Israel and Gaza were at war Saturday after dozens of gunmen from the Palestinian militant group Hamas infiltrated southern Israel in a stunning surprise attack that coincided with a major Jewish holiday and the 50th anniversary of the start of the 1973 Yom Kippur war.
“We are at war, and we will win it,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. The Hamas attack was “not an ‘operation,’ not a ‘round,’ but a “war.” The attack appears to have caught Israel off-guard on the Jewish holiday, Simchat Torah. It has also revived memories of the 1973 war, in which Israel’s enemies launched a surprise attack on Yom Kippur. At least 40 Israelis have been reported dead.
He was speaking in a video address from the headquarters of the Israel Defense Forces in Tel Aviv as the country’s air force began striking targets in Gaza, a Palestinian territory on the Mediterranean Sea.
Overnight and into the morning, Hamas militants launched thousands of rockets into Israel. Israel’s national rescue service said at least 22 people were killed and hundreds wounded. The Palestinian Health Ministry reported injuries among “many citizens” without giving numbers.
Air raids sounded across Israel’s border with Gaza and in Jerusalem. Explosions were heard in Tel Aviv.
“We have begun a wide mobilization of reservists for all IDF units, Rear. Admiral Daniel Hagari, a spokesperson for the IDF, said of Israel’s military operation, which it has named “Swords of Iron.”
U.S. leaders condemn attack
Across the U.S. many elected officials waking up to Saturday’s news denounced the actions by militants, who launched an early morning assault on southern Israel.
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“The cold-blooded massacre of innocent civilians being committed by Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists is shocking, despicable, and an act of war,” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Israel has every right to defend its citizens and the United States must stand by our ally.”
Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., said Saturday morning he was “deeply saddened and alarmed” by reports coming out of Israel.
“We must condemn terrorism in all its forms,” he said. “Praying for the victims of this disturbing violence and that peace may prevail.”
Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., who was recently ousted as speaker of the House, called Israel the “strongest ally in the Middle East” for the U.S. in a social media post.
“Make no mistake: Israeli civilians are being slaughtered by Hamas terrorists,” he said. “We condemn these attacks, stand with our dear ally, Israel, and support its right to defend itself in this war.”
What is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
It’s one of the world’s most enduring and intractable conflicts that connects to a century of competing claims to land, borders and rights in a region of deep historical and religious significance.
The United Nations in 1947 tried to divide the-then British Mandate of Palestine into separate Arab and Jewish states. A year later, when the state of Israel was created, the first Arab-Israeli War broke out. Ever since Israel’s victory and following several other wars, Palestinians have gradually been displaced from territory that they also see as their rightful homeland.
As this displacement has happened, Palestinian militants groups have sprung up, sometimes joining but also sometimes in opposition to, Palestinian political groups.
Hamas, for example, has both a political and militant wing.
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Today, tensions between Israel and Palestinians have continued to simmer in East Jerusalem (which Palestinians claim as a future capital), the Gaza Strip (a Palestinian enclave on the Mediterranean Sea) and the West Bank (the main bulk of current-day Palestinian territory that is effectively controlled by Israel).
‘We understand that this is something big’
Israel and Hamas have fought several wars since 2007. However, it is rare for its fighters to infiltrate Israel on this scale and this appears to be the biggest attack by Hamas on Israel in years.
Millions of Israelis are seeking safety in bombers shelters and safe rooms. There are unconfirmed reports in Israeli media that Palestinian militants may be holding Israelis captive in Ofakim, a southern town.
“We understand that this is something big,” Lt. Col. Richard Hecht, an Israeli army spokesman, told reporters.
Why is Hamas attacking Israel now?
Mohammed Deif, the leader of Hamas’ military wing, said that the start of what he called “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm,” was in connection to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem that is the third holiest site in Islam.
The site, which is also located on the holiest site for Jews − who refer to it as the Temple Mount − has long been a flashpoint between Israelis and Palestinians. Israeli security services routinely raid the compound.
“Enough is enough,” Deif, said in a recorded message, as he called on Palestinians from east Jerusalem to northern Israel to join the fight. “Today the people are regaining their revolution.”
‘With rockets we somehow feel safer’
In Nahal Oz, a kibbutz about 2.5 miles from Gaza, terrified residents who were huddled indoors said they could hear constant gunfire echoing off the buildings as firefights continued even hours after the initial attack.
“With rockets we somehow feel safer, knowing that we have the Iron Dome (missile defense system) and our safe rooms. But knowing that terrorists are walking around communities is a different kind of fear,” said Mirjam Reijnen, a 42-year-old volunteer firefighter and mother of three in Nahal Oz.
World reaction to Hamas attack
- French President Emmanuel Macron: “I strongly condemn the current terrorist attacks against Israel. I express my full solidarity with the victims, their families and loved ones.”
- European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen: “I unequivocally condemn the attack carried out by Hamas terrorists against Israel. It is terrorism in its most despicable form. Israel has the right to defend itself against such heinous attacks.”
- U.S. National Security spokesperson Adrienne Watson: “The United States unequivocally condemns the unprovoked attacks by Hamas terrorists against Israeli civilians.”
– Usatoday.com