Cleveland Jewish NewsWorld marks 3 years since Oct. 7 with vows to stand with Israel, combat antisemitism
The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem on Wednesday marked the third anniversary of Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre and vowed to stand with Israel.
The embassy said in a post on X it remembers “the innocent lives murdered by Hamas terrorists.” It also honored “the heroes who risked everything to save others.”
“We remember. We stand with Israel,” the post concluded.
Today we remember the innocent lives murdered by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023, and honor the heroes who risked everything to save others.
— U.S. Embassy Jerusalem (@usembassyjlm) October 7, 2026
We remember. We stand with Israel. 🇺🇸🇮🇱 pic.twitter.com/tfUKDPaX04
The statement came as world leaders marked three years since the terrorist attacks that killed more than 1,200 people in southern Israel.
French President Emmanuel Macron noted that 51 fellow citizens were among those murdered in "the barbaric terrorist attacks by Hamas."
Macron wrote in an X post that the nation shares "the grief of the State of Israel and the bereaved families," pledging Paris's commitment to "combating antisemitism and terrorism, everywhere and always, working for peace and the security of all."
7 octobre.
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) October 7, 2026
3 ans que les attaques terroristes barbares du Hamas ont coûté la vie à plus de 1200 personnes, dont 51 de nos compatriotes.
3 ans que nous partageons la douleur de l’État d’Israël et des familles endeuillées.
3 ans plus tard, nous n'oublions ni les noms,…
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz wrote on X that the Hamas attack "marks a profound rupture" and that Germany commemorates the victims and shares their pain.
"We must confront antisemitism with even greater resolve," Merz said. "Jewish women and men should be able to live here without fear."
Der Überfall der Hamas auf Israel am 7. Oktober 2023 markiert einen tiefen Einschnitt. Wir gedenken der Opfer, wir teilen ihren Schmerz.
— Bundeskanzler Friedrich Merz (@bundeskanzler) October 7, 2026
Antisemitismus müssen wir umso entschiedener entgegentreten. Jüdinnen und Juden sollen hier ohne Angst leben können.
European Council President António Costa paid tribute to the victims of the "horrific Hamas attacks," pledging to "never forget" the atrocities.
"We pay tribute to the Israeli and foreign citizens massacred that day and stand with their families and loved ones. We also remember the injured and those taken hostage," the former prime minister of Portugal wrote on X.
"We will never forget. Nothing can justify such terror, and it must never happen again. The EU will always defend Israel’s right to exist in peace and security. The two-State solution remains the only viable path to a just and lasting peace in the Middle East."
Today we remember the victims of the horrific Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023 in Israel.
— António Costa (@eucopresident) October 7, 2026
We pay tribute to the Israeli and foreign citizens massacred that day and stand with their families and loved ones. We also remember the injured and those taken hostage.
We will never…
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas marked the third anniversary of the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks by condemning the Hamas assault as a "barbaric act of terror" and reiterating European support for Israel.
"Today, we stand with Israel in remembering every life taken and destroyed at the hands of the Hamas terrorists," Kallas wrote in an X post. "Our thoughts are with the victims, the survivors, their families and all those who continue to carry the pain of that terrible day."
Kallas, the E.U.’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, also issued a call to counter antisemitism and demanded that Hamas surrender its weapons.
"We must firmly reject any form of antisemitism across Europe. Jewish communities must be able to live openly, safely and without fear," she wrote, adding that "Hamas must disarm so that the Gaza Peace Plan to move forward."
The 7 October attacks were a barbaric act of terror. Today, we stand with Israel in remembering every life taken and destroyed at the hands of the Hamas terrorists.
— Kaja Kallas (@kajakallas) October 7, 2026
Our thoughts are with the victims, the survivors, their families and all those who continue to carry the pain of…
Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten marked the anniversary by condemning the initial assault while claiming that "tens of thousands of innocent Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli army since the Hamas attack."
