Strike in Israeli-controlled Golan Heights kills at least 12 and threatens to spark a wider war
Tel Aviv (Israel) (AP): A rocket strike on Saturday at a soccer field killed at least 12 children and teens, Israeli authorities said, in the deadliest strike on an Israeli target along the country's northern border since the fighting between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah began. It raised fears of a broader regional war.
Israel blamed Hezbollah for the strike in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, but Hezbollah rushed to deny any role. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Hezbollah “will pay a heavy price for this attack, one that it has not paid so far".
The Israeli military's chief spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, called it the deadliest attack on Israeli civilians since the Hamas attack on October 7 that sparked the war in Gaza. He said 20 others were wounded.
“There is no doubt that Hezbollah has crossed all the red lines here, and the response will reflect that,” Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz told Israeli Channel 12. “We are nearing the moment in which we face an all-out war.”
Hezbollah chief spokesman Mohammed Afif told The Associated Press that the group “categorically denies carrying out an attack" on the town of Majdal Shams. It is unusual for Hezbollah to deny an attack.
The office of Netanyahu, who was on a visit to the United States, said he would cut short his trip by several hours, without specifying when he would return. It said he will convene the security Cabinet after arriving.
Far-right members of Netanyahu's government called for a harsh response against Hezbollah. But an all-out war with a Lebanese group with far superior firepower to Hamas would be trying for Israel's military after nearly 10 months of fighting in Gaza.
Footage aired on Israeli Channel 12 showed a large blast in one of the valleys in the Druze town of Majdal Shams, in the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed in 1981. Some Druze have Israeli citizenship. Many still have sympathies for Syria and rejected Israeli annexation, but their ties with Israeli society have grown over the years.
Video showed paramedics rushing stretchers off the soccer field toward waiting ambulances.
Ha'il Mahmoud, a resident, told Channel 12 that children were playing soccer when the rocket hit the field. He said a siren was heard seconds before the rocket hit, but there was no time to take shelter.
Jihan Sfadi, the principal of an elementary school, told Channel 12 that five students were among the dead: “The situation here is very difficult. Parents are crying, people are screaming outside. No one can digest what has happened.”
Israel's military said its analysis showed that the rocket was launched from an area north of the village of Chebaa in southern Lebanon.
The Israeli military said early Sunday that it struck targets deep inside Lebanon as well as in southern Lebanon. There were no reports of casualties and the strikes were no more intense than what has become routine over the past 10 months.
The strike at the soccer field, just before sunset, followed earlier cross-border violence on Saturday, when Hezbollah said three of its fighters were killed, without specifying where. Israel's military said its air force targeted a Hezbollah arms depot in the border village of Kfar Kila, adding that Hezbollah were inside at the time.
Hezbollah said its fighters carried out 10 different attacks using rockets and explosive drones against Israeli military posts, the last of which targeted the army command of the Haramoun Brigade in Maaleh Golani with Katyusha rockets. In a separate statement, Hezbollah said it hit the same army post with a short-range Falaq rocket. It said the attacks were in response to Israeli airstrikes on villages in southern Lebanon.
US intelligence officials have no doubts that Hezbollah carried out the attack on the Golan Heights, but it was not clear if the militant group intended the target or misfired, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment publicly.
The White House National Security Council in a statement said the US “will continue to support efforts to end these terrible attacks along the Blue Line, which must be a top priority. Our support for Israel's security is iron-clad and unwavering against all Iranian-backed terrorist groups, including Lebanese Hezbollah”.
Lebanon's government, in a statement that didn't mention Majdal Shams, urged an “immediate cessation of hostilities on all fronts” and condemned all attacks on civilians.
Israel and Hezbollah have been trading fire since October 8, a day after Hamas stormed into southern Israel. In recent weeks, the exchange of fire along the Lebanon-Israel border has intensified, with Israeli airstrikes and rocket and drone attacks by Hezbollah striking deeper and farther away from the border.
Majdal Shams had not been among border communities ordered to evacuate as tensions rose, Israel's military said, without saying why. The town doesn't sit directly on the border with Lebanon.
Officials from countries including the United States and France have visited Lebanon to try to ease the tensions but failed to make progress. Hezbollah has refused to cease firing as long as Israel's offensive in Gaza continues. Israel and Hezbollah fought an inconclusive war in 2006.
Since early October, Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have killed more than 450 people, mostly Hezbollah members, but also around 90 civilians and non-combatants. On the Israeli side, 45 have been killed, at least 21 of them soldiers.
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Barcelona legend Xavi Applies for India Head Coach Job, AIFF Rejects Due to Financial Constraints
New Delhi: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) was taken by surprise during its ongoing search for a new head coach for the Indian national football team, when it received an application from none other than former Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez.
According to a report in the Times of India, Xavi’s name was listed among several other applicants, including former India head coach Stephen Constantine and ex-Liverpool player Harry Kewell. What raised eyebrows was that the application had been sent from Xavi’s personal email address. However, the contact number field was left blank, which left AIFF officials unsure about how to proceed.
Confirming the development, AIFF’s National Team Director Subrata Paul told TOI, “It’s correct that Xavi’s name was there. The application was emailed to the AIFF.”
Despite the excitement around such a high-profile name, the AIFF had to reject Xavi’s application due to budgetary limitations. A member of the AIFF's technical committee admitted that while it was flattering to receive Xavi’s interest, it was simply not feasible. “Even if Xavi was genuinely interested in Indian football and could be convinced to take up the job, we would need a lot of money,” the official told TOI.
Xavi had earlier stated in an interview that he closely follows Indian football, largely due to the increasing presence of Spanish coaches in the Indian Super League (ISL).
Xavi Hernandez, a product of FC Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy, is widely regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time. Known for his vision and passing accuracy, he played 767 official matches for Barcelona, forming a formidable midfield trio alongside Andres Iniesta and Sergio Busquets.
During his playing career at Barcelona, Xavi won five La Liga titles, three Copa del Rey trophies, and three UEFA Champions League titles. After leaving the club in 2015, he joined Al Sadd in Qatar, where he added four more trophies before retiring in 2019. On the international stage, Xavi was a key part of the Spanish national team that won the UEFA Euro titles in 2008 and 2012, and the FIFA World Cup in 2010.
As a coach, Xavi enjoyed notable success with Barcelona as well, leading the team to victory in the 2023 Supercopa de España and the 2022–23 La Liga season.
