Two years since October 7: Israel remembers the massacre, the world calls for peace. Von der Leyen: "We will never forget that horror."

On the second anniversary of the terrorist attacks of October 7, 2023, Israel and the international community gather to remember the more than 1.250 Victims of Hamas Massacre at Nova Festival, in the Negev desert, and the approximately 250 hostages kidnapped.
Two years after what the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella defined as "a shameful page in history", the pain for the victims is accompanied by the hope of a truce between Israel and Hamas and a new diplomatic effort towards peace in the Middle East.

Remembering the victims: "The nightmare must end."

In Israel, commemorative ceremonies were held in the symbolic places of the attack, starting from the Nova Festival, the scene of the massacre, where the families of the victims laid flowers and observed a minute of silence.
Many of them told international media that the pain “has never subsided,” but remains accompanied by a concrete demand: the release of the hostages still held by Hamas.

In the press release issued by Hostage families forum, it is read:

Two years ago, our lives changed forever when terrorists invaded communities, parties, and bases, killing, raping, and kidnapping hundreds of innocent people. Each of these 48 souls is a world unto itself, and each of them must return home. The living need rehabilitation, and the dead deserve a burial in their own land.

The families also expressed gratitude to the US President Donald Trump, for his leadership and the peace plan relaunched in recent weeks, which according to them “offers new hope that this nightmare can finally end and our loved ones can return home”.
In the same note, the Forum addresses the Israeli Prime Minister directly Benyamin Netanyahu, saying that after two years “he has the opportunity to end this nightmare and reach an agreement that ends the longest war in our history and brings all 48 hostages home.”

Von der Leyen: "We will never forget that horror. Peace is now within our reach."

On social media, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, expressed the Union's condolences for the victims and a call for hope:

“We will never forget the horror of the Hamas attacks of October 7 and the pain they caused to the innocent victims, their families, and the entire Israeli people. We honor their memory by working tirelessly for peace.”

Von der Leyen then recalled that the immediate release of the hostages and a ceasefire are now “within reach”, recalling the Trump plan as the basis for a possible global agreement:

“We must seize this moment to pave the way for a lasting peace based on the two-state solution.”

The European leader's words come in a context in which Israel and Hamas they meet at Cairo, under Egyptian and Qatari mediation, to discuss a possible truce agreement in Gaza.

Mattarella: "October 7th is a sinister moment in history. We must reject all forms of anti-Semitism."

even the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella He recalled the Hamas attack, calling it bluntly “a cowardly terrorist act” and “a shameful page in history.”
The Head of State addressed a thought "to the families of the victims and the kidnapped people, who must be released immediately," expressing the hope that the negotiations underway in Egypt will lead to a stable truce.

Mattarella also launched a strong warning against the re-emergence of anti-Semitic feelings in Europe and in the world:

“What is happening in Gaza and the various feelings it arouses cannot be lumped together in the ignoble sentiment of anti-Semitism, which reached peaks of monstrous atrocity in the last century and which today sometimes appears to resurface, based on imbecility and spreading hatred.”

The President finally called on Israel to "fully apply the rules of international humanitarian law", reiterating that the self-defense cannot result in disproportionate reprisals against the civilian population.

Meloni: "These crimes are unspeakable, but we need a lasting peace."

The President of the Council echoed the words of the Head of State Giorgia Meloni, who recalled how October 7 remains "one of the darkest pages in history."

“Hamas’s violence has triggered an unprecedented crisis in the Middle East, but Israel’s military response has gone beyond any principle of proportionality, and is claiming too many innocent victims among Gaza’s civilian population.”

The Prime Minister has relaunched the need to support the opportunity offered by Trump's peace plan, calling it “a real chance to end the war.”
A position that reflects the Italian balance: absolute condemnation of terrorism, but also attention to the humanitarian drama and the urgency of a diplomatic solution.

Sanchez: "We must condemn terrorism, but stop the genocide in Gaza."

The president of the Spanish government Pedro Sánchez He posted a message on X in which he reiterated his condemnation of terrorism “in all its forms,” but also called on Israel to stop the spiral of violence.

"It's a day to reiterate our firm condemnation of terrorism. To demand the immediate release of the Israeli hostages. And to ask Netanyahu to stop the genocide of the Palestinian people and open a humanitarian corridor."

Sánchez then recalled that "dialogue and the consolidation of the two states are the only possible solution to end the conflict and achieve a peaceful future in the Middle East."

Voices from the Italian Parliament: "Peace and Remembrance"

Italian institutions also commemorated the anniversary with solemn moments in Parliament.
Il president of the Senate Ignazio La Russa he invited the Chamber to a minute of silence, while the President of the Chamber Lorenzo Fontana He spoke of the need for “a lasting solution to build a future of coexistence and security for all.”

From the political front, the Democratic Party Secretary Elly Schlein he recalled the pain of October 7 as part of a larger drama:

“It is the same pain we have relived every day for the tens of thousands of innocent Palestinians massacred by the crimes of Netanyahu's extremist government, for the inability to bring about a ceasefire and reach an agreement that would stop the carnage in Gaza and return the hostages to their families.”

For Schlein, the key is a immediate truce and full recognition of a free and independent Palestinian state next to Israel.
Along the same lines Matteo Renzi, who reiterated:

"Only a political agreement can put an end to this barbarity. That's why it's right to support the Trump-Blair plan."

In the Chamber of Deputies, during the commemoration, the most recurring words were: "horror" e "peace", in a climate of cross-party participation that united the majority and the opposition in remembrance of the victims and in the hope of a diplomatic solution.

An anniversary between memory and diplomacy

The second anniversary of October 7 is not only a day of remembrance, but also a moment of collective reflection on responsibilities and prospects for the future.
While negotiators work in Cairo for a final truce in Gaza, the international community looks with caution but also with renewed hope to a long-term solution based on the peaceful coexistence of two states, as hoped for by several European leaders.

Israel, wounded but determined, today honors its victims and renews its promise to "never forget." But also to not give up — after two years of blood and fear — on the possibility of a just and lasting peace.