Ten Dead, Many Wounded After Surprise Attack on Soccer Field
A recent rocket attack on a soccer field in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights resulted in the deaths of at least 10 people and injuries to several others, including children. This incident followed an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon that killed three members of the militant group Hezbollah. The attack on the soccer field is the deadliest against Israeli targets since renewed fighting began in October. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the attack, stating it was a retaliation for Israeli airstrikes on Lebanese villages, while the Israeli military accused Hezbollah of launching the rocket. As tensions escalate, exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah have intensified, leading to significant casualties on both sides, including both military personnel and civilians. The ongoing conflict, which has included daily skirmishes, intensified following Hamas’ surprise attacks on October 7.
A rocket attack Saturday on a soccer field in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights killed at least 10 people and wounded several others, including children, hours after an Israeli airstrike on south Lebanon killed three members of the militant Hezbollah group.
The strike, the deadliest attack on an Israeli target since the fighting between the two foes erupted in October, raised fears of of a broader conflagration in the region.
Hezbollah said it struck a military base in the Golan Heights in retaliation for Israeli attacks on a village in Lebanon.
Hezbollah chief spokesman Mohammed Afif told The Associated Press that the group “categorically denies carrying out an attack on Majdal Shams.”
The Israeli military said in a statement Saturday that according to intelligence in its possession, “the rocket launch toward Majdal Shams was carried out by the Hezbollah terrorist organization.”
“The Hezbollah terrorist organization is behind the rocket launch at a soccer field in Majdal Shams which caused multiple civilian casualties, including children, earlier this evening,” the statement said.
Israel’s Magen David Adom paramedic service initially reported 11 people wounded, nine critically, and all between the ages of 10 and 20. Israeli Public Broadcaster Kan aired footage of some being rushed to ambulances on stretchers from a soccer field in the town of Majdal Shams.
“These were kids at a soccer field,” Beni Ben Muvchar, head of the local council, told Israeli Channel 12. “Today a red line was crossed,” he said, urging Israeli leaders to start targeting top Hezbollah commanders.
The Israeli military said one projectile was identified crossing from Lebanon toward the area, adding it was cooperating with the MDA to evacuate the wounded. Channel 12 aired footage of a large blast in one of the town’s valleys.
Hezbollah said in a statement that its militants firing Katyusha rockets at an Israeli army post in the Golan Heights was in response to Israeli airstrikes on villages in south Lebanon. The group said earlier three of its members were killed on Saturday without specifying where. Israel’s military said its air force targeted a Hezbollah arms depot on the border village of Kfar Kila, adding that militants were inside at the time.
Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the 1967 Mideast war and later annexed them in 1981.
Israel and Hezbollah have traded near daily fire since the war in Gaza started after Hamas’ surprise attack on Oct.7 killed some 1,200 people and took 250 others hostage.
Over the past weeks, the exchange of fire along the Lebanon-Israel intensified with Israeli airstrikes and rocket and drone attacks by Hezbollah striking deeper and further away from the border.
Since early October, Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have killed more than 450 people, mostly Hezbollah members, but also around 90 civilians and non-combatants. On the Israeli side, 21 soldiers and 13 civilians have been killed.
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