The Israeli consulate in New York City held a screening on Thursday night of the footage from the October 7 terror attack – one of 75 screenings held so far to demonstrate the brutality of the onslaught. The screening comes amid calls from anti-Israel critics for ‘proof’ that innocent civilians were murdered and raped at the hands of Hamas.
Gal Gadot, the Wonder Woman actress, held a screening of the film in Los Angeles on Wednesday night – which sparked wild fights outside the venue, the Museum of Tolerance.
The Israeli actress was not at the screening, but multiple people were detained after brawls outside between pro-Palestine and pro-Israel factions.
At the screening, attended by DailyMail.com, no photos or videos were allowed or distributed. Around 20 journalists were present.
The film has been screened in an effort to counter the skepticism expressed by some, who have claimed the October 7 attack was ‘fake news’ and defended Hamas as ‘freedom fighters’.
On November 4, Jewish rapper Kosha Dillz joined a pro-Palestine march in Washington DC and asked people to described the Israel-Hamas war, with the video he made leaving Dillz’s followers in despair at the ignorance he uncovered.
In London, a British group asked pro-Palestine marchers what their thoughts were on Hamas invading Israel.
‘I don’t believe they did, did they?’ said one women.
When asked if the UK had made the wrong decision by making Hamas a proscribed terror organization, another woman said: ‘Of course. It’s not Hamas that are terrorists. It’s America that are terrorists. Israel are terrorists, not Hamas.’
Hamas terrorists are seen on October 7 attacking a music festival in Israel
Dramatic bodycam footage shows a terror squad wearing khakis as they ride motorbikes in a convoy on October 7
Hamas gunmen force a man into a car and taunt him during their campaign of terror
Israeli festivalgoers run for their lives through the desert after being warned of an incoming rocket attack just as Hamas invaded the country on October 7
The terrorists rounded up people in Israel and took them back to Gaza on October 7
The film, 45 minutes in length, was compiled from footage from Hamas fighters’ dash cameras, body cameras and cell phones, and surveillance cameras from highways and Kibbutzes that were struck. There was also footage from first responders who discovered the atrocities, and some audio recordings from phone calls between Hamas fighters and their families.
‘Mom, I killed 10 Jews with my bare hands. Your son is a hero,’ one proclaimed.
The ‘movie’ – as officials labeled it – opened with Hamas militants driving excitedly into Israel, picking off civilian motorists in their own vehicles after stopping to pull over. There were distressing scenes from the Nova music festival- where the terrorists shot into portable toilets to ensure anyone hiding was also killed.
In bodycam footage from a first responder, dozens of festival bar workers are seen lying dead.
‘Is there anyone alive out there? Any sign of life?’ the paramedic asked.
The most grotesque moment was the scene of an elated Hamas fighter attempting to behead a dead Jewish man with what looked like a garden spade or hoe.
‘It’s my first Jew! I want to video it,’ he yelled in Arabic.
The burned bodies of small children – charred beyond recognition – were shown, along with other adult corpses frozen in time by the ash and flames that killed them.
Dashcam footage showed Hamas militants who attacked an all-night music festival in southern Israel shot and killed revelers at point-blank range, then looted their belongings
A street in kibbutz Kfar Aza is seen on October 27 – 20 days after Hamas stormed the area
Children’s toys and personal items lie on the bloodstained floor of a child’s bedroom, following a deadly infiltration by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip, in Kibbutz Beeri
The aftermath of an attack on the Supernova music Festival by Palestinian militants
Others, including some young adult females, had still had their legs splayed open by the time first responders got to them.
In one particularly gut-wrenching scene captured by home surveillance cameras at a home in Netiv Hasava, a father is seen running to an outdoor closet with his two young sons, all three in their underpants after being woken by the sound of gunfire.
A Hamas fighter sneaks up on them and tosses a grenade into the corner where they are taking shelter.
The father is then killed and the boys – aged between 8 and 12 – are marched back into the home.
While they scream and sob that their father is dead – ‘it’s not a prank…I think we may die’ – the Hamas fighter who killed their father retrieves a bottle of Coca Cola from their fridge and takes a swig.
The footage depicts the murders of 138 people from October 7, barely a 10th of the 1,400 that were killed.
Some of the footage was too graphic to even be included in the edit shown to the press, according to consular officials hosting the briefing.
Personal belongings lie among the debris of a house destroyed during the October 7 attack by Hamas militants in kibbutz Kfar Aza in southern Israel near the Gaza Strip on October 18
But what was shown, they said, was crucial to sustain the truth in international reporting of the attacks, and helps explain Israel’s full-throated military response.
‘After 9/11, no one told the US to restrain itself,’ said Aviv Ezra, Acting Consul General of New York.
‘We will not restrain ourselves. There has to be moral clarity.’
Nowhere in the footage is there any mention of the freedom of Palestine or Gaza.
The only remarks by Hamas fighters are ‘Allahu akbar’, and chanting.
They chanted as they stood on the necks of dead Israeli soldiers, and while holding up the hair of Israeli hostage Shani Louk.
IDF Lieutenant Commander Jonathan Conricus, who joined the briefing via Zoom from Tel Aviv, said there are now around 200,000 civilians left in Gaza. Between 850,000 and 900,000 have already fled, he said.
‘We are happy with that. We’re sure Hamas is not,’ he said.
Conricus could not give a precise number for how many Hamas fighters remain in Gaza.
A typical battalion has between 90 and 200 fighters, all of whom are now hiding underground.
An Israeli soldier walks towards the remains of a burnt house, following a deadly infiltration by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip, in Kibbutz Beeri
Troops remove the bodies of victims, killed during an attack by Hamas terrorists in Kfar Aza
Hamas left a trail of devastation at a series of kibbutzes near the border with Gaza, including children’s beds soaked in blood
An Israeli soldier breaks down in tears at the sight of a family dining table on which there is still Challah bread from Friday’s Kiddush at the Kfar Aza kibbutz
As of Thursday night, 130 of the tunnels used by Hamas have been exposed. They remain supported by Islamic militia groups Houthi, in Yemen, and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Aside from a handful of propaganda released by Hamas, officials still have no solid information about the health of the 239 hostages taken.
‘We have some that we cannot share but it is largely a black hole. We know some have been split in groups, but we don’t know how. All we know is they are underground,’ Ezra said.
The officials lamented the fact that while the world calls for a humanitarian pause for Gazans, no help has been given for the hostages.
‘Humanitarian aid is a two way street. Everyone is calling for humanitarian aid to Gaza but we do not even have the most basic information about our hostages. Why can’t the Red Cross be allowed in to ensure they are being fed and have access to medication?’ Itay Milner, spokesperson for the Israeli Consulate said.
The officials do not intend to release the video to the public to protect the victims’ families.
Their hope is however to show it to enough international journalists to dismiss misinformation that it is fake, and explain the ongoing military campaign.
President Biden has not seen the footage. The most senior US official to have viewed it is Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.