2 Azerbaijanis injured in an Iranian cluster-headed missile strike in central Israel have died.
Modern.az reports, citing "The Times of Israel", that according to medical officials, Rustam Gulomov and Amid Murtuzov, both in their 40s, who were injured during an Iranian cluster bomb missile attack in central Israel on Monday morning, succumbed to their injuries on Tuesday.
Submunitions contained within the cluster-headed missile fell at least at six different points in central Israel. Explosions were recorded in the cities of Yehud, Or Yehuda, Holon, and Bat Yam.
The deceased were identified as Rustam Gulomov and Amid Murtuzov, both in their 40s, originally from Azerbaijan and residents of Petah Tikva. While both compatriots were working at a construction site in Yehud, one of the cluster bombs detached from a ballistic missile fell in that area.
According to first responders, they were not in a shelter or any other protective space.
Emergency medical personnel declared one of the injured dead at the scene, while the other person was transported to the hospital in serious condition. He later succumbed to his injuries.
Major General Shai Klapper, head of Israel's Home Front Command, stated that dozens of workers at the same construction site survived the attack because they entered shelters.
“A difficult incident occurred at that construction site where several people were injured. At the same time, I want to say that the lives of dozens of workers were saved. Their lives were saved because they entered a protected space and followed the instructions given,” he said in a video released by the army.
Another man was also seriously injured in Or Yehuda during the attack. According to rescuers, he was also not in a shelter when one of the cluster bombs exploded.
Images released from the scene show craters formed on the ground as a result of the explosions, as well as damaged cars and buildings.
Amidst the ongoing conflict, Iran launched cluster-headed ballistic missiles towards Israel. These types of missiles pose a serious threat by indiscriminately scattering numerous small bombs over wide areas.
A crane operator who spoke to “Haaretz” newspaper and was at the Yehud construction site during the attack emphasized the danger faced by construction workers during missile attacks.
“I came down and barely escaped. I received the signal, waited for them to detach me from the load, shut down the crane, and descended,” he stated.
According to him, the entire process took several minutes, and there was very little time:
“By the time we descended, the siren had already started sounding.”
The crane operator recalled seeing the two men who later died when he reached the ground and said he immediately decided to take shelter in a nearby underground parking garage.
“Just ten seconds after I made the decision and went down to the garage, there was a powerful explosion. Half a minute later, I went back up and saw them lying on the ground,” he stated.
“I couldn't understand why they didn't go inside.”
Speaking from in front of another residential building in central Israel where one of the cluster bombs fell, Major General Shai Klapper urged the country's citizens to follow emergency procedures.
“This apartment was hit by a cluster bomb. Perhaps the scale of the launched missiles has somewhat decreased, and the number of sirens is somewhat higher, but this apartment shows how much destruction a cluster bomb can cause,” he stated.
Klapper noted that no one was injured because the family living in that apartment followed the instructions of the Home Front Command and entered the shelter.
“Therefore, I call on Israeli citizens to be resilient and courageous, and to follow the instructions of the Home Front Command – these instructions save people's lives,” he added.
