Israel on high alert as country marks first anniversary of Oct 7 attacks, PM Netanyahu vows to 'win' the war

Israel issued high alerts across the country as it prepares to hold memorials for the first anniversary of the October 7 attacks by Hamas in the country’s south. The deadly attack that killed 1,200 people in Israel was seen as a catalyst to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war and the overall Middle East crisis.

The war now escalates on two fronts with Israel conducting heavy bombings, raids and issuing mass evacuation orders in both Gaza and Lebanon. There is also a looming possibility of retaliatory airstrikes against Iran after the latter unleashed a barrage of missile strikes as revenge for the killing of Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah.

Amid the chaos, Israeli authorities said that they are on the lookout for attacks timed to coincide with the anniversary. The authorities are even more anxious after a gunman opened fire on pedestrians in a central bus station in a city in the Negev desert. The shooter killed one and injured 10 others, marking the second attack in the last week.

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Iran also braces for the worst

On Sunday afternoon, Iranian airports announced that they would cancel all flights in a potential indication that Tehran expected Israeli jets to strike in a raid that could be targeted against the Iranian military, oil, or even nuclear production. However, the flight restrictions were soon lifted after “ensuring safe conditions” in the region.

Earlier this week, Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, vowed to retaliate against Iran for a recent ballistic missile strike on Israel. At that time he said that he would choose the time and place.

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The proclamation raised alarm in the United States with White House officials pleading him not to cross the red line that could escalate the conflict in the whole region. Senior White House and Pentagon officials have been in consultations with Israel over its expected retaliatory strike. US President Joe Biden has also urged Netanyahu not to target Iranian nuclear or oil production.

Netanyahu vows to win 

On the eve of the October 7 anniversary, the Israeli Prime Minister vowed to achieve victory and insisted that his country’s military “completely transformed reality” in the year since the war began. Netanyahu told troops Israel “will win” as it battles militants in both the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

“One year on, we have defeated the military wing of Hamas,” Israel’s army chief, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi said in an address to the Israel Defence Forces. Netanyahu also pledged to “crush… and destroy” the militants who are operating against Israel.

“A year ago, we suffered a terrible blow. Over the past 12 months, we have completely transformed reality,” Netanyahu said during a visit to the Lebanon border, according to his office. After the devastation of October 7, Hamas and its allies called the attack “glorious” and said the Palestinians were “writing a new history with their resistance”. Since then, over 40,000 people have lost their lives with the prospects of the war ending anytime soon looking bleak.

With inputs from agencies.