An Iranian missile with a heavy warhead carrying 450 kilograms of explosives fired toward southern Israel on Motzei Shabbos hit a Gerrer neighborhood in the city of Arad, injuring 88 people and causing massive damage to at least three apartment buildings, some of which are at risk of collapse.
According to MDA, 10 people were seriously injured, 13 were moderately injured, and the others were lightly injured.
MDA declared a mass casualty event, and a large number of rescue forces arrived at the scene to evacuate the injured and locate and rescue people trapped inside burning homes. Air Force and MDA helicopters were deployed to the city to assist in the evacuation.
“We evacuated children in serious condition,” the Southern District police commander said. “The impact was between the buildings. It’s a neis it didn’t hit a building directly. The damage was caused by the blast. There are hundreds of people here.”
Fire and Rescue Services stated: “This is a strike in the city center between residential buildings. Three buildings were damaged, and there is extensive destruction at the site. As a result of the impact, a fire broke out on the fourth floor of one of the buildings. Firefighters are operating at the scene.”
Arad Mayor Yair Maayan said that the missile itself struck an open area surrounded by four-story residential buildings, and that much of the damage to the buildings was caused by the blast wave rather than a direct hit. He added that between 100 and 150 families will need to be evacuated.
United Hatzalah reported that dozens of its paramedics are treating dozens of casualties at the scene, including those in critical, serious, and moderate condition. Dozens more volunteers from central Israel are on their way in Hatzalah and MDA ambulances to reinforce the Negev region in treating and evacuating the injured.
Over 50 people were injured earlier on Motzei Shabbos in a missile hit in Dimona, which is about 30 kilometers from Arad. Interceptors were launched at the missiles in both cities, but missed. The IDF has opened an investigation into the incidents.
.MDA emergency medic Yakir Talker said, “This is a very difficult scene. We arrived with large forces of ambulances, intensive care units, and MDA motorcycles. We saw many injured, in varying degrees of severity, as a result of a missile strike. We immediately began setting up a casualty collection point, triaged the wounded according to their condition, and provided life-saving medical treatment. There is extensive destruction and chaos at the scene. Teams are currently conducting thorough searches, and we will continue operating here as long as necessary.”
United Hatzalah reported: “United Hatzalah medical teams are treating over 30 casualties across several locations in the Arad area, some of them unconscious. United Hatzalah resilience teams are also providing assistance at the scene to those suffering from shock.”
Hatzalah medics from the Arad branch, Yossi Tauman and Simcha Ziternboim, reported: “We arrived at a scene of severe destruction involving several buildings, with dozens trapped and injured in varying conditions. We provided initial medical treatment and evacuated dozens of casualties to Soroka Medical Center. We are now returning to the difficult scene to continue evacuating the many injured.”
An initial update from the MDA spokesperson stated: “MDA medics and paramedics are providing medical treatment to a large number of casualties, including a 5-year-old girl in serious condition, 11 injured in moderate condition, and several others with light injuries. MDA teams are continuing to treat additional casualties at the scene. Large MDA forces, including helicopters, are on their way to the location.”
(YWN’s Jerusalem desk is keeping you updated after tzeis ha’Shabbos in Israel)
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12 Responses
How can it be a “mass casualty” event, if so far no casualties have been reported?
I guess injuries can also be casualties. But I bet everyone reading the headline thinks it means worse
Well that’s disgusting. You had to emphasize in the headline “chareidi area” of Arad. Because you (or you felt your readers? not sure which is worse) wouldn’t care as much if it was “just” yidden.
1. If the Iranians hit a Hareidi building it suggests that either they made a point of targeting civilians, or more likely, they are unable to hit the side of a barn. The first would hardly be a surprise given Iran’s history of killing Jewish civilians, however the later is more likely.
2. It does appear the Iran is hardly being crushed if they can still hit targets at a great distance.
3. Meanwhile, the US (and perhaps Israel) are running out of anti-missiles, perhaps related to heir past development of very expensive interceptors used for shooting down inexpensive attack drones. This may prove a problem for the US in the long and short run.
Headline says the missle hit the apartment building.
Article (and photo) say and show otherwise:
Arad Mayor Yair Maayan said that the missile itself struck an open area surrounded by four-story residential buildings, and that much of the damage to the buildings was caused by the blast wave rather than a direct hit.
Thank you dreambig for your comment. Sadly we should not be indifferent to any yid no matter affiliation. A yid is a yid is a yid and any injury is awful and horrific.
P.S. I think the writer was merely intending to write which part of the city was affected.
VOSIZNEIZ/#1: The term casualties includes injuries.
A casualty is a person killed or injured in a war, accident, or disaster. It can also refer to a person or thing that is lost, destroyed, or adversely affected by a specific event. The term often implies multiple deaths or injuries. It is used in both military and civilian contexts, and sometimes refers to the emergency department of a hospital.
@dreambig
“Well that’s disgusting.” You had to accuse YWN and its readers of “not caring” due to the headline’s content when, in fact, there could be very good reasons to mention that it’s a chareidi area.
For example, given that YWN caters to a religious audience (as its name indicates), some readers could more likely have family and/or friends in that area due it being a “chareidi area”. Maybe stop to think before you judge.
It’s important to know if it was a chareidi area. Some of the readers here might have friends or relatives there, and would want to check on their condition.
““The impact was between the buildings. It’s a neis it didn’t hit a building directly.””
If the odds of it hitting a building are about the same as it hitting the open area next to the building, then it is not a neis but rather hasgacha pratis. A neis would be if it was aimed properly at the building but was miraculously redirected away from the building.
Put simply, a neis is a miracle, as in a disruption to the natural order, not simply a better outcome.
@Yaapchik
“A yid is a yid is a yid and any injury is awful and horrific.”
The last part of your quote is, of course true, but – even unintentionally – you should not promote views that are anti-Torah.
For example, one who knowingly and publicly violates Shabbos in public does not have the same benefits of being a Jew as does a Shabbos-observant Jew.