Beirut: Lebanon has called for an international investigation into a strike that killed 12 people, including children, in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Sunday and warned of large-scale reprisals.
Hezbollah denied Israel's accusation that it bombed Majdal Shams on Saturday, saying in a statement that it “has nothing to do with the Islamic Resistance incident, and we categorically reject all false claims in this regard.”
After Hezbollah's statement, Walid Jumblatt, the former head of the Progressive Socialist Party – Lebanon's most powerful Druze leader – warned of “what the Israeli enemy is doing to ignite strife, tear the region apart and target its various communities”.
His warning came early Sunday morning when Israel launched a sharp attack on the villages of al-Abbasieh and Burj al-Shamali near Tire in southern Lebanon, causing widespread destruction.
It also raided the border villages of Tire Harfa and Khiyam and hit a residential building in Taraya in central Bekaa with two missiles, destroying the building but causing no casualties.
The attack in Majdal Shams came hours after Israel launched an attack on the southern border village of Kafarqila, in which four Hezbollah members were killed.
In a statement, the Lebanese government “condemned all acts of violence and attacks against all civilians,” adding that “targeting civilians is a clear violation of international law and contradicts the principles of humanity.”
It called for an “immediate cessation of hostilities on all fronts”.
“Since the beginning of the war, Hezbollah has been targeting military sites and not civilians, and I don't think it carried out this attack on Majdal Shams,” Foreign Minister Abdullah Bou Habib said in a statement on Sunday.
He added: “It could have been planned by other organizations … Israeli mistake or even a mistake on the part of Hezbollah, I don't know. We need an international investigation to bring out the truth.
In a joint statement, UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Janine Hennis-Plaschart and UNIFIL Chief of Mission and Force Commander Lt. Gen. Aroldo Lazaro condemned the “death of civilians, including young children and teenagers, in Majdal Shams.” Always be safe.”
They “urged the parties to exercise maximum restraint and stop the ongoing intense exchange of fire, as they could ignite a wide-ranging eruption that could cause the entire region to devastate beyond belief.”
The UN special coordinator made a phone call to Nabih Berri, the speaker of the parliament, who is considered the most important channel of communication with Hezbollah.
According to his press office, Berry confirmed that “Lebanon and its resistance are committed to UN Resolution 1701 and the rules of engagement without targeting civilians.”
Berry added that “the resistance's denial of involvement in the Majdal Shams incident strongly reaffirms this commitment and emphasizes that neither Lebanon nor the resistance is responsible for what happened.”
UNIFIL spokeswoman Andrea Tenenti said her organization was in contact with the parties to ease tensions.
Jumblatt received a phone call from the US mediator for the Middle East, Amos Hochstein, who expressed concern about the worsening situation on the southern Lebanese front after the Majdal Shams incident.
Jumblatt tried to diffuse the situation, as most of the inhabitants of Majdal Shams are Druze.
He said that “targeting civilians is rejected and condemned, whether it is in occupied Palestine, the occupied Golan or southern Lebanon,” adding, “The history of the Israeli enemy is replete with massacres against civilians.”
Activists and supporters on TV channels and social media platforms denied Hezbollah's involvement in the Majdal Shams attack, saying, “There are no settlers in Majdal Shams to target the party, and it is known.”
Hezbollah's denials did not help as the Israeli military insisted on holding the party responsible for the rocket launch.
Israeli army spokesman Avichai Adrai said: “Ali Mohammed Yahya, the commander of the launch complex in the Sheba area, ordered a rocket to be fired towards the village of Majdal Shams.”
An Israeli attack on Lebanon on Sunday caused massive destruction but no casualties. The attacks targeted two large hangars at al-Abbasieh and Burj al-Shemali.
Since hostilities between Hezbollah and the Israeli army began, regular attacks in the area have caused panic among residents, damaging dozens of homes and apartments.
A Lebanese security source said: “Seven Israeli warplanes launched simultaneous attacks.”
Adrai claimed that the attacks targeted Hezbollah in seven different areas of Lebanon, including weapons depots and infrastructure in Lebanon and its south.
Hezbollah responded to the attack by targeting “the positions of Israeli soldiers in the Manara settlement,” according to a statement from the party.
Israeli officials continued to promise payments to Hezbollah on Sunday.
Defense Minister Yoav Galant said: “This is a very difficult and painful event for these children. This is a terrible tragedy. Hezbollah is responsible for this and will pay.
Gallant was speaking during a visit to Majdal Shams, where its victims were laid to rest.
Israeli Chief of Staff Gen. Harji Halevi met with Majdal Shams on Saturday evening, according to Adrai.
General Halevy inspected the hit football field, confirming preparations for the next round of combat in the north.
“We know where the rocket was fired from,” he said. “We examined the remains of the rocket on the wall of the football field here.
“We can say that it was a winged rocket with a warhead weighing 53 kilograms. It is a Hezbollah rocket. Whoever launches such a rocket in a densely populated area wants to kill civilians, to kill children.”
Reuters, citing two security sources, reported that Hezbollah “is on high alert and has evacuated some key sites in eastern and southern Lebanon.”
France and Norway called on their citizens “not to travel to Lebanon and Israel” and urged those in the country to leave Lebanon.
