Lebanon’s Iranian proxy Hezbollah shot down an Israeli drone over Lebanon on Saturday night, the IDF said.
“A surface-to-air missile was launched toward an Israel Air Force UAV operating in Lebanese airspace,” the IDF said.
“As a result, the UAV was hit and fell in Lebanese territory. The incident is under review.”
Hezbollah confirmed in a statement that it had shot down an Israeli Hermes 450 UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle).
The use of anti-aircraft missiles by Hezbollah against Israeli aircraft is an unwelcome development, and one that signals the terrorist army is beginning to use more advanced weaponry in its war against Israel.
Hezbollah is armed, equipped, trained and funded by Iran, and has a military force that is believed to be stronger than that of its host, the Lebanese Army, and equivalent to the armed strength of a medium-sized army.
The terror group is the world’s most heavily armed non-state actor, and has been described as “a militia trained like an army and equipped like a state,” according to the Missile Threat website, a product of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Hezbollah held around 15,000 rockets and missiles on the eve of the 2006 Second Lebanon War, firing nearly 4,000 projectiles at Israel over the 34-day conflict. As of 2021, it was estimated that Hezbollah possessed at least 130,000 rockets and missiles, including its deadly anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) and precision-guided long-range missiles.
