Residents of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Sunday (August 25) spoke of the hardships their community faces as tensions between Israel and Lebanon continue to escalate.
Israel launched a wave of air strikes in southern Lebanon in what it called a preemptive strike to prevent a massive Hezbollah rocket and missile attack.
The militant group responded by saying it fired hundreds of rockets and drones in retaliation for the killing of a top commander last month.
Both sides halted heavy gunfire by mid-morning, signaling no further escalation.
It comes as Egypt hosts high-level talks aimed at a ceasefire in the 10-month-old Israel-Hamas war in Gaza that diplomats hope will ease regional tensions.
Rose Break, a resident of Majdal Shams, said the July 27 attack that killed 12 Druze children in the Golan Heights had affected the entire village.
“What happened that day was horrific,” he added, as he feared the escalation would have a significant impact on Majdal Shams.
“We are very anxious.”
Nasser Abu Saleh, another resident, hopes a ceasefire will be reached soon.
“We are not waiting for a speech from (Hezbollah leader) Hassan Nasrallah, or (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu,” he added.
Hezbollah began attacking Israel immediately after the start of the war in Gaza, which was sparked by Hamas' October 7 attack on southern Israel.
Israel and Hezbollah exchange fire almost daily, displacing tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border.
There are 25,000 Druze in the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Middle East War and annexed in 1981.
Many Druze in the Golan remain loyal to Syria. (ab/uh)
