Italian Jewish Leaders and Cardinal Zuppi Commemorate 7 October Victims in Rome Synagogue

Joint commemoration in Rome

On the evening of 6 October 2026, religious leaders, diplomats, and Italian political figures gathered at the Tempio Maggiore in Rome to commemorate the victims of the 7 October 2023 attacks and the 9 October 1982 Rome synagogue attack. The ceremony commenced with a minute of silence observed simultaneously across 21 Jewish communities throughout Italy. Israeli Ambassador to Italy Jonathan Peled, Rome Chief Rabbi Riccardo Di Segni, and Union of Italian Jewish Communities (UCEI) President Livia Ottolenghi led the service alongside Jewish Community of Rome President Victor Fadlun. Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI) President Cardinal Matteo Zuppi joined the assembly alongside national antisemitism coordinator General Pasquale Angelosanto, Rome Prefect Lamberto Giannini, and Police Chief Roberto Massucci. Representatives across the Italian political spectrum attended, including figures from Fratelli d'Italia, Forza Italia, Italia Viva, the Democratic Party, and Noi Moderati.

Shared trauma and historical parallels

Speakers connected the two attacks, noting that both 7 October 2023 and 9 October 1982 fell during Shemini Atzeret, the holiday closing the Sukkot cycle. The 1982 attack by a Palestinian commando on the Rome synagogue killed two-year-old Stefano Gaj Taché, whose brother Gadiel Gaj Taché attended the ceremony. Peled referenced remarks by Israeli President Isaac Herzog and stated that the 2023 attack resulted in 1,200 deaths and affected citizens from 40 countries. He cautioned against attempts to rewrite or distort the record of the events.

Remembering October 7 means preserving historical truth: remembering how it all began and not allowing the facts, with the passing of time, to be distorted, relativized, or forgotten.

Concerns over rising antisemitism

Community representatives addressed increasing hostility and social isolation facing Jewish citizens in Italy. Di Segni described a shift in public perception where victims are recast as perpetrators, leading to fractured personal relationships and diminished public presence. Ottolenghi warned about the safety of young people who face hostility in schools and universities when wearing items such as a kippah or a Star of David necklace. She urged community members not to conceal their Jewish identity out of fear.

Today, more than ever, we must recover and claim our pride in being Jewish. We must not take steps backward out of fear. We must not hide our identity.

Interreligious dialogue and humanitarian appeals

Cardinal Zuppi reiterated the Catholic Church's total rejection of antisemitism and reflected on his past pilgrimage to Jerusalem, where he met Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the mother of deceased hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin. Zuppi affirmed that all human loss must be recognized without ranking suffering, citing the deaths of two Christian women killed in Gaza the previous Saturday alongside the victims of 7 October. He also addressed Christian-Jewish relations directly, stressing that genuine friendship requires addressing complex issues such as protecting Christians in the West Bank and condemning settler violence.

I am here to express closeness to a tragedy that remains as such, and therefore requires closeness and solidarity just as it did at the time of that murderous madness, three years ago. The same applies to any episode of antisemitism, which cannot and must not find any justification, ever.