Israelis on Sunday marked the Hebrew calendar anniversary of the unprecedented Hamas attack on 7 October last year, which sparked the ongoing war in Gaza.
Separate ceremonies were held at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem to honour both the armed forces personnel and civilians killed in the attack, with top officials expected to attend both events.
Flags were flown at half-mast on public buildings, including the parliament, starting at 6:29 am (0429 GMT), marking the time the attack began, which led to the deaths of 1,206 people in Israel, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.
The attack prompted retaliatory Israeli bombardments and ground fighting that have since claimed the lives of 42,924 Palestinians, according to data from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, which the UN considers reliable.
"This war, waged by a nation seeking to be free on its territory, comes at a high cost... Today, we commemorate all those who fell on that day the war broke out or in the year of fighting that followed," said military chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, according to a statement.
Two ceremonies were held on 7 October, one official and another organised by the victims' families, to mark the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attack.
The government also designated a day of mourning around the Hebrew calendar anniversary of the attack.
At least 765 Israeli soldiers have been killed, both in the initial Hamas attack and in the subsequent conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon, where the military has been engaged in ground incursions against the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement since late last month.
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