Air‑raid sirens. Great panic in Israel
Panic in the north of Israel. On Wednesday evening, alarm sirens wailed and there were reports of drones coming from the territories of Lebanon. The army called for people to go to shelters. However, it soon admitted that the alarm was false.
6:17 AM EDT, October 12, 2023
On Wednesday evening, alarm sirens wailed in northern Israeli towns. There were reports of 15-20 drones that had flown into the country from Lebanese territory. Ten minutes later, alarms in the border towns of Ma'ayan Baruch and Ma'alot-Tarshiha warned of a possible infiltration.
The Command of the Internal Front has asked residents of border towns, including Haifa, to stay in shelters "until further notice," fearing a "large-scale attack."
Warnings caused panic. Videos appeared on the internet, including from Haifa, showing Israelis fleeing in search of shelter. The media reported on incoming drones and paragliders, and some television reporters were convinced they heard explosions.
False alarm
After 90 minutes, when about 2 million Israelis had gone to shelters, the IDF announced that the incident was a false alarm. Spokesman Daniel Hagari announced that there was no security threat. However, an investigation is ongoing as to what triggered the alarms.
- We will check if it was a technical error or human error - he assured. He added that residents should go to shelters every time they hear sirens.
The IDF also emphasized that the alarms in the regions south of Haifa were triggered by a Hamas attack. A rocket launched from the Gaza Strip fell in the area, however, it did not cause any damage.
This is not the only incident with false alarms in recent days. On Wednesday, the Internal Front Command app sent out a command to head for the shelters, even though no alarm sirens howled. After a few minutes, the IDF reported that it was caused by a "human error".
Hamas attack and retaliation
On October 7th in the early morning hours Eastern Time, Israel was unexpectedly attacked from the Gaza Strip by Palestinian Hamas. The strike resulted in the highest number of Israeli fatalities since 1973, when the Jewish state fought a war with the Syrian-Egyptian coalition.
Israel has carried out retaliatory attacks. During the ongoing conflict that has lasted several days, approximately 1,200 Israeli citizens and over 1,000 residents of the Gaza Strip have already been killed.
