Passengers panic after American family carries unexploded artillery shell into Israeli airport

An American family caused a panic at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport Thursday when they showed up with an unexploded artillery shell they found while in the Golan Heights. Photo / Twitter

An American family caused a panic at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport last week when they showed up with an unexploded military mortar shell they found while hiking in the country's north.

Video online shows frightened passengers inside an airport screaming and running for safety.

Authorities sounded an alert for people to evacuate.

Other videos show passengers diving for cover and getting on the floor in an attempt to shield themselves from any potential explosion.

One person was injured while trying to run on a conveyor belt.

According to reports, the family said they found the military shell weapon in the Golan Heights and wanted to bring it back home to the US as a souvenir.

The unexploded ordinance in question:

If you travel to Israel be wary of areas with mines and mortars along the Golan Heights, and WHATEVER you do. DO NOT grab one as a souvenir and then bring it into an AIRPORT. You would think this should not have to be explained 🤦‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/mH0keIAXs2

— 🇮🇱 Netanel H. 🕵️‍♂️ Space Laser Engineer 🇺🇦 (@sircryptalot) April 28, 2022

The family were questioned before being released by authorities.

There was no explosion and authorities are still investigating.

Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 war, and the area came under heavy fighting during that war and another Arab-Israeli war six years later.

Areas known to contain unexploded munitions are clearly marked and fenced off.