Horror in the Holy Land: Remembering the Barbaric October 7 Attack on Israel by Hamas
Photos by Billy Rutledge
22-year-old Sergeant Gaya Tabe of Tel Aviv had just completed her three-year obligation to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) four months before Hamas’ brutal attacks on October 7, 2023. Called back into action, Gaya was sent to Kfar Aza, a border town that Hamas had overrun. “Hamas had driven vehicles through the protective barrier fences,” Gaya reported. “Hamas terrorists jumped out of their vehicles and poured out their terror on the town.” After eliminating the threat, Gaya’s team disposed of the bodies of those who had been killed. While the terrorists’ bodies were unmolested, the Israeli victims had been raped, tortured, mutilated, and dismembered—men, women, and children. Hamas soldiers had been commanded to video their atrocities. “The idea was to upload these videos, and make all of Israel mourn,” Gaya explained. After completing this mission, Gaya and her team were moved to another more dangerous location where they slept on the ground through the cold winter.
On October 7, 2023, Israel suffered a horrific massacre by the Hamas terrorist group after they launched “Operation al-Aqsa Flood”. The series of violent rampages from Gaza began with a barrage of rockets while waves of armed Palestinian militants paraglided into Israel and others stormed security fences, killing about 1,200 people—including children and elderly—and taking over 240 people hostage. In grisly acts of carnage, Hamas attackers committed inhumane atrocities as they burned babies in ovens, raped women and children, beheaded and mutilated innocents, torched entire families alive, and slaughtered hundreds of young music festival attendees in the early morning hours of what is now considered Israel’s deadliest day since the Holocaust.
A Soldier’s Story
Gaya Tabe, then a 21-year-old female Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldier, described her experience that fateful morning: “Several Hamas soldiers flew single-man paragliders over the protective barriers. They landed on the far side of town where they began shooting anyone in sight. Hamas drove vehicles through the protective barriers and began their slaughter.” Over the next 48 hours, Gaya encountered scenes too gruesome for words—images she can never forget.
After passing through many major Israeli cities, marchers arrive in Jerusalem (above) holding pictures of loved ones kidnapped on October 7. Marchers demanded the 240 civilian hostages be released from Hamas. Thus far, 113 have been returned or rescued, unfortunately with unprecedented trauma stemming from severe mental and physical abuse. This woman’s grief (below) is representative of the agony of an entire nation.
A firefighter battles flames from missile attacks in Israel. Two months into the conflict, missiles continued to fall on both sides despite attempted ceasefires.
Instructed to clear the villages and the forest areas of any Hamas terrorists, Gaya and other members of the IDF would discover many casualties of Jewish men, women, children, and babies who had been slaughtered, tortured, and mutilated in unbelievable ways. “We captured some of the Hamas soldiers and interrogated them.” She explained, “We found they came organized in three groups. One was tasked with raping as many women as possible, filming it, and uploading it to the internet. A second group had the sole responsibility to grab people, kidnapping and leaving the scene with them. The third group was simply to murder anyone not [already] engaged with a Hamas soldier.”
“For violence against your brother Jacob, shame shall cover you, and you shall be cut off forever.”
Israelis and family members attend a funeral to mourn the loss of a young couple killed by Hamas terrorists on October 7 as they hid under their bed.
When the IDF found dead Hamas soldiers, they were not mutilated. They had simply been shot and subsequently died, whereas so many Israelis had been “tortured to the degree you could not tell if they were a man or woman,” Gaya disclosed. “We have had kidnapping on a large scale in the war against Hamas, but not this raping of children and women on such a large scale. We had never witnessed the raping of children,” she lamented.
Tour Guides Narrowly Escape
Aaron Lopez had not planned on being in Jerusalem on October 7. At the last minute, however, he was called there for his tour guide job that was helping put him through university in Tel Aviv. Before leaving his dorm on October 6, he had a strange impulse to grab his passport. It was Simchat Torah, one of the most joyful Jewish holidays. “On that day, they finish reading through the Torah,” elaborated Aaron, an American Messianic Jew whose home church is CC Reno-Sparks, NV. “It’s symbolic of finishing a walk with the Lord. Afterward, the whole congregation celebrates. Everyone dances in the streets.” This year, Israel’s joy was even greater because the Hamas attacks they feared weeks previously had not happened; now, with negotiations seemingly successful, everyone believed the danger had passed.
