Oct 08, 2023 01.55 PM IST.
Israel-Hamas war: In a recorded message, Hamas commander Mohammad Deif claimed the outfit launched 5,000 rockets into Israel.
Palestine-based Hamas militants launched a barrage of rockets on Israel on Saturday infiltrating the towns near the Gaza Strip through land, air and sea. As per reports, Palestinian fighters entered Israeli towns on boats, pick-up trucks and hand gliders.
In a recorded message, Hamas commander Mohammad Deif claimed the outfit launched 5,000 rockets into Israel. Announcing the operation, Deif said, “We announce the start of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and we announce that the first strike, which targeted enemy positions, airports, and military fortifications, exceeded 5,000 missiles and shells.”
Along with this, Palestinian fighters laid attacks on the ground as they spread across Israeli towns killing civilians and taking in Israeli people and forces hostage.
Israeli Army spokesman Richard Hecht said on Saturday, “It was a combined ground raid which happened through paragliders, through the sea and through the ground. Right now we’re fighting. We’re fighting in certain locations around the Gaza Strip… our forces are now fighting on the ground.”
A significant number of rockets targeted towards Israel were intercepted through the Israeli military’s anti-rocket defence system — Iron Dome. However, several found their mark in raiding Israeli towns.
What is Israel’s Iron Dome system?
Israel’s Iron Dome system is a short-range air defence system which is known to have a 96 per cent success rate in intercepting rockets, news agency Reuters reported.
As reported by Associated Press, the Iron Dome system intercepted 90 per cent of the rockets fired by Hamas in the recent attack.
The system was developed by state-owned Rafael Advanced Defence Systems with the backing of the United States in order to counter rockets fired by the terror group Hezbollah from Lebanon during the 2006 war and by Palestine’s Hamas.
The air-defence system became operational in 2011.
Considered one of the most advanced defence systems in the world, the Iron Dome uses a radar in order to identify and destroy air-based threats before they can cause any damage.
Israel’s wider air defence shield also includes David’s Sling and Arrow to identify and eliminate medium- and long-range threats like drones and planes. Another air-defence system by the Israeli military is Arrow-3, which was designed to intercept and counter ballistic missiles outside the atmosphere of the earth.
Due to the high success rate over the past decade and the backing from the US, Iron Dome has received international attention. Rafael in 2020 said that it delivered two Iron Dome batteries to the US.
However, All Israel News reported that in May this year, Iron Dome did not perform well against a barrage of rockets from Gaza. Out of the 104 rockets launched, the system only countered 24 of them, leading the interception rate to come down to 60 per cent. The Israeli Defense Force later said that there was a technical glitch.
In 2017, Israel also developed a naval version of the Iron Dome system in order to protect ships and other sea-based assets.
Iron Dome consists of truck-towed units, each of which fires radar-guided missiles to counter short-range threats including rockets, mortars and drones while they are mid-air.
The all-weather system does not shoot down all the rockets on Israel’s radar. It uses an Artificial Intelligence based mechanism to first determine whether an incoming rocket is an interpreted threat and will hit a populated area, if not the Iron Dome ignores the rocket and lets it enter Israel’s air space, Reuters reported.
Iron Dome originally had a range between 4 and 70 km, in order to provide city-sized coverage, however, it has been said to have expanded.
The cost to launch an Iron Dome interceptor ranges between $50,000 and $100,000.
As reported by BBC, militant groups try to overwhelm the system by testing its limitations.
Israeli forces clash with Hamas gunmen as conflict escalates, over 700 killed.
Tel Aviv, UPDATED, Oct. 8, 2023 16:59 IST.
The bloody gunfight between the Israeli military and the Palestinian militant group Hamas is ongoing in many parts of southern Israel, 24 hours after the militants launched a surprise attack on Israel.
Northern Israel saw mortar shelling from Lebanon, as Lebanese Islamist group Hezbollah targeted Israeli posts on Sunday. Israeli military said that they have responded with artillery strikes into Lebanon and a drone attack on a Hezbollah post near the border.
So far, around 500 people have been killed in both Israel and Palestine in the latest conflict that started after an unprecedented attack launched by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on Saturday morning.
Hamas armed wing, Qassam Brigades, also said that its fighters are still engaged in fierce clashes in several areas in Israel.
According to the latest reports, over 400 people were killed in Israel by Hamas, and the retaliatory military action, Operation Iron Swords, launched by the Israel Defense Forces, claimed 313 lives in Gaza, bringing the total death toll to 713.
The Israeli bombardment of Gaza also continued on Sunday.
The Israel Defence Force (IDF) said that its soldiers are still engaged in battle with Palestinian militant group Hamas inside Israel. Hamas also confirmed fights in Israeli areas bordering Gaza strip, including Ofakim, Sderot, Yad Mordechai, Kfar Azza, Be’eri, Yatid and Kissufim.
