Response to the trend ‘All eyes on Rafa’

Israel: A day after the “All Eyes on Rafah” slogan went viral on social media, sparking a barrage of criticism of Israel, the Jewish state has come up with its own counter phrase – “Where were your eyes on October 7”. Through the phrase, Israel questioned why its critics did not raise concern over the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Around 1,200 Israeli civilians were killed and many taken hostage in this surprise attack by Hamas. Going by the X, Israel shared a picture that read: “Where were your eyes on October 7”.

In the photo, a terrorist is standing with a rifle in front of a child.

Israel’s response came after several celebrities, public figures and countless social media users shared the AI-generated ‘All Eyes on Rafah’ image to draw everyone’s attention to Israel’s airstrikes in the war-torn Gaza city of Rafah. Following the Hamas attack on October 7, several Israeli hostages were released during a week-long ceasefire in November last year. Israel has claimed that 99 hostages are still held by the militants, of which 31 have died. At least 31,112 Palestinians have died in Israel’s military action aimed at eliminating Hamas, according to a health ministry report in Gaza. Despite widespread criticism, Israel has denied allegations of targeting the Rafah camp, and blamed rocket attacks on a Hamas weapons center for the damage.