15-year-old killed, 19 injured in ordnance explosion in Upper Galilee

A 15-year-old was killed and about 19 people were wounded on Monday when unexploded ordnance detonated during a high school field trip in the Upper Galilee, near the border with Lebanon, emergency services and Israeli media reported. The students and teachers from the ORT Ma'alot religious high school were hiking near the Mitzpe Pe'er lookout on the first day of a school trip along the Israel Trail, according to Ynet. Three of the wounded were in serious condition, the reports said.

The incident occurred in northern occupied lands, an area that has seen repeated cross-border exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah. Unexploded ordnance from previous conflicts remains a hazard in the region, though the exact origin of the device that exploded was not immediately specified in the reports.

Emergency services responded to the scene and evacuated the injured to nearby hospitals. The condition of the remaining wounded was not detailed. The school trip was part of a routine educational outing along the Israel Trail, a long-distance hiking path that traverses the country.

Israeli media identified the school as ORT Ma'alot, a religious high school, and said the group was near the Mitzpe Pe'er lookout when the explosion occurred. The reports did not provide further details on the type of ordnance or the circumstances leading to the blast.

According to Mehr News, the incident took place on the first day of the school trip, and the wounded included students and teachers. The report cited emergency services and Israeli media, including Ynet, for the casualty figures and the location of the incident.