A deadly overnight missile barrage from Iran struck central Israel in the early hours of Monday morning, killing five and wounding dozens more. Among the hardest-hit cities were Petah Tikva and Bnei Brak, where residents woke to the sounds of explosions, crumbling walls, and the reality of war coming to their doorsteps.

In Petah Tikva, a ballistic missile directly hit a high-rise apartment building, killing four and damaging surrounding structures.

The blast shattered glass, damaged a preschool across the street, and left car windshields littered in shards. Residents waited for hours outside, some clutching small bags, until Home Front Command soldiers cleared them to reenter their homes to collect belongings.

The HFC methodically cleared each building and floor to ensure safety. Only once they received approval were residents allowed to briefly return home.

According to the Israel Defense Forces, the missile managed to pierce a reinforced safe room — a rare and devastating occurrence. A couple taking cover inside their safe room was killed instantly.

In the same building, another woman who was not in a shelter also lost her life. A fourth victim, a woman in a neighboring building, was killed by the blast wave.

“This was an unusual event involving a direct hit on a protected room,” the IDF said in a statement. “Safe rooms are designed to withstand blasts, and this incident is under investigation. Still, they remain the safest protection available — everyone else in the building who sheltered in safe rooms survived unscathed.”

Individuals were handed hard hats and escorted by local authorities to their apartments to collect essential belongings. The process was tightly controlled, with residents called in one by one, a reflection of the ongoing danger posed by structural instability and lingering debris.

One young girl, watching the slow process of each floor being cleared, exclaimed to her grandmother: “They’re making progress! They’re already on the fourth floor — a few hours ago, they were only on floor one.”

Some residents, however, voiced frustration.

“They’re not letting me go home to take my things,” one man said, while others declined to speak to the press, overwhelmed by the shock and chaos.

“We feel like animals at the zoo,” one woman muttered.

Tal, a mother of three who lives just two buildings away from the site of the direct hit, stood beside a pile of bags on the sidewalk.

“We’ve lived in that apartment for 11 years. The safe room shook like the missile had hit our own home,” she said. “All the windows shattered. Our furniture and belongings were thrown around the apartment.”

“We’re now going to my parents’ in Givatayim, but we don’t know what’s next,” she explained. “No one has told us how long repairs will take. This is a full life — we are now trying to rebuild from scratch.”

Avraham Shapira, who lives in Ramat Gan but was staying with his daughter nearby, said: “I felt like our safe room was about to break off from the rest of the building.”

He, like many others, expressed gratitude for surviving but uncertainty about what comes next.

In the neighboring haredi city of Bnei Brak, a missile struck a local school, leaving the structure in ruins and killing one man in his 80s who was later pulled from a nearby building. Children walking by tried to make sense of the destruction.

“What, a school fell?” one asked.

“Yes, that’s a school,” another replied.

Yoseph Haim, out with his young children, said he hasn’t yet told his daughter that her school was destroyed.

“I told her they’re building her a new one,” he said.

Yehudit, a local resident walking with her young children, recalled huddling with her family in their apartment’s shelter as the sirens went off.

“The house shook. We heard things falling — in our building, windows and wall hangings hit the floor,” she said. “There was always a promise that a missile wouldn’t fall in Bnei Brak… Apparently it can fall here.”

When asked about the broader conflict, she added: “I think there is no choice. And I’m praying that there won’t be more damage.”

In a nearby synagogue reduced to wreckage, one man pointed out that the Torah ark — miraculously — remained intact.

The sidewalks of Bnei Brak were filled with scenes of confusion, faith, and quiet resilience. Ultra-Orthodox residents handed out popsicles, pizza, and water to search and rescue crews.

Others snapped photos of the damage with digital cameras. Some tried to cross police blockades on electric bikes to reach their homes.

One woman, covered in dust and pleading with officers to retrieve her clothes, cried, “You didn’t experience being at home while the ceiling collapsed on you.”

The Health Ministry said 287 people were hospitalized nationwide overnight due to missile attacks, as Iran targeted both the north and center of the country.

The Magen David Adom rescue service reported five deaths in central Israel and three in Haifa in the night’s barrage, bringing the total death toll since the start of the Israel-Iran conflict to 21.

Despite the carnage, some of those affected found moments of gratitude amid the wreckage, counting their blessings even as they faced the long road ahead.

“Thank God, we got through this with miracles. Our home is mostly fine compared to others,” Haim said.