JERUSALEM – Even by the standards of the devastation which nearly 10 months of fighting a war with ground troops in the Gaza Strip has wrought, the senseless murder of 12 children – and the wounding, some very seriously of dozens more – in Majdal Shams on Saturday has registered a new low for Israel.
The strike was the single-largest loss of life in the north since Hezbollah started firing projectiles – in “defense of the people of Gaza” – since Oct. 8 – and the subsequent fallout could be catastrophic.
ההלוויה קורעת הלב במג’דל שמס pic.twitter.com/kRXH4o8TIT
— yayafink (יאיא פינק) (@yayafink) July 28, 2024
Thousands of mourners gathered Sunday morning in the Druze town in the Golan in northern Israel – within clear sight of the Lebanese border – to lay to rest the unfortunate souls caught up in Hezbollah’s murderous intentions.
Stores across the Golan region are closed and black flags in neighboring towns have been hung as a sign of mourning for those killed. The funeral procession started from the soccer field where the rocket struck..
עצב כבד במג’דל שמס: מאות בני אדם צועדים ונפרדים בדברי שבח מ-12 הילדים שנרצחו >>@einavkerner pic.twitter.com/eUAgycxqj6
— גלצ (@GLZRadio) July 28, 2024
Eleven of the twelve children killed in Saturday’s Hezbollah attack on Majdal Shams were named by Arabic and Hebrew media:
“With deep sorrow and grief, and with calm and complete submission to the will of God, Majdal Shams mourns the loss of its finest children and youths who were struck in the village stadium attack,” the village community said in a statement according to Ynet. That news outlet also reported local authorities in the eastern Galilee are coordinating to send dozens of Arabic-speaking social workers to Majdal Shams to try and help families cope with the appalling loss of life.
Amid months of rocket fire and drone infiltrations, which have hassled and harried those who remain in the country’s north – to say nothing of the tens of thousands who have been internally displaced because of their proximity to the Lebanese border – there is a very real sense this – unfortunately entirely predictable incident – is the red line beyond which Israel says “no more.”
Despite Hezbollah’s denials over the strike – which quickly followed having proudly crowed about targeting a military installation – the IDF confirmed the weapon used was an Iranian-made Falaq-1 with a warhead of more than 50 kilograms of explosives.
First responders reported the scene as “resembling a battlefield,” and although an incoming rocket alert siren did sound, there was not enough time for those gathered at the soccer field to seek appropriate shelter.
The incident has united different strands from Israel’s political spectrum; and Hezbollah’s rush to distance itself from responsibility, coupled with a very unusual statement from Lebanon’s government – in that it said anything at all – condemning the “targeting of civilians,” as well as a warning from Iran’s Foreign Ministry against “reckless behavior,” highlight how serious the situation is.
“Any ignorant action of the Zionist regime can lead to the broadening of the scope of instability, insecurity and war in the region,” said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani, adding Israel will be responsible for “the unforeseen consequences and reactions to such reckless behavior,” according to The Times of Israel.
International opinion – albeit temporarily (of course) has swung behind Israel as it attempts to deal with the fallout of the strike – and as it carefully weighs the strength of its inevitable response.
The Biden administration, whose vacillation and lack of both direction and leadership have served only to embolden the mullahs in Tehran and Iran’s proxy forces in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Lebanon, condemned the attack as “horrific.”
A White House national security official said U.S. support for Israel’s security was “iron-clad and unwavering against all Iranian-backed terrorist groups, including Lebanese Hezbollah.”
It is also a clear sign this event could be the spark which lights the Middle East on fire. It is ironic to note how assiduously the Biden administration – which claimed it was bringing the “adults back into the room,” following the supposed chaos of the Trump presidency – has tried to appease Tehran in every possible way, and even by doing so, might still get the wider war it so desperately wants to avoid.
President Donald Trump, speaking at a Bitcoin event in Nashville, Tennessee, condemned the strike. “We just heard that Israel was just severely attacked – Hezbollah, it looks like,” he said.
“They cannot do this; what they did is terrible. So to all, God bless everyone. We cannot let it continue, and we wish them a lot of luck. It’s a terrible thing.”
At a rally Saturday in Minnesota, he reiterated his sense of outrage.
President Trump condemns the Hezbollah massacre in majdal Shams Israel pic.twitter.com/so9CVzif8i
— Mossad Commentary (@MOSSADil) July 28, 2024
Hezbollah rocket kills 11 – kids and teenagers – in Israel’s Golan
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