JERUSALEM/GAZA (Reuters): Israel battered Gaza on Sunday after suffering its bloodiest attack in decades, when Hamas fighters rampaged through Israeli towns killing 600 and abducting dozens more, as the spiralling violence threatened a major new Middle East war.
Israeli air strikes hit housing blocks, tunnels, a mosque and homes of Hamas officials in Gaza, killing more than 370 people, including 20 children, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed “mighty vengeance for this black day”.
In a sign the conflict could spread beyond blockaded Gaza, Israel and Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah militia exchanged artillery and rocket fire, while in Alexandria, two Israeli tourists were shot dead along with their Egyptian guide.
In southern Israel, Hamas gunmen were still fighting Israeli security forces 24 hours after a surprise, multi-pronged assault of rocket barrages and bands of gunmen who overran army bases and invaded border towns.
“My two little girls, they’re only babies. They’re not even five years old and three years old,” said Yoni Asher who had seen video of gunmen seizing his wife and two small daughters after she took them to visit her mother, he said.
Israel’s military, which faces questions over its failure to prevent the attack, said it had regained control of most infiltration points along security barriers, killed hundreds of attackers and taken dozens more prisoner.
“We’re going to be attacking Hamas severely and this is going to be a long, long haul,” an Israeli military spokesperson told a briefing with reporters. The military said it had deployed tens of thousands of soldiers around Gaza, a narrow strip that is home to 2.3 million Palestinians, and was starting to evacuate all Israelis living around the frontier of the territory.
“This is my fifth war. The war should stop. I don’t want to keep feeling this,” said Qassab al-Attar, a Palestinian wheelchair user in Gaza whose brothers carried him to shelter when Israeli forces shelled their house. The attack by Hamas launched at dawn on Saturday represented the biggest and deadliest incursion into Israel since Egypt and Syria launched a sudden assault in an effort to reclaim lost territory in the Yom Kippur war 50 years ago.
At least 600 people were killed, according to reports by Israeli TV stations. Israel has not released an official toll. The conflict could undermine U.S.-backed moves towards normalising relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia – a security realignment that could threaten Palestinian hopes of self determination and hem in Hamas’ main backer, Iran.
Tehran’s other main regional ally, Lebanon’s Hezbollah, fought a war with Israel in 2006 and said its “guns and rockets” stand with Hamas. “We recommend Hezbollah not to come into this and I don’t think they will,” Israel’s army spokesperson said.
The debris from Saturday’s attack still lay around southern Israeli towns and border communities on Sunday morning and Israelis were reeling from the sight of bloodied bodies lying on suburban streets, in cars and in their homes.
Palestinian fighters escaped back into Gaza with dozens of hostages, including both soldiers and civilians. Hamas said it would issue a statement later on Sunday saying how many captives it had seized.
Pakistani leaders condemn Israeli atrocities on Palestinians: Pakistani leaders have voiced their concerns over the escalation of hostilities between Palestine and Israel and condemned the Israeli atrocities on Palestinians. These leaders including President Arif Alvi, Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani, former president Asif Ali Zardari and ex-prime minister Shehbaz Sharif have condemned Israeli brutality on Palestinians and sought United Nations rapid action against the Zionist state.
President Alvi said in a message on social media website X, formerly twitter on Sunday time has come to move forward in line with UN resolutions to resolve the Palestine issue.
He wrote in his message that progress towards peace cannot materialize without condemnation of usurpation and brutalization of Palestinian rights and people by Israel. Due to the continuous annexation of Palestinian land by Israel, illegal settlements, disproportionate reactions and killings, there is no hope and no progress towards peace, he added.
President Alvi said time has come to move forward in line with UN resolutions. The international community can play a big role today towards world peace.
In a tweet, caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani says Pakistan is deeply concerned by the escalating hostility in the Middle East and the loss of innocent lives. “We stand in solidarity with Palestinians and call for an immediate end to the violence and oppression by Israeli occupation forces,” he said.
Jalil Abbas Jilani said a viable and sovereign State of Palestine must be established on the basis of pre-1967 borders and UN resolutions. He said the international community needs to intervene to bring an end to the conflict, protect civilians, and work towards a lasting peace in the Middle East.
Pakistan has called on the international community to come together for the cessation of hostilities, protection of civilians and for a lasting peace in the Middle East.
In a statement, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said Pakistan is closely monitoring the unfolding situation in the Middle East and eruption of hostilities between Israel and Palestinians.
Meanwhile, former president and People’s Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Zardari stressed on the global community to raise their voice in support of Palestinian people who have been facing Israeli atrocities since long.
In his message, he said the people of Pakistan have always stood by their Palestinian brethren and condemned Israel.
In a separate statement, former Prime Minister and President of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Shehbaz Sharif, expressed concern over the current situation between Palestine and Israel, recognizing the grave threat it poses to regional stability and global peace.
Shehbaz Sharif emphasized the importance of pursuing a durable diplomatic solution to the crisis, urging the United Nations and the international community to play a proactive role in preventing further harm and displacement of innocent lives.
The deteriorating situation in the Middle East, caused by Israeli injustice and its occupation of Palestinian lands, is the root cause of the disruption, he added.
Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has said that he was heartbroken by the escalating violence in the Middle East which underscored the urgent need to address ‘the Palestine Question’.
In a post on X, the prime minister said “We urge restraint and protection of civilians. Enduring peace in the Middle East lies in a two state solution with a viable, contiguous, sovereign State of Palestine, founded on pre-1967 borders, with Al Quds Al-Sharif at its heart.”
Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Siraj-ul-Haq has issued a response regarding Hamas- Israel’s recent conflict, expressing solidarity with the Palestinian cause.
Jamaat-e-Islami has announced its support for the actions carried out by Palestinian freedom fighters against Israel.
Siraj-ul-Haq congratulated the successful operations against Israel and emphasized the continued struggle of the Palestinian people for their freedom. He stated, “The Palestinian people have been fighting for their freedom for a long time now, and we salute their resilience.”
Siraj-ul-Haq also extended warm regards to the Muslim world for their support of the Palestinian struggle, particularly in safeguarding the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
In these challenging times, he called upon the Islamic world to stand by the Palestinians in their ongoing struggle.
