Lt. Masha Michelson, head of Israel Defense Forces Press Desk, told Newsmax on Monday that after the surprise daybreak attack by Hamas on Saturday, Israel had the fastest mobilization of defense force reserves in the nation's history.
"We have seen hundreds of thousands — nearly 200,000 — reservists reporting for duty in less than 48 hours," Michelson said on Newsmax's "Wake Up America." "Those reservists were sent, not only to the southern border, but also to the north to contain the border and prevent the conflict from escalating further and into other arenas.
"Now, regarding the south, the IDF [Israeli Defense Forces] right now is holding a situational assessment with tens of colonels that were recruited into reserve service specifically to gain information and talk to the families of people that we believe are missing and are kidnapped. But this thing takes time.
"Once we have a full assessment of people that we know for sure have been kidnapped into the Gaza Strip, we will be wiser in planning our next steps. The possible locations and the very existence of those hostages within the Gaza Strip is something that the strategists, both in the IDF and I'm sure within the political echelon, are taking into consideration."
Israel on Monday ordered a "complete siege" of Gaza after the death toll from the Saturday attack by the militant group Hamas climbed to nearly 1,200. Michelson said that since Saturday, Israel has seen "the largest number of Jews killed in one day since the end of the Holocaust."
"This is an unprovoked and unprecedented attack," she said. "Right now, after 48 hours and more of fighting in the communities in the south of Israel, the IDF has gained back control over the south of Israel and any terrorists that are left there are very few or maybe in small groups and they're being met with military groups who are equipped, armed, and engage with them properly.
"Meanwhile, we are securing the security fence that has been breached since Saturday. There are multiple points of breach in this fence, and we are planning to secure it with tanks, armored vehicles, and reinforce the surveillance from the air.
"Up until now, since Saturday, we have seen Israeli UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles] by the IDF securing the fence from above and striking on any additional terrorists that want to infiltrate Israel. Once we have the south under control, we will be free to discuss the next action."
Asked if there was any warning or intelligence that an attack was imminent, Michelson said, "I'm not an intelligence officer."
"I will say that we were surprised Saturday morning, and this calls for serious questions that should be answered calmly and thoroughly when the fighting is done, and Israel is safe again," she added.
Michelson also said that there is an air support system defending Israel's airspace and that "flights are leaving Israel routinely and people who wanted to get out are getting out."
"There are operations in place with airlines and IDF is also involved in getting reservists who have been called to duty but have been on vacation abroad back into Israel so they can serve and defend the country," she said.
Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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