On Sunday, members of the Arab Druze community in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights mourned 12 children who were killed when a rocket hit a soccer field in the village of Majdal Shams a day earlier.
Israel has pinned the blame for the rocket strike on Hezbollah, which denies any responsibility. According to Axios, Hezbollah told the UN that an Israeli anti-rocket interceptor hit the soccer field.
The US is backing Israel’s claim, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken saying there was “every indication” that Hezbollah was behind the strike. For its part, Syria has blamed the incident on Israel and said the Israeli government was trying to use it to escalate in Lebanon.
“As part of attempts to escalate the situation in the region, Israeli occupation entity committed a heinous crime on Saturday in Majdal Shams town and then held the Lebanese National Resistance accountable for this crime,” the Syrian Foreign Ministry said, according to The Cradle.
Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib said, “Since the beginning of the war, Hezbollah has been targeting military sites and not civilians, and I don’t think that it carried out this attack in Majdal Shams.” He called for an investigation and said the attack must have been “carried out by other organizations, or it must have been an Israeli mistake, or a mistake by Hezbollah.”
Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967 and annexed the territory in 1981. Under international law, the territory is considered to be Syrian and under Israeli occupation. In 2019, the US became the first country besides Israel to recognize the Golan Heights as Israeli territory.
According to CNN, most of the Druze in the Golan Heights consider themselves Syrian and have rejected offers of Israeli citizenship. None of the 12 children who were killed were Israeli citizens.
During the funeral, mourners protested the participation of Israeli ministers, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. “Get out of here, you criminal. We don’t want you in the Golan,” one protester shouted at Smotrich, according to the Anadolu Agency.
Israeli ministers attended the funeral despite a request from community leaders not to come. “Do not come. Given the sensitivity of the situation, we ask not to turn this massacre into a political event. We demand a quiet religious funeral according to Druze customs,” the Druze Authority Forum said in a letter to Israeli government ministers.
Israeli officials are threatening a major attack in Lebanon in response to the rocket. The Israeli military launched strikes in southern Lebanon on Sunday, but more are expected. The Israeli Security Cabinet convened on Sunday to discuss a potential escalation, and the US is reportedly warning against strikes on Beirut.
A major Israeli attack could escalate the situation on the Israel-Lebanon border into a full-blown war. Since October 7, Israel and Hezbollah have been trading strikes across the border almost every day.
According to an AFP tally, Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon have killed at least 527 people, including 104 children. On the Israeli side, 18 soldiers and 24 civilians have been killed, a total that includes the 12 Druze children.
I believe nothing “Israel says” at this point. Liars gonna lie.
Indeed.
That what happens in wars. Things don't go as planned. I'm sure Hezbollah did not intend for the rocket to hit the children but it did. Now Hezbollah is worried that their small war may turn into a full fledge war. So they are claiming innocent. "We didn't fire it". What BS. They fired hundreds of rockets at Israel, but not this one! Good luck selling that idea.
Druze don’t want the government officials there, because they probably know Israel is behind it.
Prove it.
Well, those Druze likely have an opinion. It’d be interesting to look into it. Whomever is responsible, there doesn’t seem to be intent.
Then you disprove it.
“….They fired hundreds of rockets at Israel……”
Remind us again, where are Israel’s borders ?
The World Court opinied a couple of weeks ago on the subject in a forceful judgement. Also strongly judged Israel owes reparations.
It is called de facto borders. Look it up. The bottom line is that fired the rocket the hit the children.
The Likud’s strategy of establishing facts-on-the-ground has only brought misery to Israeli’s.
The Hague also opinied a couple of weeks ago; that all post-1949 settlements need to be exvactued immediately and reparations paid for damages caused.
The Likud has failed to bring peace and security to Israel. Israeli’s deserve better.
War is bad against anyone,borders do not matter. The Arab worldowes reparations for the Jews they evicted.
Israel and its allies owe the Arab World reparations for the creation of Israel which evicted Palestinians from their homes and Israel is now committing genocide against the Gazans and is using chemical weapons in Lebanon and Israel and its allies owe them reparations for that and for all the wars and drone strikes in the ME.
