Today's second anniversary of the attack by the radical Palestinian group "Hamas" against Israel, which started the war in the Gaza Strip, is a central topic in the Western press.
The memory of the universal trauma of the "Hamas" attack two years ago still hangs over Israel, writes "The Guardian". The faces of the hostages in Gaza are on posters plastered at bus stops across the country, the newspaper notes.
The anniversary is marked by hopes that the war in Gaza may finally end, the British daily also writes. The publication recalls that "Hamas" fighters killed over 1,200 Israelis and took 251 hostages after infiltrating southern Israel.
Memorial ceremonies are planned in the small kibbutzim in southern Israel whose members were killed or kidnapped, as well as a large demonstration in Tel Aviv calling for the release of the hostages still held by "Hamas" in the Gaza Strip, the publication explains.
The official national commemoration ceremony will take place on October 16, adds "The Guardian".
Israel marks the anniversary of the attack on October 7, 2023, while Egypt is holding talks on a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, another British newspaper - "The Independent" points out.
Israelis today honor the memory of the victims of the attack by the Palestinian Islamist movement "Hamas", which plunged the region into a devastating war. Against this background, Israel and "Hamas" are holding indirect talks in Egypt, the publication specifies.
"The Independent" focuses on US President Donald Trump's words that "incredible progress" has been made, considering the talks in Egypt.
At the same time, the "Independent" notes, Israel continues to carry out deadly air strikes on Gaza despite Trump's call to stop. The Gaza Health Ministry said that as of yesterday, 67,160 Palestinians had died in the conflict. The British publication recalls that more than 1,200 Israelis were killed in the attack on October 7, 2023.
The future of a possible Palestinian state remains in question, the British publication also writes. "Independent" notes that Trump's Gaza peace plan stipulates that if the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank, reforms sufficiently and progress is made in Gaza, "the conditions for a credible transition to Palestinian self-determination and statehood can finally be met."
Although Israel says it supports Trump's plan, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejects the idea of recognizing a Palestinian state.
As Israel prepares to mark the second anniversary of a Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, talks to end the devastating war in Gaza are expected to continue in Egypt today, with the focus on exchanging Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons, as proposed by the Trump administration, writes the American newspaper "New York Times".
Israel and "Hamas" negotiate peace in Egypt on the second anniversary of the attack on October 7, 2023, writes in the headline of an article in the Spanish newspaper "Pais".
Two years after the attack on October 7, Israel honors the victims with minutes of silence and commemorative ceremonies, writes the French newspaper "Monde".