Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shia militant group, has claimed it launched a drone that filmed the Haifa Bay area, a strategic maritime facility in northern Israel. This assertion came amid reports of Israeli air defenses intercepting multiple hostile targets that violated the country's airspace.
Video: Hezbollah's alleged drone footage after conducting a mission in the north / Credit: Arab social media
Sirens blared in Western Galilee communities due to concerns over the infiltration of a hostile aircraft. Reports indicated multiple impacts in open areas near the town of Shlomi, with missile alerts triggered by the potential presence of interceptor debris, according to an Israeli military source.
An Israeli military spokesperson subsequently stated that following alerts of an airspace violation by a hostile aircraft, the air defense forces successfully intercepted three suspicious aerial targets that crossed into Israeli airspace. The spokesperson confirmed there were no casualties and that rocket and missile alerts were activated in northern Israel due to concerns over the potential fall of interceptor debris.
Concurrently, a Lebanese report claimed an Israeli attack targeted a vehicle in the Tyre region, causing casualties on the ground.
استهداف سيارة عند مفرق البرغلية بقضاء صور pic.twitter.com/dJQVdByP3s
— Annahar (@Annahar) June 18, 2024
The events unfolded within a short span of time, with Israeli air defenses responding to potential threats in the northern skies while Hezbollah allegedly conducting surveillance over a strategic Israeli port, escalating tensions in the region. The situation remains fluid, with both sides asserting their respective actions amid heightened security concerns, and after several days of relative calm coinciding with the visit of the Biden administration's regional envoy, Amos Hochstein, who is trying to broker a deal that could avert an all-out between Israel and the Iranian-backed terrorist group.