Based on Jewish sources – it’s the Likud that owes the reparations to Arab Jews:
How Jews Targeted Jews
2024 Interview with Avi Shlaim a historian and author of “Three Worlds: Memoirs of an Arab-Jew”. He joined Ash to talk about the Israeli right, Mossad’s covert operations in Baghdad and what it means to have hyphenated identities. ge also describes how Arab Jews are treated as second class citizens by the Askenazi Jews in Israel.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SMJJiZlXOi0
Friday 28 December 2018 How Jews Targeted Jews In Order To Create The State Of Israel by Iwo Cyprian Pogonowski https://historylessonsdeleted.blogspot.com/2018/12/how-jews-targeted-jews-in-order-to.html How Jews Killed Jews In Order To Create The State Of Israel http://zaprasza.net/a.php?article_id=31867
Naeim Giladi: Former Mossad Agent, Forced Jews to Move to Israel Greg Carr Jan 9, 2024 “In his book, “Ben Gurion’s Scandals: How the Haganah & the Mossad Eliminated Jews,” Giladi discusses the crimes committed by Zionists in their frenzy to import raw Jewish labor.” “·I write this article for the same reason I wrote my book: to tell the American people, and especially American Jews, that Jews from Islamic lands did not emigrate willingly to Israel; that, to force them to leave, Jews killed Jews; and that, to buy time to confiscate ever more Arab lands, Jews on numerous occasions rejected genuine peace initiatives from their Arab neighbors. I write about what the first prime minister of Israel called “cruel Zionism.” I write about it because I was part of it.” https://gregorycarr.medium.com/naeim-giladi-former-mossad-agent-forced-jews-to-move-to-israel-72fc8159c1c2
Evidence of Zionists bombing Jewish neighborhoods in Arab countries to get them to migrate by Naeim Giladi and Edward C. Corrigan Sat, Jul 5, 2003 1:09PM …https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2003/07/05/16250561.php?show_comments=1
It wouldn't be the first time that an ally's air defense malfunctioned and killed civilians. . . https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/polish-experts-confirm-missile-that-hit-grain-facility-was-ukrainian-media-2023-09-26/
It did not happen in this case. Sorry the data is overwhelming points to the rocket coming from Lebanon.
Well, then — sounds like something for the two governments involved (Lebanon's and Syria's) to hash out, doesn't it?
Nice try to support your Israel's official borders are based on the 1948 UN partition position.
I don’t need to “try” to “support” an incontrovertible fact of reality.
"I'm sure Hezbollah did not intend for the rocket to hit the children but it did."
And therein lies the difference between Hezbollah and the terrorists whose snipers intentionally shoot children in the heart and head. And that's only IF Hezbollah is responsible. Either way, it was good that you admit they don't intentionally target children as compared to the butchers of the IDF.
There is no proof that the IDF intentionally targets children. You hate for Israel makes you believe silly stuff.
And "you" ignorance is obvious.
American Surgeon Who Volunteered in Gaza Says IDF Snipers Shoot Toddlers
“I have two children that I have photographs of that were shot so perfectly in the chest I couldn’t put my stethoscope over their heart more accurately and directly on the side of the head in the same child.”
https://news.antiwar.com/2024/07/22/american-surgeon-who-volunteered-in-gaza-says-idf-snipers-shoot-toddlers/
"And therein lies the difference between Hezbollah and the terrorists whose snipers intentionally shoot children in the heart and head."
Now, now…when its unarmed protesters, Israeli snipers don't always shoot to kill. Intifada, 2018:
"'Shoot to maim': How Israel created a generation on crutches in Gaza"
"Israeli snipers…intentionally maimed Palestinians protesting in Gaza over the past year, creating a generation of disabled youth and overwhelming the territory's already crippled medical system, frontline doctors tell ME Eye.
"According to a United Nations inquiry released this month, over 80 percent of the 6,106 protesters wounded in the first nine months of the Great March of Return were shot in the lower limbs."
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/shoot-maim-how-israel-created-generation-crutches-gaza
It’s surprising that Israel would offer them citizenship.
That was a lie by CNN…!
Why it is surprising? They live in Israel. And the young smarter ones accept the offer and live a better life/.
Well, Israel is an ethnostate that wants a majority. I guess Israel also wants legitimacy which comes from the locals accepting citizenship.
It just raises the question of why Israel doesn’t grant citizenship to the West Bank residents, for example, or to Armenians in their quarter of the Old City Jerusalem.
Highly likely, it was a planned false flag operation. It wouldn't happen if Congress didn't supported Zionists so enthusiastically.
