Lebanon insists Hezbollah not behind deadly Golan attack, calls for tripartite probe
Beirut says Iranian-made rocket that killed 12 children was likely fired ‘by other organizations or was an Israeli mistake or a mistake by Hezbollah,’ urges international investigation
BEIRUT — Lebanon on Sunday called for an international investigation into a Hezbollah rocket strike that killed 12 children in the Druze town of Majdal Shams on Saturday evening, warning against a large-scale retaliation.
The Israel Defense Forces said that an Iranian-made rocket that Lebanon’s Iran-backed terror group fired on Saturday hit a soccer field in Majdal Shams, a Druze Arab town, killing children and teenagers who were playing there and wounding dozens.
Hezbollah, which claimed multiple attacks on Israeli military positions during the day, has denied it was behind the Majdal Shams strike, saying it had “no connection” to the incident.
In a statement on X, Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib urged an “international investigation or a meeting of the tripartite committee held through UNIFIL to know the truth” about who was responsible for the attack.
The tripartite committee refers to military officials from Lebanon and Israel, which are technically at war, together with peacekeepers from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
IDF and US intelligence have stated that Hezbollah fired the deadly projectile, though it has not been determined whether the terror group intended the target or misfired.
The IDF has said that the rocket was an Iranian-made Falaq-1 with a warhead of over 50 kilograms (110 pounds) of explosives.
Bou Habib, in a statement issued by the Lebanese foreign ministry, said he “expected the Majdal Shams strike was carried out by other organizations or was an Israeli mistake or a mistake by Hezbollah.”
He insisted the Lebanon-based terror group targets “only military” positions and ruled out them carrying out an intentional attack on civilians in Majdal Shams.
The statement, carried by the state-run National News Agency, said that Bou Habib also “called for the complete and comprehensive application” of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701.
The resolution ended a 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, and called for the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers to be the only armed forces deployed in south Lebanon.
“A large attack by Israel on Lebanon will lead to a deterioration of the regional situation and will spark regional war,” Bou Habib warned, according to the statement.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Sunday vowed to “hit the enemy hard” following the Majdal Shams strike, while Iran warned Israel that any new military “adventures” in Lebanon could lead to “unforeseen consequences.”
Hezbollah says it has been acting in support of Gazans and ally Hamas with its cross-border strikes, which began the day after the Palestinian terror group’s October 7 massacre in southern Israel which sparked the war in Gaza.
The group on Sunday afternoon announced its first attack on an Israeli position since the day before, saying it also came “in response to enemy attacks” on south Lebanon villages and homes.
So far, the skirmishes on the border have resulted in 24 civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of 18 IDF soldiers and reservists. There have also been several attacks from Syria, without any injuries.
Hezbollah has named 381 members who have been killed by Israel during the ongoing skirmishes, mostly in Lebanon but some also in Syria. In Lebanon, another 68 operatives from other terror groups, a Lebanese soldier, and dozens of civilians have been killed.
