Education Ministry Investigates Deviation from Approved Route After Fatal Unexploded Ordnance Incident

The Ministry of Education announced Tuesday that the approved route for a school trip by ORT Ma'alot High School in the Ramim Ridge area did not pass through a restricted zone, but an investigation is underway to determine if the group deviated from the planned path. The ministry stated it had followed KKL-JNF restrictions, prohibiting activity in the area due to war damage, and that the planned route was outside the forbidden zone. Safety instructions, including prohibitions against touching unexploded ordnance and a requirement to report such findings, were also provided.

Elazar Yair Wilensky, a ninth-grade student at ORT Ma'alot High School, was identified by the Ma'alot-Tarshiha municipality as the teenager killed in the incident. Wilensky, the youngest of five siblings, was remembered by his family as a "child of life, smart and intelligent, full of joy, a good and beloved friend, with his whole future ahead of him." The municipality is providing support to the bereaved family and psychological assistance to students, families, and staff.

The explosion injured 24 people, including students from seventh to ninth grades and school staff. MDA reported two teenagers sustained serious injuries, two adults and eight teenagers had moderate injuries, and 12 teenagers were lightly injured. Ziv Medical Center in Safed is treating 13 patients, including two children in serious but stable condition, two adults with mild to moderate injuries, and nine children with light injuries. Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa is treating four individuals: a 61-year-old man in serious but stable condition, one teenager with moderate injuries, and two teenagers with light injuries.

An initial police investigation suggests a student placed the unexploded ordnance in their backpack, leading to the explosion. The IDF estimates the ordnance was a cluster munition fired by Hezbollah during the war. One injured student testified that a fellow student picked up the ordnance during the hike and put it in his backpack. The student recounted that the ordnance was handled again before prayers, placed back in the backpack, and then detonated with a "crazy boom." The witness added that adult supervisors did not see the ordnance being handled.