Hezbollah injures civilian, IDF soldiers in missile attack on church day after Christmas

By Samantha Kamman, Christian Post Reporter Thursday, December 28, 2023

Hezbollah fired a missile at a Melkite Greek Catholic church in Israel the day after Christmas, injuring an elderly civilian and multiple Israel Defense Forces soldiers in an attack the Israeli military condemned for violating the freedom of worship. 

An anti-tank missile from the Lebanon-based, Iranian-backed Shia militant group hit the St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church in Iqrit, firing additional missiles after IDF soldiers arrived to evacuate a civilian in his 80s who had been injured in the initial attack. 

Hezbollah injured nine IDF soldiers after firing the additional missiles, The Times of Israel reported Tuesday. The attack seriously injured one soldier. The outlet noted that Hezbollah claimed it had targeted an IDF position, but the projectile hit the Palestinian Christian village instead. 

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In a Tuesday X post, the IDF stated that the attack was a violation of United Nation Security Council Resolution 1701, which calls for a “full cessation of hostilities” between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006. The IDF also declared that the attack was a “violation of the freedom of worship.” 

IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari addressed the situation with Hezbollah on Tuesday, warning that the group follows “the same extremist and dangerous ideology as Hamas,” a terror group that has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007 and launched a deadly terror attack on Oct. 7 that killed over 1,200.

Hagari stated that Hezbollah is committing war crimes by “indiscriminately attacking places of worship just like Hamas.”

“Hezbollah is risking the stability of the region for the sake of Hamas,” Hagari said. “Hezbollah started attacking Israel on October 7th, and it has been increasing its attacks ever since. The IDF has been responding and will continue to respond.” 

While the IDF initially claimed that the church Hezbollah attacked was Greek Orthodox, Kassy Dillon, a video journalist for Daily Wire, wrote in a Tuesday X post that the church was a Melkite Greek Catholic Church, according to Christians in the area.

“So Hezbollah just attacked a Catholic Church,” Dillon wrote. 

In addition to the church, the Jewish News Syndicate reported Tuesday that terrorists in Lebanon also targeted Moshav Dovev, an Israeli agricultural community in the Upper Galilee, as well as Kibbutz Yiftah and Mount Dov. 

Following Hamas’ onslaught against Israel on Oct. 7, which resulted in the deaths of at least 1,200 people and the abduction of around 240 others, Hezbollah forces have attacked Israeli communities and military outposts, according to The Times of Israel. 

According to a Wednesday report by Times of Israel, Israel evacuated thousands of residents from its northern border towns due to the repeated fire exchanges between Hezbollah and Israel. Lobby 1701, a group representing the evacuees that is named for the 2006 U.N. Security Council resolution, urged the Biden administration to support Israel’s military efforts against Hezbollah and other terror groups in a letter. 

“Since October 7, Hezbollah has put an end to our daily lives here in northern Israel. Because of their daily missiles and UAV attacks that target our homes and communities, and the threat of many more, we were unwillingly forced to evacuate,” the letter stated. 

According to the letter, the U.N. Security Council resolution is “ineffective,” stressing that Hezbollah failed to abide by it, even going so far as to establish military positions on the Israel-Lebanese border near people’s homes. The letter also alleged that the resolution allowed Hezbollah “to rearm, prepare and plan its invasion into Israel.”

“If Lebanon is unable to properly implement UNSCR 1701 to the extent that we deserve and demand, to provide a basic sense of security, we will relentlessly pressure our government to solve this issue through military means, and we request your full support. This is not a threat, nor is it a warning.” 

The letter also said that President Joe Biden and his administration should give “its full support to the government of Israel to act with the necessary force.”