More than 72 hours after the incident, Hezbollah claimed responsibility on Tuesday for launching the drone at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Caesarea residence on Saturday, with officials later confirming that the drone had indeed struck the prime minister's house. Footage from the scene showed the extent of the damage.
The direct hit on Netanyahu's house precisely struck the bedroom window. All three drones launched that day were reportedly intended to target the prime minister's residence. The impact scattered drone debris across the swimming pool and yard.
Earlier, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the assassination attempt on Netanyahu. The group's media chief, Mohammed Afif, stated during a press conference: "We take full and exclusive responsibility for targeting the criminal's house." Afif issued a threat to Netanyahu, warning that Hezbollah would attempt another assassination.
Netanyahu and his wife Sara were not at the residence during the strike. Following the launches targeting his residence, Netanyahu recorded a video saying: "We are moving forward, nothing will deter us. I am proud of the IDF soldiers." Meanwhile, Iran's UN mission rejected reports of Iranian involvement in the attempt to strike Netanyahu's residence, stating: "The operation was carried out by Hezbollah in Lebanon."
According to initial investigation findings of the drone launch toward the Netanyahu family residence, a helicopter that was dispatched failed to identify the aircraft, and sirens were activated in military areas but not in Caesarea. Meanwhile, some in Netanyahu's circle believed Iran should face harsher retaliation following the drone strike. Not only did Netanyahu's associates define the drone launch as an assassination attempt, but security officials also stated, "This is an attempt to harm the prime minister."
