Israel's army helicopter hits Israeli festivalgoers during Hamas attack — report

A new report has found that an Israeli military helicopter opened fire on Palestinian fighters but wounded Israelis participating in a festival during an October 7 attack by Hamas against Israel.

The Haaretz newspaper said on Saturday an Israeli security assessment was based on an investigation by police with Hamas fighters who were arrested on October 7.

Haaretz reported that the military helicopter arrived at the site of the festival and opened fire on the fighters but also wounded several festival participants.

It said, according to the assessment, the gunmen had no prior information about the festival which was held close to the Kibbutz Re'im, near the borders with Gaza.

Israel's Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper also published a report on Israeli Air Force helicopters intervening in the attack carried out by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups from Gaza on October 7.

The newspaper reported that the Israeli forces “found it difficult to identify Hamas" fighters adding that helicopter pilots “used artillery” against civilians at the festival.

Hamas fighters "were instructed to slowly blend in with the crowd and not to move under any circumstances,” the newspaper said in its report.

“In this way, they tried to fool the air force into believing that those below were Israelis. This deception worked for a while, until the Apache helicopters had to break free of all restraints. The pilots found it difficult to distinguish who was a terrorist and who was an Israeli,” the report added.

Report refutes Israel's narrative

The newspaper said that "when they realised that, some of them decided to use artillery shells against the terrorists independently, without getting permission from their superiors."

Police estimated that the number killed in the festival was 364, but did not reveal their identities.

The investigation details are contrary to the official Israeli narrative on the attack by the Palestinian resistance group which claimed Hamas fighters slaughtered the revellers in the festival.

Israel's Gaza war

Hundreds of Hamas fighters crossed into Israel in a surprise operation named "Al Aqsa Flood," triggering an Israeli retaliatory bloody onslaught on Palestinians in Gaza.

Israel has killed more than 12,300 Palestinians in its air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip since the surprise offensive by Hamas.

The official Israeli death toll, meanwhile, stands at about 1,200. Thousands of buildings, including hospitals, mosques, and churches, have either been damaged or destroyed in Israel’s relentless strikes on the besieged enclave.

An Israeli blockade has also cut Gaza off from fuel, electricity, and water supplies, and reduced aid deliveries to a trickle.

Israel has rejected growing calls for a cease-fire until the release of hostages held by Hamas.