After a night of dancing at a Negev Desert rave, Shye Weinstein’s carefree celebration abruptly came to a halt when the first barrage of rocket fire from Gaza rang out on Saturday morning. Weinstein, a 26-year-old immigrant from Toronto, knew it was time to leave. He convinced his cousin and friends to pack up as rockets exploded overhead.

Initially, Weinstein and his friends, who had attended the “Nature Party” near Kibbutz Re’im, believed the rockets were manageable due to the Iron Dome defense system. However, as the morning progressed, the situation took a terrifying turn.

Weinstein had arrived at the party with friends from Tel Aviv, where they had danced, socialized, and enjoyed the festival’s atmosphere. The event had drawn around 3,000 mostly young Israelis.

As the rocket booms were joined by the sound of gunfire, panic spread among the partygoers. Weinstein and his friends were already in the campground rest area, close to their vehicles, making it easier for them to decide to leave quickly.

In the chaos and panic that ensued, cars trying to flee the scene created traffic bottlenecks, exacerbated by conflicting orders from security and police. Some vehicles were abandoned, while others waited, unaware, behind empty cars.

Weinstein’s videos document the frantic escape, with his vehicle eventually driving off-road in an attempt to find an alternative exit. After they heard gunshots, they crouched in a field, but Weinstein’s cousin decided to retrieve the car to get them to safety.

As they drove away, they encountered horrifying scenes: abandoned cars, cars with bullet holes, and even corpses scattered on the road, including soldiers. They navigated through checkpoints and passed individuals in military gear with machine guns.

The drive took them two and a half hours, primarily on side roads, until they reached Tel Aviv. Their friends were missing, and many partygoers remained unaccounted for, likely either dead or taken hostage to the Gaza Strip.

Weinstein was left with a mix of emotions, from wonder at his near miss to rage at the tragic events and questions about the festival’s proximity to Gaza and the delayed response from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

The shocking and traumatic experience serves as a stark reminder of the ongoing security challenges faced by Israelis living near the Gaza border and the rapid escalation of violence in the region.