A boy was killed in an explosion that injured around 19 others during a school trip in northern Israel near the Lebanese border on Monday, Defence Minister Israel Katz said.

The explosion occurred as a group of Israeli high school students hiked near the Lebanese border, with unexploded ordnance suspected, officials said.

“I share in the heavy grief of the family of the boy who was killed in the explosion during the trip near the northern border, and I wish a swift and full recovery to all the injured,” Katz posted on X, adding that the incident was being investigated.

Meanwhile, the military said soldiers and helicopters had been dispatched to the scene in northern Israel, a region from which Israeli forces have been pounding Lebanon, from where Hezbollah have fired periodic rockets across the border.

Citing medical sources, the Israeli police said that “the initial suspicion is that it was caused by an unexploded ordnance, as a result of which about 20 people were injured with varying degrees of severity”.

The incident injured both students and staff from a religious high school as they were on an outing, the municipality of the northern city of Maalot-Tarshiha said.

The Magen David Adom emergency services had earlier said that eight of the injuries were serious or moderate and that paramedics were treating them.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu scrapped plans and was holding assessments over the “severe incident”, his office said.

“The Prime Minister asked to ensure that the injured are being evacuated as quickly as possible to hospitals and is continuing to hold ongoing assessments,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.

The military said that soldiers were at the scene to provide assistance, while air force helicopters were en route.