Israeli President Isaac Herzog began a series of planned visits to border communities impacted in Hamas' Oct. 7 attacks with a stop at the site of the Nova Festival in Re'im on Monday.

Hamas fighters killed 364 people at the site close to the Gaza frontier on Oct. 7. More than 40 people were taken back into Gaza as hostages.

Herzog -- who was joined by bereaved families -- observed a moment of silence at the site in memory of the victims, after which he laid a wreath and lit memorial candles.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller

Palestinian-American physician and writer Dr. Fady Joudah spoke with Phil Lipof on ABC News Live about his experiences and perspective ahead of the first anniversary of Oct. 7.

Joudah described the losses in Gaza since then as "immeasurable," saying to ABC News that no political or historical explanation can justify it.

As the Israel-Hamas war reaches the one-year mark, nearly 42,000 Palestinians have been killed in the territory, and just over half the dead have been women and children, according to local health officials.

"Even if the war stops tomorrow or the next minute, the suffering of the Palestinian people is immeasurable at this point," he said.

Ahead of the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel, Ruby Chen, the father of 19-year-old IDF soldier and American hostage Itay Chen, spoke with Rhiannon Ally on ABC News Live in an emotional interview.

"We have no idea who is alive or not, including my son. And we just need to get this to an end," Chen said.

Chen, who is originally from New York City, describes his son as "a fun-loving kid" who joined the IDF at the age of 18. Itay and his team were ambushed while protecting a kibbutz on Oct. 7, and he has not heard from him since, Chen said.

He also shared that he recently spoke with the White House to advocate for imposing economic and diplomatic sanctions on Iran, which recently launched a missile attack against Israel.

After watching negotiations between Israel and Hamas fail for months, Chen said he and other loved ones of the hostages should have a voice in the discussions.

"The sad part about it is that there is no accountability for the failed negotiations. Once that failed negotiation happens, we don't see any accountability on any side, not from the mediators of Egypt, not on Israel, not on Hamas," Chen said.

"We should also be allowed to that equation as well," he said.

Following a large blast in Beirut Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces said fighter jets attacked Hezbollah intelligence headquarters in Beirut.

In addition, warplanes have recently attacked the organization's munitions warehouses in the Beirut area, the IDF said.