Nova music festival massacre

Nova music festival massacre
Part of the 7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel
Militant capturing a man during the massacre
LocationEshkol Regional Council, Israel
Coordinates31°23′52″N 34°28′18″E / 31.39778°N 34.47167°E / 31.39778; 34.47167
Date7 October 2023; 13 months ago (2023-10-07)
Starting c. 7 a.m. (UTC+3)
TargetCivilians
Attack type
Mass shooting, hostage-taking
WeaponsFirearms including AK-type assault rifles, RPGs, hand grenades[1]
Deaths364 (includes 17 police officers)[a][2]
Victims40 taken hostage[b][2]
  • 4 rescued
  • 5 released
  • 13 bodies recovered
PerpetratorAl-Qassam Brigades and Palestinian civilian mobs[3]

On 7 October 2023, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian nationalist political organization Hamas, initiated a sudden attack on Israel from the Gaza Strip. As part of the attack, 364 individuals, mostly civilians, were killed and many more wounded at the Supernova Sukkot Gathering, an open-air music festival during the Jewish holiday of Shemini Atzeret near kibbutz Re'im. Hamas also took 40 people hostage, and men and women were reportedly subject to sexual and gender-based violence.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]

This attack had the largest number of casualties out of a number of massacres targeting Israeli civilians in villages adjacent to the Gaza Strip, that occurred as part of the 7 October attack, alongside those at the kibbutzim and moshavim of Netiv HaAsara, Be'eri, Kfar Aza, Nir Oz and Holit.[11]

At 6:30 a.m., which was around sunrise, rockets were noticed in the sky.[12][1] Around 7:00 a.m., a siren warned of an incoming rocket attack, prompting festivalgoers to flee.[13] Subsequently, armed militants, dressed in military attire and using motorcycles, trucks and powered paragliders, surrounded the festival grounds and indiscriminately fired on individuals attempting to escape. Attendees seeking refuge in nearby locations, such as bomb shelters, bushes, and orchards, were killed while in hiding. Those who reached the road and parking were trapped in a traffic jam as militants fired at vehicles. The militants executed some wounded individuals at point-blank range as they crouched on the ground.[14][15]

The details of the whereabouts and condition of the hostages are not publicly known.[7][8][16] The massacre at the festival was the largest terror attack in Israel's history,[1][17][15] and the worst Israeli civilian massacre ever.[18]

  1. ^ a b c Debre, Isabel (9 October 2023). "Israeli survivors recount terror at music festival, where Hamas militants killed at least 260". ABC News. Archived from the original on 11 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  2. ^ a b "TV: Police probe of Re'im massacre shows terrorists didn't know about party in advance". The Times of Israel. 17 November 2023. Archived from the original on 29 November 2023. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  3. ^ "Noa Argamani was abducted not by Hamas but by civilian mob, NBC report suggests". The Times of Israel. 19 December 2023. Archived from the original on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  4. ^ "Death count from Re'im music festival massacre reportedly updated to 364 — a third of Oct. 7 fatalities". The Times of Israel. 17 November 2023. Archived from the original on 17 November 2023. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  5. ^ "New footage shows British-Israeli soldier toss grenades back at Hamas". Sky News. 15 November 2023. Archived from the original on 21 November 2023. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  6. ^ "Cpl. Liel Vainshtein, 19: Former child star slain at music festival". The Times of Israel. 30 October 2023. Archived from the original on 16 November 2023. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  7. ^ a b Gillett, Francesca (8 October 2023). "How an Israel music festival turned into a nightmare after Hamas attack". BBC News. Archived from the original on 8 October 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2023.
  8. ^ a b Tabachnick, Cara (8 October 2023). "Israelis search for loved ones with posts and pleas on social media". CBS News. Archived from the original on 8 October 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2023.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference natureparty was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference :3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Times, The New York (10 October 2023). "Hamas Leaves Trail of Terror in Israel". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 11 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  12. ^ "Eyewitness & Survivor Stories from Inside the Massacre". October7. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  13. ^ "Hamas gunmen open fire on hundreds at music festival in southern Israel". CBS News. 8 October 2023. Archived from the original on 8 October 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
  14. ^ DeBre, Isabel; Biesecker, Michael (9 October 2023). "Israeli survivors recount terror at music festival, where Hamas militants killed at least 260". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 11 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  15. ^ a b "What to know about the deadly Hamas attack on an Israeli music festival". Al Jazeera. 10 October 2023. Archived from the original on 11 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  16. ^ "Thousands flee rocket and gunfire at all-night desert 'Nature Party'; dozens missing". The Times of Israel. 7 October 2023. Archived from the original on 7 October 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2023.
  17. ^ Israel has suffered the biggest terror attack in its history. How will it respond? Archived 10 October 2023 at the Wayback Machine, The Economist, October 9th 2023
  18. ^ Browne, David; Dillon, Nancy; Grow, Kory (15 October 2023). "'They Wanted to Dance in Peace. And They Got Slaughtered'. Israel's Supernova festival celebrated music and unity. It turned into the deadliest concert attack in history". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 18 October 2023. Retrieved 18 October 2023.


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