnutrition and other consequences of the war”.
A further 217 journalists and media workers, 120 academics, and over 224 humanitarian aid workers (including 179 employees of UNRWA) have been killed, mainly due to Israeli violence.
A UN commission of inquiry, several human rights groups, and the world’s premier association of genocide scholars have said Israel has committed genocide in Gaza over the past two years. Israel has denied the accusation and said its actions are in self-defence.