The Jerusalem Post: In an unprecedented surprise early morning attack on a major Jewish holiday on Saturday, dozens of Hamas militants escaped from the blockaded Gaza Strip and into nearby Israeli towns, murdering dozens and abducting others. A barrage of rockets aided them. Israel, in a state of astonishment, initiated bombardment in Gaza, with its prime minister declaring that the nation is now at war with Hamas and promising to exact an “unprecedented price.”

Hamas gunmen invaded 22 locations outside the Gaza Strip, including towns and other communities as far as 15 miles (24 kilometers) from the Gaza frontier, in an assault of astounding scope. In certain locations, they meandered for hours, firing upon civilians and soldiers while the Israeli military attempted to assemble a response. After nightfall, the gunfights persisted, and militants occupied a police station in a third town and held hostages in standoffs in two towns.

At least 250 people were murdered, and 1,500 were injured, according to Israeli media, which cited rescue service officials. This constitutes the deadliest attack in Israel in decades. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, at least 232 persons have been killed, and at least 1,700 have been injured in Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip. The distressing social media recordings show that Hamas fighters captured an unknown number of civilians and soldiers in Gaza, a highly sensitive issue for Israel.

The conflict was in danger of becoming more lethal due to Israel’s threats of more severe retaliation. Previous conflicts between Israel and the Hamas leaders of Gaza resulted in days of rocket fire on Israeli cities and extensive death and destruction in Gaza. The situation could become more tense with Israel’s far-right government suffering from the security breach and Palestinians in despair over an endless occupation of the West Bank and a suffocating blockade of Gaza.

Hamas Surprise Attack Out Of Gaza Stuns Israel And Leaves Hundreds Dead In Fighting, Retaliation.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had previously proclaimed Israel to be at war, stated in a televised address on Saturday evening that the military would employ every available resource to annihilate Hamas’ capabilities and “take revenge for this black day.” He cautioned, however, “This war will take time.” It will be challenging.”

“We will ruin every location where Hamas hides and operates,” he stated. “Get out of there now,” he advised the inhabitants of Gaza, who cannot escape the minuscule, overcrowded Mediterranean town of 2.3 million.

After nightfall, Israeli airstrikes in Gaza intensified, resulting in the massive explosive destruction of a number of residential structures, including a 14-story tower containing dozens of apartments and Hamas offices in central Gaza City. Just prior, Israeli forces fired a warning, and no casualties were reported.

Subsequently, a rocket barrage launched by Hamas into central Israel struck four cities, including Tel Aviv and a nearby suburb, where two individuals sustained severe injuries. The Israeli military reported that Hamas launched over 3,500 rockets throughout the day.

According to locals, an Israeli airstrike destroyed a residence in the southern Gazan city of Rafah late on Saturday, resulting in the deaths of twelve members of the Abu Qouto family. According to relatives, ten family members in the northern town of Jebalya were slain in an additional airstrike. It was unknown as to why the residences were targeted.

The sophistication, force, and timing of the attack that occurred on Saturday morning astounded Israelis. The border barrier enclosing Gaza was breached by Hamas fighters using explosives. Subsequently, they traversed the coastline using speed boats, motorcycles, pickup trucks, paragliders, and pickup trucks without opposition from the military.

In some cities, the locations where the advancing gunmen had affected the civilians were marked by a trail of bodies. On the road outside of Sderot, a woman who had been suffocated by blood lay lifeless in the upholstery of her vehicle. On the street, stretchers were used to lay out at least nine individuals who were gunned down at a bus shelter in the city, with their luggage still on the curb nearby. A screaming woman embraced the corpse of a family member who had fallen to the ground next to a toppled motorbike lying beneath a sheet. As she was led away, she picked up the deceased individual’s helmet from the ground.

Hundreds of horrified youths dancing at a rave fled after Hamas militants entered the area and opened fire on them, as captured on amateur video. According to Israeli media, dozens of individuals perished.

Hamas Surprise Attack Out Of Gaza Stuns Israel And Leaves Hundreds Dead In Fighting, Retaliation.

Photographs obtained by the Associated Press depicted a senior Israeli woman who had been kidnapped being returned to Gaza by militants from Hamas, while another woman was confined between two combatants on a motorbike. Fighters were also depicted in photographs paraded captured Israeli military vehicles through the streets of Gaza.

Col. Jonathan Steinberg, a senior officer who commanded the military’s Nahal Brigade, a notable infantry unit, was among those who perished in Israel.

Mohammed Deif, the covert leader of Hamas’ military wing, claimed that the attack was in response to the sixteen-year blockade of Gaza, Israeli raids in West Bank cities over the previous year, violence at Al Aqsa, the contentious Jerusalem holy site known to Jews as the Temple Mount, increased attacks by settlers on Palestinians, and the expansion of settlements.

