Ynet: Hezbollah’s Kamikaze Drones Caused Severe Damage, Difficult Questions after Hezbollah Took Footage of Haifa Port

By Staff, Agencies

Under the title, “Difficult Questions after Hezbollah Drone Took Footage of Haifa Port”, Ynet “Israeli” daily cautioned that “The unusual footage Hezbollah released on Tuesday which shows strategic assets in the Haifa Port area filmed by a drone codenamed Hudhud raises several questions regarding ‘Israel’s’ air defense capabilities.”

According to the Ynet, “the main issue is how it managed to do so without tripping any warnings or alarms. The footage is nine minutes long, and another important issue it presents is how the drone managed to produce such high-quality, color images of sensitive sites from a relatively low altitude for such a long period of time.”

“Further, assuming the drone didn’t transmit the material back to Hezbollah in real-time, the question arises as to how it managed to cross back into Lebanon and land intact. It’s also unclear when the footage was taken and whether it was filmed by one or several drones. Putting that aside, the ‘IDF’ will want to examine the drone's capabilities, which were previously unknown to ‘Israel’.”

The daily further lamented the fact that “Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, the ‘Israeli’ army has been dealing with the complex challenge of Hezbollah’s drones. The army constantly tries to improve, mainly identification and detection capabilities against them, but false alarms often sound in suspected infiltration of such munitions.”

“During the months of fighting, the kamikaze drones have caused severe damage when they exploded, sometimes without warning, for example near a group of soldiers and caused damage to strategic ‘IDF’ bases,” it added.

Meanwhile, the “Israeli” daily underlined that “The footage appears to show details about the facilities at the ‘Rafael defense’ company factory - including Iron Dome batteries, rocket engine depots, David's Slingshot facilities and radar. The UAV also photographed the ‘Savioni Yam’ neighborhood in ‘Kiryat Yam’, apartment towers, a commercial center and a supermarket.”

“In the part where the Haifa port is photographed, ship hangars, a Naval base and structures that support special units, and the logistics aid ship ‘Bat Yam’ were recorded,” it stated.

Quoting Al-Mayadden TV, the daily warned that the video includes three types of targets: military [the military industries complex and the base in Haifa], civilian [residential areas], and strategic [the Haifa Port and its facilities]. All types of targets created a deterrence against ‘Israel’. Hezbollah wants to say that action against our military, civilian and strategic locations will be answered in the same manner.”

Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav demanded the government establish a comprehensive military plan for Haifa and find a solution against Hezbollah’s threat. “I wonder why the ‘IDF’ chief of staff and senior command haven’t bothered to visit Haifa since the start of the war and hear from the municipality about our needs and the military’s required activities to achieve the best protection for the hundreds of thousands of Haifa’s ‘residents’,” he said.