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On October 7, 2023, a Hamas-led terrorist attack in Israel killed 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped about 250 others. The almost immediate spread of news and images of the attack produced heavy emotional reactions in public opinion in many countries. The article analyzes data from a representative survey on the attitudes toward Jews and Muslims of Italian undergraduates conducted between late September and late October 2023, encompassing both those dramatic events and the war that followed. Four main findings emerge. First, Italian students tend to organize attitudes towards Jews around three main dimensions, those toward Muslims around one. Second, attitudes towards the two groups vary according to cultural values of reference, commitment to study, and political orientation. Third, negative attitudes towards Muslims are more prevalent than those toward Jews, but this difference narrows between center-left and left-leaning students and, in some cases, reverses. Finally, the analysis shows that one of the dimensions organizing unfavourable attitudes towards Jews experienced very substantial growth on the days immediately following October 7, that is, the date of the Hamas terrorist attack inside Israeli territory.

Background The October 7, 2023 terrorist attack and subsequent war in Israel have created an unprecedented mental health crisis. This commentary examines emerging data on the psychological impact of these events and argues for a paradigm shift in the Israeli mental healthcare system. Main body Recent studies reveal a dramatic increase in PTSD, depression, and anxiety among the Israeli populace. These findings underscore the long-lasting and pervasive nature of psychological trauma. Certain populations are disproportionately affected: women, ethnic minorities (particularly Israeli Arabs, who comprise 18.1% of the population), and those experiencing traumatic loss, displacement, or economic hardship. These groups require prioritized and tailored interventions. While existing outcome research provides a solid foundation for treating common trauma-related disorders like PTSD, depression, and anxiety, the Israeli mental health system is ill-equipped to handle the surge in demand. Too many clinicians lack training in evidence-based trauma therapies and standardized assessments. To address this gap, we advocate a system-wide transformation. This involves widespread training in evidence-based assessments and time- limited therapies, a focus on precision psychiatry tailored to individual needs, and the implementation of task-shifting and task-sharing models to expand access to care. Conclusion These strategies are crucial for mitigating the long-term mental health consequences of the October 7th attacks and fostering individual and societal resilience. Failure to act decisively will exacerbate the existing crisis, placing further strain on individuals, families, and Israeli society as a whole.

Gender differences in wellbeing and trauma response have been a significant focus of psychological research, particularly among populations that have experienced extreme stressors, such as Holocaust survivors and their offspring. This study aims to explore the psychological impact of the “sense of threat” and “sense of challenge” experienced during the war in the 7 October aftermath (2023), with a specific emphasis on gender differences across different generations affected by the Holocaust. The study utilized a cross-sectional design to analyze secondary data. Research data were collected during the war in the 7 October aftermath. A total of 120 individuals, from three Holocaust cohorts (survivors, second-generation, and third generation) participated. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, as well as perceptions of threat and challenge, were gathered using the Stress, Appraisal, and Coping Questionnaire developed as reported by Lazarus and Folkman (Springer, New York, 1984). Females report a higher mean score (M = 3.36) for “sense of threat” compared with males (M = 2.85). Conversely, for the “sense of challenge,” although females exhibit a slightly higher mean score (M = 2.54) than males (M = 2.49), there was no statistically significant difference. The trauma of the Holocaust continues to afflict survivors and their descendants and is particularly pronounced during periods of extreme stress, such as war. Females exhibited an elevated “sense of threat” compared with males, which increases with each subsequent generation. Such insights stress the critical importance of incorporating a gender perspective in the design of interventions aimed at supporting trauma survivors.

Israel has begun capturing parts of Gaza as buffer zones. Is this a sign of a larger expansionist effort by Israel?

This project tracks the prayer responses of Hasidic masters and their communities in Israel in the immediate aftermath of October 7 2023. The massacre perpetrated on that day resulted in widespread trauma and vulnerability in Israel, and it triggered a war in the Gaza Strip and battles on other fronts. Given the traditional Hasidic affinity for prayer, the Hasidic prayer response to the crisis is of interest. This is particularly so since contemporary Hasidim do not identify with the Zionist project or ideology, do not support the State of Israel, do not serve in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), and do not publicly pray for the well-being of Israeli soldiers. The findings demonstrate that Hasidim responded to the crisis with prayer, but they did so without compromising their anti-Zionist ideology or non-Zionist stance. There were instances of prayers for soldiers, but these were creative, idiosyncratic expressions, general prayers, or personal supplications. The most common prayer for IDF soldiers was not said, nor were there public calls for specific prayers for those who were risking their lives to free the hostages, to protect the Jewish People, and to ensure the security of the State of Israel and its inhabitants. The Hasidic prayer response could be characterized as acknowledgement and appreciation without embrace. This analysis suggests that, when Israel emerges from the crisis, we should not expect a change in the attitude of Hasidic communities toward the State or the IDF, even if there were glimmers of such a change immediately following October 7.

This article examines memory and monuments in the science fiction Star Trek franchise as a lens for understanding commemoration technologies and how futuristic visions of memorials anticipated real ones, especially during times of conflict. To understand the cultural reciprocity of sci-fi television and contemporary commemoration of war and trauma, we investigate the interactive website produced by the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation, Kan, titled Kan 7.10.360, which commemorates the victims of the 7 October 2023 Hamas massacre of civilians, soldiers, and policemen in Israel’s Gaza Envelope region. The 7.10.360 website employs advanced technologies to create what we identify as a digital “counter-monument.” By applying the concept of metamemorial science fiction relating to the Shoah, investigating its victims’ commemoration and examining the globital turn in memory work, we demonstrate that the Kan project realizes digital mnemonic practices engaged in Star Trek. We argue that the renowned series performs and anticipates three aspects of globital memory work and novel digital commemoration, also prevalent in the Kan 7.10.360 website: the personalization of memory using images; televisual testimony or documentation that mediates personal experience; and the display of objects that symbolize quotidian aspects of the victims’ lives.

On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked Israel and Israel retaliated. This video takes a look back at the past 12 months of warfare.

A report on the Israel-Hamas war featuring interviews with freed Israeli and American hostages. They discuss the possibility of ceasefire and hopes of the war’s end. Includes interviews with Yarden Bibas, released hostage whose wife and two children were killed; Keith Siegel, released hostage who was abducted with his wife; Aviva Siegel, Keith’s wife; Tal Shoham, released hostage; Ilan Dalal, father of Guy Gilboa-Dalal, who is being held hostage; and Galia David, mother of Evyatar David, who is being held hostage.

In the days before the October 7th attack short selling of Israeli stocks spiked in New York, making someone a lot of money. How likely is it that a Hamas insider was behind it?

Things look bleak in the Middle East after Binyamin Netanyahu scorned America’s push for an end to the fighting. But in private he’s said to be more flexible. Could diplomacy actually work?