Israel declared a state of war after Palestinian militants launched barrages of rockets into southern and central Israel and dozens of them with guns crossed the border fence in several locations on Saturday (October 7). At least 22 Israelis were killed and more than 500 people were injured in the attacks, according to the BBC.
Attributing the attack to the Palestinian militant group Hamas, the Israel Defence Forces began to carry out air strikes on Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, which is controlled by the organisation.
In a statement, Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said, “Hamas has made a grave mistake this morning and launched a war against the State of Israel”.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Deif, the leader of Hamas, said 5,000 rockets had been fired into Israel early on Saturday to launch what he called “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm”. “We’ve decided to say enough is enough,” he added.