October 07, 2023
At least 232 Palestinians have been killed and 1,600 wounded in Gaza during Israel’s retaliation. During the Hamas attack, about 200 Israelis were killed, 1400 injured and dozens were captured.
The growing casualty toll on Saturday came after the Hamas group running the Gaza Strip launched its biggest surprise attack on Israel in 50 years, firing a barrage of missiles from Gaza strip and sending fighters across the border.
Israel said it was on a war footing and began its own air strikes against Palestine targets in Gaza. Several gunbattles between bands of Palestinian fighters and security forces in southern Israel were reported.
Saturday’s attack came 50 years and a day after Egyptian and Syrian forces launched an assault during the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur in an effort to retrieve territory Israel had taken during a brief conflict in 1967.
Here’s how the brazen assault unfolded:
03:30 GMT – Covering rocket fire
- At about 03:30 GMT Hamas fired at least 5,000 missiles into southern Israel with sirens heard as far away as Tel Aviv and Beersheba.
- Smoke billowed over residential Israeli areas and people sheltered behind buildings as sirens sounded. At least one woman was reported killed by the rockets.
- The head of the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, Mohammed Deif, announced the start of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and the first strike, which targeted enemy positions, airports, and military fortifications, exceeded 5,000 missiles and shells
04:40 GMT – Dawn infiltration
- The rocket attack served as cover for an unprecedented multi-pronged infiltration of fighters. According to reports, by 04:40 GMT the Palestinian gunmen had already crossed into Israel.
- Most Hamas fighters entered through breaches in security barriers separating Gaza and Israel. Some Hamas soldiers were filmed flying over in a powered parachute. Additionally, motorboats carrying fighters were seen heading to Zikim, an Israeli coastal town with a military base.
- One viral video showed at least six motorcycles with fighters crossing through a hole in a metal barrier. A photograph released by Hamas showed a bulldozer tearing down a section of fence.
06:45 GMT – Israeli attacks
- At 06:45 GMT blasts were heard in Gaza and 15 minutes later, the Israel’s military spokesperson said the Israeli air force was carrying out attacks in Gaza.
07:00 GMT – Fighting at Israeli military bases
- According to the Israel’s military, the Palestinian fighters penetrated at least three military installations around the frontier – the Beit Hanoun border crossing, the Zikim base, and the Gaza division headquarters at Reim.
- Videos shared by Hamas showed fighters running towards a burning building near a high concrete wall with a watchtower and fighters apparently overrunning part of an Israeli military facility and shooting from behind a wall.
- In a statement, Saleh al-Arouri, deputy chief of Hamas in the occupied West Bank, issued a call to arms.
- Several captured Israeli military vehicles were later pictured being driven into Gaza and paraded there.
Border town raids
- According to media reports, Hamas fighters raided the Israeli town of Sderot, another community Be’eri, and the town of Ofakim, 30km east of Gaza.
- Residents of southern Israel fortified their homes to function as bomb shelters and were using them as panic rooms. Israel’s military ordered residents to shelter inside.
- By late evening, Israeli troops were still working to clear communities overrun by Hamas fighters.
- According to media reports, Hamas fighters raided the Israeli town of Sderot, another community Be’eri, and the town of Ofakim, 30km east of Gaza.
- Residents of southern Israel fortified their homes to function as bomb shelters and were using them as panic rooms. Israel’s military ordered residents to shelter inside.
- By late evening, Israeli troops were still working to clear communities overrun by Hamas fighters.
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