Nirim massacre | |
---|---|
Part of the 2023 Israel–Hamas war | |
Native name | הטבח בנירים |
Location | [Nirim]], Southern District, Israel |
Coordinates | 31°20′10″N 34°23′42″E |
Date | 7 October 2023 |
Attack type | Mass shooting, mass murder, war crime |
Deaths | 5+ |
Injured | many |
Perpetrator | Hamas |
On 7 October 2023, a surprise assault was launched on Israel by Hamas militants coming from the Gaza Strip. One of their targets was Nirim, a kibbutz located in the southern part of Israel, about 2 kilometres (1.24 mile) from the border with Gaza[1]. As a result of this violent attack, at least five kibbutz civilians lost their lives, many were injured and a yet unknown number of civilians were kidnapped and taken hostage to Gaza.
Background
Kibbutz Nirim is located in the northwestern Negev desert near the Gaza Strip. It was established in 1951 by Zionist youth from the US and South America. Kissufim was meant to help secure Israel's southern border against Palestinian infiltrators. The kibbutz economy relies on dairy and poultry farming, citrus groves, and avocado orchards. The nearby Kissufim crossing into Gaza was the main route for traffic into the Gush Katif settlement bloc until Israel's withdrawal from Gaza in 2005.
On the morning of 7 October 2023, Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel. Under the cover of thousands of rockets fired at Israel, hundreds of militants infiltrated Israeli communities and military facilities. The militants engaged in firefights with sparse security forces, and advanced to communities, where they shot civilians to death and kidnapped an estimated 162 people to the Gaza Strip, including women, the elderly and infants.[2]
- ^ Lidman, Melanie. "In a kibbutz down south, where the kids can tell a Hamas 'boom' from an Israeli one". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2023-10-21.
- ^ Murphy, Zoeann; Gerberg, Jon; Berger, Miriam; Shefte, Whitney (13 October 2023). "Survivors of Hamas's rampage in Israel recount the horrors they saw". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 19 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.