Writing on social media, Jetten remembered the nearly 1,200 people killed and more than 250 taken hostage in what he called a "horrific terrorist attack."
"All of them ordinary Israelis, attacked by unimaginable violence at a festival, in their own homes, on the street, or wherever they were," Jetten said.
The Dutch leader pointed to the broader toll of the war, saying the region descended into a "spiral of conflict and misery" while asserting that the Israel Defense Forces killed tens of thousands of "innocent Palestinians." Jerusalem rejects the claim, maintaining that the IDF targets terrorists and works to avoid civilian harm, while placing ultimate responsibility for all noncombatant deaths on Hamas for embedding its operatives in civilian neighborhoods.
"These are horrifying, hopeless figures. Because there is no goal that justifies this violence, and above all, no suffering that is alleviated by it," Jetten wrote. "All grieving families know this, both Israeli and Palestinian. They live in fear and insecurity. I wish them peace. In their land and in their hearts."
Vandaag is het drie jaar geleden dat bijna 1200 onschuldige mensen om het leven kwamen door een afschuwelijke terreurdaad van Hamas. Meer dan 250 anderen werden gegijzeld. Allemaal gewone Israëliërs, die op een festival, in hun eigen huis, op straat of waar dan ook werden…
— Rob Jetten (@MinPres) October 7, 2026
Geert Wilders, founder and leader of the Dutch Party for Freedom, issued a scathing response to Jetten’s statement, writing on X, "You are no friend but a traitor to Israel and the Jewish people with your boycotts, condemnations, ICC support and sanctions."
"And you leave our own borders wide open so that what happened in Israel can happen here tomorrow too," the opposition figure added. "Get lost with your cheap hypocritical nonsense."
Je bent geen vriend maar een verrader van Israël en het Joodse volk met je boycotts, veroordelingen, ICC-steun en sancties. En je laat onze eigen grenzen wagenwijd open zodat wat in Israël gebeurde hier morgen ook kan gebeuren. Ga weg met je goedkope huichelachtige teksten. https://t.co/kKM0a79Jhe
— Geert Wilders (@geertwilderspvv) October 7, 2026
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong singled out Australian Galit Carbone in an X post remembering the victims of "Hamas’ horrific terror attacks on Israel."
"Our thoughts remain with her loved ones and all affected by Hamas’ abhorrent acts," wrote Wong, who also serves as leader of the government in the Senate.
"We continue to work to combat antisemitism and terror in all its forms," she added.
On October 7, we remember those killed by Hamas’ horrific terror attacks on Israel, including Australian Galit Carbone.
— Senator Penny Wong (@SenatorWong) October 7, 2026
Our thoughts remain with her loved ones and all affected by Hamas’ abhorrent acts.
We continue to work to combat antisemitism and terror in all its forms. pic.twitter.com/VHcAghqx1Z
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said he was in Israel to mark the third anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, paying tribute to the victims, including the 51 French citizens killed in the onslaught.
In a social-media post, Barrot described the assault as "the worst antisemitic massacre since the Shoah" and vowed that France would remember those who died.
"We will never forget them," Barrot wrote. "Nothing will erase either their faces or their names."
Je suis aujourd’hui en Israël pour rendre hommage aux victimes du 7 octobre.
— Jean-Noël Barrot (@jnbarrot) October 7, 2026
Ce jour-là, le Hamas perpétrait le pire massacre antisémite depuis la Shoah, dans lequel 51 ressortissants français ont perdu la vie.
Nous ne les oublierons jamais. Rien n’effacera ni leurs visages,… pic.twitter.com/H1VEKibsZK
French politician Bruno Retailleau also traveled to Israel to pay homage at the site of the Nova music festival, writing on X that the massacre at the site was a "Bataclan in the open air," referring to the Paris venue that was the the site of the November 13, 2015, Islamist terror attack that killed 90 concertgoers.
The former French interior minister and 2027 presidential candidate for The Republicans, wrote, "Thousands of innocent young people were dancing at dawn; 364 of them were massacred by Hamas terrorists, others kidnapped and tortured. Because they were Jewish."
"That morning, more than 1,200 people were coldly murdered, the vast majority civilians, and 251 taken hostage: children, women, the elderly. 51 French nationals died, on October 7 or in captivity, in what was the worst pogrom since the Shoah," Retailleau wrote.
"I came to Israel to honor their memory, to gather with their families, and to share their pain. I came to tell them that despite the resurgence of antisemitism, which shames our history, there is a France that does not forget, a France that does not downplay the atrocities committed that day by Hamas terrorists, a France that seeks no excuses for Islamist barbarity. And that France is the overwhelming majority of the French people. Before their faces and their names, I make this solemn vow: we will not forget you."
Israël, Re’im, sur le site du festival Nova. Il y a trois ans, ici, un Bataclan à ciel ouvert. Des milliers de jeunes innocents dansaient au lever du jour, 364 d’entre eux ont été massacrés par les terroristes du Hamas, d’autres enlevés et torturés. Parce qu’ils étaient juifs.… pic.twitter.com/E5Kcxza59o
— Bruno Retailleau (@BrunoRetailleau) October 7, 2026
French National Rally parliamentary leader Marine Le Pen condemned the assault as a "day of infamy" and criticized those who sought to rationalize the violence.
In a statement posted to social media, Le Pen described the 2023 attack as an act of antisemitic hatred, writing that "men, women, and children were killed solely because they were Jewish."
"No one has forgotten those scenes of unimaginable barbarity that brutally recalled the pogroms we believed belonged to the tragic history of humanity," Le Pen wrote. "No one will forget those who, by supporting the unsupportable, excusing it, or relativizing it, crossed the threshold of inhumanity."
The French conservative leader added that her thoughts are with the "mourning and remembrance of the Israeli people struck to the core" as well as the families of the victims.
Le 7 octobre 2023, le monde se figeait dans l’horreur devant les images insoutenables des massacres perpétrés par le Hamas en Israël.
— Marine Le Pen (@MLP_officiel) October 7, 2026
En ce jour d’infamie, des hommes, des femmes et des enfants ont été tués uniquement parce qu’ils étaient juifs.
Nul n’a oublié ces scènes d’une…
Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa wrote on X that on Oct. 7 "Palestinian terrorists unleashed unspeakable barbarism on Israel," killing men, women and children because of their Israeli nationality.
"We remember the victims. We stand with their families, with the people of Israel and with Jewish communities around the world," he stated.
"We must continue to speak out against every attempt to justify, excuse or relativise the atrocities of that day. As well as against the antisemitism that too often lies behind such attempts," Jansa continued. "Terrorism can never be justified. Antisemitism must never be tolerated. Never again is not merely a promise. It is a duty."
Three years ago today, on 7 October 2023, Palestinian terrorists unleashed unspeakable barbarism on Israel. Around 1200 people were murdered and 251 taken hostage. Men, women and children were killed simply because they were Israelis. We remember the victims. We stand with their… https://t.co/UKOKOOE8IJ
— Janez Janša (@JJansaSDS) October 7, 2026
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama recalled his visit earlier this year to the site of the Nova music festival, writing on X that "for the families whose loved ones were murdered by the butchers of Hamas... that morning has never truly ended".
Invoking Besa—the traditional Albanian code of honor under which Albanians sheltered Jews during the Holocaust—Rama said that history demands friends remain steadfast.
"It demands that memory never surrender to indifference, that grief never be abandoned to loneliness, that antisemitism never again be allowed to hide behind silence, slogans or excuses, and that we remain faithful to our friends even through their darkest hours," Rama wrote. "May the memory of your loved ones be an eternal blessing."
Three years have passed since the horror of October 7. But we must all understand that, for the families whose loved ones were murdered by the butchers of Hamas, for those whose lives were torn apart, and for the survivors carrying wounds no eye can see, that morning has never…
— Edi Rama (@ediramaal) October 7, 2026