Consider This from NPR - What Comes Next, After Surprise Hamas Attacks on Israel?

Episode Date: October 8, 2023

The death toll rose in both Israel and Gaza as the Israeli military and Hamas militants battled for a second day on Sunday. The surprise multi-pronged attacks by Hamas against Israel have killed at least 700 people, according to Israeli media reports.Israel's response has included air strikes gainst targets in Gaza. At least 400 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian officials. Thousands are injured in both Gaza and Israel.Host Scott Detrow speaks with NPR correspondent Aya Batrawy in Tel Aviv for the latest developments on the ground, and we also hear from NPR's Michele Kelemen about diplomatic efforts to try and contain the violence in Israel and Gaza. Email us at [e-mail] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This message comes from Indiana University. Indiana University is committed to moving the world forward, working to tackle some of society's biggest challenges. Nine campuses, one purpose. Creating tomorrow, today. More at iu.edu. The updated death tolls from Israel and Gaza tell the story of just how widespread and how deadly this weekend's attacks were. The surprise multi-pronged attacks by the Palestinian militant group Hamas against Israel have killed at least 700 people, according to reports in the Israeli media. Israel's military says it's continued to fight the militants on Israeli territory for a second day, while also pounding Gaza with airstrikes.

Palestinian officials say more than 400 people have been killed in Gaza so far. Thousands are injured as well in both Gaza and Israel. This latest burst of violence, shaping up to be the most serious in decades, began with an unprecedented wave of attacks by Hamas militants. The militants infiltrated several Israeli communities using a variety of methods, including boats and paragliders. They fired on civilians and soldiers alike and engaged Israeli security forces in gun battles. They took hostages. All the while, militants also fired thousands of rockets from Gaza. Hospitals in Israel quickly filled with people injured in the attacks.

NPR's Daniel Estrin spoke with people anxiously, awaiting news of their loved ones at one medical facility. So we're here waiting. Waiting for? Information. Something. Daniela Zaytouni was comforting her friend, Batsheva Elouz, whose son is missing. He is alive, the woman said about her son. Maybe they're looking for him in the field.

Bring me my son, she pleaded. Another man, Ilan Troen, was mourning the loss of his daughter and son-in-law. He struggled for words to explain what had happened. He referenced the Shoah, the Holocaust. The world does not work in a straight formula. We know that from the Shoah. We know that from all kinds of life experiences. This is just another one to add to the long list of events that we just can't understand.

Israel's response to these attacks was swift and also deadly. Israeli airstrikes rained down on Gaza. Thousands of people sought safety in crowded UN shelters. One man, Hassan Gabayan, told NPR that most Gaza residents were struggling to make ends meet, even before this latest violence erupted. We do not have the basic aid, like milk for the children, and no one will support us. We have no capability for this. Times are quite difficult. Still, he said, he supports the attacks by Hamas.

One of his distant relatives, Bahira Gabayan, agreed with him. I salute the resistance and I am very proud of them. Until when are we supposed to live under occupation and siege? Either we live a life of dignity or we die. Consider this. We know how this latest burst of violence in the Middle East began, but how will it end? We hear from NPR reporters covering the fighting on the ground, and also the diplomatic maneuvering around the world.

From NPR, I'm Scott Detrow. It's Sunday, October 8th. This message comes from WISE, the app for doing things in other currencies. Send, spend, or receive money internationally, and always get the real-time mid-market exchange rate with no hidden fees. Download the WISE app today or visit WISE.com. T's and C's apply.

This message comes from Indiana University. Indiana University is committed to moving the world forward, working to tackle some of society's biggest challenges. IU makes bold investments in the future of bioscience and cybersecurity, cultivates visionary work in the arts and humanities, and prepares students to become global citizens by teaching more languages than any other university in the arts and humanities and prepares students to become global citizens by teaching more languages than any other university in the country. Indiana University, nine campuses, one purpose. Creating tomorrow, today. More at iu.edu. It's time to heat things up. On In the Key of Latin Jazz, we highlight innovative musicians driving the Latin Jazz movement forward. We must preserve, protect, and promote that beautiful style of music that was created in

this country. Arturo Sandoval and a new artist each month in the key of Latin Jazz, a podcast from WUCF-FM, part of the NPR network. It's Consider This from NPR. For the latest on what is happening on the ground, we now turn to NPR's Aya Batrawi in Tel Aviv. Hey, Aya. Hi, Scott. What do we know about the situation at this moment? Here in Israel, there's still an ongoing Israeli military operation to reclaim areas in the south where Hamas gunmen attacked yesterday. And Israeli communities near the Gaza border were struck, but so too was a massive music festival. And we've seen reports in Israeli media that as many as 100 people, Israeli soldiers and civilians, could have

been taken hostage, taken to Gaza, that is. And among them are some foreign nationals. And in the Tel Aviv neighborhood where I am, nearly every store and restaurant were shuttered during the day. Schools have been closed. I could see attack helicopters in the sky, added checkpoints. People are on edge. And this definitely feels like a country on a war footing. Here's what Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said earlier today. The days ahead will be long and difficult. We have paid a heavy price, but we will restore security to the people of Israel.

