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Israeli soldiers shot down a drone near the separation line with Lebanon on February 13 afternoon only to then find out that it belonged to their military.
In a brief statement, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said that the soldiers fired at the drone due to a “mistaken identification”. The soldiers thought that the drone crossed from Lebanon into Israeli airspace
The IDF said that the drone was not damaged in the incident, without providing any information on its type. The incident is currently being investigated.
The drone was likely one of the commercially-available ones the IDF usually use to conduct surveillance along the separation line with Lebanon. In the last few years, several such drones were shot down by the Lebanese military and Hezbollah.
The friendly-fire incident reflects the sensitive situation along the separation line between Israel and Lebanon. The IDF has been growing frustrated with Hezbollah drone operations in the region.
In January, the IDF shot down a small Hezbollah drone that crossed into Israeli airspace. Footage showing Hezbollah operators were recovered from the drone. Back then, a spokesman for the IDF said that a “new system” was used to shot down the drone.