Aaron went to bed at his friend Wilbur’s house spiritually rejuvenated but physically exhausted; knowing he had time to sleep in, he didn’t set an alarm. He recalled, “I woke at 6 a.m. thinking, Wow, this is way too early. But the war had started.” Though their phones pinged repeatedly with rocket alerts for the southern border, Wilbur—an American embassy employee—was initially unconcerned.
“… it’s like the devil unleashed all the spirit of hell to destroy us.”
Since emigrating from Morocco in the 1950s, Dina’s Christian family—including 21 siblings—has fed soldiers in every major conflict.
Dina’s brother-in-law, a chef in a famous Nahariya restaurant, volunteers to cook for soldiers six days per week.
“He’s lived there a few years now,” Aaron explained. “He said, ‘It’s OK, it’s normal; the border is always attacked.’ But an hour later, alarms went off in Jerusalem. We saw Hamas’ rockets in the sky and Israel’s Iron Dome intercepting them in the air.” Wilbur remained unfazed by the second, third, and fourth alarms coming roughly each hour; but by the fifth, there were too many incoming missiles for the Dome to catch them all. “The Prime Minister comes on TV, saying, ‘We are in a state of war.’ Now, Wilbur is worried, so I am worried,” Aaron described.
As Wilbur rushed to the embassy, Aaron met up with his fellow tour guide, named Israel. As they attempted to drive to safety, “we heard the really loud siren, which meant the rockets were coming straight toward us, and we had 10 to 30 seconds to find a bomb shelter,” Aaron continued. Exiting the car, they looked up to see three rockets just above them. Aaron froze. “At the last second, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! They exploded above us, intercepted by the Iron Dome.
“Hamas terrorists jumped out of their vehicles and poured out their terror on the town.”
A local man from Sderot stands outside a neighbor’s home destroyed by Hamas rockets. His family’s commercial flower business has refused to close despite ongoing rocket fire from nearby Gaza.
“Thank God, he had picked the perfect spot without realizing—right beside an Orthodox bomb shelter. They urged us, ‘Come in, come in!’ ” After waiting out the barrage, Aaron and Israel stopped at a 24-hour house of prayer. It would be hours before they learned the full extent of the war and the atrocities committed by Hamas terrorists, first from the news and then firsthand from friends in the IDF. Elderly people shot in the streets; babies burned in ovens; crowds gunned down at a music festival Aaron had been invited to; a Filipino friend beheaded. Already, though, their hearts felt shattered.
“The warfare I saw pushed my faith to its limits,” Aaron confessed. “I saw the Holy Land attacked and everyone turning against it. I felt like, Lord, You abandoned us! Why are You doing this?! I prayed through Psalm 23, and kept reading through the Psalms, seeing how the Lord was with David and always provided for him. I prayed, You’re the God Who performed miracles, Who came back from the dead. I know You’ve got this.” Aaron had personally experienced God’s miraculous protection during the rocket attack. He would receive two more miracles in coming days—an Israeli police car arriving just before Palestinian men could attack them at the Western Wall; and he and Israel each getting the last seat on what they later learned were the last two planes leaving Jerusalem for many days.
Yael Antolovich and a local Sderot man, David, peer over a defensive earthwork at the smoke rising from nearby Gaza.
Aaron reflected, “In times of warfare, not only physical but spiritual, we must always rely on the Lord. When you see life getting horrible, just open God’s Word; see how God provided for David, Elijah, Daniel. Trusting the Lord is the best medicine a Christian gets. Life is hard, there are so many battles, but the Lord performs miracles. He will provide—just trust Him.”
