Updated at 1 am, October 9, 2023New Delhi: At least 700 Israelis and 370 Palestinians have been killed in the 36 hours of fierce battles and air strikes between Israel and Hamas as fighters from the Palestinian militant group fired hundreds of missiles and overran military and civilian locations inside Israeli along the border with Gaza, and the Israeli military hit Gaza city with a barrage of missiles and bombs.The Israeli website ynet reported that at least 700 Israelis had been killed, over 2000 injured and dozens more captured in Hamas’s offensive on southern and central Israel. Haaretz reported 413 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, 78 of whom are children. “According to estimates in the Gaza Strip, the real death toll is much higher,” it said.Hamas leaders have said their offensive, named ‘al-Aqsa Flood’, was a response to the ongoing attacks on Palestinian civilians by Israeli settlers in the Occupied West Bank as well as Israeli attempts to change the status of the al-Aqsa mosque in Occupied Jerusalem. They have said the dozens of Israelis captured – thought to include soldiers as well as civilians – will be used to secure the release of Palestinian political prisoners in Israel.Among the Israeli captives is at least one or more high-ranking officers, including a major general, according to unconfirmed reports.As some of the injured succumb, the Israeli death toll is likely to quickly cross the total number of war casualties suffered by Tel Aviv in the 1967 ‘Six Day War’. The 1973 war saw Israel lose 2500 soldiers.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday declared a state of war after the Hamas militant group infiltrated a number of locations in the south and fired thousands of rockets across the Gaza Strip.“Citizens of Israel, we are at war. Not an operation, not an escalation — at war,” Netanyahu said in a video statement.The Hamas terorist organization made a grave mistake this morning and launched a war against the State of Israel.IDF troops are fighting the enemy at every location.I call on all of Israel’s citizens to followsecurity instructions.The State of Israel will win this war. pic.twitter.com/WwAmBkYZCG— יואב גלנט – Yoav Gallant (@yoavgallant) October 7, 2023Meanwhile, 27 Indians, all hailing from Meghalaya, who traveled for the Holy Pilgrimage to Jerusalem, are stuck in Bethlehem, Meghalaya chief minister Conrad K. Sangma wrote on X (formerly Twitter).“I am in touch with the Ministry of External Affairs to ensure their safe passage back home,” he said.27 citizens of Meghalaya who traveled for the Holy Pilgrimage to Jerusalem are stuck in Bethlehem due to the tension between Israel and Palestine. I am in touch with the Ministry of External Affairs to ensure their safe passage back home. @DrSJaishankar @MEAIndia— Conrad K Sangma (@SangmaConrad) October 7, 2023While the US and most Western powers were quick to condemn Hamas and declare support for Israel and Russia, the United Nations and countries in the region reacted by calling for restraint and an immediate ceasefire, the Indian reaction to the deadly violence came on Saturday evening – in the form of a tweet by Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing solidarity with Israel:“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.”Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh issued a statement on the attack on Israel, saying that militants “are leading a heroic campaign aimed at defending Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque, the holy places and the [Palestinian] prisoners.”Spelling out the context of the war, the Israeli analyst and editor Hagai Matar of +972 Magazine wrote that “commentators have been warning for weeks that recent escalations in the occupied West Bank are leading to dangerous paths. Throughout the past year, more Palestinians and Israelis have been killed than in any other year since the Second Intifada of the early 2000s. The Israeli army is routinely raiding into Palestinian cities and refugee camps. The far-right government is giving settlers an entirely free hand to set up new illegal outposts and launch pogroms on Palestinian towns and villages, with soldiers accompanying the settlers and killing or maiming Palestinians trying to defend their homes. Amid the high holidays, Jewish extremists are challenging the “status quo” around the Temple Mount/Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, backed by politicians who share their ideology.”According to reports, at least 60 Hamas commandos are in Israel on Saturday and shootouts are underway in 14 towns. Several border communities are de facto being held by Hamas, IDF told the media.The Israeli army, on Saturday, claimed that a “number of terrorists infiltrated” into Israel from Gaza, after multiple rockets were fired from the Palestinian enclave. At least 20 people have been killed and hundreds are feared injured. The figures are likely to increase.Israeli media said militants have taken civilians captive in several towns, and in some cases taken them back to Gaza. The reports could not be immediately verified.A map of locations reportedly infiltrated by Palestinian militants during the ongoing attack. This isn’t comprehensive (the IDF reports 21 sites, 13 here) but thought it worth sharing. Many of these locations are civilian settlements, and the toll on civilians is very worrying. pic.twitter.com/6KNjWPR3Ub— Nathan Ruser (@Nrg8000) October 7, 2023The Israel Defense Forces spokesman said around 2,200 rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip and that terrorists infiltrated by “the sea, the air and the land.”