Fears of an Israel-Hezbollah war were growing on Sunday afternoon after a rocket on Saturday killed twelve children and teenagers who were playing on a football field at Majdal Shams village in the Golan Heights.
This was the deadliest attack on Israeli or Israeli-annexed territory since Palestinian militant group Hamas’ October 7 assault sparked the war in Gaza, but Hezbollah has frimly denied responsibility.
It did accept responsibility for other strikes in the area on Saturday though, including one on a military base around 3km away from the football field.
The Middle East is “on the brink”
The IDF announced on Sunday morning that overnight they hit against seven Hezbollah targets “deep inside Lebanese territory” in response to the Golan Heights tragedy.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cut short his trip to the US and called an emergency meeting of the country’s security cabinet on Sunday evening.
He earlier said Hezbollah had crossed a red line for which the militant group would pay the price.
Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib reportedly told the BBC the authorities were asking Hezbollah not to retaliate. In a previous joint statement released on Saturday, the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon and the Force Commander of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), also condemned the attack.
The UN’s top Middle East envoy Tor Wennesland warned Saturday on X that “the Middle East is on the brink.”
“The launching of rockets across the Blue Line must cease immediately.”, he urged. “The world and the region cannot afford another open conflict.”
U.S. blames Hezbollah but wants to de-escalate
Speaking from a Press conference in Tokyo, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken expressed his condolences for the loss of life in the Golan Heights incident and said the U.S. don’t want to see the conflict escalate.
“We don’t want to see it spread,” Blinken declared.
The U.S. official added that reaching a ceasefire deal in the war in Gaza could help calm the situation also on Israel’s border with Lebanon.
In a later statement from U.S. National Security Council Spokesperson Adrienne Watson, the U.S. blamed Hezbollah for the football field strike.
“This attack was conducted by Lebanese Hezbollah. It was their rocket, and launched from an area they control. It should be universally condemned,” the White House said.
“Hezbollah started firing on Israel on October 8, claiming solidarity with Hamas, another Iranian-backed terrorist group. Our support for Israel’s security is ironclad and unwavering against all Iran-backed threats, including Hezbollah,” it added.
Currently, the United States are working on a diplomatic solution “along the Blue Line that will end all attacks once and for all, and allow citizens on both sides of the border to safely return to their homes,” the statement concluded.
EU calls for an international investigation on Golan Heights attack
The UN and European Union called for restraint with respective statements.
“Civilians, and children in particular, should not continue to bear the burden of the horrific violence plaguing the region,” said a note issued on Sunday by un Secretary-General António Guterres’s Spokesperson.
EU Foreign Policy chief Josep Borrell also condemned “the bloodbath” and called for “an independent international investigation into this unacceptable incident.”
