‘This is our 9/11’: Israel ambassador on Hamas surprise attack; 300 Israelis dead, 1700 injured

After Hamas launched a fatal surprise attack on Israel on Saturday, the majority of the world reacted with indignation, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel ‘was at war.’

Israel's envoy to the UN has said that the surprise attack by Hamas launched against Israel is equivalent to the terrorist attacks on America on September 11, 2001. 

'This is our 9/11,' the Israeli ambassador to the UN, said on Fox News. 'Babies, women, the elderly were dragged outside of their homes, were taken hostage.' Indiscriminate attacks on civilians have left more than 300 Israelis dead and 1700 injured so far. 

The Israeli military called up tens of thousands of reservists and claimed that it had already struck 17 Hamas military locations in Gaza with airstrikes by fighter jets.

'We have babies that have been kidnapped into Gaza. We have 80-year-old woman with what seems like dementia kidnapped into Gaza. So it's been one of the hardest days in Israel's history, former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett told CNN. 

The border is thought to have been breached by up to 1,000 armed Hamas fighters early on Saturday, and rocket strikes continued all day, as per the reports. 

Saleh al-Arouri, the deputy leader of Hamas, told Al Jazeera that the organization was imprisoning many Israelis, including high-ranking officials. He asserted that Hamas has enough prisoners to force Israel to release every Palestinian detained there.