Holding Israeli flags, candles and flowers, about 75 community members gathered outside University Hall to commemorate the two-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by the militant group Hamas. 

“Tonight was a chance for the Jewish community and the broader Northwestern community to come together to commemorate the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, to mourn the loss of victims and to mourn the immense loss of life in the two years of war since then,” Student President of Northwestern Hillel and Medill junior Claire Conner said.

In the Hamas-led attack, about 1,200 people were killed and 251 hostages were taken, of which 83 were confirmed killed. Since Oct. 7, over 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

Hosted by Hillel, the memorial was held at 8 p.m at the steps of University Hall. It was held on Oct. 8 instead of Oct. 7 due to religious restrictions during the Jewish holiday, Sukkot. Executive Director of Hillel Michael Simon said the vigil was moved from the previous year’s location, Deering Meadow, because of construction at the Donald P. Jacobs Center.

Simon emphasized the role of students in organizing the event. Several students stood on the steps of University Hall sharing stories of those affected by the attacks and leading the crowd in prayers and songs. 

“We said the Mourner’s Kaddish, which is the traditional Jewish prayer of mourning,” Communication junior and Hillel Religious & Spiritual Life Co-Chair Rose Bicas-Dolgen said. “Then we also topped it off with some Jewish songs, one of them is one that people have been singing a lot more since the war started. It’s called Acheinu, which means ‘Our Brothers,’ and it’s a song of solidarity for the Jewish people.” 

Bicas-Dolgen said they also sang many songs of peace for the Jewish people, the state of Israel and the world. 

At the end of the memorial, Hillel Campus Rabbi Jessica Lott spoke to the crowd about Israel and Hamas’s agreement to the first phase of President Donald Trump’s peace deal, announced hours before the event. The ceasefire included the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and Israeli withdrawal up to an agreed-upon point. She said she hopes the agreement signals the end of the two-year war in Gaza. 

“I feel like this has been a very prevalent part of my life for the last two years and there’s been talks of ceasefires before and I haven’t let myself get my hopes up at anything,” Bicas-Dolgen said. 

Organizers and students wanted to commemorate the “nightmarish reality” but also mention the potential for hope, Simon said. He said that several people he spoke to came to the vigil not only thinking of Israeli hostages but also about all the people suffering in the region. 

Simon said that he hopes a year from now they’ll be marking a year that has moved toward peace for people in the region. 

Conner said that hope was featured throughout the evening and is the “guiding light” in the community, especially during the “darkest times.”

“Now, especially at this moment, we have immense hope in our hearts for the return of the hostages, the end of the war and the restoration of peace,” Conner said. 

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