In the middle of the rave, Hamas started shooting at the dancing youths.
Several hundred are dead, missing or kidnapped.
– I run, run and run, says Swedish-Israeli Eitan Carlquist, who managed to escape the festival massacre.
At least 250 people are dead after the massacre at the Supernova music festival in Israel near the border with Gaza, which was attended by around 3,000 people.
The Swedish-Israeli Eitan Carlquist was there together with several friends. They tried to escape in the chaos, first in a car and then running on foot when masked men from opened fire.
– We saw people on the ground who we could not help. I look to the left, see two terrorists with weapons in their hands even closer to us, like 30 meters. They shout “Allahu akbar!” with guns up, and just shooting in the air. And I just think: What’s going on? What happens? And all the time I run and run, says Eitan Carlquist.
Friend kidnapped
At least 250 people are dead after the massacre and many of the young festival goers are still missing.
Eitan Carlquist managed to escape but a friend of his was captured.
– Hamas has posted a video of him where he is kidnapped, beaten, hands behind his back. He looks scared, says Eitan.
Gratitude and shock
Hamas describes the attack as revenge for Israel’s 16-year blockade of Gaza and a series of other incidents that have recently exacerbated the long-running Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The government of Israel has formally declared war.
Eitan is mostly grateful to be alive.
– I run, run, run. All the time we hear shooting behind us, until we find a policeman in the woods. He said we should continue east to a village called Patish. When we got to safety, I laid down on the ground and started brushing the asphalt, he says.