The surprise attack on October 7 devastated the nation of Israel. More than 3,000 Hamas terrorists streamed over the border from Gaza, slaughtering civilians as they went; 200-some continued through Israel with random attacks. Meanwhile, Hamas and Hezbollah missiles often overwhelmed Israel’s defenses. Some of the hostages have been returned, and IDF soldiers have raided the Gaza Strip in an effort to permanently shut down the Hamas terrorist organization.
A Spiritual War
“Israel had a huge faith in their military and technology,” said Samuel Smadja, owner and president of Sar-El Tours and co-pastor of the Messianic Assembly in Jerusalem. “On the 7th of October, … the technology didn’t work, and the military was very slow to respond. In a way, it [caused] the Israelis to be much humbler. Their biggest strongholds were almost destroyed.”
IDF tanks in Sderot frequently launch missiles into Gaza.
Samuel doesn’t see the current Israeli-Hamas conflict as a “regular” war but as a spiritual battle, which also explains rising antisemitism worldwide. “My parents both came to Israel in 1956; my father lost his father in the concentration camp Auschwitz,” he expressed. “From the moment Israel was declared as a nation, [Palestinians] were trying again and again to kick us out and throw [our people] into the sea. The only difference is that this time, it’s like the devil was unleashed—all the spirit of hell to destroy us. We know that the devil is against the plan of God.”
Pastor Jeff Johnson, founder of CC Downey, CA, who has gone home to be with the Lord, was known for his love of and support for Israel, having made many trips over the years. He acknowledged that we’re living in a critical time. “All we need to do is look within the Scriptures. In the End Times, Jesus said it would be like this. The signs are there, so I think many who know the Lord are looking up,” Jeff noted. ”The Word of God is the Word of God, and it’s going to happen like God said.”
“I [God] will make you a great nation; … I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Standing with Israel
After escaping Jerusalem, Aaron went to Istanbul, Turkey, hoping to wait out the conflict. Though Islamic, Istanbul is a cosmopolitan city where he believed he would be safe. Out for a walk that first day, he saw a military vehicle approaching. “On top, a bunch of Turks were waving Palestinian flags,” Aaron stated. “They were shouting chants through loudspeakers, and the people on the streets were crowding up and shouting with them: ‘We stand with Hamas! Death to Israel! Death to Christians! Death to Americans!’ ” Aaron’s complexion from his Spanish-Jewish heritage allowed him to pass as Turkish, but he was careful not to speak a word of English on his way back to the hotel, and immediately booked a flight home to Reno, NV.
On the day Aaron returned home, there was a local pro-Palestinian protest. “I saw all these people I knew from high school and college, people I thought were my friends,” he grieved. “Honestly, it made me sick. I’d seen horrible things; people I knew were killed. And all of a sudden, I come back and hear people supporting this? I was so disgusted I couldn’t eat or sleep. I spoke with my pastors at CC Reno-Sparks. They encouraged me to share my experiences with the church. That helped because through that, many people realized what was going on and why we should stand with Israel.”
Yael marches with protesters. Her father, Bradley, founded For Zion’s Sake, a Calvary Chapel ministry partner that is shipping much-needed supplies from Switzerland to help with relief efforts.
“What happened on October 7 changed us as a people,” declared David Tal, a Messianic Jew who is Pastor Jeff’s son-in-law. “Everybody in Israel knows somebody who was killed, a hostage, someone fighting.” David keeps his phone with him constantly, waiting to hear news of his nephews in the IDF. “We are suffering … and back in a place we know very well. More than ever, God’s people need the support of the Christian church—God’s adopted family—to stand up and say, ‘We support the truth; we will not be derailed by the deceiver [Satan], and we realize God’s people [the Jews] have a role to play.’ ”
David explained how believers can support Israel now: “We’re going through a terrible financial crisis. Our economy is closed down. I’m a tour guide, and I don’t know when I’m going to see any income in the immediate future. We also need your political support. The USA is putting pressure on Israel right now to stop us trying to rout out Hamas. Your administration needs to know that Bible-believing, God-fearing people are on this side of the debate.” More importantly, he continued, “We need spiritual support right now. Just like when someone in your family has gone through a terrible ordeal, you’re going to wrap up his wounds. But for Christians, the Number One thing to do is get on your knees and pray.”
