More than 1,100 dead after Hamas attacks
So far, more than 1,100 people have been killed in the Hamas attack on Israel and the counterstrikes.
The number is likely to continue to rise. According to the Israeli army, a number of places near the border are still being fought over and the Gaza Strip is still being bombed.
Almost two days after the unprecedented attack on Israel by the Islamist Hamas, fighting continues in the Israeli border area and in the Gaza Strip. “We are still fighting,” said army spokesman Richard Hecht this morning. There are “between seven and eight” open battle locations in the Israeli border area with the Gaza Strip “where we are still fighting against terrorists.”
Hecht admitted that it was taking longer than expected to repel the invasion. Hamas is still able to invade Israel and smuggle in more fighters and weapons. The Islamist Hamas also fired rockets towards Israel in the evening. There was an air alert in the greater Tel Aviv area and other cities in the country.
Israeli airstrikes on targets in the Gaza Strip
Meanwhile, Israel has intensified its bombing of the Gaza Strip. According to the Israeli military, more than 1,000 targets have been hit in the Gaza Strip as a result of the offensive. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced early in the morning on its Telegram channel that a building was attacked that housed members of Hamas. At the same time, several Hamas command centers were attacked. The IDF also targeted a Hamas operational facility located in a mosque in the city of Jabalia, it said.
By late Sunday, Israeli airstrikes had destroyed 159 housing units in the Gaza Strip and severely damaged 1,210 others, the United Nations (UN) announced.
Israel has gathered around 100,000 reservists in the south, a spokesman for the Israeli Defense Forces said overnight. The task is that at the end of the war, Hamas will no longer be able to threaten Israelis militarily. At the same time, it will be ensured that Hamas can no longer rule the Gaza Strip.
More than 1,100 dead, thousands injured
About 700 Israeli civilians and soldiers were killed and more than 2,100 other people were injured, the Israeli military said. Many are in critical condition, which is why the death toll could continue to rise.
According to the Ministry of Health, at least 413 people were killed in the Israeli military’s counterattacks in the Gaza Strip, including 78 children and 41 women. According to Hamas, around 2,300 people were injured in the Palestinian territory. According to the UN, the number of displaced people in the Gaza Strip has increased by tens of thousands to more than 123,000.
Bodies found on festival grounds
Emergency services found at least 260 bodies at a festival site in the Negev Desert, the Ynet news website reported on Sunday evening, citing the Zaka rescue service. The Palestinian terrorists not only killed hundreds of Israelis but, according to Israeli sources, also abducted more than 100 people, including women, children and the elderly, to the Gaza Strip. According to Hamas, they should be released if, in return, thousands of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel are released. Members of other nationalities are also among those abducted and killed.
Hamas launched surprise rocket attacks against Israel from Gaza on Saturday morning. At the same time, armed Palestinians advanced into Israel by land, sea and air and attacked people in several towns near the border. The Israeli military spokesman put the number of armed Palestinians who entered Israel at around 1,000. They entered towns on the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah (Joy of the Torah) and went from house to house looking for victims.
USA moves warships towards Israel
According to the United Nations, a school run by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) was also hit and severely damaged in the Israeli retaliatory attacks in the Gaza Strip. The aid organization said on Sunday that more than 225 people had escaped from attacks. However, no victims were reported, it said.
In response to the conflict, the USA is moving the aircraft carrier “USS Gerald R. Ford” and other warships to the eastern Mediterranean. In addition, preparations have been made to relocate Air Force squadrons with their fighter jets to the region, the US Department of Defense announced on Sunday. Israel’s armed forces will be provided with additional equipment and ammunition, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. A first delivery will arrive in Israel in the coming days, said Austin.
