What happened on Saturday morning is something that will live on in the collective Israeli psyche for generations to come.
As families were on their way to synagogues up and down the country, on a Jewish holy day, the Islamist terrorist organisation, Hamas, chose to wage war on Israel.
Hamas attacked Israel by air, land and sea. Its terrorists infiltrated Israeli towns and villages near the Gaza border, going from door to door, massacring innocent Israelis, including women, children and the elderly.
Hundreds of Israelis have been pronounced dead, and thousands have been seriously injured. Sadly, these numbers will only rise.
As I write this article, in central Israel, dozens of Israelis have been taken hostage by Hamas terrorists and have been dragged back across the border into Gaza.
This is something I have never witnessed before in my lifetime. It is barbaric. I am sure many of us will have seen the gut-wrenching videos on social media of a bloodied Israeli girl, no older than 16, being forced into the back of a car by a dozen Palestinian terrorists.
Or will have heard the harrowing story of a young family scared for their lives, hiding in a safe room in their own home in southern Israel, as Hamas terrorists entered their property before setting it on fire.
Their 10-day-old baby continues to be treated in hospital at this time. As an Israeli, and as a mother, my nightmares have become reality.
Whilst we sought safety in our shelter, my three-year-old daughter asked me yesterday, “Why, Mum? Why do they want to kill me?” That is a question that many mothers right across Israel will be struggling to answer.
The fact is that Hamas is directly funded by Iran, a brutal genocidal regime that openly calls for the destruction of the world’s only Jewish state.
Israeli police officers evacuate a family from a site hit by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip— (Copyright 2023The Associated Press All rights reserved)
Hamas and Iran are aligned in their support for terror, for destroying our democratic values, and for extinguishing us from existence.
Hatred is what motivated 9/11. Hatred is what motivated the 7/7 London bombings, the Westminster Bridge attacks, and the Manchester Arena bombing.
And it is hatred that drives Hamas to kill innocent Israeli civilians, on our streets and in our communities.
When we hear or read about tragic global events from the UK, we often feel helpless. But I ask you not to feel helpless. Rather, when you learn of such horrific stories unfolding in Israel, I ask you not to simply keep scrolling through your news feeds, but to amplify the voices of countless innocent Israelis by sharing their story.
Help to expose the truly hateful and barbaric face of Hamas, and show the people of Israel that you stand with us and our right to defend ourselves from evil brutality.