Let me repeat, we will store security to the people of Israel. And many Israelis seem to know someone who has been affected by this. On my way from Dubai today, catching this flight to Tel Aviv, the flight had reservists, Israeli reservists being called to duty. And one of them was a man who I just found out on the plane that one of the members of his unit had died. And when I went up to him to ask him how he felt and why he was grieving, he said to me, we're going to raise Gaza to the ground, all of its 2.3 million residents. So emotions are very high. And we're hearing not that different language from Israeli leaders. So what do we know at this point about the situation in the Gaza Strip? Well, people in

Gaza are bracing themselves. Already around 74,000 people have left their homes in the hopes of finding safety in dozens of UN shelters. Most of those would be schools across the Gaza Strip. I mean, people in Gaza have been through multiple conflicts and wars, and they know intimately the toll. And there have already been near constant bombardments since yesterday. Israel controls air, land, and sea access to much of the Gaza Strip. This is a tiny strip of land that's been under a blockade for 16 years by Israel and Egypt. And there's no way for people there to leave, not even through Egypt's border, except if you have the few that might have the right permissions and paperwork. And there's no way for people there to leave, not even through Egypt's border, except if you have the few that might have the right permissions and paperwork.

So people in Gaza, some of them see this as a response to collective punishment. Others are terrified about the price they might have to pay for something Hamas did. I heard from Ruba Akhila. She's a child and gender protection expert in the Gaza Strip,

and she's a Palestinian resident there. She lives near the Mediterranean Sea and fears her home could be struck by Israel's Navy positioned off the coast. Every time she eats or prays, she tells me, I wonder if it's my last time. Let's take a listen. We don't know if it's going to be safe to leave the home or not in the first place. And if it's safe to leave the home, is the destination going to be safe or not? Nobody knows. And if it's safe now, will it be safe in 10 minutes? Nobody knows. My colleague Majdal Wahidi spoke with Dr. Mithat Abbas. He's the director general of Gaza's health ministry. He said already a hospital and many

high-rise towers have been struck by Israel. They said we have not started yet. We have not started yet. What's the meaning of they will start? We don't know what will happen if they start. If after all of that, they have not started, then what will happen? When they really, I don't know, are they planning for a big massacre in Gaza? I don't know. But they are only civilians. I mean, who will pay for that? They are Gaza civilians. Any sense from the people you're talking to, from what you're seeing, how this could end? Well, tonight we know Israeli tanks continue to head south to the border with Gaza, and that raises the specter of a land invasion.

There are fears that this conflict could widen and that it could inflame an already tense situation between Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank. And from where I'm standing, there's a lot of shock and disbelief at how an attack of this magnitude could happen. Many Israelis are calling it a catastrophic intelligence failures. And questions, too, if Hamas acted alone or with Iran's backing. So on both sides, there's anguish and questions about how does this end? Or really, will it ever end? That's NPR's Ayah Batraoui in Tel Aviv. Thank you so much. Thank you, Scott. The United Nations Security Council met this afternoon in emergency session as diplomats

try to contain the conflict in Gaza and Israel. The Biden administration says the U.S. is standing firmly behind Israel. And today, the administration announced it's sending a naval carrier strike group to the eastern Mediterranean as a show of support. And the U.S. says countries that have influence with Palestinian militant group Hamas should condemn the group for its assault and press it to release hostages. NPR's Michelle Kellerman reports. Secretary of State Antony Blinken made the rounds on the Sunday morning talk shows calling this a massive terrorist attack by Hamas, whose militants dragged Israeli men, women, and children across the border into Gaza. A Holocaust survivor in a wheelchair, women and children all being taken hostage. So you can imagine the impact this is having in Israel, and it should be revolting

to people around the world. Outside the UN Security Council, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, held up pictures and showed videos on his iPad of Israelis being hauled away by Hamas in what he described as a barbaric pogrom. He said Hamas is no different from ISIS and al-Qaeda and the world shouldn't try to reason with them anymore. This is Israel's 9-11. This is Israel's 9-11. And Israel will do everything to bring our sons and daughters back home. The State Department

is looking into reports that some Americans are among those held hostage. Several Americans were also reportedly killed. Blinken told NBC's Meet the Press that everyone in the Biden administration has been working the phones to rally support for Israel and encourage countries in the region to use their influence with Hamas. The president, myself, everyone throughout our government, working around the world both to build up that support and to get countries to use the influence they may have with Hamas to get it to cease and desist. While the U.S. wants to see the world come together to condemn Hamas, the Palestinian ambassador at the United Nations, Riyad Mansour,

doesn't want the world to give Israel a blank check. You cannot say nothing justifies killing Israelis and then provide justification for killing Palestinians. The Palestinians are calling for an emergency meeting of the Arab League. Until this weekend, U.S. diplomacy in the region was focused on a long-sought-after deal to get Israel and Saudi Arabia to normalize ties. Secretary Blinken told NBC there's no secret who opposes that. Those who are opposed to the talks, those who are opposed to Israel normalizing its relations with its neighbors and with countries beyond the region are Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran. And so it's entirely possible that one of the motivations

for this attack was to try to derail these efforts to advance normalization. Israel's Ambassador Erdan echoes that. They definitely want to derail the chances of having normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel. We still want it to happen. We'll do everything that we can to live in coexistence with all of our neighbors. But Israel right now is at war with Hamas. And though the U.S. says it doesn't have indications that Iran was behind this Hamas assault. Iran does have a long history of arming and financing Hamas and other terrorist groups in the region. Michelle Kellerman,

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