Golan town caught between Israel and Hezbollah mourns its young

Hind Al Soulia - Riyadh - MAJDAL SHAMS, Golan Heights — Eleven-year-old Alma was daddy’s little girl. She used to get away with anything she wanted. Her father, Ayman Fakhr al-Din said she was always filled with energy and loved playing sports.

That was the last thing she did before her tragic death.

Alma was killed alongside 11 other children when a rocket hit a football pitch in Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Saturday.

Israeli officials have blamed Hezbollah for the strike and vowed to retaliate. The Lebanese militant group has “firmly” denied responsibility.

In addition to the 12 deaths, at least 44 people were injured in the attack that has rocked the town’s Syrian Druze community.

Caught between the simmering conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, people here tell CNN they’re used to hearing sirens and seeing rockets flying overhead – but never like this.

“This time, something wasn’t right. It was something unbelievable,” Fakhr al-Din said.

He was running errands just outside the village when he heard the massive attack rock the area. He called his eldest son, 13-year-old Rayan, to check on him as he made his way back.

Rayan and his younger brother had been playing on the football pitch just minutes before the rocket fell. Fakhr al-Din was relieved to know they were alive.

“What about Alma?” he asked.

Their brothers assumed she had gone home, but Fakhr al-Din thought he’d go to the scene regardless.

“I reached the stadium, and in the corner, I saw dead bodies and body parts. When I got closer to one of them, I spotted a bracelet on a girl’s wrist. That’s when I knew it was Alma,” he said.

The horror Fakhr al-Din witnessed is shared by almost every person in the village. They’re filled with a sense of bewilderment and shock at what has happened to their tight-knit community.

Thousands of mourners turned up to pay their respects to the families of the victims on Sunday. A funeral procession was held in the middle of the village with people standing on balconies and rooftops overlooking the ceremony.

The mood was somber, and the grief was palpable.

On the loudspeakers, religious leaders and imams gave sermons and blessings for the deceased. The resounding calls were to “end this crazy war in Gaza,” which has triggered a violent tit-for-tit between Israel and Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border.

A resident of the village, Luna lost two of her cousins in the attack. She went to the stadium moments after the strike occurred and saw their bloodied remains.

She could barely formulate a sentence.

“I always see videos of massacres happening in Gaza. I never thought it would happen to us,” she said.

Another resident, Najwan Abu Saleh told CNN that the entire community is in shock.

“It’s an incredible disaster. We haven’t slept yet, so we haven’t yet processed it,” he said.

He said no one ever expected this to happen, and no logic could possibly justify it.

“They were just kids. What did they do wrong?”

There’s a strong sense of community in Majdal Shams. Most residents, asked if they know a victim, will respond, “we are all one family.”

That sense of kinship was evident at the funeral, with people of all ages standing side by side consoling each other in their grief.

One by one, coffins draped in white sheets and adorned with flowers were carried through the crowds. With each one that appeared came deeper cries and wails, as if they were reliving their deaths over and over.

The fear now is for what comes next.

Parents are afraid to send their children outside. Nobody feels safe anymore.

The attack Saturday was a major escalation in what had already been an extremely volatile few months in the border area. Fears have been growing that the escalation could lead to a full-blown regional war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Fakhr al-Din, still processing his grief, told CNN there was no doubt in his mind that Hezbollah fired the rocket.

“Who killed my daughter is Hezbollah,” he said. “My enemy is Hezbollah, I say it openly.”

Despite his anger, he said he doesn’t want more children to die, and doesn’t want this to escalate.

All he wants is to forget how he last saw his daughter.

“She liked to play just like any other kid,” he said. Pointing to her pink-colored bedroom he added, “in the end, we have a room without Alma.” — CNN