The decision to do so was made after the IDF held an assessment of the security situation in the north of the country in light of the ongoing conflict with Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon

The IDF clarifies that entering these areas is strictly prohibited

Commemorations and protests unfolded across the world on Monday to mark the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, an assault that sparked a war that has devastated the Hamas-ruled Gaza strip, fuelled bloodshed in other Mideast lands and stirred protests and divisions far away

Those divisions were visible in New York, where a crowd gathered for an evening remembrance ceremony in Central Park even as pro-Palestinian protesters converged on a corner of the park less than a mile away

Hamas militants' surprise cross-border attack last year killed about 1,200 people. Another 250 were taken hostage; around 100 remain in captivity, with many of them feared dead. The attack, on a major Jewish holiday, shattered Israelis' sense of security and left the world facing the prospect of a major conflict in the Middle East

"The unfathomable horrors I experienced that morning have transformed me, along with every single Israeli and every single Jew," Natalie Sanandaji, a survivor from a music festival where the attackers killed hundreds, told the audience in Central Park

Israel responded to the attack by waging a war against Hamas in Gaza, where the fighting has killed over 41,000 people and displaced around 1.9 million

The conflict has spread in the region, where Israel also is fighting Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, facing escalating threats from Yemen's Houthi rebels and contending with a mounting conflict with Iran, which backs Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis

In New York, protesters spread a large Palestinian flag on a street near the New York Stock Exchange early Monday afternoon, while a smaller group of counterprotesters held an Israeli flag