Moment 10-year-old boy is kidnapped by Hamas terrorists and taken to Gaza as bystander begs them not to ‘harm’ him

A video has emerged of a 10-year-old boy kidnapped from his homeland by Hamas terrorists as they launched their attack on Israel over the weekend.

The disturbing images show the young man being dragged towards an opening in the border fence between Gaza and Israel by gunmen, who kidnapped around 150 people in their surprise offensive launched on Saturday morning.

Erez Kalderon, who was taken from his home in Nir Oz in southern Israel by Hamas, appears terrified as heavily armed men lead him through the streets.

His father Offer and sister Sahar, 16, were also kidnapped in Hamas’ unprecedented land, air and sea attack that has left Israel reeling.

The chaotic images, posted on social media, show the young man being held by his arms by a much larger man who is accompanied by another man holding a rifle.

One of the hands of the man holding the rifle appears to be covered in blood.

Other fighters are seen moving up and down the road, including one who passes by the group dragging Erez on the back of a motorcycle.

In the background you can see a fence surrounded by barbed wire, presumed to be the border fence between Gaza and Israel, as well as smoke rising into the sky in the distance.

In the video, a man, who is not identified, is heard pleading with the gunmen who are dragging him down the street, saying: “Don’t hurt them, they are young, leave them, this is a child who may only be 10 years old.” . ‘.

It was not clear from the footage whether it was one of the kidnappers saying they should leave the young Israeli alone, another Israeli who had been kidnapped pleading with his captors in Arabic, or another bystander.

The footage cuts before the young man is seen being taken to Gaza.

Erez’s family has since spoken out about his kidnapping, saying he, his father and sister went into hiding on Saturday morning and have not been heard from since.

“Yesterday at 8:30 in the morning they sent us messages saying that the terrorists are outside their house… and they are hiding,” said a message from a family member, which circulated online. “Since then their voices have not been heard.”

Erez’s sister Gaya Kalderon, 21, who lives in Tel Aviv, told Sky News: “Everything I have in my life, my family, I am missing.” I am terrified by the photographs and can’t believe what I see. It seems like a horror movie that would never come true. But that’s how it was.

Erez Kalderon, who was kidnapped by Hamas from his home in Nir Oz, southern Israel, appears terrified as heavily armed men lead him through the streets.

The war began after Hamas terrorists stormed Israel on Saturday, sparking gunfights in the streets for the first time in decades.

At least 1,600 lives have already been claimed on both sides, and perhaps hundreds more, and Israel said on Tuesday that its death toll had surpassed 1,000, although separate reports suggested the total number could be much higher.

In Gaza and the West Bank, 704 people have died, according to authorities there; Israel says they include hundreds of Hamas fighters. Thousands of people have been injured on both sides.

The bodies of approximately 1,500 Hamas fighters were found in Israeli territory, the army said. It was not immediately clear whether those figures matched deaths previously reported by Palestinian authorities.

Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza are currently holding more than 150 soldiers and civilians hostage, according to Israel, and Hamas is threatening to execute the hostages if the Israel Defense Forces attack targets in Gaza without warning.

The conflict is only expected to intensify. This Tuesday, Israel expanded the mobilization of reservists to 360,000, according to the country’s media.

After days of fighting, Israel’s military said Tuesday morning that it had regained effective control over areas attacked by Hamas in the south and along the Gaza border.

A looming question is whether Israel will launch a ground offensive on Gaza, a 40-kilometre-long strip of land wedged between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea that is home to 2.3 million people and has been ruled by Hamas since 2007.

The Israeli military said it struck hundreds of targets overnight in the Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City, an upscale district that houses ministries of the Hamas-led government as well as universities, media organizations and aid organizations.

After hours of relentless attacks, residents left their homes at dawn to find buildings torn in half by airstrikes or reduced to mounds of concrete and rebar.

Cars were crushed and trees burned on residential streets that had been transformed into lunar landscapes.

The devastation signaled what appeared to be a new Israeli tactic: warning civilians to leave certain areas and then attacking them with unprecedented intensity.

Palestinians break through a cap after tearing down the fence on the Israel-Gaza border and enter Israel after clashes and attacks in Gaza City, Gaza, on October 7.

Smoke is seen rising near the border fence between Gaza and Israel on October 7.

Israel’s bombings and threats to overthrow Hamas heightened doubts about the group’s strategy and goals.

But it is unclear what options it has in the face of the ferocity of Israel’s retaliation and the potential of losing much of its government infrastructure.

Hours after Saturday’s raid began, a senior Hamas official, Saleh al-Arouri, said the group had planned for all possibilities, including “total war,” and was prepared to suffer “severe blows.”

Meanwhile, on Tuesday afternoon, Hamas armed wing spokesman Abu Ubaida told residents of the Israeli port of Ashkelon to leave the area at 5 p.m. Tuesday, without giving further details, in an ominous warning to its residents.