In the early morning of Saturday, the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched rocket strikes against Israel, taking the country by surprise.
In one of the deadliest attacks on Israel in decades, over 700 people have been killed in Israel, and more than 400 people in Gaza have lost their lives, with hundreds of thousands displaced in the escalating violence.
What happened in Israel?
On Saturday, Hamas members entered Israel using motorcycles, pickup trucks, paragliders, and speedboats as they moved into as many as 22 Israeli locations under cover from heavy rocket fire.
Hamas, the group that has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007, has called the attack “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.”
Several videos showed Hamas breaching high-tech security measures like cameras, ground-motion sensors and regular army patrols that guard the Gaza-Israel border.
The planning behind the attack is evident from the fact that Hamas members quickly infiltrated the smart barrier between the two regions by bulldozing their way through it, cutting holes in the wire and using the sea route.
#Hamas-#Israel conflict: Gaza City bears the brunt in the wake of attacks https://t.co/2eF7HgcfXV
— The Times Of India (@timesofindia) October 8, 2023
According to Hamas, 5,000 rockets were fired at Israel, while the Israel Defence Force said the group launched 3,284 missiles.
Hamas fighters infiltrated the southern Israeli cities of Ofakim, Sderot, Yad Mordechai, Kfar Aza, Be’eri, Yated, and Kissufim.
The major cities of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv have also come under attack from Hamas, and there are reports of attacks on the Ben Gurion International Airport.
Hostages
Hamas also took several soldiers, civilians, women and children in southern Israel as hostages. According to reports, the group brought them over to Gaza with the intention of trading them for the release of thousands of Palestinians.
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad, another smaller but more radical group, has also taken responsibility for detaining a smaller segment of the hostages.
The Israeli Government Press Office has said that over 100 individuals have been taken, hostage.
Per reports, the hostages include Israelis, Americans, citizens from Mexico, Brazil and other international citizens.
Hamas has not revealed the number of the captives, however, Mousa Abu Marzouk, a top Hamas member, said that "senior Israeli officers are among those being held.”
Shootout at Music Festival
In the fighting that lasted for hours, Hamas gunned down civilians and kidnapped people at the Nova Festival, an outdoor techno music event, attended by thousands near the Gaza-Israel border.
According to CNN, several clips show Hamas fighters killing people at point-blank range.
Israeli rescuers have recovered more than 260 dead bodies from the site.
Hamas has now called on its fighters in the West Bank and the Arab and Islamic worlds to join the battle against Israel.
Israeli Political Parties Discuss Forming Emergency Government
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel was “at war.” He vowed that Hamas would “pay an unprecedented price” for the attack and the incursion.
Amid the attack, the Israeli PM, opposition leader Yair Lapid and National Unity Party leader Benny Gantz set their differences aside to discuss forming an emergency government.
While the opposition leaders expressed their willingness, Lapid demanded the removal of far-right leaders and ministers, including Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, from the government.
While Netanyahu claimed that he mooted the idea, Lapid said that he had presented the PM with the concept first practised in Israel in 1967, just before the Six-Day War.
The terms of acceptance of the proposal are yet to be agreed.
Deeply shocked by the news of terrorist attacks in Israel. Our thoughts and prayers are with the innocent victims and their families. We stand in solidarity with Israel at this difficult hour.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 7, 2023
World Reaction: India, US, EU, Saudi, Iran
Indian PM Narendra Modi expressed deep shock over the “terrorist attacks” in Israel. He said that India stands in solidarity with Israel at this difficult hour.
The US has expressed support for Israel, with the country deciding to send a carrier strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean to support Israel.
The US Navy’s most advanced aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Fordand, with its 5,000 sailors and deck of warplanes, will be accompanied by cruisers and destroyers.
While a UN Security Council emergency meeting was held on Sunday, no action was taken afterwards.
Saudi Arabia also called for de-escalation and demanded a two-state solution to end the decades-long conflict.
In a different vein, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas asserted the right of the Palestinian people to defend themselves against the “terror of settlers and occupation troops.”
Iran, which backs Hamas, supported the attack and stated that the country "will stand by the Palestinian fighters until the liberation of Palestine and Jerusalem.”
Israel’s Retaliation: Bombing of Hamas Facilities
The IDF confirmed the infiltration by Hamas fighters around 7:40 AM on Saturday.
In response to the attack, Israel launched “Operation Swords of Iron” and declared the beginning of its war against Hamas.
Furthermore, the IDF asked Gazans to move from the residential areas for their safety as Israel targeted Hamas. The Israeli army called up around 300,000 reservists to help.
So far, Israel has struck over 20 buildings in Gaza, where Hamas has been carrying out military operations.
According to the IDF, the military has attacked more than 800 targets in Gaza. Several residential buildings also came under attack.
Further, the Israeli Defence Ministry has ordered a complete siege of Gaza, cutting off the enclave’s electricity, food, fuel, and water.
The IDF said it targeted a three-storey command centre belonging to a senior Hamas naval forces operative named as Mahmad Kashta and a Hamas operational asset in a mosque in the city of Jabalia.
Israel has said it is trying to regain complete control of all communities around Gaza.
Swords of Iron—42 hours in.
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 8, 2023
These are the NUMBERS.
This is the reality of Israel right now. pic.twitter.com/eUSNBFRgB2
Hezbollah Launches Rockets from Lebanon
In another significant development, Israel has come under attack in the the northern front, with the Hezbollah group from Lebanon also launching rockets on the country on Sunday.
Iran also backs Hezbollah and has clashed with Israel in the past.
On 8 October, Hezbollah launched guided rockets and artillery onto three posts in the Shebaa Farms, a territory that Israel has held since 1967 and is claimed by both Lebanon and Syria.
According to reports, the IDF fired a Patriot missile over northern Israel and responded to the attacks “in solidarity” with the Palestinian people.
As per the latest reports, several suspects also infiltrated north Israel from Lebanon, a move that saw retaliation from the IDF.
Alleged Iranian Involvement
While a Wall Street Journal report accused Iran of helping plot the attack, Iran has rejected the allegations.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kannani said, “The accusations linked to an Iranian role [..] are based on political reasons.”
Speaking to reporters, he added that Palestinians had “the necessary capacity and will to defend their nation and recover their rights” without any help from Iran.
“We emphatically stand in unflinching support of Palestine; however, we are not involved in Palestine’s response as it is taken solely by Palestine itself,” the Iranian mission said in a statement.
🚨An all-out war has been declared by #Israel,the occupying Power,against the #Palestinian civilian population in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East #Jerusalem. Read our full statement 👇@UN @Brazil_UN_NY @antonioguterres #GazaUnderAttack #Palestine @FranceskAlbs pic.twitter.com/jXlEJ4DJ6C
— State of Palestine (@Palestine_UN) October 8, 2023
Timing of the Attack, Gaza under Hamas
Sunday’s attack comes on the 50th Anniversary of the Yom-Kippur War of 1973 when Israel’s Arab neighbours launched a surprise attack on the holiest day on the Jewish calendar.
Hamas claimed its operation to be in response to the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque by Israel and increased settler violence.
Israel captured Gaza in a 1967 war, and the country withdrew from the region in 2005, with Hamas taking over in 2007.
Since 2007, Israel and Egypt have imposed a strict siege on the territory, and Israel maintains an air and naval blockade here.
The renewed conflict in the region is the latest development in the old Israel-Palestine issue and is expected to raise geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.