Israel strikes back after Hamas bloodbath kills 250 and dozens held hostage

ISRAEL blitzed Gaza City tonight in revenge for a bloody all-out attack by Hamas terrorists that left hundreds dead.

Whole tower blocks were reduced to rubble in devastating air strikes after Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu promised “mighty vengeance”.

Earlier marauding Islamist gunmen massacred civilians and snatched hostages off the streets after storming through the frontier from Gaza amid a hail of 5,000 rockets.

At least 250 Israelis were reportedly killed and over 1,500 wounded in the worst violence to erupt in the country for years.

An Israeli general said the surprise assault “opened the gates of hell” and vowed to take swift retaliation.

This evening Israeli jets attacked Hamas targets in Gaza City, and the terror group leader’s home was allegedly blown to bits in Khan Younis.

Palestinian authorities said at least 232 civilians have reportedly been killed in the retaliatory airstrikes.

Meanwhile another barrage of 150 rockets was fired by Hamas this evening, striking residential buildings in Tel Aviv.

Fighting continues in over 20 locations across the states.

As the bombs fell, Netanyahu promised the country would defeat Hamas and that they would pay an “unprecedented price”.

He said this evening: “Israel will settle the score with anyone who harms them.

“What happened today has never been seen in Israel. We will take mighty vengeance for this black day.”

Israel confirmed that civilians and soldiers are being held hostage by Hamas near the Gaza Border,

Some experts have suggested the hostages could be used as human bargaining chips in exchange for prisoners kept in Israeli jails.

Another suggested they might even be used as human shields to stop Israeli forces.

Senior Hamas leader Saleh al-Arouri said his force had enough Israeli captives to force the release of around 5,000 Palestinian prisoners.

It comes after shocking images showed a young woman and two elderly women being captured by gun-toting fanatics.

The young woman is seen barefoot and bloodied as she’s dragged by a militant fighter shouting “Allah Akbar” into a vehicle.

One of the old women was wedged between two gun-toting terrorists on a motorbike, like Noa Argamani, who was snatched from a music festival.

Harrowing footage shows the 25-year-old woman begging for her life as her boyfriend watches on in horror and Hamas thugs speed off with her on the back of a bike.

As many as 50 hostages were reportedly snatched, including civilians and soldiers.

It comes as…

• Hamas terrorists launched an all out attack on Israel from land, air and sea with 5,000 rockets fired
• 250 Israelis are confirmed dead, as 1,400 have been taken to hospital
• Palestinian authorities said 232 civilians died during Israel’s retaliatory air strikes this evening in the Gaza strip
• Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video address: “We are at war and we will win. Our enemy will pay a price, the type of which it has never known”.
• Reports emerged of kidnapped Israeli soldiers being being paraded on military vehicles
• Netanyahu mobilised the country’s army reserves following his declaration of war
• The Palestinian Islamic jihad joined forces with Hamas fighters in attacking Israel

Hamas launched the terrifying attack from land, air and sea in the early hours of Saturday, pummelling Israel citizens with over 5,000 rockets.

Israel’s high-tech security services were taken completely by surprise, and the $1bn Iron Dome missile defence system failed to stop the hail of rockets.

Experts called it an “embarrassing intelligence failure” as questions were asked how Hamas was able to build a huge arsenal despite a total blockade by Israel and its allies.

Chilling footage captured the moment paragliders, small boats and armed men in cars stormed into Israeli territory.

Video taken early this morning appeared to show Hamas militants stalking the streets of southern Israel with machine guns.

Other reports describe bodies of Israeli civilians lying in the street in pools of blood.

Graphic social media footage even showed a dead Israeli female fighter stripped naked and paraded on the back of a pick-up truck.

Others showed dead civilian families hauled from their cars on motorways.

Militants were also filmed storming the Israeli border, tearing down barriers with motorcycles and tractors and taking control of military vehicles.

Israel declared “war” and launched a revenge operation dubbed Iron Swords, which included calling up reservists for action.

Israel’s President Isaac Herzog said the group had committed “cold-blooded murder of innocent men, women, and children”.

Following the terror groups’ brazen attacks across Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Sderot, Israel’s Major General Ghasan Alyan delivered a chilling warning.

He said: “Hamas has opened the gates of hell into the Gaza Strip” and that they would “bear the responsibility and pay for its deeds.”

In a video address posted on Twitter, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued his own chilling warning: “We are at war and we will win.

“Our enemy will pay a price, the type of which it has never known.”

News of the attack was met with jubilant scenes in the West Bank as hundreds took to the streets to celebrate the Hamas incursion, despite the threat of retaliatory airstrikes.

The shocking attack from Hamas militants has been condemned by the EU, Ukraine, Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

UK PM Rishi Sunak wrote on Twitter: “I am shocked by this morning‘s attacks by Hamas terrorists against Israeli citizens. Israel has an absolute right to defend itself.

“We’re in contact with Israeli authorities, and British nationals in Israel should follow travel advice.”

President Joe Biden also confirmed that he’d spoken with Netanyahu and offered his “unwavering” support.

He later said: “Israel has a right to defend itself and its people – full stop”.

“Let me say this as clearly as I can. This is not a moment for any party hostile to Israel to exploit these attacks to seek advantage. The world is watching.”

He said the taking of entire families from their homes was “unconscionable”.

But the massacre was openly praised by some, including Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khameneni who congratulated the Palestinian terrorists.

Another group, The Palestinian Islamic Jihad, said its fighters have joined Hamas in the shock attack on Israel. 

A statement said: “Our cadres stand alongside their brothers in Hamas, shoulder to shoulder, until victory.”

Israeli PM Netanyahu said the country would reinforce it’s borders to deter others from “making the mistake of joining the war”.

Earlier today, Hamas military commander Mohammad Deif said more than 5,000 rockets had been launched.

He said: “This is the day of the greatest battle to end the last occupation on earth.”

Palestinians had been protesting attempts by settlers to forcibly evict a number of families from their homes at Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Arabic and Jewish communities have engaged in fierce conflicts for decades over who can lay claim to the region.

Extreme violence previously erupted between Israel and Palestine in 2021 when protests turned into air strikes and rocket attacks.

The terrorist group said it would turn Israel “into hell” in retaliation before IDF forces hit 150 Hamas targets dropping 450 missiles in just 40 minutes on the Gaza Strip.

Hundreds died in the 11-day crisis in May 2021, prompting an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.

The ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine goes back many decades.

In May 1948, tens of thousands of Holocaust survivors rebuilt their lives in the newly established State of Israel.

Arabs already living in the area didn’t accept this, so the two parties went to war in 1948 and later in 1967.

Israel still controls most of Gaza’s borders and coastal territory, deciding who can get in and out of Gaza, including goods.

Hamas – the largest of several militant Islamist groups in Palestine – refuses to recognise Israel as a country and wants Palestinians to be able to return to their old home.