Hezbollah operatives in Lebanon fired multiple barrages of rockets at northern Israel late Saturday night and on into the early morning hours of Sunday, damaging buildings, streets and infrastructure across the region.
More than 50 rockets were launched by Lebanon’s Iranian proxy at Israel overnight, waking and sending thousands racing into bomb shelters.
The first barrage began about an hour after midnight, with Red Alert incoming rocket sirens wailing through the largely evacuated city of Kiryat Shmona along with other communities in the foothills of Mount Hermon and the Upper Galilee.
Ninety minutes later, at around 2:30 am, Kiryat Shmona was again targeted, along with the communities of Tel Hai, Margaliot, Manara and Kfar Giladi.
The third barrage came at around 5:30 am, this time targeting the Upper Galilee and Mevo’ot HaHermon communities of Shamir, Sde Nechemia, Kfar Szold, HaGoshrim, Dafna, Beit Hillel and Sha’ar Yashuv.
Some of the rockets were intercepted by the IDF Aerial Defense Array’s Iron Dome anti-missile system. Others landed in open areas. But several also landed within Kiryat Shmona, hitting a street and a building and damaging infrastructure. Most of the city was evacuated on October 20, significantly reducing the risk to residents.
Miraculously, no physical injuries were reported. But officials are now reconsidering the wisdom of allowing children to begin the school year in northern Israeli towns within five miles of the border with Lebanon, due to the unending attacks by Hezbollah.
“Regrettably, the 2024 school year will begin in the north with a remote learning format due to the complex security situation in the region,” Education Minister Yoav Kisch told a meeting at the Mateh Asher Regional Council this past July.
“This unfortunate decision, made with a heavy heart, is imposed upon us,” the minister added. “I renew my call to the prime minister and the heads of the defense establishment to act now and forcefully against Lebanon. A significant war with Lebanon is the only way to restore peace and stability to the northern residents and secure Israel’s future.”
At least 16,000 students — Israel’s internal refugees — are in classrooms far from the homes in which they grew up.
Locally, Israel’s Education Ministry meanwhile has created a Situation Room in Nof HaGalil to continuously monitor the security situation of regional schools.
The ministry is also providing special support to some 1,000 students from the families of hostages held by Hamas, along with 1,016 students whose family members were murdered or killed since the start of the war launched by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
For the 81 local councils in northern Israel whose communities were not evacuated last October, the situation is different, according to Dr. Orna Simchon, head of the Education Ministry’s Northern District.
Simchon said last week that students in areas that were not evacuated “are learning as usual, no problem,” despite the ongoing attacks from Hezbollah.
However, the ministry also built 13 more “temporary schools” for students from communities that have been evacuated, she added.
“It’s complicated to manage the Northern District each day under fire,” Simchon told Israeli news media. “I myself am an evacuee.” However, she said she is maintaining her optimism that “everything will be okay” — if security returns to the north. When and how that might happen remains to be seen.
