Rocket attack kills 10 in Golan Heights; Israel blames Hezbollah

FILE: Destroyed buildings in Quneitra (Photo By Ed Brambley/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0)

By Xinhua, Philippine News Agency

JERUSALEM – Ten people, including children, were killed on Saturday in a rocket attack that struck a football pitch in the Druze town of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, according to Israeli media outlets.

Helicopters, ambulances, and intensive care vehicles were dispatched to the scene, evacuating more than 30 injured to Ziv Medical Center, Israeli state-owned broadcaster Kan reported.

“We arrived at the field and saw destruction and objects burning. Casualties were lying on the ground, and the sights were difficult to see,” said Idan Avshalom, a senior medic at the Magen David Adom, the country’s emergency medical service.

Israeli media said the rocket was fired from Lebanon by the Hezbollah militant group.

Hezbollah denied Saturday night that the Shiite group had “absolutely nothing to do with the incident.”

Following Hezbollah’s denial, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that “following assessments carried out in the IDF and the intelligence available to us, the rocket fire at Majdal Shams was carried out by Hezbollah.”

Israel’s Minister of Defense Yoav Galant, army chief Herzi Halevi, and other senior defense officials conducted an operational situation assessment following the attack, according to Kan.

Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, currently visiting the United States, has been informed of the incident’s details and is holding security consultations with senior security officials.

Tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border have escalated since Oct. 8, 2023, following a barrage of rockets launched by Hezbollah toward Israel in solidarity with Hamas’ attack on Israel the previous day.

Israel retaliated with heavy artillery fire into southeastern Lebanon.