Hezbollah claims it fired at IDF drone over Lebanon

Hezbollah said that an Israeli drone flying over the outskirts of the town of Blida in southern Lebanon was “targeted with suitable weapons.”

By Aryeh Savir, TPS

The Hezbollah terror organization fired at an IDF drone flying over Lebanon on Monday night, the Hezbollah-linked Al Manar news outlet reported.

Hezbollah’s War Media Center issued a statement in which it said that an Israeli drone flying over the outskirts of the town of Blida in southern Lebanon was “targeted with suitable weapons.”

The statement added that Hezbollah targeted earlier in the day another drone that flew over Lebanon in the same area, allegedly forcing it to fly back to Israel

The Lebanese army also said it fired at an Israeli drone flying over the border town of Mays Al-Jabal on Monday.

The IDF has remained silent on the reports.

Hezbollah recently fired at IDF drones flying missions over Lebanon.

On February 3, the IDF stated that anti-aircraft fire was launched at a remotely manned aircraft during a routine operation over Lebanese territory. The drone was not damaged and continued its mission.

A few days before that incident, Hezbollah announced that it had downed an IDF drone flying over southern Lebanon. The IDF said that it had crashed and that there was no fear of an intelligence leakage.

In October 2019, an SA8 surface-to-air missile was fired at an Israeli drone over Lebanon but missed its mark.

The drones are primarily used for reconnaissance, data collection, and target marking.

The IDF Intelligence Division’s annual forecast for 2021 estimates that the Lebanon-based Hezbollah is deterred from entering a full-scale war with Israel.

However, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has expressed willingness to carry out an attack on the border fence, even at the cost of an Israeli response that will lead to days of fighting.