IDF: Rocket that killed 12 children matches Iranian Hezbollah weapon

Israel says it has evidence that the rocket that killed 12 children playing on a soccer field was fired by Hamas using an Iranian-made weapon. US authorities also agree that terrorists were behind the attack.

The Israel Defense Forces released photos on Sunday linking shrapnel found in the deadly rocket attack on the occupied Golan Heights to an Iranian-made Falaq-1 rocket.

The Israeli military claims that the missile fired on Saturday is identical to the Falaq-1 in key respects, including weight and range, and points out that the missile is used exclusively by Hezbollah.

The Israeli military also released a photo of the missile’s suspected flight path, showing its route from southern Lebanon to the Israeli town of Majdal Shams.

Hezbollah had claimed that one of its Falaq rockets hit an Israeli military base near Majdal Shams on Saturday, but then denied any involvement in the incident after civilian casualties were reported.

The Iran-backed terror group said it “strongly denies” allegations that it was behind the deadly rocket attack on the playground, which injured at least 40 other people.

US authorities immediately confirmed Israel’s allegations. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said all signs pointed to Hezbollah as the perpetrator.

“Everything indicates that the rocket actually came from Hezbollah,” he said in a statement released on Sunday during a conference in Tokyo.

“We stand by Israel’s right to protect its citizens from terrorist attacks.”

Adrienne Watson, a representative of the US National Security Council, echoed Blinken’s claim.

“It was their rocket and it was fired from territory they control,” Watson said in a statement, referring to Hezbollah.

“Our support for Israel’s security is rock solid and unwavering in the face of all Iranian-backed threats, including Hezbollah,” she added.

Israel carried out retaliatory strikes on Hezbollah’s weapons depots and infrastructure on Sunday, raising fears that a full-scale war along the northern border is now inevitable.

There have been repeated fierce clashes between Hezbollah and Israel since the terrorist group began its attacks on Israel on October 8 in solidarity with the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

Blinken, who has previously expressed concern about a two-front war that could destabilize the Middle East, said it was critical for the world to prevent such a conflict from breaking out, pointing to ongoing ceasefire talks in Gaza as a way to move forward.

“One of the reasons we continue to work so hard for a ceasefire in Gaza is not just Gaza, but so that we can have a chance to bring calm, lasting calm, across the blue line between Israel and Lebanon,” Blinken said.

“It is so important that we help to defuse this conflict. We must not only prevent it from escalating and spreading, but also defuse it because in both countries, Israel and Lebanon, so many people have been displaced from their homes,” he added.

With post wires