Nieve Raviv and Nirel Zini were a married couple living in Kfar Aza, one of the communities that suffered the worst attacks by Hamas militants in Gaza late last week. An Israeli soldier, a friend of the young men, told Sky News the last desperate messages the two lovers sent them before the massacre by the Islamist group.

The Israeli soldier who told a British channel about what happened to Niev and Nirel has rejoined the army after his friends were killed in a kibbutz on the Gaza border.

Two young men exchanged desperate messages before their home was attacked.

SkyNews journalists, who are in a community in the south of Israel, saw a photo of a young couple on the phone of an Israeli soldier.

“This is my friend,” he said, showing a picture of a beautiful young woman and her fiancé on the screen.

Both 27 years old, the police officer described Nieve as someone with a big heart who made people happy.

“We learned yesterday that she was killed here,” said the soldier, who wished to remain anonymous.

“Tell me you’re alive”

The small, simple bungalow where the couple lived was nearly destroyed, most likely in a firefight that erupted after the bloodshed when Israeli forces retaliated.

The soldier showed them messages exchanged between Nirel and Nieve from last Saturday, when militants tore down the metal fence that marks the border of the kibbutz, just a kilometer and a half from the entrance to Gaza.

Nirel writes to Nieva: “They (militants, no) are here.” Then I tell him to hang up.

Then your girlfriend Niev sends him a series of messages asking him to let her know he’s okay.

“Tell me you’re alive. Tell me something”.

She didn’t get an answer. Then her messages also stop.

Israeli soldiers who cleared the kibbutz of Hamas fighters said what happened in Kfar Az was a massacre.

A soldier mourning his friend said he returned to reserve duty after atrocities committed by Hamas.

He said he was ready to join a ground attack on Gaza if ordered.

“I don’t want revenge, I just want justice… I want to bring life back here and I want to make sure this never happens again,” the soldier said.

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