“Enough is enough,” Deif, who abstains from public appearance, stated in the recorded message. He stated that the attack was merely the beginning of “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm” and urged Palestinians from northern Israel to eastern Jerusalem to enter the conflict. “Today, the people are regaining their revolution.”

Almost fifty years to the day, the Hamas incursion on Simchat Torah, a typically joyous occasion for Jews to conclude the yearly cycle of Torah scroll reading, evoked distressing recollections of the 1973 Mideast war, in which Egypt and Syria launched an unexpected assault on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, to reclaim Israeli-occupied territory.

A comparison to one of the most traumatic events in Israeli history intensified the criticism against Netanyahu and his far-right allies, who had campaigned based on a more aggressive response to Gaza’s threats. As a result of the government and military’s failure to anticipate what appeared to be an unanticipated Hamas attack in terms of planning and coordination, political commentators criticized them.

Hamas Surprise Attack Out Of Gaza Stuns Israel And Leaves Hundreds Dead In Fighting, Retaliation.

When reporters inquired how Hamas had surprised the army, Israeli spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Richard Hecht responded, “That’s a good question.”

The abduction of Israeli civilians and soldiers also presented Israel with a dilemma, as the country has a history of engaging in asymmetrical transactions to return captive Israelis to their homes.

The military wing of Hamas asserted that it was enslaving dozens of Israeli soldiers in tunnels and “safe places” in the Gaza Strip. Hecht acknowledged that many Israelis were abducted but declined to provide a specific figure, stating that the number was “substantial.”

The allegation, if accurate, could pave the way for complex negotiations regarding a transfer with Israel, which is detaining thousands of Palestinians.

An undetermined quantity of civilians were also abducted. Journalists from AP saw that four people, including two women, had left the kibbutz of Kfar Azza. A black jeep stopped in Gaza, and upon opening the rear door, a young Israeli woman stumbled out, her wrists bound behind her back and her head bleeding. A man brandishing a firearm seized her by the hair and compelled her into the vehicle’s back seat. According to Israeli television, the captives also included laborers from Thailand and the Philippines.

Frightened residents gathered indoors in the kibbutz of Nahal Oz, located only four kilometers (two and a half miles) from the Gaza Strip, reported hearing continuous gunfire emanating from the structures as firefighting operations continued.

“The knowledge that we have the Iron Dome (missile defence system) and our safe rooms gives us a sense of security when we use rockets.” “However, knowing that terrorists are roaming communities is a different kind of fear,” said Mirjam Reijnen, a mother of three and a 42-year-old volunteer firefighter.

Hamas Surprise Attack Out Of Gaza Stuns Israel And Leaves Hundreds Dead In Fighting, Retaliation.

Netanyahu declared earlier that Hamas “will pay an unprecedented price.” Whether Israel will initiate a ground assault into Gaza, a tactic that has historically resulted in increased casualties, is currently of paramount importance.

Hagari, the spokesman for Israel’s military, stated that four divisions of soldiers and tanks were being transported to the Gaza border, joining the 31 battalions that were already present in the region.

After nightfall, a significant portion of Gaza’s population was plunged into darkness due to the interruption of Israel’s electrical supply, which provides nearly all of the territory’s electricity.

Hamas stated that they prepared for a potentially protracted conflict. “We are prepared for all options, including all-out war,” Saleh al-Arouri, Hamas’ political bureau deputy director, told Al-Jazeera television. “We are prepared to take any action necessary to protect the freedom and dignity of our people.”

Presidency of the United States Joe Biden condemned “this appalling assault against Israel by Hamas terrorists from Gaza.” In a conversation with Netanyahu, he stated that Israel “has a right to defend itself and its people,” as stated in a statement from the White House.

Hamas Surprise Attack Out Of Gaza Stuns Israel And Leaves Hundreds Dead In Fighting, Retaliation.

Saudi Arabia, which has been discussing with the United States regarding the normalization of relations with Israel, urged both parties to exercise restraint. According to the kingdom, an earlier warning had been issued regarding the potential for “the situation exploding as a result of the continued occupation (and) the Palestinian people being deprived of their legitimate rights.”

The militant Hezbollah of Lebanon, which saw the assault as a response to “Israeli crimes,” praised Hamas. Regarding the operation, the group stated that its command in Lebanon was in communication with Hamas.

The assault occurred during unprecedented discord in Israel due to Netanyahu’s proposal to reform the judicial system. There are concerns about the military’s preparedness for combat due to the chaos caused by the massive demonstrations over the plan, which have prompted hundreds of military reservists to avoid volunteer duty and hundreds of Israeli demonstrators to take to the streets.

In addition, it occurs when tensions between Israel and the Palestinians are rising, and the peace process has been effectively dormant for years. In the past year, Israel’s extreme right-wing government has increased the construction of settlements in the occupied West Bank. Israeli settler violence in the area has forced hundreds of Palestinians to flee, and a sensitive religious site in Jerusalem has become a flashpoint for tensions.

SOURCE – (AP)