Forty-seven people were injured by an Iranian missile Saturday evening after it directly struck a building in the southern city of Dimona.
One of the victims, a ten-year-old boy, is in serious condition; a woman of about 30 suffered moderate injuries in the strike.
All of the victims were evacuated to Soroka Medical Center in Be'er Sheva.
Twelve impact sites were reported Saturday evening.
Magen David Adom (MDA) reported that a ten-year-old boy and a woman were moderately injured by shrapnel. Around 18 others suffered injuries while running for shelter. It is not yet clear if the missile was a fragmentation missile.
MDA Paramedic Karmel Cohen said: "We are dealing with several scenes in close proximity. We arrived with large numbers of ambulances, mobile intensive care units, and MDA emergency medicycles. There was extensive damage and chaos at the scene. We established a casualty concentration point where we gathered the patients, triaged them, and provided medical treatment, and then evacuated them to the hospital. Among the patients were a boy around 10 years old and a woman around 40 years old in moderate condition."
Senior MDA EMT Shay Binyamin and MDA EMT Gadot Vaknin said: "Together with large MDA forces, we arrived at a scene with extensive destruction. In several buildings there were trapped individuals calling for help, and Fire and Rescue Services along with Home Front Command forces are working to extricate them. We heard cries for help from inside the damaged homes, and civilians at the scene told us that elderly residents live there."
"Near a public shelter on the street, we saw several casualties, including a man in his 30s suffering from bleeding head injuries and another casualty who sustained mild shrapnel injuries while on the way to a sheltered area. We provided medical treatment, including hemorrhage control and bandaging, and we are evacuating them to Soroka Medical Center in stable condition. Additional MDA teams are providing medical treatment to other casualties at the scene."
Following the afternoon launch, fragments from both the missile and interceptor were found in multiple locations in the city. One of the fragments poked a hole in a school.
"Search and rescue forces are operating at the site in southern Israel where reports of impact have been received, conducting searches and providing civilian assistance at the scene," the IDF reported.
"Prior to the impact, interception attempts were carried out, and the incident will be reviewed. Since the beginning of Operation Roaring Lion, the Israeli Air Force has intercepted dozens of threats and continues to operate, even at this time, to carry out interceptions and strikes wherever necessary in order to remove threats to the civilians of the State of Israel.
"The IDF emphasizes that the defense is not hermetic, and therefore it is important to continue to follow the instructions of the Home Front Command."
Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported that the series of launches Saturday evening toward Dimona is “revenge" by the regime for the earlier strike against the uranium enrichment facility in Natanz, and for a previous strike reportedly carried out at the Bushehr nuclear power plant (although Israel denied involvement in that attack).
“After the US and Israel attacked the Bushehr power station and the Natanz facilities, the enemy once again received an unforgettable lesson. The missile attack on the Dimona area once again delivered a clear message: No area is safe from Iranian missiles. The enemy must surrender before it is too late," the Iranian agency reported.
Dimona Mayor Benny Biton wrote to residents: “We are in the midst of a challenging period in which we are forced to make difficult decisions," he explained.
“I am listening to messages sent privately and on social media-from parents who have returned to work and want activities for their children, from teenagers who need to catch up on matriculation exams, and from parents of special education students whose children perhaps need routine more than anyone. But alongside all of this, your safety is the most important thing, and my responsibility above all is to protect your lives."
Therefore, he said, “After consulting with Home Front Command officials and completing a situation assessment, a decision has been made: Educational institutions in Dimona will remain closed until further notice. I apologize for the late announcement, but we are constantly operating in a changing reality. Patience and resilience from the home front are required until we get through this very important war."
Interceptor fragments also fell Friday in Yeruham, where a similar decision that students will not return to school is expected soon.
“Impacts were identified east of the industrial zone; police bomb disposal units are on their way," wrote local council head Nili Aharon on Friday. “I ask you to follow Home Front Command instructions and guidelines. If you identify interceptor fragments or parts of missiles, do not approach them. Report them directly to the police and the municipal hotline."
