Over 100 bodies were discovered in the Israeli community of Be’eri after Palestinian Hamas militants carried out a surprise attack. Be’eri, a farming village with around 1,000 residents near Gaza, was one of the initial targets following the militants’ breach of the border early on a Saturday morning. Israeli authorities and authenticated videos confirmed civilian casualties and hostages being taken.
Heavily armed militants arrived in Be’eri on motorcycles at approximately 7 a.m., just 30 minutes after they breached the typically well-protected border wall between Gaza and Israel, as shown in videos.
The situation quickly turned violent, with footage depicting militants removing three bodies from a car, stealing the vehicle, and heading north. This video, initially shared on Telegram, was captured by a surveillance camera in Be’eri. CNN has determined the video’s location to be at an intersection in the northeastern part of the community.
Another video showed armed militants capturing five Israeli civilians, and in a separate video verified by CNN, four bodies could be seen lying on the ground nearby.
Frightened residents reported to Israel’s Channel 12 television that attackers systematically attempted to enter their homes.
Out of the 107 bodies discovered afterward, the majority belonged to local residents of the kibbutz. However, some were members of the Israeli security forces, as confirmed by a search and rescue spokesperson speaking to CNN.
Kibbutzim, which have their roots in communal living and agriculture, were historically prevalent in the early years of Israel. Today, around 125,000 people live in kibbutzim, with approximately 250 of them located across the country, according to the Jewish Agency for Israel.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) admitted on Monday that Be’eri had suffered extensive damage.
“We thought we would need more rooms (to house the evacuees). We didn’t need all the rooms,” said IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht.
The attack on Be’eri came around the same time as Hamas militants descended upon a music festival, known as Nova, just three miles south, shooting revelers at point-blank range and looting their belongings.
More than 260 bodies were later found at the festival site, with many attendees believed to have been captured and brought to Gaza, sparking a desperate search by family members and foreign governments.
A number of other towns and settlements close to the Gaza border were also targeted in the first wave of Hamas’ assault, including Ofakim, Sderot, Yad Mordechai, Kfar Aza, Yated and Kissufim.
Israeli authorities estimate as many as 1,000 Hamas militants breached the border from Gaza, with the death toll rising over the weekend as Israel went on the offensive and bombarded the densely populated territory with airstrikes.
So far, at least 900 people have died in Israel and thousands are wounded, officials say. Gaza’s Health Ministry said Monday that its death toll has reached 687 people, including 140 children – a number expected to rise as Israel cuts off supplies of electricity, food, water and fuel to the Palestinian enclave.
Hamas’ unprecedented attack has also raised questions about the apparent failure of the Israeli military and intelligence apparatus – which the IDF has so far continued to dodge, claiming Israel is focusing first on the fight. “We’ll talk about what happened intelligence-wise after,” Hecht said on Saturday.
SOURCE:CNN