Hamas Tactic of Hostage-Taking Particularly Explosive for Israelis

A major strategy of the Hamas attack against Israel appears to include taking large numbers of hostages — both military and civilian — in a maneuver that's a particularly fraught issue for Israelis.

The Israeli military said many of its soldiers and civilians were taken hostage Saturday after Hamas airstrikes and incursions into the country.

The exact number of hostages is not yet known, but taking captives appears to be relatively widespread where Hamas militants have infiltrated. They have also shown off their hostages.

Israel's top military spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari recounted a nightmare scenario Saturday where Hamas gunmen went door-to-door, grabbing Israeli residents.

Footage obtained by the New York Times shows Israelis with their hands bound behind their backs being led by a group of armed men on both motorcycle and foot leading them to Gaza, where Saturday’s strikes originated.

The Israeli government has a painful history getting back hostages, paying high prices in the past for the return of its citizens or for soldiers' remains in lopsided prisoner exchanges.

In 2006, Gaza militants seized Israeli soldier Gilad Shallit, and eventually exchanged him five years later for 1,000 Palestinian inmates in Israeli prisons.

Hostage-taking has played a dire role in Jewish history, notably in forced transportation to death camps and captivity under the Nazis in Hitler's Germany.

It's unclear where the Hamas hostages were taken, early reports show they may have been taken to a dining hall in Be’eri.

A Telegram video shows militants quietly guarding a facility outside a building in Be’eri, according to the Times.

Hamas reportedly launched 5,000 rockets into southern and central Israel on Saturday and infiltrated the country in 22 locations, killing at least 300 people and injuring 2,000 more.

Israel retaliated with airstrikes that have reportedly killed nearly 200 people an injured another 1,800 in the decades-long border war in the Middle East.