Nirim attack

On 7 October 2023, as part of a coordinated surprise assault launched on Israel by Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip, Kibbutz Nirim — a farming community roughly 2 kilometres from the Gaza border in southern Israel, home to about 500 people including around 130 children — was targeted. The attack began around 6:29 AM with a rocket barrage, followed shortly after by breaches of the border fence near Nirim at 6:33 AM using explosives and a bulldozer.

An estimated 150 militants moved toward the Nirim area, with about 80 entering the kibbutz itself. IDF armor stationed near the border engaged infiltrators, destroying some but losing a tank whose three-member crew was killed and one captured. Colonel Asaf Hamami, commander of the Southern Brigade of the Gaza Division, moved toward Nirim with two soldiers, Staff Sergeant Tomer Ahimas and Sergeant Kiril Brodski, and engaged militants near the kibbutz; all three were killed after a sustained firefight, and their bodies were taken to Gaza. Separately, Captain Omer Wolf and two other soldiers were killed defending a nearby army post.

Inside the kibbutz, militants abducted resident Channah Peri and her son Nadav Popplewell, and killed resident Gideon Babani. Over subsequent hours, additional militants — including Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters and unaffiliated Palestinians — entered Nirim, setting homes on fire, shooting into residences, and throwing grenades. Kibbutz security team members, joined by an off-duty police officer, Amit Levy, resisted the attackers in prolonged exchanges of fire. An Israeli Air Force helicopter later assisted by striking militants outside the kibbutz. Reinforcements, including soldiers from an IDF commando school and the Bislamach Brigade, arrived hours later and killed the remaining militants inside the kibbutz; further militants were killed in surrounding fields the following day.

In total, five Nirim civilians were killed and five were taken hostage to Gaza. Of the hostages, three were released in a November 2023 hostage exchange, while two others died in captivity. Ten IDF soldiers were killed fighting in and around Nirim, including at a nearby army base. Approximately 50 Palestinian militants were reported killed between the Gaza border and Nirim, with another 15 killed inside the kibbutz. Surviving residents were evacuated. On 15 October, the IDF reported killing Bilal al-Qedra, described as the Hamas Nukhba unit commander in the southern Khan Younis battalion who led the Nirim operation. Further hostages connected to Nirim were released in the November 2023 deal, including a Yehud resident abducted while visiting the kibbutz and two Nirim members held for 53 days.