TRANSCRIPT
People in Israel have gathered to mourn the loss of their loved ones.
An attack on the town of Majdal Shams, in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, lead to the death of 12 people, all of them children and teenagers between the ages of 10 to 20.
The kids were playing football at a nearby pitch at the time of the assault.
Local resident Ibrahim Safadi says the community is still in shock from the attack.
"It's shocking. Some people are still in denial, some people in shock. Some people are dealing with it by throwing blame at politicians and all of that. And media, media, people and media, everybody tries to spin it as they want it to be spun."
Israeli officials have accused Lebanese military group Hezbollah for the assault, saying they are appalled by the targeting of innocent children.
Hezbollah has denied they were behind the attack.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was on a trip to the US at the time of the incident, has rushed back to his country to convene his war cabinet.
He says this attack will not go without response.
"Since I was updated about the disaster, I have been holding continuous security consultations and I have directed that our return to Israel be brought forward. As soon as I arrive, I will immediately convene the Security Cabinet. I can say that the State of Israel will not let this pass in silence. We will not overlook this."
The sentiment was shared by many high ranking officials of the Israeli government, with Defence Minister Yoav Gallant saying Hezbollah will suffer the consequences of their actions.
"A terrible tragedy. Innocent boys and girls. The heart breaks. And I told you, Hezbollah is responsible for this, and they will pay the price."
This has been the biggest loss of life in Israel since the October 7 attack by Hamas, which lead to Israel's invasion of Gaza.
Hezbollah remains in solidarity with Hamas and has been striking at Israel's northern border for a while now.
The skirmishes have been relatively contained until now, with this latest incident threatening to lead to a full-scale war between the two sides.
Residents of Shebaa village on Lebanon's south, near the border with Israel, are on edge due to fears of retaliation.
Yosra Nassif, a local, says they are determined to defend their homes.
"There is bombing and shelling - what more can there be? We are sitting in our homes. By God, I will not leave and I am staying even though I have a house in Beirut. I am staying and standing firm against the will of those who dislike it."
A potential escalation of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah could have even greater consequences, drawing in other nations as well.
Hezbollah, which is said to have over 150,000 missiles in their arsenal, remains Iran's most significant proxy in the Middle East.
On the other end, Israel maintain the support of the US, who were quick to condemn the attack on the Golan Heights.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has described the incident as an act of terror.
"There is no justification for terrorism, period, and every indication is that, indeed the rockets were from.... or the rocket was from Hezbollah. We stand by Israel's right to defend its citizens from terrorist attacks. And one of the reasons that we're continuing to work so hard for a ceasefire in Gaza, is just not for Gaza but also so that we can really unlock an opportunity to bring calm, blasting calm across the Blue Line between Israel and Lebanon.”
However, this latest incident has caused negotiations for a ceasefire to take another step back.
Following the alleged assault by Hezbollah on Majdal Shams, Israel has pulled their representative David Barnea from the ongoing discussions between Israel, Egypt, Qatar and the U-S.
An official reason was not provided by the Israeli government.
Israel is continuing its operations in Gaza and has ordered people in central Gaza to evacuate to the western regions.
But people say they have nowhere left to run.
"Find a solution for us. Enough. Where do we go? They destroyed our homes. They killed our children. They displaced our women and men. Where do we go? Enough. Where do we go? It is forbidden, haram. Enough."
