IDF troops ‘take action’ against Lebanese drone that apparently crossed border

A Lebanese drone apparently crossed the border and entered Israeli airspace on Sunday evening, the Israel Defense Forces said.

A Lebanese journalist affiliated with the Hezbollah terror group reported that the device was “hijacked” by the Israeli military and forced to land.

The IDF did not confirm the report, but said that troops “took action against [the drone] with a variety of tools.”

According to the Lebanese reporter, Ali Shoeib, the drone was being used to film a music video for a Hezbollah orchestra along the border when the IDF “took control of it electronically” and flew it some three kilometers (1.86 miles) into Israel.

In a tweet, Shoeib claimed the device sent back photos from above Israeli territory before it was brought down, sharing one of the images.

جيش العدو يخطف طائرة تصوير تابعة لفرقة انشادية كانت تنفذ نشيدا ل #نصر_اب قرب الحدود مع #فلسطين_المحتلة قبل أن يسيطر عليها إلكترونيا ويسحبها مسافة 3 كيلومترات داخل الأراضي المحتلة
وأظهرت إحدى الصور التي التقطها الطائرة أثناء سحبها وهي تحلق داخل الأراضي المحتلة pic.twitter.com/hr86T5AsLy

— علي شعيب ???????? (@alishoeib1970) July 19, 2020
The IDF refused to comment on what happened to the drone, if it indeed landed inside Israel or if flew back to Lebanon.

Israeli defense officials have accused Hezbollah of using ostensibly civilian tools, including drones, to conduct reconnaissance along the border.

“The IDF will continue to act to prevent violations of Israeli sovereignty,” the military said.

Though relatively calm in terms of exchanges of fire, Israel’s border with Lebanon has been increasingly active in recent months, with drug and gun smuggling, as well as regular attempts by African migrants to cross the border from the economically devastated Lebanon into Israel.