National Memorial Ceremony for October 7 Victims Held in Tel Aviv

A national memorial ceremony for victims of the October 7th attacks took place Wednesday evening at Park Ganei Yehoshua in Tel Aviv, drawing approximately 50,000 attendees. The event commenced with a minute of silence, followed by a performance by singer Arkadi Duchin. Duchin performed his song "Who Loves You More Than Me" on a piano that was located in the home of the Kipnis family in Kibbutz Be'eri, where Avitar (Turi) and Lilach Kipnis, along with their caregiver Paul Vincent Castelvi, were murdered.

Images of the murdered and fallen were displayed during the ceremony. Or-Li Niv, mother of Sergeant Major Omri Niv Firshtein, who fell in battle at the Zikim base, recited the poem 'Mothers' by Osnat Eldar. Host and hostage survivor Eli Sharabi, who co-hosted the event with actress Shani Cohen, remembered all the victims and offered comfort to the injured. He emphasized the importance of testifying and recounting the events of that day for future generations, stating, "In their name, and for the generations to come, we will testify and tell what happened on the day the sky fell upon us. We will remember everyone, and never forget."

Ido Yakir, a member of Kibbutz Magen's standby unit, recited a special Yizkor prayer. The unit fought to prevent terrorists from entering the kibbutz, losing two members, Ofir Yaron and Avi Fleischer. Rabbi Beni Kalmanzon, father of Elhanan Kalmanzon, who was killed while trying to save lives in Be'eri, recited Kaddish. He spoke of his son's sacrifice for unity and mutual responsibility.

Singers Yuval Dayan and Noam Batten performed "Ayeka." A video tribute was dedicated to Captain Sahara Saudain, an Iron Dome officer who fell heroically in battle. Her sister, Stav Saudain, recounted Sahara's bravery. Singers Harel Skaat and Liahi Toladano performed "Ve'at." Aviva Chana, sister of Israel Chana who fell defending Ofakim on his 30th birthday, shared her grief.

Eli Sharabi also spoke about the harrowing experiences of volunteers at Camp Shura, who dealt with unimaginable horrors. Dr. Milka Chesler, a volunteer dentist in the National Police Identification Unit, described the emotional toll. Rabbi Menachem Perl, a volunteer at the Fallen Data Collection Center, shared his ongoing struggle with the trauma.

Singers Ivri Lider and Eden Golan performed "A Message from Another Life." A video honored Chaim Ben-Arie, a bus driver from Gush Katif, and Abed Al-Karim Nassasra, a bus driver from the Bedouin town of Kuseife, both of whom were killed while trying to evacuate civilians. Abed's brother, Yosef Nassasra, spoke of his bravery, while Chaim's widow, Irit Ben-Arie, recalled his determination to help.

Omri Shaproni, a co-founder of the "Kumo" movement and relative of victims from Kibbutz Be'eri, spoke about the collapse of systems on October 7th but also the resilience shown by fighters and civilians. He stressed that mutual responsibility is not enough, stating, "Without investigating the truth, we cannot fix things, and we cannot ensure this will not happen again."

Adi Marciano, mother of abducted and murdered lookout Noa Marciano, shared her pain and the circumstances of her daughter's death. Singers Roni Dalumi and Tamir Greenberg performed "A Message from Another Life." During the song, Eli Sharabi shared personal words for his wife and daughters, who were murdered in their home, and his brother, who was killed after being abducted to Gaza, vowing that Israel would not forget them.