Hamas launches surprise attack as gunmen enter Israel
The
Palestinian Islamist group Hamas launched the biggest attack on Israel in years
on Saturday in a surprise assault that combined gunmen crossing into several
Israeli towns with a heavy barrage of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip.
As warning sirens wailed across southern and central Israel,
including in Jerusalem, Israel's military said it was on a war footing and the
defence minister said the Iran-backed Hamas had made a "grave
mistake" by declaring war on Israel.
The
Israeli military said it had launched air strikes into Gaza, where witnesses
reported hearing heavy explosions.
The attack marked an unprecedented infiltration by an unknown
number of Hamas gunmen into Israel from Gaza, and one of the most serious
escalations in the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict in years. At least two Israelis were killed, Israel
public broadcaster Kan reported. Medical officials said there were dozens of
wounded.
Israeli
media reported gunbattles between bands of Palestinian fighters and security
forces in towns in southern Israel. Israel's police chief said there "21
active scenes" in southern Israel, indicating the extent of the attack.
In Gaza, people rushed to buy supplies in anticipation of days of
conflict ahead. Some evacuated their homes and headed for shelters.
Hamas military commander Mohammad Deif announced the start of the
operation in a broadcast on Hamas media, calling on Palestinians everywhere to
fight.
"This is the day of the greatest battle to end
the last occupation on earth," he said, adding that 5,000 rockets had been
launched.
The last major flare-up between Israel and Hamas
was a 10-day war in 2021.
Speaking to Israel N12 News by phone from a Nir Oz,
a kibbutz near Gaza, a woman identified as Dorin said militants had infiltrated
her house and tried to open the bomb shelter where she was hiding.
"They just came in again, please send
help," she said. "There are a lot of homes harmed ... My husband is
holding the door closed ... They are firing rounds of bullets."
Israeli Defence Minister Gallant said Hamas had
"launched a war against the State of Israel". Israeli "troops
are fighting against the enemy at every location", he said.
The Israeli military said its forces were operating
inside Gaza but gave no details.
"A number of terrorists have infiltrated into
Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip," the military said in a statement,
adding that residents in the area surrounding the Gaza Strip had been told to
stay in their homes.
Israeli
media reported that gunmen had opened fire on passers-by in the town of Sderot,
in southern Israel, and footage circulating on social media appeared to show
clashes in city streets as well as gunmen in jeeps roaming the countryside.
"We were told there are terrorists inside the kibbutz, we can
hear gunfire," a young woman named Dvir, from Beeri Kibbutz, told Israeli
Army Radio from her bomb shelter.
Hamas media displayed videos of what it said was bodies of Israeli
soldiers brought into Gaza by fighters, and Palestinian gunmen inside Israeli
homes and touring an Israeli town in jeeps reportedly been driven into Israel
by the attackers.
Palestinian media also reported that a number of Israelis had been
taken captive by fighters and Hamas media circulated video footage apparently
showing a destroyed Israeli tank.
The Israeli military was aware of reports of captives, a security
source said, but provided no further details. In a briefing with reporters, an
Israeli military spokesman declined to comment.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said he would meet top
security officials in the coming hours and Gallant authorised the call-up of
reservists.
In Gaza, the roar of rocket launches could be heard and residents
reported armed clashes along the separation fence with Israel, near the
southern town of Khan Younis, and said they had seen significant movement of
armed fighters.
Israel's ambulance service said teams had been dispatched to areas
in southern Israel near Gaza and residents were warned to stay inside.
A group representing military reservists who had planned to refuse
to attend training over their objections to the government's plans to overhaul
the judiciary called on reservists to report for duty.
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad group said its fighters were joining
Hamas in the attack.
"We are part of this battle, our fighters are side-by-side
with their brothers in the Qassam Brigades until victory is achieved,"
said Islamic Jihad armed wing spokesman Abu Hamza on a post on Telegram.
Palestinians in Gaza expressed disbelief at the infiltration into
Israel. "It is like a dream. I still can't believe it," said one Gaza
shopkeeper.
The attack came a day after Israel marked the 50th anniversary of
the 1973
war that brought the country to the verge of catastrophic
defeat in a surprise attack by Syria and Egypt.
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