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Israeli drone crashes in Lebanon

An Israeli reconnaissance drone crashed in Lebanon as result of a technical malfunction.

By: World Israel News Staff

An unmanned Israeli drone crashed in south Lebanon on overnight between Friday and Saturday.

A few minutes later, a second Israeli reconnaissance aircraft targeted it with a missile that completely destroyed it, Hezbollah Military Media reported.

The IDF confirmed the incident, with its spokesperson saying in a statement that the drone, which was on a “routine reconnaissance mission,” had crashed in an open field in southern Lebanon as result of a technical malfunction.

“The incident is currently being reviewed. There is no risk of leaked information,” the statement read.

The Hezbollah affiliated Al-Manar news quoted a “security source” who said the that Lebanese Army Engineering Corps had found four rockets inside the wreckage of the Israeli plane and detonated them.

Hezbollah reported the drone was an Elbit Hermes 450 medium size multi-payload UAV. The Hermes 450 is one of the oldest UAVs used by the IDF.

Estimated to cost around $ 2 million, the Hermes 450, manufactured by Elbit, entered the IAF in the late 1990s and since then has undergone several upgrades. It is designed for tactical long endurance missions and is used for intelligence gathering missions in all sectors, including Gaza and southern Lebanon, Israel’s Ynet reported.