Armed Hamas fighters were been filmed flying over the heavily fortified border between Israel and Gaza during unprecedented attacks that have left over 200 people dead.
The ruling Hamas militant group in the Gaza Strip carried out an unprecedented attack on Israel at daybreak Saturday, firing thousands of rockets and engaging in gunbattle on the street. Today's outbreak happened practically 50 years to the day of the 1973 War. Residents were shocked to see Hamas fighters using motorised paragliders to get over the border from Gaza into Israel. Remarkable footage released by the Al Qassam Brigades showed soldiers with guns soaring through the sky on the hang gliders before they boarded pick-up trucks and motorbikes to infiltrate an Israeli settlement.
Hamas fighters on paragliders with guns (clashreport/Twitter)The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza says at least 198 people have been killed and at least 1,610 wounded in the territory in Israel's retaliation after Hamas' assault. The toll came as Israel has carried out a number of airstrikes in Gaza and has clashed with gunmen at the border fence around the coastal territory. Around 100 Israelis have been killed in the Hamas attack.
Palestine's President Mahmoud Abbas said the Palestinian people have the right to defend themselves against the "terror of settlers and occupation of troops". The scale of injuries, combined with the number of fatalities so far, makes the attack the deadliest in Israeli territory in years.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address, declaring a mass army mobilisation. He said: "We are at war, not an ‘operation,’ not a ‘round,’ but at war. The enemy will pay an unprecedented price,” he added, promising that Israel would “return fire of a magnitude that the enemy has not known." At a meeting of top security officials later on Saturday, Mr Netanyahu said the first priority was to "cleanse the area" of enemy infiltrators, then to "exact a huge price from the enemy", and to fortify other areas so that no other militant groups join the war.
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Multiple fighters seen soaring through the sky (clashreport/Twitter)The leader of Hamas’ military wing, Mohammed Deif, in turn, said the assault was in response to the continued blockade of Gaza, Israeli raids inside West Bank cities over the past year, violence at Al Aqsa — the disputed Jerusalem holy site sacred to Jews as the Temple Mount — increasing attacks by settlers on Palestinians and continued growth of settlements. He said the morning attack was only the start of what he called "Operation Al-Aqsa Storm."
Western nations condemned the incursion and reiterated their support for Israel, while others called for restraint on both sides. Israel has maintained a blockade over Gaza since Hamas seized control of the territory in 2007. The bitter enemies have fought four wars since then. There have also been numerous rounds of smaller fighting between Israel and Hamas and other smaller militant groups based in Gaza.
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