Border areas of northern Israel were targeted by mortar shelling from Lebanon. The Lebanese Islamist group Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the attack. Israeli forces retaliated with rockets targeting Hezbollah posts. Residents in the north of Israel were urged to remain close to bomb shelters in the wake of attacks from Lebanon.
Israeli media reported that rocket sirens continued to sound in many parts of Southern Israel. Areas such as Sderot, Kibbutz Nir Am, Yad Mordechai, and Netiv Hasara, all located near the Gaza Strip, heard the warnings. In a briefing on social media, an Israeli army spokesperson said the situation was not fully under control.
In Gaza, Israeli air strikes have hit more residential buildings, including the Watan Tower in Gaza City, the Al-Aklouk Tower and the Matar residential building.
The Israeli government has snapped up electricity supply to the Gaza Strip amid the escalation. The energy minister said he ordered the Israeli electricity company to halt power supply to the Gaza Strip on Saturday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on Sunday morning, said that the country is embarking on a “long and difficult war” adding that it will go on “until the goals are achieved”.
“The war was forced upon us by a murderous attack by Hamas. The first phase ends in these hours by destroying most of the enemy forces that have penetrated our territory. At the same time, we started the offensive formation and it will continue without reservation and without respite – until the goals are achieved. We will restore security to the citizens of Israel and we will win,” Netanyahu wrote on X.
US President Joe Biden has approved an emergency military aid package to Israel worth $8 billion. Biden talked to Netanyahu on Saturday and affirmed his full support for Israel’s “right to self-defence”. Netanyahu thanked Biden for the unreserved support as he stressed the need for aprolonged campaign against Hamas.
Iran’s foreign ministry backed the Hamas group by saying that the attack on Israel was an “act of self-defence” by Palestinians, and called on Muslim countries to support their rights. Reports claims that there were celebrations in Iran, calling the Hamas move a “proud operation”.
Turkey said that the country is ready to de-escalate the situation. The Turkish Foreign Minister has dialled his regional counterparts to discuss the fighting between Israel and Palestinians.
Meanwhile, Hamas accused Israel of leasing the region to this situation. The militant group said its surprise offensive by land, air and sea was in response to “Israeli atrocities” against Palestinians over the decades and “desecration of the Al Aqsa Mosque”.
Hamas have taken several Israeli citizens, including women and children, as hostages. According to top Hamas leaders, the Israeli prisoners under their custody were several times greater than dozens. They said that the militant group has enough captives to make Israel free all the Palestinian prisoners in its jails.
The Indian embassy at Tel Aviv and the Representative Office of India in Palestine, meanwhile, issued advisories asking Indian nationals in respective countries to remain vigilant and directly contact the Office in case of emergency.
Palestinians inspect a mosque destroyed in Israeli strikes in Khan Younis in Gaza.
Israel warns of ‘severe strike’ inside Gaza Strip.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will be striking “severely inside the Gaza Strip” in response to Hamas’ incursion, IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht told CNN. “Our goals will probably be decided today, tomorrow by the government, but doing this in a composed way,” he said.
Israel-Hamas conflict. Two Israeli tourists shot dead in Egypt
A policeman opened fire at a tourist site in Alexandria, killing two Israeli tourists and an Egyptian, reports AP, citing local media.
Israel-Hamas war. Woman paraded naked by militants identified as German tattoo artist.
In a video, Shani Louk is seen being displayed on a vehicle in Gaza by Hamas, who are chanting “Allahu Akbar”
The woman, whose lifeless and undressed body surfaced in a disturbing video on social media on Saturday after Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip launched a massive assault on multiple Israel towns, has now been identified as German citizen Shani Louk.
In the video, verified by CNN, Louk is seen being displayed on a vehicle by armed militants in Gaza who are chanting “Allahu Akbar,” an Arabic phrase meaning “God is Great.”
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CNN reported that Louk was a German-Israeli dual national. While CNN claimed to have reached out to her family for comment (but has not yet received a response), her cousin confirmed to the Washington Post that Louk attended the music festival.
Hamas captured ‘hostages and prisoners of war’ during the assault on Israel, the Israel Defense Forces said.
ION could not confirm Louk’s whereabouts or condition at this time.
“We recognised her by the tattoos, and she has long dreadlocks,” Louk’s cousin told the Washington Post. “We have some kind of hope, Hamas is responsible for her and the others.”
A German foreign ministry source told CNN: “The Federal Foreign Office and the German embassy in Tel Aviv are in close contact with the Israeli authorities in order to clarify whether and to what extent German citizens are affected.”
Louk was reportedly a German citizen and a tattoo artist and had visited Israel to participate in a music festival for peace near the Gaza border fence.
In a heartbreaking video, her mother is seen making an emotional appeal to the Hamas terrorists to at least return the body of her daughter.
