Israeli soldiers are locked in fierce battles with Hamas militants in the streets of southern Israel while simultaneously exchanging fire with Hezbollah militants in the north, who have launched rockets from Lebanon. This dual-front conflict has prompted urgent evacuations in Israeli communities along the Lebanon border.
Israeli officials have confirmed a devastating toll, with over 700 Israeli civilians and military personnel losing their lives since Hamas initiated an unprecedented attack on Israel from Gaza early Saturday morning. Another 2,150 individuals have been wounded in the ongoing clashes.
Tragically, the violence has claimed the lives of several U.S. citizens, as confirmed by a National Security Council spokesperson on Sunday evening.
“We extend our deepest condolences to the victims and to the families of all those affected, and wish those injured a speedy recovery,” the spokesperson said, adding, “We continue to monitor the situation closely and remain in touch with our Israeli partners, particularly the local authorities.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, after being briefed on the situation, expressed his condolences and stated that the United States was aware of four American fatalities, with the expectation that the toll may unfortunately rise.
In a horrifying incident, the Israeli rescue service Zaka reported that its paramedics have recovered approximately 260 bodies from a music festival attended by thousands, which came under attack by Hamas militants.
This number is expected to increase as additional paramedic teams continue their operations in the affected area. This escalating conflict marks one of the deadliest days in decades in the long-running Israel-Palestinian conflict.
The Gaza Ministry of Health reported that 370 Palestinians have lost their lives, with 2,200 others sustaining injuries as of Sunday.
In response to the crisis, President Biden reached out to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, offering unwavering support for the Israeli government, as confirmed by the White House.
“The President also conveyed that additional assistance for the Israeli Defense Forces is now on its way to Israel with more to follow over the coming days,” the White House said.
On Sunday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin affirmed that the United States would swiftly furnish the Israel Defense Forces with supplementary equipment and resources, including munitions. Austin also disclosed his directive to deploy the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to the eastern Mediterranean, comprising an aircraft carrier and the USS Normandy, a Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser.
In response to the Hamas assault, various U.S. politicians promptly voiced their condemnation and reiterated their commitment to supporting Israel.
Meanwhile, the Israeli rescue organization, Zaka, has disclosed that its paramedics have retrieved more than 260 bodies from a music festival that fell under attack by Hamas militants. The final count of recovered bodies is anticipated to be higher, as additional paramedic teams are actively engaged in the area. Zaka has underscored that not all of the bodies have been collected at this point.
In the early hours of Saturday morning, Hamas targeted the Nova music festival, a techno rave situated in the desert near the Gaza border. Disturbing videos circulating on social media and Israeli news outlets depicted festival-goers fleeing across an open field while gunfire echoed in the background.
Among those missing after the militants stormed Nova festival is British citizen Jacob Marlowe, who was taken hostage by the assailants on Saturday morning.
Meanwhile, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has confirmed that the U.S. Navy is repositioning warships, including an aircraft carrier, closer to Israel. Austin additionally stated that the United States would swiftly supply Israel with “additional equipment and resources, including munitions” in the coming days.
The Israeli death toll has tragically risen to over 700, as reported by several local media outlets, including the Times of Israel and N12. Gaza health authorities have reported 413 fatalities, as relentless Israeli airstrikes persisted overnight.
In a separate development, Iran’s mission to the United States has asserted that Tehran was not involved in the attack by Palestinian militants in Israel.
“The resolute measures taken by Palestine constitute a wholly legitimate defence against seven decades of oppressive occupation and heinous crimes committed by the illegitimate Zionist regime,” Iran’s UN mission said in a statement.
Iran’s support for Hamas and the Palestinian militant organization Islamic Jihad, involving funding and arming, has been widely acknowledged. However, Iran’s UN mission has issued a statement clarifying their position, saying, “We firmly express our unwavering support for Palestine, but we are not engaged in shaping Palestine’s response, which is solely determined by Palestine itself.”
This statement follows a report in the Wall Street Journal that suggested the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had been collaborating with Hamas since August to coordinate the eventual attack.
Iran’s UN mission said the “success” of the Hamas operation was because it was a surprise, which makes it the “biggest failure” of Israel’s security organisations.
“They are attempting to justify their failure and attribute it to Iran’s intelligence power and operational planning,” it added.
As previously noted, The Wall Street Journal revealed that Iranian authorities played a crucial role in assisting Hamas in formulating plans for the attack on Israel, even granting the militant group a definitive “green light” before their offensive on Saturday.
According to the report, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps collaborated with Hamas, a military organization supported by Iran, starting as early as August to coordinate the eventual attack. This information was attributed to senior members of both Hamas and Hezbollah, another military force backed by Iran.
The report further indicated that Iran provided its ultimate approval for the attack during a meeting held in Beirut this past Monday.
Early Saturday morning, the Gaza Strip was the epicenter of a sudden and aggressive attack on Israel. Hamas militants in the besieged Palestinian territory unleashed a barrage of thousands of missiles, while another faction of militants, numbering in the dozens, breached the heavily fortified border fence, crossing into Israeli communities using motorcycles, paragliders, and pickup trucks. This offensive took Israel completely off guard.
Hamas swiftly dispatched fighters into an estimated 22 separate locations in southern Israel. In a disturbing escalation, they began shooting civilians in the streets and abducting both civilians and Israeli security forces, subsequently taking them back to Gaza.
Hamas, an internationally designated Palestinian militant faction, governs the Gaza Strip, an area of approximately 230 square miles inhabited by over two million people. Israel and the United States have classified Hamas as a terrorist organization, with both nations accusing Iran of providing direct financial and logistical support to the group.
The Gaza Strip stands as one of the most densely populated regions globally and has endured an Israeli blockade since 2007.
As of Sunday morning, Israeli authorities reported ongoing confrontations with Hamas militants at six different locations within Israel’s borders.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared on Saturday that Israel was embroiled in “a long and difficult war.” He pledged that the Israeli military would deploy all its resources to eliminate the threat posed by Hamas.
“All the places that Hamas hides in, operates from, we will turn them into ruins,” Netanyahu said.
“Get out of there,” Netanyahu urged Gaza residents, who have no way to leave the blockaded territory, as Israel cut off electricity to the region.
Addressing a closed emergency meeting at the United Nations, Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan characterized the attacks as “war crimes.”
“Now is the time to obliterate Hamas’ military terror infrastructure,” Erdan said. Asked by CBS News about what he expects out of the U.N. meeting, Erdan said, “Our only expectation is the obvious expectation that the U.N. that was founded and especially the Security Council, to prevent wars, to fight terrorism would and will condemn unequivocally the Hamas is atrocities and defend Israel’s right to defend itself.”
In the meantime, Hezbollah, based in Lebanon, reported launching numerous rockets on Sunday morning towards Israeli positions located in the Golan Heights, a region under Israeli occupation, with disputed claims and borders connecting Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. Hezbollah justified this attack, which involved a substantial volume of rockets and artillery, as an expression of solidarity with the “Palestinian resistance.”
According to the U.S. government, similar to Hamas, Hezbollah primarily receives its funding and backing from Iran.
