KEREM SHALOM — President Isaac Herzog and First Lady Michal Herzog hosted a gathering at Kibbutz Kerem Shalom on July 2, 2026, marking the 1,000th day since the October 7 attacks. During their visit, they listened to personal stories from residents of the kibbutz, which is located on the border with Gaza and Egypt.

Among those present at the gathering was the mother of Sergeant Yaron Zohar, who was killed defending Kibbutz Kerem Shalom during the October 7 attacks. An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) probe determined that the local security squad at Kibbutz Kerem Shalom repelled the attack, killing nine terrorists, though several members of the security team and soldiers died in the fighting.

"The thousandth day since October 7th is not merely a marker in time," President Herzog said. "It is a reminder of Israel's capacity to grow out of crisis and unbearable pain: to remember, and never to forget." He added, "To rise with an overwhelming will to build, to live, to act, and never to give up." "This is the story of Israeli resilience," he said. "Our enemy made no distinction among us. He came to destroy us all." "Our answer, and our true victory, lies in action: in rebuilding and in returning to the kibbutzim," Herzog said. "Our answer is in the laughter of children in kindergartens filling the communities of the South and North once again." "We will continue to plant, to build, to nurture life, and to choose hope. And so our answer is one and the same: to keep planting, building, nurturing life, and choosing hope," he said.

First Lady Michal Herzog addressed the residents, acknowledging their experiences. "You reflect the entire Israeli story: the greatest pain imaginable, but also the strength of spirit, the love for community, the capacity to keep nurturing life, and the choice to rise, rebuild, and believe again," she said. "We have walked with you since the earliest days after the tragedy, when you were evacuated to Eilat, and then to Ashalim." "We were there when the tree was replanted back home in Kerem Shalom, and that is the spirit that leads you," she added. "Every time we meet you, we leave strengthened." "You give all of us hope," Michal Herzog said.