Special to WorldTribune.com

TEL AVIV — Israel has reported the interception of an unmanned
aerial vehicle launched by the Iranian-sponsored Hizbullah.

The Israeli military said an unidentified UAV entered Israeli air space
from Lebanon on April 25. The statement said the Air Force’s Air Defense
Command tracked the unmanned vehicle while still in Lebanon.

“Shortly after 1 p.m. a drone was identified as it was flying north to
south along the Lebanese coastline,” the military said. “The air defense
system tracked it for several minutes while it was still in Lebanese
territory, and it was under surveillance throughout its flight until the
interception.”

The statement said the downing of the UAV was approved by Israel Air
Force commander Maj. Gen. Amir Eshel. The military said both F-16
fighter-jets and attack helicopters were ordered to confront the Hizbullah
aircraft, downed some 10 kilometers from the coast of the Israeli city of
Haifa.

The military did not identify the UAV or say whether it was carrying an
explosive payload. Military sources said the unmanned aircraft was shot down at an altitude of 6,000 feet.

Israeli defense analyst Ron Ben-Yishai said the UAV was believed to have
been launched from a Hizbullah base in the Bekaa Valley. Ben-Yishai said the
Israeli interception of the UAV was aided by additional assets, including
radars and a Patriot missile defense battery deployed in northern Israel
over the last six months.

“It is safe to assume that Hezbollah and the Iranian instructors aiding
them in the remotely-piloted vehicle and mini remotely-piloted vehicle
field wanted to test anew their route into Israel as well as the IDF’s
alertness in wake of highly publicized reports of Patriot missile batteries
being deployed in the Haifa region,” Ben-Yishai wrote on the Israeli news
website Ynet.

“The Patriot missiles come equipped with a special radar
capable of spotting just such small UAVs.”

This marked the second Hizbullah interception of Israeli air space in
less than a year. In October 2012, a Hizbullah UAV flew over Israel for
nearly an hour before it was downed in the southern West Bank.

“I view with great gravity this attempt to violate our border,” Israeli
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. “We will continue to do what is
necessary to defend the security of Israel’s citizens and Israel.”

  Air Defense Command, Bekaa Valley, Benjamin Netanyahu, down Hizbullah drone, Israel used multiple assets to track, Maj. Gen. Amir Eshel