// BBC WORLD NEWS — MONDO
Israelis mourn 7 October attack victims three years after deadly Hamas raid
A man comforts a woman at the fountain at Dizengoff Square on Wednesday
Memorial events have taken place in Israel on the third anniversary of the devastating Hamas-led attack there that sparked the war in Gaza.
Families paid tribute to their loved ones at some of the sites where about 1,200 people were killed in the assault and 251 were taken hostage.
"The nation unites on this day in the longing for our dear ones," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who faced calls from protesters for an independent state inquiry into security failures that day.
In response to the attack, Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza which has killed more than 74,200 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures are seen as reliable by the UN.
Residents of kibbutz destroyed in 7 October Hamas-led attacks grapple with how to rebuild
Violence has continued in Gaza despite a ceasefire agreed almost a year ago and living conditions for the 2.1 million people living there remain dire.
On Wednesday morning, bereaved families and survivors gathered at a memorial for the 378 people who were killed at the Nova dance festival in southern Israel on 7 October 2023.
The festival site was near Kibbutz Re'im and not far from the border with Gaza, from where Hamas-led gunmen launched their dawn attack.
Witnesses have described how festival-goers were shot, sexually abused and tortured by gunmen during the raid.