Israel launched major airstrikes on Gaza in a swift reaction to surprise attacks by Islamist militants on Saturday that left more than 200 Israelis dead and 1,100 wounded in the worst violence in the country in half a century.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared war after a series of thousands of rocket attacks on Israel and vowed that Hamas, the rulers of Gaza, “will pay a price they have never known before.”
Hamas said it fired more than 5,000 rockets at Israelis in the attack it called “Operation Al-Aqsa Deluge,” in retaliation for an Israeli police raid in April on the Al Aqsa mosque in occupied East Jerusalem, one of the sites. holiest of Islam.
But many observers questioned that explanation, pointing to Iran’s enthusiastic support for the attacks and questioning whether the pending peace effort between Israel and Saudi Arabia was a goal.
The Israeli military mobilized tens of thousands of reservists and said warplanes were carrying out airstrikes against Hamas sites in Gaza, and had already attacked 17 Hamas military compounds in the retaliation it called “Operation Swords of Zion.” .
Palestinian officials reported that 232 people were killed in the attacks and another 1,697 were wounded. The Palestinian Health Ministry did not say whether the victims included militants or just civilians in Gaza.
As the violence continued overnight, the Israel Defense Forces confirmed reports that dozens of Israelis were taken hostage and taken to the Gaza Strip, but did not specify how many, the Times of Israel reported. Arab media reports indicated that 52 people had been captured, the outlet said.
Israelis try to extinguish the fire after a Hamas rocket attack in Ashkelon, southern Israel. The country was hit by a series of surprise rocket attacks by Hamas militants in Gaza on Saturday. AFP via Getty Images
Enough hostages were captured, including Israeli soldiers and elderly women transported to Gaza in golf carts, as well as young women bloodied by the attacks, in a bid to free Palestinian prisoners, a senior Hamas leader told Al Jazeera.
“We managed to kill and capture many Israeli soldiers. The fighting continues,” according to the outlet, which he spoke with Saleh al-Arouri, deputy head of Hamas’s political office.
The attack on Israel was timed for a major Jewish holiday, Simchat Torah (“joy of Torah”), and came on the 50th anniversary of the 1973 war, during which Arab states bombed the country on the Jewish holy day. of Yom Kippur.
Israeli soldiers are mobilized in the rapidly escalating conflict with Hamas after the Islamist militant group launched a series of rocket attacks on the country on Saturday.
Hamas fighters crossed the perimeter fence between Israel and Gaza shortly after dawn and launched thousands of rockets, some of which reached as far as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, the BBC reported.
The militants also used paragliders to launch themselves into Israel during the early morning attack. Others arrived by boat and on foot, as Hamas rockets reportedly bombarded the country.
Follow The Post’s live blog for the latest on Hamas’ attack on Israel.
Video footage showed scenes of Israelis being massacred in their homes and cars in the southern part of the country, with many being carried away by Hamas fighters.
The Al Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas terrorist group, released a video of the killing and capture of Israeli soldiers when Hamas forces took control of an Israeli military base in the border community of Erez, according to reports.
Hamas rockets are fired into Israel in a surprise attack early Saturday.AP
An Israeli woman screaming She was seen being kidnapped by Hamas militants who pinned her on a motorcycle, according to a video uploaded to X, formerly Twitter.
The veracity of the images could not immediately be confirmed.
When the rockets hit Israel, an all-night party in an area near the Gaza Strip descended into chaos as hundreds of attendees tried to flee, and gunfire quickly broke out into the crowd, the Times of Israel reported. .
It is unclear how the armed militants penetrated one of the most fortified borders in the world.
Israeli leaders deployed 669 rescue planes on Saturday to rescue the wounded in southern Israel near the Gaza Strip, according to reports.
Israeli air defenses try to intercept rockets coming from Gaza on Saturday after Hamas unleashed a shock attack on the country.AP
Leaders around the world condemned the brutal attacks by Hamas, but also called for calm and restraint as violence between the two countries escalated.
President Joe Biden spoke with Netanyahu on Saturday and offered him “all appropriate means of support.”
The worst attack on Israel in 50 years: how we got here
2005: Israel unilaterally withdraws from the Gaza Strip more than three decades after seizing the territory from Egypt in the Six-Day War.
2006: The terrorist group Hamas wins the Palestinian legislative elections.
2007: Hamas takes control of Gaza in a civil war.
2008: Israel launches a military offensive against Gaza after Palestinian terrorists fire rockets at the city of Sderot.
2023: Hamas launches largest attack on Israel in 50 years.
More than 200 Israelis have been killed and at least 1,500 wounded and the death toll is expected to rise after Hamas terrorists fired thousands of rockets and sent dozens of militants into Israeli cities.
Hamas terrorists were seen taking women hostage and parading them down the street in gruesome videos.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced “We are at war” and promised that Hamas would pay “a price it has never known.”
Gaza health officials report that 300 Palestinians have been killed and more than 1,700 injured.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan has been in contact with his Israeli counterpart, a senior Biden administration official told CNN. National Security Council officials at all levels are also reaching out to their counterparts, the network reported.
Biden, who last spoke with Netanyahu during a meeting last month, has long supported Israel’s right to defend itself against terrorist attacks. In a speech Saturday afternoon, the president said the United States “will never stop” supporting Israel.
Hamas militants celebrate the capture of an Israeli tank on Saturday as the conflict between Islamist militants and Israel intensifies.AP
“Israel has the right to defend itself and its people, period,” Biden said. “My administration’s support for Israel is strong and unwavering.”
“It is also a terrible tragedy on a human level,” he added. “It’s heartbreaking. “Jill and I are praying for the families affected by this violence.”
Mayor Eric Adams, who is currently in South America, condemned the attack and said security would be beefed up in the Big Apple.
“New York City has the largest Jewish population in the world outside of Israel, and we stand alongside Israel every day, but we do so with greater determination today in light of Hamas’ unprovoked terrorist attacks targeting the country and His town. ”said the mayor. “Today’s attack, which comes at the end of what is supposed to be a time of celebration at the end of the Jewish High Holidays, is nothing more than a cowardly action by a terrorist organization that seeks to undo that peace and divide us in factions. That will not happen”.
The New York City Police Department said it was monitoring the situation in Israel.
“We are aware of the situation and continue to monitor future developments,” the NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner of Public Information said in a statement to the Post on Saturday. “At this time there is no known threat or link to New York City.”
Additional reporting by Tina Moore
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Source: vtt.edu.vn