Israel’s military reported that Hezbollah fired a rocket from Lebanon, striking a football pitch in the Druze town of Majdal Shams and killing 12 youngsters aged between 10 and 20. The initial toll was 11, but a 12th victim later died. The attack also wounded 18 youths, according to emergency services. However, Hezbollah quickly denied any involvement in the incident.
“Hezbollah will pay a heavy price, the kind it has thus far not paid,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned in a statement from his office. Netanyahu, who was visiting the United States, announced he would cut his trip short and return to Israel to convene the security Cabinet.
Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military’s chief spokesman, described the incident as the deadliest attack on Israeli civilians since the Hamas attack on October 7 that sparked the war in Gaza. He confirmed that 20 others were wounded in the rocket strike.
“There is no doubt that Hezbollah has crossed all the red lines here, and the response will reflect that,” Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz told Israeli Channel 12. “We are nearing the moment in which we face an all-out war.”
Hezbollah’s chief spokesman, Mohammed Afif, told the Associated Press that the group “categorically denies carrying out an attack on Majdal Shams.” It is unusual for Hezbollah to deny an attack.
The strike on the soccer field occurred just before sunset and followed earlier cross-border violence on Saturday. Hezbollah reported that three of its fighters were killed but did not specify the location. Israel’s military stated that its air force targeted a Hezbollah arms depot in the border village of Kfar Kila, noting that militants were inside at the time.
Hezbollah claimed its fighters conducted ten different attacks using rockets and explosive drones against Israeli military posts, including an attack on the army command of the Haramoun Brigade in Maaleh Golani with Katyusha rockets. In a separate statement, Hezbollah said it targeted the same army post with a short-range Falaq rocket, asserting that these attacks were in response to Israeli airstrikes on villages in southern Lebanon.
