Gaza: The Palestinian group Hamas launched the biggest attack on Israel in years on Saturday, killing more than 20 people in a surprise attack that combined gunmen penetrating into Israeli towns with a barrage of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip.
The offensive code named “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” began at dawn Saturday with a barrage of rockets falling into central and southern Israel followed by Palestinian fighters crossing over into the occupied territories from land, sea, and air.
Videos purportedly showed Palestinian fighters inside an Israeli military base as bodies of dead soldiers lay on the ground. Israel’s N12 News quoting ambulance services reported at least 22 Israelis dead and some 500 wounded. The report said over 30 Israeli soldiers have been taken hostage.
In response to these attacks, the Israeli military launched strikes on targets within the Gaza Strip. The military claimed that “a number of Palestine soldiers have infiltrated into Israeli territory,” prompting residents along the border area to be ordered to remain indoors.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a warning that “the Hamas soldiers will pay a very heavy price” for their actions.
Reports said armed fighters breached the military border and blasted their way into Israel in SUVs, motorcycles and paragliders.
Hamas stated that their operation had just begun and was in response to Israeli violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza, and around the Al Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem.
Hamas group also called on armed groups in Lebanon to join the fighting. Senior Hamas military commander Mohammad Deif announced on Hamas radio that 5,000 rockets had been launched, declaring it “the day of the greatest battle to end the last occupation on earth.”
In the midst of the escalating conflict between Hamas soldiers and Israeli forces, Hamas spokesperson Khaled Qadomi has delivered a statement to Al Jazeera, shedding light on the group’s motivations for the military operation.
Qadomi emphasized that this operation is a response to the decades-long atrocities faced by Palestinians, including the ongoing situation in Gaza and the treatment of Palestinian people, as well as concerns regarding the sanctity of holy sites such as Al-Aqsa mosque.
“We want the international community to stop atrocities in Gaza, against Palestinian people, our holy sites like Al-Aqsa. All these things are the reason behind starting this battle,” Qadomi stated, underscoring the urgency of addressing these longstanding grievances.
Mohammed Deif, the Hamas military commander, issued a resolute statement, declaring, “This is the day of the greatest battle to end the last occupation on earth.”
Deif revealed that Hamas had launched a substantial number of rockets, totaling 5,000, in this operation. He urged individuals with access to firearms to join the cause, emphasizing that the time for action had come, as reported by various sources.
Hamas has also issued a call for solidarity and unity in their statement, urging “the resistance fighters in the West Bank” and appealing to “our Arab and Islamic nations” to join in the battle.
At least four Palestinians have been killed and five are wounded in confrontations between the Israeli army and Palestinian groups in the border area of the Gaza Strip, Anadolu news agency said.
Hamas media displayed videos of what it said were 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.
Reuters was not immediately able to verify the footage.
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.
Al-Quds Brigades military wing of Islamic Jihad, another major Palestinian faction also declared that its fighters have joined the operation as Hamas called on Palestinians everywhere to fight.
“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.
“This storm which started from Gaza will spread to the West Bank and outside the country and all the places where our people and nation are present,” Hamas politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh said.
Haniyeh called the operation historic and epic, saying the main reason for its start was the “criminal aggression of the Zionists in al-Aqsa Mosque, which had reached its peak in recent days”.
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.
