Diverting global attention from Russian-Ukrainian war: expert on Hamas' attack on Israel

Hennadiy Khazan, President of the All-Ukrainian Aviation Organization called Association of Private Pilots and Aircraft Owners, shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

"Israel will recover in half a day and give a proper response. But there will be a clamor that the Israelis are allegedly destroying, committing genocide against a people whose name does not correspond to historical things. This will happen in order to divert the attention of the world community from Russia's actions in Ukraine, solely for this purpose," the expert says.

He compared the terrorist actions of Hamas to Russia's actions in Ukraine in early 2022.

"People were shot in cars. The same thing happened in early 2022 in Ukraine. This is the same tactic and strategy to intimidate people. Killing and abusing children, women, the elderly, and the military is barbaric, to demonstratively intimidate people. And all those who intimidate people must be destroyed," said Hennadiy Khazan.

He noted that Hamas started the attack very "flashy." But they didn't plan for the ultimate outcome. 

"So they started moving, but then what? And then the Israeli army arrived and started their retaliation, and they will not stop," Khazan summarized.

Events in Israel: latest updates

On the morning of Saturday, October 7, 2023, the Palestinian armed groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad launched a massive air and land attack on the state of Israel in several places. The head of the Hamas military wing, Mohammed Deif, said that his militants had launched the Al-Aqsa Flood operation. According to him, these actions are intended to protect the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

The Palestinians launched 2,000 to 3,000 missiles at Israel and simultaneously seized 7 communities in the south.

In response, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced the mobilization of reservists and the launch of the Iron Swords counterterrorism operation. For the first time in 50 years, the government introduced martial law in the country. 

The IDF actively used aviation to strike Palestinian command posts. It has also begun clearing Hamas-occupied communities.

In addition, there is a great threat that the Shiite Hezbollah could attack Israel from the north, as its main partner and supplier, the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI), has called on jihadists to "liberate Jerusalem."

On the morning of October 8, the Saudi television channel Al Arabiya published the losses of both Palestinians and Israelis during the first day of the renewed military conflict. According to the channel, Israel lost 300 people killed and at least 1,600 wounded. The number of casualties from the Palestinian-populated Gaza Strip is 232 killed and 1,627 wounded. 

On October 8, Israeli troops claimed that Lebanon had attacked their territory, so the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) attacked in response. In particular, Israeli aviation struck a complex belonging to the head of Hamas' intelligence.

Militants of the Lebanese military-political organization Hezbollah fired at Israeli positions on the border with the disputed Golan Heights and supported Hamas in its operation against Israel.