Israeli rescue forces confirmed that at least 260 bodies have been recovered from the music festival attacked by Hamas.
Horrifying footage of Saturday's festival showed dozens of festivalgoers running through an open field as gunfire rang out. Many people hid in nearby orchards or were shot dead while fleeing. Several gunmen stormed the Nova Festival, while fleeing revelers described how the attackers opened fire, shooting anyone in sight.
The total death toll at the dance music event is expected to be higher as more medical teams continue their work. One of the dead was German tattoo artist Shani Louk, who was kidnapped by invading Hamas.
In a gruesome video, his lifeless body is seen sprawled in the back of a truck as it is paraded by armed men. Although the group claimed Shani was an Israeli soldier, there is now information that the woman is tattoo artist Shani, a German citizen.
The event is held to mark the end of the holiday of Sukkot, a week-long celebration in which Jews celebrate the fall harvest. The shocking discovery comes after weekend attacks by the Palestinian militant group Hamas left 700 people dead across Israel.
The group's fighters breached Israel's security fence around the Gaza Strip early Saturday morning before attacking Israeli communities. The Israeli government officially declared war on Sunday and gave the green light to “significant military measures” to retaliate against Hamas after its surprise attack.
The Israeli military has begun bombing the Gaza Strip, with airstrikes targeting buildings in the area over the past 24 hours. Rishi Sunak offered Britain's support to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday night and told Checkers:
We will do everything we can to help. Terrorism will not prevail." The Conservative leader said the UK “has long been one of Israel's strongest allies, supporting its right to self-defense and providing the type of equipment that Israel has used to defend itself against this horrific attack in the last 36 hours.”
He added, "We will continue to do everything we can to help. When I spoke to Prime Minister Netanyahu... I assured him of this support and told him that the Kingdom The UK stands ready to provide this support, whether it is diplomatic or security.""