Fri. Dec 27th, 2024

A BRAVE group of pals who survived Hamas’ festival massacre have told of the horrors they faced as five of their friends were murdered.

Noa and her husband Liav, and Roni and his fiancée, also called Roni, described how they spent seven hours running for their lives and hiding in bushes as terrorists sprayed fleeing crowds with bullets.

The SunNoa, Liav, Roni and his fiancée Roni spoke to The Sun in Israel one month after the slaughter[/caption]

SuppliedRoni and his fiancée Roni pictured taking cover by their car as they tried to flee[/caption]

Hamas gunman stormed the Supernova festival in the western Negev desert in Israel on October 7Supplied

SuppliedHundreds fled the festival on foot as terrorists set up checkpoints and opened fire on cars[/caption]

Hamas gunman stormed the Supernova festival near Kibbutz Re’im in the western Negev desert in Israel on October 7.

Hundreds were killed or snatched during the surprise attack as the rave turned into a mass slaughter, etched forever in the minds of Israelis.

As Hamas retreated back into Gaza taking dozens of hostages, 260 bodies of the unsuspecting ravers were found among the desert plains.

Speaking to The Sun in Israel one month after the slaughter, the four pals told how they fled through a barrage of rockets landing on the ground just metres from the festival-goers.

“It all started at 6.30am,” Liav said. “From there, it was a nightmare.

“It was six or seven hours of running, hiding, yelling, people dying, people exploding.

“Terrorists came with automatic weapons from the sky, from the sea with boats, from everywhere. Nobody saw them coming.

“Every year we have a war with Hamas – but something like this has never happened. They just came to kill.”

Liav explained how they initially thought it was a single rocket attack from Gaza – but soon realised the festival was turning into a war zone.

“We saw people bleeding, we saw people shot,” he said.

“You saw dead bodies, cars smashed, cars exploding, fire everywhere. They were burning everything.

“It was like a war zone. Dead bodies everywhere.

“Everybody knew someone. Everybody lost someone. We lost five friends, and the DJ who played at our wedding has not come back.”

Roni said he and his fiancée desperately ran to their car as the rockets started landing.

Once there, they lay down on the floor and waited 10 minutes before setting off.

“After one or two kilometres, I saw a lot of cars stopping and turning around,” he said.

“Hamas was there with their machine guns and rockets. They were waiting for us. They just wanted to kill everyone.

“People were running with gunshot wounds, screaming and crying.”

It turned out the Hamas terrorists were laying in wait with automatic weapons at “checkpoints” as thousands of revellers desperately tried to escape the hellhole.

A police officer yelled at Roni to “run” so they jumped out of their car and set off on foot.

“We ran for 20 kilometres, we ran for hours,” he said.

People were running with gunshot wounds, screaming and crying

RoniFestival massacre survivor

“One of the police officers who helped us – I later saw a video of him in Gaza. He’d been kidnapped.

“After he saved us, they kidnapped him. He had told us where to go and to run away.”

Roni’s fiancée, also called Roni, said: “We were running and hiding – they were shooting at us every single step we took. We didn’t look back, we just ran.

“Nobody came to help us – we were alone and had to save ourselves. It’s a miracle that we are here.

“We were like sitting ducks, out in the middle of nowhere, alone, no knowing where to go.”

Liav was travelling in a separate car and soon realised he was in a “war zone” and needed to flee.

Chillingly, he heard people yelling “terrorist, terrorist, terrorist” and saw revellers covered in blood as Hamas executioners peppered the fleeing crowds with bullets.

Liav and Noa then drove until they reached another checkpoint but were greeted by the sounds of more screams filling the air.

As cars desperately U-turned around them, the couple were warned: “We were shot, you need to run away”.

Liav said: “We got out the car and ran 50 metres and hid in the bushes for one hour. All this time, we could hear shooting everywhere.

“They were using automatic weapons to shoot everywhere.”

The SunThe group of friends described how they spent seven hours running for their lives[/caption]

Festival-goers spent hours running and hiding as they desperately tried to escape the onslaughtSupplied

Hundreds were killed and snatched during the surprise attackSupplied

The couple ended up hiding in a petrol station for three hours in a “safe zone” with other festival-goers and a female police officer who managed to escape the terror.

They told how five female police officers led people to safety as other cops armed only with pistols held off terrorists with AK-47s at checkpoints.

And they believe the bravery of the police possibly saved hundreds of lives.

But the devastated group of friends lost five pals in the massacre – including one who sent them a warning message to get of their cars and run.

“When we left the petrol station, we saw people had been shot,” he said.

“There was one girl with a bullet in her mouth, somebody was shot in the leg.

“I got a phone call and it was our friend. I told her I was in a safe zone with a police officer.

“I asked if she was okay, she said ‘no, they shot me and they shot my brother who came to save me’.

“She told me her boyfriend and her brother were dying. I don’t know how to answer – your best friend calls you and tells you this, I tell her ‘please run away, save yourself’.

“Five days later, police found her body. I don’t have the words.”

Noa tearfully showed The Sun a tattoo on her arm of a paper fan that their music-lover friend, Sharron, 27, always carried with her at festivals.

Sharron had saved their lives by telling them to get of their cars and run.

“She told us to go,” Roni said.

“Maybe if she hadn’t sent us a message, we might not be here. She always cared about others before herself.”

Liav and Noa were celebrating their first wedding anniversary at the festival, which was dedicated to peace.

There was one girl with a bullet in her mouth, somebody was shot in the leg

LiavFestival massacre survivor

And in the middle of the chaos and death, Roni and her boyfriend decided to get married.

“He said to be ‘if we’re going to be alive after this, we will get married’,” Roni explained.

“It gave me hope for the future. He saved me.”

The group of friends said dozens of people they know are currently being held hostage in Gaza.

And they told how they have been left deeply traumatised by the horrific events of the day.

Liav said: “What we’ve been through, it’s so hard. We don’t feel safe. If they went there, they can come here.

“At night, it’s very hard. Every single sound takes us back to that day.

“We can’t live like this. I hope we can dance again.”

While Roni said: “Every motorbike, every sound of something falling, everything reminds us. We have flashbacks all the time.

“I’m afraid to do things alone. The fear is everywhere.”

Israeli authorities compared the festival massacre to the worst IS atrocities and released a deliberately blurred picture of bodies piled up in a tent at the festival.

And Liav warned the country is “only the first” to be ripped apart by Hamas as he compared the group to bloodthirsty ISIS terrorists.

He added: “After us, they will go to Europe, Sweden, France. They have one goal – they want to rule the world. All of the world need to stand with us and wipe out Hamas.

“We want a life. They want to take our lives.”

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