Return to Hell: Bartender who survived Nova festival massacre by hiding under a stage, smearing her face with blood and pretending to be dead goes back to the scene and warns the world to ‘wake up’ to Hamas

• May Hayat, from Tel Aviv, saw Hamas gunmen attack the open-air music festival

A bartender who survived the Nova festival massacre by hiding under a stage, smearing her face with blood and pretending to be dead has gone back to the scene –  and warned the world to ‘wake up’ to Hamas.

May Hayat, from Tel Aviv, was one of the first to witness the true horrors of the war – as she watched Hamas gunmen attack the open-air music festival a few kilometres from the Gaza security fence, killing 260 and taking others hostage.

The 30-year-old only escaped after the man hiding in a hole with her had been shot dead – but a Hamas terrorist took pity on her and told her to flee while another argued that they wanted to kill her too.

She then hid under a stage, smearing herself with another victim’s blood and playing dead as gunmen stalked between the bodies.

She said:  ‘If you think they (Hamas) are an organisation acting in self-defence… they are terrorists, they want us dead, they can’t justify any of this, they don’t care.

May Hayat (pictured), from Tel Aviv , was one of the first to witness the true horrors of the war – as she watched Hamas gunmen attack the open-air music festival a few kilometres from the Gaza security fence, killing 260 and taking others hostage

Ms Hayat, visits the bar where she worked for the first time since the massacre alongside Or Barda, the brother of her friend, Liron Barda, who was killed

She jumped nervously each time she heard a loud noise as she wandered around the venue, and at one point she dived to the ground (pictured) to take cover after what sounded like rocket fire from Gaza

The 30-year-old only escaped after the man hiding in a hole with her had been shot dead – but a Hamas terrorist took pity on her and told her to flee while another argued that they wanted to kill her too

An Israeli officer walks on the ground of the Super Nova Festival in Re’im, Israel, 17 October 2023, which was attacked by Hamas on 07 October

Charred and damaged cars lie along a desert road after the attack by Hamas militants on the music festival

‘they will eventually reach other countries. I hope you will wake up before it comes to you.’

Returning to the scene of the massacre for the first time since she fled, Ms Hayat’s eyes filled with tears as she watched over the tragic site.

The corpses and much of the rubble had been removed – and she couldn’t find the hole where she had almost fatally been discovered. 

She jumped nervously each time she heard a loud noise as she wandered around the venue, and at one point she dived to the ground to take cover after what sounded like rocket fire from Gaza. 

The brother one of Ms Hayat’s friends who was killed in the attack consoled her with a hug. 

Although her visit brought tears to her eyes, she wiped them away and did not weep openly. 

Describing the horror, she said Hamas started firing rockets into southern Israel as young people were dancing at around 6:30 a.m on Oct. 7. 

Shooting began when Hamas gunmen arriving from Gaza reached the music festival – some of them on foot, others on motor-bikes. 

Talking about being discovered by Hamas terrorist in her hole, she said: ‘At that time, I was simply talking to God, saying: ‘There’s nothing more I can do, it’s in your hands now.

Ms Hayat hid under a stage to avoid Hamas gunmen, smearing herself with another victim’s blood and playing dead as gunmen stalked between the bodies

Returning to the scene of the massacre for the first time since she fled, Ms Hayat’s eyes filled with tears as she watched over the tragic site

The personal belongings of festival-goers are seen at the site of the attack – on a day when 1,400 Israelis, mostly civilians, were killed

Describing the horror, Ms Hayat said Hamas started firing rockets into southern Israel as young people were dancing at around 6:30 a.m on Oct. 7. Pictured: Israeli soldiers at the site of the attack

Vehicles damaged in the Hamas attack at the Nova festival wait for inspection near Netivot, Israel

‘I felt they were going to rape me.’

The man who had been with her was shot dead but Ms Hayat said she managed to escape after one of two gunmen holding her took pity on her.

‘He simply told me to go as the other terrorist was arguing with him, telling him he wants to murder me, and I could see how they were fighting over whether to kill me or not, and I ran away,

She then hid under a stage.

She continued: ‘While I’m lying under the stage, I see that they’re shooting at people to make sure they’re all dead.

‘So the body lying next to me – they shot him in the head – I took the blood and wiped it on my face and I simply lay still…to seem dead.’

Her ordeal ended when Israeli soldiers arrived several hours after the Hamas attack began.

She added: ‘When I heard the army coming…it took me a few minutes to clarify that it was the army I was hearing coming, and then I screamed ‘Help!’ and they came to get me out.’

Some 1,400 Israelis, mostly civilians, were killed in attacks by Hamas militants on Oct. 7 and more than 200 were abducted, according to Israeli tallies.

Since then, Israeli strikes on Gaza have killed more than 10,000 people, around 40% of them children, according to tallies by health officials there.

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