Hamas terrorists stormed at least two kibbutzim in southern Israel on Saturday as part of wider shock attacks against Israel, leaving residents of the defenseless communities begging for help.
Civilians said they were being held captive by terrorists in their homes and pleaded with the army to send forces to the southern kibbutzim of Nir Oz and Nir Am, along with other communities along the border with the Gaza Strip.
“We are being massacred. There is no army. It’s been 6 hours,” said a resident of the kibbutz. “People are begging for their lives.”
“My sister said that the militants entered her house,” a Tel Aviv resident named Gaia in the southern kibbutz of Nir Oz told Haaretz. “I can’t reach her.”
“She told me that she and my brother and my father were hiding in the shelter,” Gaia added. “She said the [militants] I got out after a few minutes, but I haven’t been able to contact my family since then.”
Gaia reported that her brother had sent her a text message saying that there were many casualties in the kibbutz, but that no police or Israeli army forces were to be seen.
His comments echo growing criticism from residents of the Gaza Strip that hours after the infiltrations, there was no sign of Israeli security forces and they felt abandoned.
Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai said the Israel Defense Forces, along with special units, were handling “a number of war zones and all the additional forces that have been thrown into the Gaza Strip.”
Follow The Post’s live blog for the latest on the Hamas attack on Israel
“We know of civilians who are barricaded in all kinds of places,” Shabtai added. “We ask everyone to stay behind closed doors, eventually we will get to everyone. We are moving from one scene to another. There are quite a few terrorists who have been killed in the different scenes.”
“Unfortunately, there are also casualties from our forces and civilians who were nearby,” he continued. “I ask the public to show restraint and patience and to lock themselves in their homes.”
At least 250 Israelis were killed and more than 1,500 were injured across the country in the attacks.
Eight hours after Palestinian fighters were first spotted in the border communities, a resident of the kibbutz said the shooting was still ongoing.
“There are still clashes in the kibbutz. We are hearing gunshots. It seems like there are a lot of forces here,” the resident told Haaretz.
“People have their hands on the doors of the shelters, fearing that the terrorists will try to enter the houses again. Houses are being set on fire. We are waiting tensely, we communicate with each other by phone and email. There are horrible rumours.”
The worst attack on Israel in 50 years: how we got here
2005: Israel unilaterally withdraws from the Gaza Strip more than three decades after gaining territory in Egypt in the Six Day War.
2006: The terrorist group Hamas wins the Palestinian legislative elections.
2007: Hamas takes control of Gaza in a civil war.
2008: Israel launches a military offensive against Gaza after Palestinian terrorists fire rockets into the city of Sderot.
2023: Hamas launches biggest attack on Israel in 50 years.
More than 300 Israelis have been killed and at least 1,500 injured with the death toll expected to rise after Hamas terrorists fired thousands of rockets and sent dozens of militants into Israeli cities.
Hamas terrorists were seen taking women hostage and parading them down the street in gruesome videos.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced “We are at war” and vowed that Hamas would pay “a price it has never known”.
Health officials in Gaza report that at least 230 Palestinians have been killed and more than 1,700 injured.
Residents of the southern Bedouin town of Rahat were also in panic as they appeared to be in one of the epicenters of rocket fire and terrorist infiltration, with almost no means of protection against the attacks.
“There are maybe 10 shelters here in all of Rahat,” in an area of about 11.3 million acres, Mayor Ata Abu Mediam told The Marker, a Hebrew-language news outlet. “I asked for 50 protective shields in the previous round of rockets, they brought me two.” added.
“After this round, I will not send the children to school. In the meantime, the schools in the settlement are open, and those without a home or shelter must stay in the schools,” the mayor added , who said five residents of Rahat were hit by gunfire while working on farms in the surrounding Gaza Strip.
“A woman working in agriculture was seriously wounded in the neck. I have no verification whether the weapons were fired by Gazans or security forces,” he added. An attack has been reported in the Albat neighborhood that has resulted in an undetermined number of deaths and injuries.
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