Either that or Israel's Iron Dome battery malfunctioned. Would not be the first time an "ally's" air defense did this https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/polish-experts-confirm-missile-that-hit-grain-facility-was-ukrainian-media-2023-09-26/
Meanwhile, the butchery in Gaza continues as the world shows a collective yawn! Israeli deaths = evil. Palestinian deaths = "terrorists" killed. Someone or some group has to put a stop on Israel's actions. Almost 40,000 (certainly many more than this number!) dead in Gaza and all the attention now to 12 children being massacred in the Golan Heights! Another Israeli "false flag"? The motto of the Mossad is "By deception thou shalt wage war."
"the world shows a collective yawn" – only NATO supports Zionists. The rest of the world condemned the genocide.
Yea right. Take your tin foil hat off. The very idea that you blame the US Congress for this is beyond stupid.
Definitely you are beyond stupid. You are much worse than just stupid.
I'm not the one blaming the US Congress for this act. You are. As I said take the tin foil hat off and use your brain.
"I'm not the one blaming the US Congress for this act" – that is exactly what I mean. It is beyond stupid.
Makes no sense for Hezbollah to attack allies, the Arab Druze all refuse to accept Israeli occupation of Golan.
On the other hand the Israeli's would be unlikely to kill their own people in a false flag operation.
The Druze serve in theIsraeliArmy,and are well recognized for their military skills.
Agreed.
Oh really? Hanibal Directive and indiscriminate fire on 7Oct begs to differ.
" the Arab Druze all refuse to accept Israeli " Not true. Around 20% of the Druse became Israel citizens. And that number grows every year. So you use of the word "all" is incorrect.
More than 20,000 Druze live in the Golan Heights. Most of them identify as Syrian and rejected an offer of Israeli citizenship when Israel seized the region in 1967. Those who refused were given Israeli residency cards but are not considered Israeli citizens.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/28/middleeast/druze-golan-heights-israel-occupied-attack-explainer-intl/index.html
This incident should wake up the Druze population and rethink their loyalty to the State of Israel. Israel will do nothing to protect them, will only use them to further their slaughtering of Palestinians and go after Lebanon. Arabs, Africans, in close proximity to Israel, need to stop using their religious, tribal differences to fight each other and focus on their common enemy, Zionist State of Israel.
Israel is outraged because Syrian Druze living under their illegal occupation died? C'mon man. Gimme something remotely more believable. How about Hezbollah gassing their own people?
The Zionists would like to destabilize Syria so the USA could try a regime change again.
Peace begins simply, by putting one foot in front of the other, walking away, to go home. Everyone must have a home, hearth and fire to keep warm by.
Normal common-sense will do, it is so easy to know.
It’s entirely believable that the Golan Heights bombing was a false flag attack by Israel. After all, the victims were Syrian Druze. Why would Israel go to war over them if it wasn't their intention to use this event as a casus belli?
Prove it.
Disprove it. Israel killed their own on 7Oct. Israel has killed hostages through its bombing of Gaza, and they know it, yet keep bombing, refuse to stop and negotiate the release of the rest of the hostages.
The Israelis want Iran and the USA wants a Syrian regime change. What did the standing ovations in congress tell him if not to let him know they have his back?
Amazingly the JP has a headline crying "Druze: Why is Beirut still standing?" as though that's what the occupied Druze collectively want: Israel to raze Beirut to the ground. The genocide expands along with Netanyahu/Trump's call for wiping Iran from the earth should he be assassinated.
Apparently they don't warrant an Iron Dome, but their deaths are more than enough cause to start another futile war
Netanyahu must have heard the dog whistle in congress, it is ok, so the applause said.
This article completely misses all the developments since the attack occurred. It has been pretty much established now that the attack was one of two things: 1) a failed Iron Dome intercept of a Hezbollah rocket; the Iron Dome warhead killed the victims; or 2) a deliberate Israeli attack on Druze civilians with the intent of blaming it on Hezbollah. I suppose we could also consider 3) both as an option since Israel would undoubtedly blame Hezbollah for their own failures in any case.
Richard Medhurst completely destroys the Israeli claim in his Youtube video yesterday:
Did Israel or Hezbollah Fire at Majdal Shams?
As I understand it the Druze children all are Syrian citizens, by international law the Golan is occupied by Israel and the Israelis would like to destabilize the population to cause trouble for Syria.
The US congress applauded with standing ovations in support of Israel no matter what. A license to provoke an attack on Iran???
https://x.com/TheCradleMedia/status/1817528485667074227
People must recognize that false flag is still a real thing. Especially if it was against Druze and not Israeli Jews. Not to mention how heavily fortified Golan is against rocket attacks.
Seems like a typical setup by war mongers.
If Israel invades Lebanon and all hell breaks loose and Uncle Sam is smack dab in the middle of it,