One Indian killed, two injured in anti-tank missile attack in northern Israel

PTI, Mar 5, 2024, 9:36 AM IST

Jerusalem: An Indian national was killed and another two were injured on Monday when an anti-tank missile fired from Lebanon struck an orchard near Israel’s northern border community of Margaliot, officials said.

All three victims hail from the southern state of Kerala.

The missile hit a plantation in Margaliot, a moshav (collective agricultural community), in the Galilee region in the north of Israel around 11 am on Monday, Zaki Heller, spokesperson for rescue services Magen David Adom (MDA), told PTI.

Patnibin Maxwell from Kollam in Kerala was killed in the attack. His mortal remains were identified in Ziv hospital, official sources said.

Bush Joseph George and Paul Melvin were injured and taken to hospitals for treatment, they said.

“George was taken to the Beilinson hospital in Petah Tikva after suffering injuries on face and body. He underwent an operation, is recovering well, and has been kept under observation. He could speak with his family in India,” an official source told PTI.

Melvin was slightly injured and is hospitalised at Ziv Hospital in the northern Israeli city of Safed. He is from the Idukki district of Kerala.

MDA earlier said one foreign worker was killed and seven others were injured in the attack.

The attack is believed to have been carried out by the Shi’ite Hezbollah faction in Lebanon, which has been launching rockets, missiles, and drones at northern Israel daily since October 8 in support of Hamas amid the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip.

MDA said seven foreign workers were injured altogether in the attack, two of them seriously, and were taken to Beilinson, Rambam, and Ziv hospitals in their ambulances and Israeli Air Force helicopters.

Israel Defence Forces (IDF) on Monday said they responded by shelling the launch site with artillery.

The IDF also said it struck a Hezbollah compound where members of the group were gathered in the southern Lebanon town of Chihine, and another site belonging to Hezbollah in Ayta ash-Shab.

Hezbollah has been launching attacks on Israel’s northern communities and military posts since October 8 saying it is doing so to support Gaza.

The skirmishes between Israel and Hezbollah have resulted in the death of seven civilians and 10 IDF soldiers on the Israeli side.

Hezbollah has named 229 members who have been killed by Israel during recent flare ups. Most of the casualties on the Hezbollah side happened in Lebanon but also some in Syria.

Another 37 operatives from other groups, a Lebanese soldier, and at least 30 civilians have also been killed since October 8.