New York Times reporting on the war

 https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/10/07/world/israel-gaza-attack#israel-gaza-attack

Here is what to know about the surprise attack on Israel.

Israel and Gaza were at war on Saturday after Palestinian militants fired barrages of rockets into southern and central Israel in a surprise morning attack that was among the biggest from Gaza in years, and the Israeli military said that armed gunmen had crossed the border fence in several locations and infiltrated Israeli communities.

At least one woman was killed in the initial barrages, according to Israel’s ambulance service.

The assault began without any warning about 6:30 a.m. on the Jewish Sabbath and the morning of a festival, the last of the series of Jewish high holidays. It was almost 50 years to the day after the surprise attack by Egyptian and Syrian forces over Israel’s northern and southern borders at the opening of the 1973 war that traumatized the nation.

Within the first hour of the attack, salvos of rockets had slammed relentlessly into Israeli towns and cities, striking as far north as Rishon LeZion, about 10 miles south of Tel Aviv, and Ramla, near Israel’s international airport. At 8:15 a.m. sirens also sounded in central Jerusalem, and loud booms could be heard.

Unverified images on television showed armed gunmen in a pickup truck shooting inside an Israeli community as well as at least one hang-glider in the sky. The militants who crossed the border into Israeli territory were heavily armed, according to Israeli media reports.

Here is the latest:

The Israeli military attributed the assault to Hamas, the militant organization that controls the Gaza Strip, a poor coastal enclave that has been under blockade by Israel and neighboring Egypt for about 15 years, saying in a statement: “The Hamas terrorist organization will pay a heavy price for its actions.”

Al Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said that a military operation “in defense of the Aqsa mosque,” the hotly contested holy site in Jerusalem that thousands of Jews have visited in recent weeks, and against the Israeli blockade.

The ambulance service, Magen David Adom, issued an urgent call for blood and was organizing a special blood donation drive at a hospital in central Tel Aviv.

Reporting was contributed by Jonathan Rosen from Jerusalem, Gabby Sobelman from Rehovot, Israel, and Iyad Abuheweila from Cairo.Show less


Oct. 7, 2023, 2:31 a.m. ET29 minutes ago29 minutes ago

Douglas Schorzman

Israeli media and witness accounts described a large-scale infiltration attack by militants into Israel from Gaza, apparently including some who used paragliders.


Oct. 7, 2023, 2:22 a.m. ET39 minutes ago39 minutes ago

Isabel Kershner

Sirens have sounded numerous times in central Jerusalem, followed by loud booms, indicating an unprecedented rocket assault on the contested city. It was initially unclear if any rockets had struck the center of the city or if the booms were caused by Israel’s aerial interceptions of the incoming rockets by its Iron Dome anti-missile defense system. But a witness said that rockets had struck in the wooded hills on the western edge of Jerusalem.




Oct. 7, 2023, 2:20 a.m. ET40 minutes ago40 minutes ago

Isabel Kershner

In Jerusalem, there are constant sirens and booms.


Oct. 7, 2023, 2:20 a.m. ET40 minutes ago40 minutes ago

Isabel Kershner

The Israeli military has called up army reserves, according to the Israeli news media. In light of Saturday’s attack, organizers of the protest movement opposed to the government’s plans for judicial changes have called on reservists who had threatened to stop volunteering to report for duty.