Israeli mother and son seriously wounded by Hezbollah missiles in Kiryat Shmona
Hezbollah officials reject French proposal for truce on Israel’s northern border
An Israeli mother and her son were wounded on Tuesday around noon, by two anti-tank guided missiles fired from southern Lebanon at the northern Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona, Israeli media reported.
The victims, a 15-year-old boy, and his 47-year-old mother, were evacuated to a nearby hospital, according to the Magen David Adom rescue services.
Their conditions worsened over time and were described as "serious" by the hospital several hours after the incident.
The explosions damaged infrastructure, an electricity pole, and several cars. The municipality of Kiryat Shmona asked those who remained in the city despite the standing evacuation order to stay close to protected areas after the attack for fear of additional launches.
Hezbollah later took responsibility for the attack, claiming it targeted a police station in retaliation for Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanese villages and especially against civilian homes in the village Talusa the day before.
According to the IDF, the strikes targeted Hezbollah infrastructure in the Talusa region, as well as a military building in the Laydah area and an observation post near al-Khiam.
After the Israeli strikes on Talusa, Hezbollah announced the deaths of three of its operatives on Monday, raising its death toll since October to 193. In addition, the terror group Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in Gaza announced that two of its terrorists were killed by earlier Israeli strikes.
A Hezbollah official rejected the latest proposal to end hostilities with Israel. "We are not discussing this before a cease-fire in Gaza. Israel is not in a position to set conditions," the official told Sky News Arabic.
The French government continued its efforts to reach a negotiated agreement to end the hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, with the latest proposal sent by France to Beirut calling for Hezbollah to withdraw 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the Israeli border, according to a Reuters report on Tuesday.
The plan includes three stages over 10 days of de-escalation leading up to negotiations over the number of unresolved border points between Israel and Lebanon.
The demarcation of the border points, as well as the withdrawal of terror groups back to the Litani River, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the border, are in accordance with UN Resolution 1701, which has been systematically ignored by Hezbollah.
The French proposal aims to prevent a conflict “that risks spiraling out of control” and enforcing “a potential ceasefire when the conditions are right.”
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.