After bombs were launched, Israel and Gaza began a war
The Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem: Israel’s response to the Yom-Kippur War 50 years after the First Israeli Militant Attack
The Aqsa mosque, which Jews consider to be their holiest site in Jerusalem, was defended by a military operation, claimed the military wing of Hamas.
An urgent call for blood was issued by the ambulance service, Magen David Adom, which was planning to hold a blood drive in Tel Aviv.
Unverified images on television showed armed gunmen in a pickup truck shooting inside an Israeli community as well as at least one hang-glider in the sky. The Israeli media reported that the militant who crossed the border were heavily armed.
The Israeli military said that at least 2,200 rockets had been fired into Israel by 11 a.m. on Saturday. Fighter jets had begun airstrikes on the Gaza Strip and it declared a state of alert for war.
The timing of the assault was striking, hitting Israel at one of the lowest moments in its history. It followed months of profound anxiety about the cohesion of Israeli society and the readiness of its military, a crisis set off by the government’s efforts to reduce the power of the judiciary. And the violence came 50 years and a day after the Yom Kippur War of 1973, when Israel was also surprised by a complex Arab attack, leading to huge Israeli losses and soul-searching about the state of the country.
In a recorded message, the leader of the military wing of Hamas said that they had decided to launch an operation so that the enemy wouldn’t be able to keep on rampaging without accountability.
Israel and the Palestinian militant group “Hamas” launched a massive assault on Israel on Saturday, prompting the Israeli government to declare martial law
Israel’s Health Ministry said that at least 779 wounded Israelis had been treated at hospitals across the country. The Soroka Medical Center in the southern city of Beersheba had admitted more than 80 people, with some “in very difficult condition,” a hospital spokeswoman said. An urgent call for blood was issued by the ambulance service.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said operations were underway to clear the militants from infiltrated towns and that he had issued a call-up of reservists.
The two warring countries said they were fighting each other Saturday after the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a massive assault on southern Israel by attacking several towns and firing thousands of rockets towards cities as far away as Jerusalem.
The United States supports Israel and condemns the unprovoked attacks against Israeli civilians by Hamas, according to a spokeswoman for the National Security Council.
