Today (Saturday) a particularly difficult incident took place in Majdal Shams, the Druze town at the foot of Mount Hermon: a direct hit by a rocket on a playground caused the death of 10 children who were playing soccer, and the injury of at least 30. The details of the incident have not yet been fully clarified, and it is possible that it was a ‘Burkhan’ rocket, which is a heavy rocket with hundreds of kilograms of explosives.
The incident took place after a day of exchanges of blows in the north, which began after a targeted thwarting of a Hezbollah terrorist cell in Lebanese territory in a targeted air attack, in which 4 terrorists were killed. Hezbollah responded by firing dozens of rockets and rocket launchers at various areas on the northern border, and in particular in the direction of the Golan Heights, an area that the terrorist organization has turned into a ‘reaction area’ against Israel in recent months. Only three weeks ago the Burns couple were killed in the Golan Heights, after a direct hit of a Hezbollah rocket in their vehicle.
In any case, it is clear that the extreme event, which is the worst civilian injury to Israel since the October 7th, will lead to a harsh response from Israel and an escalation in the war. In 2006, Israel launched Operation Adequate Pay, which developed into the Second Lebanon War, after 10 soldiers were killed on the northern border. 10 children, residents of Israel, undoubtedly warrant a response of a similar magnitude, even though times have changed and the enemy has changed.
Sheikh Muafek Tarif, head of the Druze community in Israel, responded to the attack on Majdal Shams: “We are in great shock at the terrible massacre that took place tonight in the Druze settlement of Majdal Shams, in a brutal and murderous terrorist attack that harmed innocent children who were playing soccer… The country cannot afford harm ongoing in its citizens and residents. This is the ongoing reality in the northern settlements. Tonight it crossed every possible red and black line.” Foreign Minister Israel Katz also expressed himself in a similar spirit: “We will respond in a disproportionate way… We are approaching an all-out war against Hezbollah – and the response to this matter will be accordingly.” The Minister of Defense and the Chief of Staff are conducting situation assessments, as is Prime Minister Netanyahu, who is currently nearing the end of his diplomatic visit to the US, which he may have to cut short.