“Residents in the area surrounding the Gaza Strip have been asked to stay in their homes,” the army said.🔴 Initial Report: Terrorists have infiltrated Israel from Gaza.Residents in the area have been asked to stay in their homes.Details to follow.— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 7, 2023In a second post, the army said Israelis across the country “woke up to sirens sounding and Hamas firing rockets at them from Gaza.”“We will defend ourselves,” said the Israel Defense Forces.Hamas is recognised as a terrorist organisation by the German government, the EU, the US and some Arab states.Senior Hamas commander Mohammad Deif said 5,000 rockets had been launched.“We’ve decided to say enough is enough,” Deif was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency. The Israeli military said it has retaliated by hitting targets in the Gaza Strip.Defence minister Yoav Gallant has approved the mobilisation of reservists, a defence ministry spokeswoman said, according to a DPA report.“IDF troops are fighting the enemy at every location. I call on all of Israel’s citizens to follow security instructions,” Gallant said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “The State of Israel will win this war.”Almost all Israeli residents who have completed military service are assigned to the reserve force to provide reinforcements during emergencies.Analysts said the surprise attack by Hamas represents a massive intelligence failure.However, the Israeli military spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht told the New York Times that the security forces are responding tactically but “in a composed manner” and is in a state of “readiness for war”. The military was not yet calling the events on Saturday a “war,” despite defence minister Gallant’s official statement.‘Deeply shocked’ says ModiPrime Minister Narendra Modi said he was “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,” he said on X.The Indian embassy in Israel advised all Indian nationals to “remain vigilant, and observe safety protocols as advised by local authorities. Please exercise caution, avoid unnecessary movement and stay close to safety shelters”, the embassy said in a tweet, sharing links to a preparedness brochure and the Israel Home Front Command website.📢*IMPORTANT ADVISORY FOR INDIAN NATIONALS IN ISRAEL*For details visit-Israel Home Front Command website: https://t.co/Sk8uu2Mrd4Preparedness brochure: https://t.co/18bDjO9gL5 pic.twitter.com/LtAMGT9CwA— India in Israel (@indemtel) October 7, 2023Meanwhile, Israel’s ambassador in India Naor Gilon said that Israel is currently fighting to repel coordinated, large and multi-pronged terror attacks. “These attacks which were launched early this morning by Hamas on our civilians, sleeping peacefully in their beds, in cities and villages of the south and central Israel are war crimes. The cowardly actions of Hamas, targeting and killing women, children and elderly, injuring hundreds of civilians and firing indiscriminately over 2000 missiles and rockets at our cities, came during the sacred Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah. Israel will repel this combined assault of rocket fire and ground infiltration of Hamas terrorists and will take any and all actions to protect our citizens,” he said.What do we know about the attack?Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired dozens of rockets at Israel, the army said. This set off sirens in several cities across the country, including Tel Aviv.The attack comes as Israel is marking the Jewish festival of Simchat Torah. It celebrates the conclusion of the annual cycle of public readings of the Torah, the Hebrew Bible.There has been heavy fighting in the West Bank over the past few months and nearly 200 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli military raids this year. Israel says the raids are aimed at militants, but stone-throwing protesters and people uninvolved in the violence have also been killed. Palestinian attacks on Israeli targets have killed over 30 people.Casualties were reported in the towns of Ashkelon, Gedera and Yavne. A 70-year-old woman was critically injured when a rocket directly hit a building near Gedera, the Magen David Adom ambulance service said. Fifteen others were hurt, two of them seriously, medics added.A resident of southern Israel told the Washington Post that she was ‘terrified’ because Hamas militants entered her community. “There are terrorists walking around my kibbutz,” she said of what she saw in the Nirim kibbutz, a community in southern Israel. “This is unprecedented,” she said. “This infiltration to so many communities.”Israel’s main opposition parties, which have been protesting against the Netanyahu government, supported the security forces. “In days like these, there is no opposition and no coalition in Israel. We will give our full support to the security forces,” the heads of the Yesh Atid, Labor, Blue and White, and Yisrael Beitenu parties said in a joint statement.Note: This is a developing story.Inputs from DW were used for this article.
