A snapshot of a video released by the Israel Air Force shows the result of an airstrike as part of Operation Swords of Iron on Oct. 7.
Hamas fighters breached Israel’s southern border from the Gaza Strip using powered paragliders for the first time on Oct. 7 as part of a widespread, surprise ground invasion and barrage of unguided rockets.
Israel Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu responded to the attacks by declaring a state of war, mobilizing reserves and launching Operation Swords of Iron. The Israeli air force quickly released video of its fighter jets and possibly uncrewed aircraft systems executing eight air strikes on Palestinian targets. A second video released hours later showed nine more air strikes, targeting individuals and vehicles.
Videos posted online showed several Hamas fighters flying over Israel’s border fence on powered paragliders, which consist of a seat, motor and parafoil. At the same time, Hamas fighters entered Israel all across the northern and eastern borders of the 150 sq. mi. Gaza Strip.
The air and ground assault, which Hamas leadership has named the Al Aqsa Flood, were preceded by a rocket barrage. Hamas leaders claimed they fired 5,000 rockets into Israeli territory at dawn. The Israel Defense Forces said the number was only 2,200.
It was not immediately clear how many of the rockets were intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome and other missile defenses, but Israeli media reported dozens of casualties on the ground.
The wide-ranging, cross-border assault launched by Hamas appeared unprecedented in a number of ways, including the extent of penetration by Hamas fighters and the use of powered paragliders to transport a small number of fighters into Israel.
In 2014, the Jerusalem Post reported that Shin Bet, an Israeli intelligence agency, had discovered that a Hamas cell had trained in Malaysia to use powered paragliders for a cross-border attack. But there have been no reported examples of such an attack until the Al Aqsa Flood operation.
Hamas launched the surprise attack a day after the 50th anniversary of the start of the Yom Kippur War in 1973, which began with a surprise assault by an Arab coalition that included Egypt, Syria and Jordan.
In recent years, flare-ups between Israel and Hamas had been limited to border skirmishes and salvos of unguided rockets launched from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory. But the Al Aqsa Flood operation appeared significantly more ambitious, with dozens of Israeli towns on the southern border infiltrated by Hamas fighters in the opening hours of the assault. Palestinian rockets reportedly struck Israeli soil as far north as Tel Aviv, which lies about 38 nm from Israel’s southern border with Gaza.
Within eight hours of the Hamas attacks, the leaders of several governments, including the U.S., U.K., France and Germany, condemned the Palestinian operation and reaffirmed their support for Israel, with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin pledging to help further equip Israel’s military.
“Over the coming days the Department of Defense will work to ensure that Israel has what it needs to defend itself and protect civilians from indiscriminate violence and terrorism,” Austin said.
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