The Israeli military has said that Hamas militants killed 378 people at the Nova music festival during their October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the Gaza conflict.

The figure was released after the military briefed the victims’ families and survivors this week on the findings of its investigation into the attack. On that day, about 3,400 people attended the techno music festival in Reim, less than five kilometres from the Gaza border.

The investigation showed police ordered the festival’s closure at 6:35 am, just six minutes after Hamas fired thousands of rockets from the Gaza Strip as it launched the attack on southern Israeli communities.

Most revellers managed to escape before a first wave of “110 terrorists” arrived at the site at 8:20 am, the military reported.

The report concluded that Hamas fighters had not originally planned to attack the festival but lost their way en route to Netivot, a northern city they never reached.

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