‘We are at war,’ Israeli Prime Minister declares following the infiltration of dozens of terrorists and rocket fire into Israel.
Israel has declared a state of war after terrorists infiltrated Israeli borders, attacking homes and civilians, and Hamas claimed responsibility for launching thousands of rockets from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory, in an unprecedented, unprovoked surprise attack.
Hamas on Saturday morning took credit for the extensive rocket attacks that triggered sirens in dozens of locations across southern and central Israel, including Jerusalem.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) initially declared a “state of alert for war” in a statement around 8:25 a.m. local time. It said the Hamas terrorist organization over the past hour had “begun a massive shooting of rockets from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory, and terrorists infiltrated into Israeli territory in a number of different locations.”
By 10:40 a.m., the IDF reported that terrorists had infiltrated from the sea, the air, and the ground. It said at 11:00 a.m. that about 2,500 rockets had been fired toward Israel.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later declared “we are at war” and promised that “the enemy will pay unprecedented price” after he convened an emergency meeting of security officials, while Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant approved the mobilization of reservists.
Following that meeting at the Israeli military headquarters in Tel Aviv, Mr. Gallant warned that Hamas “made a grave mistake” by mounting its attack. “The state of Israel will win this war,” he said.
Israel and Hamas have waged multiple conflicts since the terrorist group took control of Gaza in 2007. But the incident on Saturday marks an unparalleled incursion by Hamas terrorists from Gaza into Israel, and is the most intense attack on Israel in years.
Unprecedented Attack
In a broadcast on Hamas media early Saturday morning, Hamas military leader Mohammad Deif announced the new offensive against Israel as he urged Palestinians everywhere to fight. He claimed that over 5,000 rockets targeted Israel in just the first 20 minutes of the attack.
Read Full Article on TheEpochTimes.com
