Slaughter of the innocents: Israel vows to 'wipe out' Hamas after '40 babies and children massacred' in Kfar Aza

11 October 2023, 00:35 | Updated: 11 October 2023, 07:47

By Kieran Kelly

@kellyjourno

Israel has vowed to "wipe out" Hamas following the murder of 'babies and children' in Kfar Aza.

Kibbutz Kfar Aza is the site of a 'massacre' after 'up to 40 babies were massacred' as part of Saturday's attack, according to Israeli Defence Forces.

Some of the babies were 'burned alive' and others were 'beheaded', it has been claimed by Israel.

Local security are said to have fought Hamas killers for 17 hours before backup arrived, with members of the organisation crossing the border from the Gaza Strip.

Following the attack, Israel has vowed to "wipe out" Hamas.

"We have heard of 40 young boys, some of them were burnt alive, some were beheaded, some were shot in the head," Israel's economics minister Nir Barkat said.

"All the militants, all the infrastructure, the people supporting Hamas. We will wipe them out," he added.

A kibbutz is a type of settlement unique to Israel, a community which is traditionally based around agriculture.

It comes as the Israeli military announced it had found the bodies of 1,500 Hamas attackers in Israel and around the Gaza Strip, three days after attackers crossed the border, launching a series of attacks on the country.

Reuters has also reported that bodies of Hamas killers were found in residential buildings and on the streets, alongside those of Israeli residents.

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Soldiers could be seen sweeping booby-traps and hidden explosives on Tuesday, going from house to house in a bid to secure the area.

Kfar Aza is thought to be one of the hardest hit areas following Saturday's attack by Hamas.

It comes as it was revealed Hamas members indiscriminately gunned down civilians, as well as taking control of a police station, during Saturday's attack.

The small city of Sderot, home to around 30,000 people, was one of the first to be attacked on Saturday morning.

Video shows Hamas aboard pick-up trucks firing indiscriminately at civilians, killing dozens.

Israeli Defence Forces took members of the foreign press through the area, which is believed to be one of the epicentres of the attack by Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip.

Arms and ammunition - including grenades, have since been discovered behind children's' playgrounds in the area according to Sky News.

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It comes as the head of the Hamas political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, asserted the group will not negotiate with Israel about the hostages until fighting ceases.

“We have informed all parties that contacted us regarding the enemy’s prisoners held by the resistance that this file will not be opened before the end of the battle,” he said.

Adding: “And it will only be at a price that the resistance will accept.”

It comes as the Palestinian health ministry said on Tuesday that least 830 Palestinians have since been killed, and 4,250 wounded, by Israeli airstrikes on Gaza.

Soldiers could be seen recovering bodies in the area, with the dead - including Israeli residents and Hamas militants, lying in the streets of the Kfar Aza kibbutz.

"You see the babies, the mothers, the fathers, in their bedrooms, in their protection rooms and how the terrorist kills them.

"It's not a war, it's not a battle field. It's a massacre, it's a terror activity," said Israeli Major General Itai Veruv to members of the press.

"It is something that I never saw in my life. It's something that we used to imagine from our grandfathers, grandmothers in the pogrom in Europe and other places. It's not something that happens in new history."

'Up to 150' hostages are still being held in Gaza after being kidnapped from Israel. The hostages include families and children.

It comes amid reports from the BBC of explosions in Ashkelon, a city in the north of Israel.

It follows an earlier warning by Hamas which urged residents to leave by 17:00 local time (15:00 BST) after a message threatening to attack the city was sent on a Telegram channel.

The charred remains of burned out houses are visible everywhere, with torched cars and furniture littering the streets.

Only now are soldiers able to access all dwellings due to ongoing fighting and regularly assembled booby-traps.

It comes as Reuters reported that one soldier shouted: "Tell the world what you saw here".

Three days on from start of the attacks, the Israeli death toll is thought to have surpassed 900 deaths.

It comes as Israel's opposition leader, Yair Lapid, said that Saturday was the bloodiest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust.