The extent of the mass killing by Hamas during the October 7 attack on Israel is becoming clear after three days of war. There are still many details lacking, such as the number killed and where the victims came from. The worst known death toll was at the Nova music festival. Of the more than 700 murdered, more than 260 bodies were already identified there yesterday. However, news of the mass killing in Kfar Aza and other communities along the border, also will soon reveal the huge toll taken on those communities.
Throughout the day on October 8 I reached out to people I knew from the Gaza border communities, people I had known from previous conflicts. They were alive, but many people have posted on social media or shared stories of missing people they know, or victims in their circle of friends and family.
Israel's border communities
To understand the onslaught that border communities faced on October 7 it’s important to understand the situation of the communities and where they are. Israel has now evacuated two dozen communities that border the Gaza Strip. During the attack on October 7 more than 20 of these communities were assaulted by terrorists. Initially it was believed the terrorists struck at some 29 points along the border fence, but the estimated number of crossings and breaches is now up to 80. The terrorists also attacked a dozen IDF posts and bases on the border and deeper into Israel. They also attacked Ofakim and Sderot, taking hostages in Ofakim and attacking the police station in Sderot.
The attack began early in the morning with terrorists targeting observation points along the border. This coincided with a massive barrage of rockets, and then an attack with paragliders and terrorists in trucks and on motorcycles. In the northern part of the Gaza Strip the terrorists entered the Erez crossing and destroyed parts of it. They also infiltrated into Netiv HaAsara, a Moshav that sits right on the border fence which was founded in 1982. Here they murdered at least 15 people, out of the 900 residents of the border community. Two kilometers to the northwest the terrorists attacked the Zikim base which is about 500 meters from the Gaza border. The base sits in dunes near the sea and near the Zikim beach and Zikim kibbutz. The kibbutz was founded in 1949 and has almost 900 residents.
At the base of the Home Front command
At the base, which is a base of the Home Front command, the terrorists struck at the base and killed at least one soldier here from the 77th battalion of the armored corps. She texted her friends according to an article at Ynet, saying she was wounded. It took the terrorists some time to penetrate this area, about an hour after the rocket barrage had begun. At sea more terrorists landed with six rubber boats near Zikim, but they were engaged by Dvora-class Israeli naval ships off the coast and they were eventually killed. A civilian Israeli fisherman hid in the dunes during the battle and later told Reshet Bet about his ordeal here.
Terrorists struck at other military bases, including the Gaza division headquarters at Reim which is east of the Gaza Strip. Terrorists who infiltrated into the areas near Erez, Netiv HaAsara and Zikim had to cross fields in northern Gaza to get there. Once across they didn’t have to go very far because the communities are very close to the border. Sderot, which is just northeast of Gaza sits next to the border where it turns south. There is a slight row of hills here and a main road called route 34 separates Sderot from Gaza. Kibbutz Nir Am, established in 1943 is across the street from Sderot, right on the Gaza border. It has around 600 residents. In Sderot video showed terrorists in a truck driving around and shooting. Eventually a long battle took place at the police station, which was mostly demolished in the fighting that stretched into October 8.
From Sderot route 34 separates from road 232 which runs along the Gaza border. The road is hemmed on both sides by open fields and one can see into Gaza in the distance. A memorial site called the Black Arrow is here. Some of the worst incidents took place in this area as terrorists attacked Kfar Aza, a kibbutz that was founded in 1951 and has around 700 residents. Family members called radio stations on October 7 begging to know what had happened to their relatives in Kfar Aza. One woman said that she was trying to get in touch with her grandparents and another ten people who were at an event and staying in houses. “We tried to call them, one of the families is in their shelter.” Ofir Lipstein, head of the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council was killed in Kfar Aza, according to reports. Family members of Jewish Agency director Maj. Gen Doron Almog were killed in the same community.
Road 232 continues along the border from Kfar Aza. There is a gas station and several concrete blocks that are meant to protect drivers from sniper fire or anti-tank missiles. Eventually there is a roundabout and a separate road leads directly to the border. Here again there are giant concrete blocks the size of a building, decorated with an image of a field. Kibbutz Nahal Oz, founded in 1951, is located here. The small community has an old watch tower that overlooks Gaza, a remnant of conflicts over the decades. According to reports on Channel 12 and a harrowing account in Haaretz, retired Maj. Gen. Noam Tibon travelled from Tel Aviv on the morning of October 7 to rescue his son Amir who was in Nahal Oz with his family.
South of Nahal Oz there are dunes and agricultural fields. It was through this area that terrorists struck at Kibbutz Beeri, Alumim and Reim which have around 2,000 residents between them. A large festival was also taking place in a field between Reim and Beeri. So far 260 bodies have been found here, the worst known massacre of October 7. The Osint account @OsintTechnical has analyzed drone footage of this area taken after the massacre and found more than 100 vehicles damaged and abandoned. Video shows that people began to evacuate the all-night rave at around 6:40am, according to the Osint analyst. Terrorist began raiding the area, but it took time for them to get control and begin massacring people. Dashcam footage shows some of them roaming around at 9:40am. Some of those kidnapped by terrorists here were kidnapped as late as 10 in the morning.
The terrorists had occupied route 232 between here and Alumim. Those fleeing had to brave being shot at from multiple directions. In many cases they could not get out and cars were abandoned. Almost 30 kilometers away parents seeking information about their missing kids, who had been at the festival, arrived at Mishmar HaNegev and HaNasi junction. As they begged for help, salvation arrived in the form of Yair Golan, the former member of Knesset and a Major General in the reserves. He drove to the area of the attack and began to rescue people fleeing the festival. One social media post reported by Walla about the rescue called Golan an angel. “Suddenly out of nowhere, the angel arrives at the local of my son and his friends.” He brought them out and then he went back and rescued others according to accounts posted online. The older generation stepped up on October 7 in the chaos to conduct numerous rescues. Another account described a man in his 70s who went to the Reim base to help fight terrorists.
The day was not done though. In Kibbutz Beeri terrorists had also infiltrated. According to one account at Ynet a woman was stuck in her shelter in her house until six in the evening, finally being rescued. Fighting in this area would continue into the next day, as it also did in Kfar Aza, the terrorists still being active in these areas. In Kfar Aza reports say it took 14 hours for soldiers to rescue some of the survivors. These included two babies who had survived. In Holit a family was wounded by a terrorist while the father was able to kill the terrorist. On the Gaza border to the southwest, near the Egyptian border, the commander of the Nahal Brigade, Col. Yonatan Steinberg set off to fight terrorists. He was killed in a clash near Kerem Shalom.
The overall toll from the massacre on October 7 is not known. While the huge number killed and abducted from the festival appears to be one of the worst mass killings by terrorists in history, it is likely that the full details of the attacks in places such as Kfar Aza will reveal even worse stories.
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