ISRAEL DECLARES WAR
Special report from NBC
Special report from NBC
Video of Rockets Fired at Israel - video 6 m
ISRAEL AT WAR - Over 2,000 Rockets Fired at Israel, FOX video report
Israel Under Attack: Massive Barrages Shock Israel; at Least 40 Killed, Over 500 Wounded
10/7/23
by Haaretz news
Dozens of Palestinian militants infiltrate Israel from Gaza by land, sea and air - Some 2,500 rockets fired from the Strip - At least 40 Israelis killed, over 500 wounded - Army strikes Hamas targets in Gaza - Terrorists hold Israeli civilians hostage in their homes
Yaniv Kubovich
4:28 PM
Fighting in southern communities Be'eri, Re'im and Sderot; hostages held in Be'eri and Ofakim
Exchanges of fire are taking place in several locations in the Gaza Strip. Hostages are being held by Palestinian militants in Kibbutz Be'eri and Ofakim and negotiations for their release are underway.
A police vehicle in Kibbutz Re'im was hit by anti-tank fire, and there are casualties at the scene, police said. Gunfights are also taking place near the Gaza Division base and in Sderot, near the police station in the city.
Haaretz
11:33 AM
RECAP: 40 Israelis killed, more than 700 wounded, dozens held hostage - Gunfights with terrorists in Gaza border communities as rockets batter Israel
Open gallery view
Israeli forces in Ashkelon pull shrapnel from the street on Saturday following a rocket attack from Gaza.Credit: Ilan Assayag
Since 6 A.M. thousands of rockets were launched from Gaza on cities across central and southern Israel, reaching as far as Jerusalem, while Palestinian terrorists infiltrated communities in the country's south by land, sea and air.
At least 40 Israelis were killed and over 700 were wounded throughout the day. Israeli police estimate that there are currently 60 terrorists in 14 locations throughout the country that have infiltrated the country from Gaza and are holding gunfights in Gaza border communities.
In the southern cities of Be'ery and Ofakim, Israeli civilians are held captive by terrorists in their homes, which prompted outcry from a number of U.S. agencies and officials.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir declared a national state of emergency that will go into effect in the evening, and called to recruit all police volunteers across the country.
The Israeli army has responded to the wave of attacks by striking Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip.
"Israel is at war. This is not a so-called military operation," Netanyahu said on Saturday. Speaking at a security cabinet meeting, he said that Israel's first goal is "to purge the area of enemy forces that have infiltrated and restore security and peace to the towns that were attacked."
Open gallery view
Israeli troops take up positions amid a wave of rockets fired from Gaza and an infiltration along the southern border on Saturday.Credit: Ilan Assayag
The U.S. Office of Palestinian Affairs said it "unequivocally condemned the attack of Hamas terrorists and the loss of life that has incurred. We urge all sides to refrain from violence and retaliatory attacks. Terror and violence solve nothing."
Stephanie Hallett, the chargé d'affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem, also denounced the recent wave of rockets across Israel on X (formerly known as Twitter) on Saturday. Hallett wrote that she was "sickened by the images coming out of southern Israel of dead and wounded civilians at the hands of terrorists from Gaza. The United States stands with Israel."
Tens of thousands of Israeli army reserve personnel are also set to be mobilized, and a number of reserve troops participating in the protest movement against the Netanyahu government's judicial overhaul are returning to reserve duty in light of the incident.
Ido Efrati
4:13 PM
Number of wounded since morning rises to 779, Health Ministry says. The number of wounded who were brought to hospitals across the country has risen to 779, Israel's Health Ministry said on Saturday.
Hospitals located up to 80 km (22 miles) from the Gaza Strip will not hold non-urgent medical treatments tomorrow, according to the ministry.
In addition, the ministry's director general has ordered a halt to travel plans by healthcare employees, the cancellation of vacations and the publication of a directive for the return of medical staff currently abroad.
The State of Israel has been at war since Saturday morning. Hamas initiated an effective, sudden attack that caught the Israeli intelligence organizations completely by surprise and shattered the operational defense doctrine on the Gaza Strip border.
There is a large number, which has yet to be finally determined, of dead and wounded on the Israeli side. According to reports in Gaza, a considerable number of hostages and corpses have been brought there from Israel.
At this time, the Israel Defense Forces and Israel Police are conducting house-to house battles with armed Palestinians holed up in homes in Israeli communities along the border. The army is calling up reservists at an extent commensurate to war.
There have been terrible massacres in some communities and military bases. Although thousands of rockets and missiles have been fired into Israel, from the south to Jerusalem and the greater Tel Aviv area, that has been mainly a diversion: Hamas’ military effort is concentrated on the Israeli communities on the Gaza border. Tragically, it has been very successful.
source:
https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-10-07/ty-article-live/israel-under-attack-terrorists-infiltrate-from-gaza-amid-massive-rocket-barrages/0000018b-088b-dae9-adcb-abbff50f0000
additional report from CNN:
At least 40 killed in Hamas surprise attack on Israel
https://www.cnn.com/middleeast/live-news/al-aqsa-storm-militants-infiltrate-israel-after-gaza-rockets-10-07-intl-hnk/index.htm
