That was the principle behind Westminster’s October 7 Parliamentary Commission, which has released its initial report on the day Hamas came for the Jews. While not an official publication of the House of Commons or Lords, it is the fruit of an all-party group determined to forensically investigate and chronicle what happened on that terrible day.

Below, the executive summary. The full report can be downloaded here. — rf

The Hamas-led attack on Southern Israel on 7 October 2023 was one of the largest terror attacks in history, resulting in 1,182 fatalities and over 4,000 wounded. A total of 251 hostages were taken – 210 were alive and 41 were dead bodies.[1] It was the largest single massacre of Jewish people since the Holocaust and the deadliest per capita terrorist attack, with just over 1 in every 10,000 Israelis killed and the third overall deadliest terrorist attack in the world to date.[2]

The attack resulted in over 4,000 wounded individuals treated at hospitals, with gunshot wounds, grenade injuries, and burns. Trauma centres like Soroka and Barzilai Medical Centres faced overwhelming numbers of severe cases, treating patients whilst under ongoing rocket fire. The mental health repercussions since 7 October, including PTSD and suicides, have led experts to classify the event as a mass trauma affecting Israeli society.

Over 90% of those killed or taken hostage were Israeli citizens, including Jewish Israelis, Arab Israelis, and Bedouins. Many of the Israelis that were killed were also dual nationals. Citizens from 44 nations around the world were killed and taken hostage. The largest group of foreign victims were from Thailand, many of them agricultural workers in the Kibbutzim and Moshavim (small communal and agricultural villages). Seventeen British nationals were killed and 2 were taken hostage. One of these British hostages was killed in captivity, and the other was released after 471 days in captivity.

A total of 863 civilians were killed on 7 October, accounting for 73% of the dead. [3] The remaining 27% of fatalities were those serving in active duty – either in the military or as first responders.[4] Women and children account for 27% of those killed during the attacks and 49% of hostages taken alive – 316 and 102 respectively. The youngest victim of 7 October was just 14 hours old – her mother had been shot whilst driving to the hospital to give birth and a bullet hit the baby girl’s leg whilst in utero. The oldest victim was a 92-year-old Holocaust survivor, who was killed at Kibbutz Holit.

The victims were killed through shootings, asphyxiation and burning, grenade explosions, RGP and missile attacks. Many victims were subjected to mutilation, sexual violence, and other forms of deliberate brutality before or after death. Forensic teams faced immense challenges in identifying remains due to the extent of desecration to bodies, with some victims identified months later through fragments like teeth.