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A drone launched by Hezbollah from Lebanon crashed into the yard of a home in a settlement near the northern Israeli coastal city of Acre on February 20 afternoon, according to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).
In a statement, the IDF said the circumstances of the incident were under investigation, and that authorities were at the scene in the settlement of Bustan HaGalil.
There was no damage or injuries in the incident. Footage showed that the drone was largely intact after crashing. The design of the drone does not resemble any type known to be in service with Hezbollah, or even in Iran.
No warning sirens had sounded as the drone entered Israeli airspace. The IDF said that it was probing why the sirens didn’t work.
The IDF also accused Hezbollah of launching the drone from Lebanon, although the group did not immediately claim responsibility.
The drone was not apparently carrying explosives. It may have been sent on a Reconnaissance mission, or even used by Hezbollah as a decoy to probe and test Israeli air defenses.
This was the second time a drone allegedly launched by Hezbollah infiltrated into Israel without sirens sounding this week. On February 19, an suicide drone slammed into an open field near the settlement of Arbel in the Lower Galilee, causing no injuries.
Meanwhile, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned Hezbollah during a visit to the Israeli Air Force’s (IAF) new missile-detecting balloon in the north on February 20, saying that the “equations” of the group’s chief, Hassan Nasrallah, were collapsing, as the IAF has been operating over all areas in Lebanon.
“The equations that Hezbollah thought it had created collapse when the air force and the IDF decide to attack, in Damascus, in Beirut, in Sidon, in Nabatieh, everywhere they do this work, and no equation stands in the way,” Gallant said at the base housing the detection system, dubbed “Elevated Sensor,” or “Sky Dew” in Israel.
“Every day, the IDF wins and Hezbollah loses. I hope there won’t be more difficult days, but if there are, you are ready,” he told IAF soldiers.
The Sky Dew, also dubbed the “High Availability Aerostat System,” was developed to detect a range of aerial threats, including long-range missiles, cruise missiles and drones.
The clashes on the Lebanese-Israeli border first broke out after the start of the war in the Gaza Strip, with Hezbollah and its allies carrying out attacks in support of the Strip.
So far, the clashes on the border have resulted in six civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of at least ten IDF soldiers and reservists. On the Lebanese side, more than 300 people have been killed, including 195 fighters of Hezbollah and at least 40 civilians.
