Israel91裸聊视频檚 national rescue service says the death toll has risen to 100 from Hamas91裸聊视频� surprise incursion into southern Israel on Saturday.

The figure was announced by Zaki Heller of the Magen David Adom paramedic service.

With hundreds of people hospitalized in serious and critical condition, that number is likely to rise.

The figures make Saturday one of the deadliest days in Israel91裸聊视频檚 75-year history.

ORIGINAL STORY

Hamas militants fired thousands of rockets and sent dozens of fighters into Israeli towns near the Gaza Strip in an unprecedented surprise early morning attack during a major Jewish holiday Saturday, killing dozens and stunning the country. Israel said it is now at war with Hamas and launched airstrikes in Gaza, vowing to inflict an 91裸聊视频渦nprecedented price.91裸聊视频�

Hamas militants were still fighting gunbattles inside several Israeli communities hours after the incursion began. Israel91裸聊视频檚 national rescue service said at least 70 people were killed and hundreds wounded, making it the deadliest attack in Israel in years. An unknown number of Israeli soldiers and civilians were also seized and taken into Gaza, an enormously sensitive issue for Israel.

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At least 198 people in the Gaza Strip have been killed in Israel91裸聊视频檚 retaliation and at least 1,610 wounded, the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said.

The strength, sophistication and timing of the attack shocked Israelis. Hamas fighters used explosives to break through the border fence enclosing the long-blockaded Mediterranean territory, then crossed with motorcycles, pickup trucks, paragliders and speed boats on the coast.

Bodies of dead Israeli civilians and Hamas militants were seen on streets of Israeli towns. Associated Press photos showed an abducted elderly Israeli woman surrounded by gunmen being brought back into Gaza on a golf cart and another woman squeezed between two fighters on a motorcycle. Images on social media appeared to show fighters parading what seemed to be captured Israeli military vehicles through Gaza streets and a dead Israeli soldier being dragged and trampled by crowd of Palestinians.

The assault threatened to spiral into a greater conflict, mirroring previous conflicts between Israel and the Hamas militants ruling Gaza that brought widespread death and destruction in Gaza and days of rocket fire on Israeli towns.

91裸聊视频淲e are at war,91裸聊视频� Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address, declaring a mass army mobilization. 91裸聊视频淣ot an 91裸聊视频榦peration,91裸聊视频� not a 91裸聊视频榬ound,91裸聊视频� but at war.91裸聊视频�

91裸聊视频淭he enemy will pay an unprecedented price,91裸聊视频� he added, promising that Israel would 91裸聊视频渞eturn fire of a magnitude that the enemy has not known.91裸聊视频�

The shadowy leader of Hamas91裸聊视频� military wing, Mohammed Deif, said the assault was in response to the 16-year blockade of Gaza, Israeli raids inside West Bank cities over the past year, violence at Al Aqsa 91裸聊视频� the disputed Jerusalem holy site sacred to Jews as the Temple Mount 91裸聊视频� increasing attacks by settlers on Palestinians and growth of settlements.

91裸聊视频淓nough is enough,91裸聊视频� Deif, who does not appear in public, said in the recorded message. He said the morning attack was only the start of what he called 91裸聊视频淥peration Al-Aqsa Storm91裸聊视频� and called on Palestinians from east Jerusalem to northern Israel to join the fight. 91裸聊视频淭oday the people are regaining their revolution.91裸聊视频�

At a meeting of top security officials Saturday, Netanyahu said the first priority was to 91裸聊视频渃leanse91裸聊视频� southern Israel of infiltrators, followed by a greater retaliation in Gaza.

The serious incursion on Simchat Torah, a normally joyous day when Jews complete the annual cycle of reading the Torah scroll, revived painful memories of the 1973 Mideast war practically 50 years to the day, in which Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, aiming to take back Israeli-occupied territories.

Comparisons to one of the most traumatic moments in Israeli history sharpened criticism of Netanyahu and his far-right allies, who had campaigned on more aggressive action against threats from Gaza. Political commentators lambasted the government over its failure to anticipate what appeared to be a Hamas attack unseen in its level of planning and coordination.

Asked by reporters how Hamas had managed to catch the army off guard, Lt. Col. Richard Hecht, an Israeli army spokesman, replied, 91裸聊视频淭hat91裸聊视频檚 a good question.91裸聊视频�

The Israeli military struck targets in Gaza in response for some 2,500 rockets that sent air raid sirens wailing constantly as far north as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) away. It said its forces were engaged in gunfights with Hamas militants who had infiltrated Israel in at least seven locations.

The abduction of Israeli civilians and soldiers raised a particularly thorny issue for Israel. Their number was not immediately known. Videos released by Hamas appeared to show at least three Israelis captured alive, and AP photos showed at least three civilians brought in Gaza, including the two women. Israeli television showed images of a young man stripped down to his pants being led on foot in a chokehold and reported that elderly women with dementia as well as workers from Thailand and the Philippines were among the captives.

