ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
It's been exactly a year since militants from Hamas stormed out of Gaza and attacked communities in Southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages. That ambush triggered a war in Gaza that's killed more than 41,000 Palestinians, a war that's still going on and has opened up new fronts from Lebanon to Iran. Throughout today's program, we have different perspectives on this anniversary. In Israel, it was a day of reflection. NPR's Daniel Estrin is on the line from Tel Aviv. He's been attending memorial ceremonies throughout the day. Hi, Daniel.
DANIEL ESTRIN, BYLINE: Hi, Ari.
SHAPIRO: Walk us through the day. How did Israel mark this moment?
ESTRIN: It was a really surreal day. It was a memorial to a war that is not yet over. There were a lot of vigils throughout the country. We attended several that felt very grassroots and intimate and personal. We were at the site of an outdoor music festival that was held on October 7 last year where more than 360 people were killed. And at the site of that festival, they played the last track of music that Israelis danced to. And then there was a moment of silence at the exact minute, 6:29 a.m., the moment that the attack began last year. And this is what it sounded like.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Crying).
ESTRIN: So a moment of silence, and then someone in the crowd burst out wailing. We then went to another memorial at a kibbutz where a man read out the names of 101 people who were killed who lived at that kibbutz, and he choked up as he read the name of a 9-month-old baby who was killed.
And then tonight the families of the victims produced a mega-event in Tel Aviv with Israel's top musical artists. Tens of thousands of people had reserved tickets. And in the end, only a few thousand bereaved Israelis attended because the military banned large public gatherings, with a lot of fears now of attacks from Iran and Lebanon. So it was very painful to stand there and to see, on the one hand, the names of victim after victim rolling on the big screens like it was credits in a movie and then, at the same time, to look out and see so many empty chairs in the crowd.
SHAPIRO: Well, as you said, this is a memorial to a war that continues. So what was the conflict like today? What happened?
ESTRIN: I was at the memorial this morning and watched a young Israeli woman shudder as we heard the loud boom of Israeli artillery fire firing into Gaza. NPR's producer in Gaza, Anas Baba, says it was the most intense day of artillery fire that he can recall since the war began. And Israel did send more troops into Gaza today to prevent any kind of major attack on Israel that could take place today. Hamas fired about a dozen rockets at Israel, which is quite rare these days considering that, a year into the war, Israel has destroyed a lot of Hamas' rocket-launching capabilities. And it wasn't just Hamas. There was a missile fired from Yemen towards Central Israel that was intercepted. There were also more than a hundred rockets fired by Hezbollah today from Lebanon. And Israel carried out strikes in Lebanon. So we saw just today alone fighting on multiple fronts in this war that's expanding.
SHAPIRO: As you described this multi-front war with attacks on Israel coming from Lebanon, from Yemen, from Gaza and a missile attack from Iran last week, what impact is that having on Israeli public opinion?
ESTRIN: You know, in some ways, many Israelis do feel that the war being waged now against Iran and Hezbollah is justified, and they see Israel trying to reset its deterrence that was lost on October 7. But a year into this war, many Israelis simply don't feel any safer, and they don't see how any of this ends. And I heard that from Ofir Duchovne today. He was at a memorial. His close friend was killed last year, and this is how he reflected on the year.
OFIR DUCHOVNE: I did not imagine that the war will be so long in Gaza. And now we have another front on the north and with Iran, and we're stuck. Nothing has changed.
ESTRIN: You know, many Israelis are furious at their own government not only for not preventing the attack on October 7 but also for not ending the war and not bringing back the hostages who still remain in Gaza. There are other Israelis who say the government and the military should press on and destroy Hamas and Hezbollah.
But I think what I take away from today, Ari, is that this country that has always united to commemorate its many past wars today remembering Israel's deadliest day in history. October 7 - there was no central memorial ceremony that managed to unite the Israeli people. The Israeli official ceremony featuring Israel's leaders giving speeches was prerecorded to avoid heckling, and a lot of the attacked communities simply refused to participate in it, and they held their own memorials instead.
SHAPIRO: That's NPR's Daniel Estrin in Tel Aviv. Thank you.
ESTRIN: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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