Minefield in Golan Heights (Archives)
Photo: Effi Sharir
2 children hurt in Golan mine explosion; boy in serious condition
Family from central Israel enters minefield near Mount Avital; 11-year-old's foot severed in blast, his sister sustains moderate wounds; three others suffer from shock
Two children were injured when a mine exploded in the northern Golan Heights on Saturday.
Magen David Adom emergency services (MDA) reported that 11-year-old Daniel Yuval sustained serious wounds in the blast; his 12-year-old sister, Amit is listed in moderate condition, while three more hikers suffered from shock.
MDA said the hikers who had entered the minefield are members of the same family from central Israel.
An MDA paramedic told Ynet that the boy's right foot had been severed, while his sister suffered facial injuries. He said the children were playing in the snow when the mine went off.
The incident occurred at approximately 1:30 pm. It remains unclear whether the children knowingly entered the minefield or whether the snow covered the warning signs.
Ambulances and a chopper were dispatched to the scene.
Captain Hai Lugasi, spokesman for the IDF's Northern Command, told Ynet that the hikers entered a marked minefield near Mount Avital.
Local residents said the hikers may have missed a fence erected around the minefield to keep people out due to the snow.
Tens of thousands of Israelis traveled to the snow-covered Golan region on Saturday. Major traffic jams were reported along the roads leading to the area.
In March, 2009 a 35-year-old man sustained light to moderate injuries when his hand glider landed in a minefield in the southern Golan Heights. That same month a foreign worker from Thailand was seriously wounded when a mine exploded near Kibbutz Meitzar, also in the Golan region.
