Hamas' unprecedented assault on Israeli territory has already killed more than 700 people, according to the government press office. The figure, which is more than half of all Israelis killed during the Second Intifada (2000-2005), has also been corroborated by a spokesman for the Zaka emergency services, quoted by the local press. According to the government led by Benjamin Netanyahu, which has declared a state of war, the number of wounded amounts to more than 2,300, of which 360 are in serious condition. There are also at least 130 Israelis being held, 100 by Hamas and 30 by Islamic Jihad, according to both organizations. To these figures must be added the militiamen killed by Israeli forces, who number in the hundreds, according to the Israeli army, which is still fighting with some of them in several towns in the south of the country. On the other side, the Israeli response, in the form of shelling targets in the Gaza Strip, has claimed the lives of at least 413 people, according to the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Health, which also reports 2,300 wounded.
02:32
Night of shelling between Israeli and Palestinian forces
Palestinians inspect a building toppled by Israeli shelling in Gaza.Photo: Mahmoud HAMS (AFP)
Back to top
New publications
The Country
Israeli army sends four divisions to fight Palestinian militants in several southern towns
More than two days after the start of Hamas' offensive in Israeli territory, Israeli troops are still battling Palestinian militants in seven southern cities, the Israeli military said. One of them, according to a military spokesman, is the agrarian community of Be'eri, where the militants infiltrated overnight. Many of the Palestinian fighters have been killed — on Sunday Israel spoke of "hundreds" of militants killed — but an unknown number are still hiding in the homes of these towns, sometimes with hostages, preventing soldiers from acting decisively. Lieutenant Colonel Richard Hecht told reporters that the army had sent four combat divisions to fight the militants who entered the country.
ACT.9 OCT 2023 - 07:51
The Country
Israel bombs 500 militia targets in Gaza and fighting is still going on at seven points
The Israeli army has bombarded intensely during the night of Monday about 500 targets of the Palestinian militias in Gaza, while fighting continues inside Israel in at least seven points where there are still militants.
"Overnight, Defense Forces warplanes, helicopters, planes and artillery attacked more than 500 Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror targets in the Gaza Strip," a military spokesman said.
Inside Israel, there are still "seven or eight" places adjacent to the enclave, including Be'eri, Kfar Aza, Nirim or Alumim, where fighting is still taking place and there are some families hostage to the militants. AGENCIES
ACT.9 OCT 2023 - 06:57
AFP
More than a thousand killed in two days of fighting between Israel and Hamas
More than a thousand people – 700 on Israeli soil and more than 400 in Gaza – died in two days of war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, which captured a hundred hostages in a suppressive offensive against the Hebrew state.
"The enemy is still on the ground," the Israeli military said Sunday.
The offensive unleashed on Saturday by Hamas, which governs Gaza, left more than 700 dead and 2,150 wounded in Israel so far, 200 of them in "critical condition", according to the balance updated by the Israel Defense Forces.
Israeli retaliatory bombing of Gaza killed 413 people, including 78 children and 41 women, and wounded 2,300, the Palestinian enclave's health ministry said.
The Israeli government also said Hamas captured "more than 100" people, taking them "prisoners."
Israel deployed tens of thousands of troops with the mission of "freeing hostages" and "killing every terrorist present" in its territory, army spokesman Daniel Hagari said.
ACT.9 OCT 2023 - 03:53
EFE
UN Security Council Members Condemn Hamas but Without Unanimity
Several members of the United Nations Security Council on Sunday denounced Hamas for its massive attack on Israel, and the United States lamented the lack of unanimity.
In an emergency session, the United States and Israel urged strong condemnation of Palestinian Islamists who rule the blockaded Gaza Strip, who on Saturday launched a surprise attack that has claimed more than 1,000 lives.
Diplomats said the Security Council did not consider making a joint statement, let alone a binding resolution, while members led by Russia expected a broader approach than condemning Hamas.
"My message was to stop the fighting immediately and reach a ceasefire and meaningful negotiations, as has been said for decades," Russian Ambassador to the United Nations within the Security Council Vassily Nebenzia said.
China, Russia's usual ally on the council, said it would support a joint statement. "It is not normal for the Security Council to say nothing," said Ambassador Zhang Jun, who had earlier pledged Chinese support for condemning "all attacks on civilians."
Entering the session, Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan showed graphic photographs of Israeli civilians taken captive by Hamas.
"These are war crimes, flagrant and documented war crimes," Erdan said.
The Palestinian ambassador, representing the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, called on the Security Council to focus on ending the Israeli occupation.
"Unfortunately, the story for some media and politicians begins when Israelis are killed," said envoy Riyad Mansour.
"This is not the time to allow Israel to double down on its terrible decisions. It is time to tell Israel that it needs to change course, that there is a path to peace in which neither Palestinians nor Israelis are killed."
ACT.9 OCT 2023 - 01:10
EFE
Two Colombians Sought at Music Festival During Israel Attacks
The Colombian Foreign Ministry reported Sunday that it is looking for two nationals who at the time of Hamas's attacks on Israel were at an electronic music festival near the border with Gaza, where so far 260 bodies have been found.
"Some requests for assistance have been received to locate two nationals, who at the time of the events were at a festival near the Gaza-Israel border," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
In addition, the Colombian Foreign Ministry also reported that they attend "through assistance mechanisms" to a Colombian family in Gaza and another Colombian citizen, and that the consulate in Tel Aviv has so far received "requests from 81 Colombian tourists located mainly in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Bethlehem, who have been provided with security information, and they have been accompanied for the rescheduling of their flights and safe departure from the country."
The festival was interrupted by the warning siren of missile attack and immediately armed militia groups aboard pickup trucks opened fire in all directions.
Hundreds of parents have been desperately waiting since Saturday for news of their missing children in this massacre that has shocked Israel and this Sunday many moved to the police station in the city of Lod, near the Ben Gurion airport, which was enabled as a center for reporting the missing.
ACT.9 OCT 2023 - 01:07
Follow all the international information on Facebook and X, or in our weekly newsletter.