LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Israel's military says they struck more than 200 targets in Gaza overnight in an escalated response to recent Hamas attacks.
The Israel Defense Force (IDF) says their forces have discovered the bodies of murdered women and small children.
Llyod Austin, Secretary of Defense, talked about the emerging intelligence coming from the region.
"The more you learn about the sickening atrocities, the worse it gets. Hamas deliberately targeted civilians and massacred them just because they are Jews."
I talked with a man in Israel, Elad Levy, who provides a first hand experience of the devastation in his home country and he believes his niece may be the terrorist groups next victim.
"What happened on Saturday morning throughout the day was a genocide," said Levy.
Levy continued, explaining what he has been seeing in his home country.
"The Hamas terrorist came in savagely attacked civilians, savagely murdered little children in their beds, burned people in their homes, they just found bodies of females raped."
Levy says nearly every person in Israel has been impacted by this attack, including his family.
Saturday morning was the last time he says he has heard from his 19-year-old niece.
"She texted her mother saying, Hi mom I am ok, I am busy I love you."
We asked him if he thought she may now be a hostage. "It is a difficult question definitely and it's an option yes, and we are considering our options, there are no good options, it is too hard for me to think about," he said.
According to the state department, there are about 150 hostages captured by Hamas militants.
"It is just unbearable, we can't do anything about it and you keep wondering where is she now, what's her status, is she well is she hurt, is she in pain," Levy continued.
He says they are terrified of what the group is capable of.
"We think that the county is between 1,500 to 2,000 people that were savagely murdered, what people need to understand was that that was a genocide, crimes against humanity in the worst way possible."
