Hezbollah drone threat is serious, but blown out of proportion, IDF tells ToI in Lebanon |
KHIAM, Lebanon — Hezbollah drones are not affecting Israeli operations in southern Lebanon in any meaningful way, IDF officers told The Times of Israel on Wednesday.
“The drone threat is strictly a tactical threat and not a strategic threat,” said a company commander in the Givati Brigade’s Tzabar Battalion, currently fighting under the command of the 769th ‘Hiram’ Brigade.
“I am saying this intentionally, because I also have family back home who are maybe worried about the drone threat, which I have to say has been blown out of proportion,” continued the officer.
The army is certainly paying attention to the threat from Hezbollah drones. “Jackhammer” — the warning code when a hostile drone is detected in the area — was declared on the radio during the drive from Kiryat Shemona to Khiam, a mostly Shiite village three miles (five kilometers) from the Israeli border.
Not long after, another Jackhammer warning was sounded, and the Israeli journalists on the tightly-controlled IDF-arranged tour of Khiam were forced to enter a badly damaged building for cover.
No drone was spotted.
At the same time as the visit, Hezbollah launched several drones that exploded near Israeli troops elsewhere in southern Lebanon, according to the IDF. Additionally, the IDF said two apparent drones were shot down by air defenses.
Hezbollah has had successes with its drone strikes in recent weeks. Since the April 16 ceasefire, Hezbollah has killed 4 IDF soldiers and one civilian through drone attacks, and wounded dozens more.
On Thursday, three Israeli civilians were wounded, two seriously, in a Hezbollah drone attack in the Rosh Hanikra area.
We don’t take it lightly for a second. But it’s a tactical threat and not a strategic one.
We don’t take it lightly for a second. But it’s a tactical threat and not a strategic one.
“The threat exists,” said the officer. “We don’t have any right after October 7 to dismiss any threat. We don’t take it lightly for a second. But it’s a tactical threat and not a strategic one.”
“The fighting continues as planned,” he noted, “with the appropriate adjustments for the drone threat to protect the lives of our soldiers and bring them home safely, with the central mission of protecting the residents of the north.”
Soldiers from the IDF Tzabar Battalion in the Givati Brigade operate in Al-Khiam, Lebanon, May 13, 2026 (Lazar Berman/The Times of Israel)
“We got this,” said another company commander, adding that Hezbollah’s reliance on drones launched from many miles away shows “that the enemy are cowards.”
Drones are........