Search

Iranian ballistic missile attack kills 8 in central Israel

Women and children among the dead after Iranian ballistic missile slams into apartment building in Bat Yam, with second direct hit reported in Rehovot.

By World Israel News Staff

At least eight people were killed and dozens injured early Sunday morning when two ballistic missiles launched from Iran scored direct hits on buildings in central Israel.

The pre-dawn hits occurred at approximately 2:30 a.m., during the fifth volley of Iranian ballistic missiles on Israel since the IDF launched Operation Rising Lion against Iran’s nuclear facilities, military positions and senior Iranian leaders early Friday morning.

One missile struck the coastal city of Bat Yam, just south of Tel Aviv, slamming into an apartment building and killing seven people, while a second missile hit a building in Rehovot, killing one person.

In total, more than 140 people were injured in the two missile strikes, including over 100 in Bat Yam and at least 42 in Rehovot.

According to the Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency first responder organization, three of the injured are listed in serious condition, 19 in moderate condition and the rest in light condition.

Dozens of buildings were damaged in Bat Yam, including six that authorities say suffered irreparable damage and will need to be demolished.

Read  Iran launches missile attack on Jordan

The victims of the Bat Yam attack included two children — a 9-year-old girl and a 10-year-old boy — along with a 69-year-old woman and an 80-year-old woman.

The remains of one victim were pulled from the destroyed building Sunday afternoon, pushing the death toll in Bat Yam to seven.

Three people remain missing as rescue teams sift through the rubble searching for additional survivors.

“I thought I was going to die,” said one survivor of the Bat Yam attack, a 50-year-old woman, according to Yedioth Aharanoth.

“I was at home alone. I heard the sirens and thought about going down to the bomb shelter, but first I ran to the bathroom. I heard two booms, and I thought it was over.”

“And then, exactly as I learned that four women had been killed in the north, suddenly everything collapsed on me. The entire ceiling collapsed.”

A direct hit by an Iranian ballistic missile on a home in northwestern Israel killed at least four members of an Arab Israeli family, with some reports claiming all five members of the Christian Arab family were killed.