The Israeli military confirmed that a number of Israelis had been taken captive. A top Hamas official, Saleh Arouri, told Al-Jazeera TV that his group is holding 91裸聊视频渁 large number91裸聊视频� of Israeli prisoners including senior officers adding that they will be used in a prisoner exchange to free Palestinian detainees in Israeli jails. Neither side said how many. Israel has a history of making heavily lopsided exchanges in order to bring captive Israelis home.

The infiltration of fighters into southern Israel marked a major escalation by Hamas, forcing Israelis in the region to hunker down in safe rooms.

In the town of Sderot, the bodies of at least six people gunned down at a bus shelter were laid out on stretchers on the street. The bags they had been carrying sat at the curb and unmatched shoes were scattered on the sidewalk. Elsewhere, an Israeli woman knelt in the street and embraced a dead family member whose body was stretched out next to a pink motorcycle that lay on its side. The rider91裸聊视频檚 hand with a glove and a foot in a racing boot extended out from under the sheet.

In the kibbutz of Nahal Oz, just 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) from the Gaza Strip, terrified residents who were huddled indoors said they could hear constant gunfire echoing off the buildings as firefights continued.

91裸聊视频淲ith rockets we somehow feel safer, knowing that we have the Iron Dome (missile defense system) and our safe rooms. But knowing that terrorists are walking around communities is a different kind of fear,91裸聊视频� said Mirjam Reijnen, a 42-year-old volunteer firefighter and mother of three in Nahal Oz.

In a televised address, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned that Hamas had made 91裸聊视频渁 grave mistake91裸聊视频� and promised that 91裸聊视频渢he state of Israel will win this war.91裸聊视频�

Western nations condemned the incursion and reiterated their support for Israel, while others called for restraint on both sides.

91裸聊视频淭he U.S. unequivocally condemns the unprovoked attacks by Hamas terrorists against Israeli civilians,91裸聊视频� said Adrienne Watson, spokeswoman for the U.S. National Security Council. 91裸聊视频淲e stand firmly with the government and people of Israel and extend our condolences for the Israeli lives lost in these attacks.91裸聊视频�

Watson said Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser, has spoken with his Israeli counterpart, Tzachi Hanegbi.

Saudi Arabia, which has been in talks with the U.S. about normalizing relations with Israel, released a statement calling on both sides to exercise restraint. The kingdom said it had repeatedly warned about 91裸聊视频渢he dangers of the situation exploding as a result of the continued occupation (and) the Palestinian people being deprived of their legitimate rights.91裸聊视频�

The attack comes at a time of historic division within Israel over Netanyahu91裸聊视频檚 proposal to overhaul the judiciary. Mass protests over the plan have sent hundreds of thousands of Israeli demonstrators into the streets and prompted hundreds of military reservists to avoid volunteer duty 91裸聊视频� turmoil that has raised fears over the military91裸聊视频檚 battlefield readiness and raised concerns about its deterrence over its enemies.

It also comes at a time of mounting tensions between Israel and the Palestinians, who have felt increasing despair with the peace process effectively dead for years and no resolution to Israel91裸聊视频檚 occupation. Over the past year Israel91裸聊视频檚 far-right government has ramped up settlement construction in the occupied West Bank, Israeli settler violence has displacedhundreds of Palestinians there, and tensions have flared around a flashpoint Jerusalem holy site.

Saturday91裸聊视频檚 wide-ranging assault threatened to undermine Netanyahu91裸聊视频檚 reputation as a security expert who would do anything to protect Israel. It also raised questions about the cohesion of a security apparatus crucial to the stability of a country locked in low-intensity conflicts on multiple fronts and facing threats from Lebanon91裸聊视频檚 Hezbollah militant group.

Hezbollah congratulated Hamas on Friday, praising the attack as a response to 91裸聊视频淚sraeli crimes91裸聊视频� and saying the militants had 91裸聊视频渄ivine backing.91裸聊视频� The group said its command in Lebanon was in contact with Hamas about the operation.

Israel has maintained a blockade over Gaza since Hamas seized control of the territory in 2007. The bitter enemies have fought four wars since then.

The blockade, which restricts the movement of people and goods in and out of Gaza, has devastated the territory91裸聊视频檚 economy. Israel says the blockade is needed to keep militant groups from building up their arsenals. The Palestinians say the closure amounts to collective punishment.

Nearly 200 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli military raids in the West Bank, which has seen heavy fighting. Israel says the raids are aimed at militants, but stone-throwing protesters and people uninvolved in the violence have also been killed. Palestinian attacks on Israeli targets have killed over 30 people.

The tensions have also spread to Gaza, where Hamas-linked activists held violent demonstrations along the Israeli border in recent weeks. Those demonstrations were halted in late September after international mediation.

Adwan reported from Rafah, Gaza Strip. Associated Press writer Isabel DeBre in Jerusalem contributed to this report.

Josef Federman And Issam Adwan, The Associated Press