Hamas attacks Israel: Netanyahu says 'this is war'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on October 7 that the country was “at war.” The move came after Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a deadly barrage of rockets and sent militants into Israeli territory, in a major escalation of the long-running conflict between the two sides. The publication told in more detail CNN.

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The surprise early morning attack killed at least 22 people and injured more than 250, according to Israel's Magen David Adom (MDA) rescue service. It happened on the 50th anniversary of the 1973 war, when Arab states attacked Israel on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur.

According to the Israeli military, on the morning of October 7, some 2200 rockets were fired into Israel from the Gaza Strip, and armed militants infiltrated across the border in a ground offensive into southern Israel.

The Palestinian Hamas movement, which rules the Gaza Strip and claimed responsibility for the attack, said it captured several Israeli soldiers near the border after its fighters infiltrated Israeli territory by land, sea and air using paragliders.

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The Israeli military has not confirmed reports of the soldiers being captured, but video footage published by Reuters shows Palestinian militants pulling an Israeli soldier from a tank on the Gaza border.

MDA reported that one of the ambulances was hijacked inside the Gaza Strip.

Calling the operation Al-Aqsa Storm, Hamas military commander Muhammad Al-Deif said in a recorded message that the group "carried out 5 rocket attacks on enemy positions, airports and military positions" and that the attack on Israel was a response to attacks on women , the desecration of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem and the ongoing blockade of the Gaza Strip.

In response, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had struck a number of Hamas targets in Gaza and announced the call-up of thousands of reservists.

IDF spokesman Lt. Col. Richard Hecht told a briefing that Israeli troops were "currently engaged in combat on the ground" and listed about 10 locations where fighting was taking place, including several villages, two army bases and border crossings.

Local residents say some militants are trying to break into their homes, so they are calling on Israeli troops to help them.

Netanyahu vowed that Hamas "will pay a price for this attack that it has never known."

“Citizens of Israel, we are in a state of war - not an operation, not a round, but a war,” he said.

The IDF warned Israelis living near Gaza to remain in their homes or go to shelters.

“Over the past hour, the terrorist organization Hamas has launched a massive bombardment of rockets into Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip, and terrorists have infiltrated Israeli territory in a number of different locations,” the IDF statement said.

Sirens warning of incoming missiles continued for at least three hours after the first attack.

“The terrorist organization Hamas is the sovereign in the Gaza Strip and is responsible for this attack. She will be responsible for the consequences and bear responsibility for these events,” the document says.

President Isaac Herzog said Israel was going through a "very difficult moment"

“I want to express my support to the IDF commanders and soldiers, all security forces and rescue services. “I send words of support and strength to all the people of Israel who are under attack,” he stressed.

CNN staff in Jerusalem heard rocket warning sirens and the sound of possibly incoming missiles being intercepted as sirens continued to sound across Israel.

The first rocket was fired at approximately 06:30 local time on October 7, when most Israelis were likely asleep.

Palestinian militants rarely manage to cross into Israel from the Gaza Strip, which is sealed off and under close surveillance by the Israeli military.

Israeli television channel Channel 12 reported that militants from Gaza had infiltrated Kibbutz Be'eri and that residents were calling on the IDF to rush to the kibbutz.

As reported on the TV channel, infiltrators took hostages in Netiv HaAsar. Israeli authorities have not confirmed these reports.

Footage from social networks shows several masked armed men driving a pickup truck along one of the streets of the Israeli city of Sderot. Shooting can be heard on the video.

One woman was killed and at least 15 people were injured in southern and lowland areas of Israel in militant attacks, Israeli rescue service Magen David Adom said.

Two people were in critical condition, six were in moderate condition and seven had minor injuries, the MDA said in a statement.

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According to the MDA, the teams "respond to areas of missile impacts and live fire incidents." The department urged people to listen to the instructions of the authorities, and to move carefully and quickly to protected areas in the event of an alarm.

MDA spokesman Zaki Heller is asking people to donate blood and said a special blood donation drive will be organized in Tel Aviv “due to the urgent need.”

Footage from social networks shows the aftermath of a missile strike on the coastal city of Ashkelon, where several cars are on fire near a residential complex and a thick plume of black smoke rises into the air.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant conduct a security assessment at the Israel Defense Forces headquarters in Tel Aviv.

Gaza is one of the most densely populated places in the world, an isolated coastal enclave of almost 2 million people crammed into an area of ​​140 square kilometers. miles (362 sq. km).

The Hamas-ruled territory is largely cut off from the rest of the world by Israel's blockade of Gaza's land, air and sea borders, which began in 2007. Egypt controls the southern border crossing of Rafah.

Israel has imposed severe restrictions on the freedom of movement of civilians and controls the entry of essential goods into the narrow coastal strip.

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