Hamas invasion death toll rises to 800 as Israel prepares for far more dangerous threat from north

At least 800 Israelis now reported dead from Hamas invasion and rocket attacks, with more than 2,500 more wounded and 100 abducted.

By David Rosenberg, World Israel News

Israel marked a grim milestone Monday afternoon, as the death toll from the massive invasion by Hamas and other Gaza terrorist groups into the country’s south surpassed 800, with fighting continuing along the Gaza-Israel frontier.

The number of wounded now stands at over 2,500, with at least 100 Israeli civilians and soldiers taken into captivity in Gaza.

Military experts have assessed that Israel will face an actual “existential threat” if Hezbollah, based in Lebanon, joins the attack, along with other Iranian militias and Palestinian terrorists from Judea and Samaria.

Hamas had claimed that it abducted 163, with Islamic Jihad also claiming to have taken several Israelis to the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli embassy in the U.S. said Sunday that there are believed to be 100 Israeli captives in Gaza.

Thousands of rockets have been launched towards southern and central Israel since the invasion began at around 6:40 a.m. Saturday, with Hamas claiming 6,000 projectiles have been fired, while the IDF has confirmed some 3,500 rockets detected.

Immediately after the rocket barrages began, terrorists flying make-shift ultra-light aircraft crossed over into Israeli territory while additional terrorist cells infiltrated through the security fence and by sea.

In total, roughly 1,000 terrorists invaded Israel from the Gaza Strip, overrunning the Erez crossing in the northern Gaza Strip and the Re’im army base south of central Gaza.

The IDF forces stationed along the border and in the Re’im base were killed or captured.

Once Israeli forces on the border were wiped out, terrorists inside Gaza breached the border fence using explosives and a bulldozer, allowing additional terrorists to flood into Israel.

Driving Toyota pickup trucks, terrorists seized control of six Israeli border towns, and took control over parts of additional communities in the Gaza envelope region. A total of 22 localities were totally or partially taken over by the terrorist invasion force during the height of the onslaught.

Terrorists rampaged through homes, took hostages and in some cases massacred residents.

Footage posted by the terrorists to social media also showed a number of Israeli civilians taken hostage both from the nature festival which had drawn thousands of Israeli partygoers, and from the overrun towns.

Calls for help by locals went unanswered, as local police found themselves overwhelmed and the army slow in responding.

During the invasion, terrorists seized control of a police department in Sderot, slaughtering at least twenty police officers.

The terrorists were killed when the building was demolished by Israeli security forces overnight.

After lengthy gun battles, some 50 hostages were freed in the town of Be’eri, and additional hostages rescued from a home in Ofakim.

Rocket fire continued through the day and into the night, pausing only for an hour-and-a-half before resuming just before dawn Sunday.

Numerous direct hits were reported from the rocket attacks, which included heavier, more sophisticated projectiles than the Qassem rockets typically used by Hamas in the past.

Israel retaliated with airstrikes targeting terrorist positions across the Gaza Strip Saturday afternoon and during the night, killing some 313 Gazans and injuring 1,990, Hamas claimed.

Prime Minister Netanyahu convened the Security Cabinet overnight to draw up plans for the “destruction of the military and governing capabilities of Hamas and Islamic Jihad,” the Prime Minister’s Office said.

The cabinet voted to halt fuel shipments to and the supply of electricity for Gaza.

“We are embarking on a long and difficult war that was forced on us by a murderous Hamas attack,” said Netanyahu.

“The first stage is ending at this time by the destruction of the vast majority of the enemy forces that infiltrated our territory. At the same time, we have begun the offensive phase, which will continue with neither limitations nor respite until the objectives are achieved.

“We will restore security to the citizens of Israel and we will win.”