Seconds after ringing in the new year on a lively street in Tel Aviv, some young Israelis found themselves running for cover while others kept the party going with a shrug as missile defense systems intercepted a barrage of rockets overhead.

The attack at the stroke of midnight, just as many were trying to forget about the war in the Gaza Strip, seemed to underscore the fatigue at the ongoing fighting expressed by many of the young revelers gathered to celebrate New Year's Eve.

"We were all afraid on the corners… my heart was pounding," Gabriel Zemelman, 26, said in front of a bar after the rocket fire. 

"It's not like the usual life you imagine, even me who was born here," he added. "It's terrifying. You just saw the life we live, it's crazy."

The Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, claimed responsibility for the attack in a video published on social media, saying they had fired M90 rockets in "response to the massacres of civilians" carried out by Israel.

The Israeli army confirmed the attack, without initially reporting any casualties or damage.

The street in Tel Aviv was crowded with partiers on Sunday night despite the ongoing war in Gaza, which has dragged on for nearly three months.

Gelerenter, a 17-year-old student, said she had initially been "afraid" to come out, but ultimately decided to join her friends to celebrate "a new beginning" for 2024.

Musician Boaz Bates said he was "praying for peace, for people to stop hating each other and come together". 

The 25-year-old was sharply critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, noting that "at the end of the day, it's not them who are on the ground fighting".

'Get on with our lives'

Ido Hurvitz had come out for dinner at a restaurant before going to a private party to ring in the new year. He said he hoped "we can learn to live together because most of us want peace".