“PRAY ... that innocent people on both sides won’t get hurt. There are believers in Gaza, so pray for them, also.”
Chris Mann prays with people gathered for prayer at Hope for Zion, a ministry to Jews and Messianic believers.
Calvary Chapel pastors have long loved and supported Israel, Samuel said. He has been close to CCs since he first met CC founder Pastor Chuck Smith in 1993. “One time I asked Chuck, ‘What do you think is the secret to your success?’ He told me, ‘Israel.’ He really believed that he was blessed because he blessed Israel. For him, it [was] a truth, not a philosophy or politics.”
The men urged younger CC pastors and the younger generation to continue this support. David elaborated: “Israel is still part of the story. Continue the emphasis that Pastors Raul Ries, Jeff Johnson, and others [have placed on Israel]. Educate yourselves; be careful who you take your information from.” Jeff would tell younger pastors: “Go back into the Old Testament and you’ve got warnings against anybody even coming near to [hurting] Israel. … I think the most powerful thing that we can do [is] just go forth and bless people with the Word of God.”
Samuel further challenged, “They can debate and argue this issue, but should ask the older generation: Why do we need to stand with Israel? It will definitely bless the pastors. The more they understand the Jewish mindset and Israel, the more they will understand their Bible.”
David added, “Paul said it very clearly—Christians are grafted in. Satan is trying to get at the Jews, he is trying to mess up God’s plan for what’s going to happen.”
A Calvary Bible Institute (CBI) Israel team, including Director Spencer Abblitt (second from right), his wife Kylie (right), and Caleb Sanchez prepare meals for IDF soldiers. Caleb (black shirt) was the only CBI student who chose to stay after the school dismissed.
Several months later, the physical war rages on and the death toll rises. For the spiritual war, Samuel urged, “We need to pray for the safety of the soldiers, that the hostages will come back, that Israel will be able to finish this as fast as they can, and that innocent people on both sides won’t get hurt. There are believers in Gaza, so pray for them, also.”
Samuel also suggested, “I believe people should work through their churches. Go to the pastor and say, ‘We want to help Israel. Let’s get behind an organization.’ Every church should have an Israel fund, not just for the war but for evangelism, support, many projects.”
Messianic Pastor Misha Andronov of CBI Israel, who emigrated from Russia two years ago, prepares meals for IDF soldiers in Golan Heights. Both his sons are in the IDF.
David is confident that Israel will persevere. “I know who’s going to win this in the end. But it’s going to be terrible. I’m not sure if anything less than the Prince of Peace Himself will solve all the problems. But it’s our job to pray for the peace of Jerusalem so that this will come as quickly as possible.”
Samuel concluded, “I believe that we are in the End Times. It makes me wake up to the fact that we need to shine the light of Messiah and proclaim the plan of God even more.”
Yael offers fresh bagels and chocolate bars to young IDF soldiers on guard duty.
In the year since, Israel has decisively invaded Gaza, routing Hamas military battalions, destroying tunnels, and rescuing hostages. During November 2023’s temporary ceasefire, 105 civilians were released by Hamas. So far, Israeli forces have rescued eight people and recovered 36 bodies. However, Israel believes that of the over 97 individuals who remain in captivity, two of whom are children, 33 are believed dead.
Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries; for false witnesses have risen against me, and such as breathe out violence. I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Psalm 27:12-13
Continue to pray for Israel as the war—physical and spiritual— expands on multiple fronts; most recently in the north as fighting extends into Lebanon and, just days ago, a barrage of missiles fell on Israel from Iran, all while false accusations arise from their enemies. Though they mourn, the events of that tragic day have brought unity of purpose to the country in their response to the ongoing terror threat around them. Pray that the hostages would be released and that the people in the Holy Land and beyond would seek the true Messiah, Jesus Christ, our soon coming King.
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