Israel mourns today in an atmosphere of muted emotion, honoring the victims of the unprecedented scale of the attack by Hamas a month ago, which deeply traumatized the country.

Over 1,400 people died after October 7, the majority of civilians killed on the day of the bloody attack by the Islamist Palestinian organization in southern Israel, near the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli authorities.

Remembrance rallies are planned throughout the day in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and other parts of the country.

In response to the October 7 attack, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to “wipe out” Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip. The army is pounding the Palestinian territory, where over 10,000 people, including more than 4,000 children, have lost their lives within a month of war, according to Hamas.

Excitement at events in Jerusalem

Outside the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, more than 1,000 people, mostly students and faculty, observed a minute’s silence, then prayed and sang the national anthem.

“The atrocities left a terrible mark, trauma on a personal level, but also on a national level,” said Asher Cohen, president of the university, many of whose graduates were killed. “But there is hope, there will be rebirth,” he added.

Testimonies are heard from the microphone, interrupted by sobs. A professor shows the photo of his son and his girlfriend who were killed by Hamas fighters. “They believed in peace,” he declared.

Sai Dikman, a 28-year-old medical student, went to speak about her cousin, who was arrested as hostage in Kibbutz Beeri, located less than 5 kilometers from Palestinian territory.

“They were 241 innocent people kidnapped by Hamas. They are alive, as far as we know. Every day, the chance of ever seeing them alive again diminishes. We have to bring them back now,” she said.

Several dozen people attended a candlelit ceremony at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design.

“I don’t believe there is a single person who has not been affected by these terrible attacks,” said Sharon Balaban, an artist and professor at the school. “Everyone knows someone who has been injured, killed or affected.”