Israel has authorized the mobilization of reservist troops and confirmed that retaliatory strikes were underway in Gaza. Israel’s military has confirmed that Hamas has seized control of some Israeli towns and cities near the Gaza Strip following a major surprise attack by the terrorist group. It is unclear exactly which Israeli towns and cities adjacent to the Gaza Strip have been taken over by Hamas.
Hamas launched an unprecedented surprise assault on Saturday morning, with terrorists infiltrating Israeli territory and firing thousands of rockets from Gaza into the country. This attack is the largest Israel has seen in years. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared “we are at war” in response to the attack and held a security cabinet meeting at the Israeli military headquarters in Tel Aviv.
Netanyahu stated that the communities infiltrated by terrorists were being cleared out and that an extensive mobilization of reserves was ordered. He emphasized that the enemy would pay an unprecedented price and urged the citizens of Israel to strictly adhere to the directives of the army and Home Front Command.
In a separate video message, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned that Hamas had made a grave mistake in launching rocket barrages into southern and central Israel. He urged civilians to abide by the Home Front Command instructions and stated that the state of Israel would win the war.
Hamas military leader Mohammad Deif announced the attack against Israel in a broadcast on Hamas media. He called on Palestinians everywhere to fight and claimed that over 5,000 rockets targeted Israel in the first 20 minutes of the attack.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) declared a state of alert for war at 8:25 a.m. local time. The IDF reported that terrorists had invaded Israel from the sea, air, and ground. By 11:00 a.m., approximately 2,500 rockets had been fired toward Israel.
This report includes contributions from Epoch Times staff, The Associated Press, and Reuters.