Haunting video shows Israeli festival before and after devastating Hamas attack

A haunting video shared on social media offers a stark glimpse of the peaceful, tree-lined site that was to become the scene of terror and bloodshed.

The clip posted to X/Twitter shows an aerial view of the Nature Party festival, which was one of the first targets of Hamas gunmen who crossed into Israel early on Saturday and enacted one of the bloodiest attacks in Israel’s history.

The drone recording shows a colourful marquee neighbouring a forest, with other tents and cars dotting the dusty landscape.

It then cuts to a look at the aftermath of the massacre, with vehicles upturned and the earth scorched by fire in an almost Vesuvian memorial of the panic and desperation that occurred.

At least 260 people – most in their 20s and 30s – were shot dead in the attack on the music event, which ended in gunfire, rockets, missile strikes and abductions.

It was just one part of a multi-pronged offensive by Hamas fighters who blew through a fortified border fence to launch the deadly onslaught.

The clip documenting the demise of the Nature Party site racked up more than 1,230 retweets and 2,800 “likes” in just two hours as commentators voiced their horror at the terrorist ambush.

Meanwhile, a number of X/Twitter users deplored the outbreak of war and called for peace between Israel and Palestine.

However, hopes of reconciliation are painfully remote at this stage, with Israeli forces responding to Hamas’s devastating acts by formally declaring war against the Islamist group.

The festival attack was just one part of a multi-pronged incursion, which resulted in the deaths of more than 700 people in Israel and dozens more captured and taken hostage.

One video, also shared on social media, showed a young woman being abducted from the music festival by men on a motorbike as she cried for help.

A separate clip showed dozens of panicked attendees running through a field, trying to get into their cars, as gunshots rang out.

Festival attendee Shoam Gueta told NBC Newsthat he fled the horror with a group of 20 people.

He said they were forced to hide in the bushes for almost six hours as they watched the chaos unfold around them.

Gueta told the news site that he saw a woman being cut with a knife and others being shot as they attempted to take cover.

“We saw terrorists killing people, burning cars, shouting everywhere,” he recounted. “If you just say something, if you make any noise, you’ll be murdered.”

Now, innocent Palestinians are also suffering as a result of the terrorist invasion.

More than 400 people have been killed in Gaza so far, with the Israeli military intensifying its bombardment of the Gaza strip. This is yet more gut-wrenching proof that when it comes to conflicts, civilians pay the highest price.

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