In Holit, Israel, a teddy bear lies on the ground near bloodstains, marking the spot where two grandparents bravely held a bomb shelter door closed to protect their grandchildren during a Hamas attack on October 7. While all of them were injured, they miraculously survived the attack. However, the aftermath of Hamas’ attacks in Israel has been devastating, with Israeli authorities reporting that 1,400 people have been killed. So far, just over half of the deceased have been laid to rest, and more than four-fifths have been identified.
This news story contains graphic descriptions of violence and discussions of sexual assault. The security camera footage captured a horrifying scene in which a man and his two young sons were seen running in their underwear towards a bomb shelter in their backyard. A Hamas fighter, armed with multiple assault rifles, jumped over the fence and threw a grenade at the shelter. The explosion resulted in the father’s body being thrown against the shelter entrance. The boys emerged from the shelter, covered in blood, with one of them appearing to have lost an eye. The boys later revealed to each other that their father had been killed in the attack.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) recently screened raw footage of Hamas’ attack on Israeli civilians, which took place on October 7, to a small audience of journalists and diplomats. The videos, which have not been released publicly, were taken from body cameras worn by Hamas fighters who were killed in subsequent clashes with Israeli security forces. The footage also included CCTV camera footage and videos taken by the Israeli victims’ cellphones, which were seized by the terrorists and used to livestream the killings. The IDF decided to screen the footage to combat attempts by anti-Semitic conspiracists and critics of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza to deny or downplay Hamas’ atrocities.
The IDF’s screenings have been met with mixed reactions. While some people have been tearing down posters depicting the nearly 200 children and adults taken hostage by Hamas during the attack, claiming that they promote “fake news,” others have been shocked by the footage and have called for support for the Palestinians. The IDF’s military campaign in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of at least 9,061 Palestinians, including 3,760 children, according to data from the United Nations. These numbers, although unverified, align with what experts would expect given the extent of the bombing in a densely populated area where many residents are below the age of 18. The IDF’s actions have caused even some of Israel’s staunchest allies to question their support.
The most recent screening of the footage took place at the offices of the UJA-Federation of New York, a Jewish philanthropy organization. The audience was small, and the room was dark and silent as the videos played. The footage showed scenes of violence and brutality, including the deaths of at least 138 people. The IDF emphasized that the footage was just a fraction of what they have obtained and that analysts are still reviewing all of it. The videos included scenes captured by traffic cameras, dash cams, and the GoPros worn by Hamas fighters. Some of the most disturbing scenes depicted the deaths of babies, women, and young children.
The IDF’s screenings of the footage aim to provide evidence of Hamas’ atrocities and combat attempts to deny or downplay the severity of the attacks. However, the images and descriptions of violence have sparked debates and mixed reactions among viewers, with some questioning the IDF’s actions and others expressing shock and horror at the brutality depicted in the videos.
