Isreali – palestinian tension escalates into war.
Written by AIGBOKHAEBHO OKHUELEIGBE on October 7, 2023
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that the country was “at war” on Saturday, after Palestinian militants in Gaza fired a deadly barrage of rockets and sent gunmen into Israeli territory in a major escalation of the long running conflict between the two sides.
The Israeli military said about 2,200 rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip into Israel, while armed terror groups infiltrated into Israel by land, sea and air in paragliders. Multiple explosions were heard over Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and in southern Israel – some blasts likely the interceptions of incoming rockets while air raids sent Israelis pouring into underground shelters.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Hamas, the Palestinian militant movement that runs Gaza, had taken “hostages and prisoners of war” but did not give a figure. At least 200 Israelis had been killed and 1,452 have been wounded, according to Israel’s emergency rescue service and health ministry.
Israel responded by launching strikes on what it called Hamas targets in Gaza. The Palestine Tower, a high-rise building which hosts residential apartments and media offices in Gaza City, was hit by an explosion and collapsed, viral videos has shown.
The Palestinian health ministry said that 232 Palestinians had been killed and 1,697 injured, but did not say where the deaths occurred or whether the toll included Hamas militants or civilians in Gaza.
Netanyahu said:
I tell Hamas, you are responsible for the wellbeing of captives, Israel will settle the score with anyone who harms them, He further said that Has a associatiwill be turned into islands of ruins.
Residents of Gaza: Leave now because we will operate forcefully everywhere.
