Israel Says It Foiled a Smuggling Attempt of Reconnaissance Drones to Gaza Strip

File photo: An Israeli soldier during clashes with Palestinians (dpa)
File photo: An Israeli soldier during clashes with Palestinians (dpa)
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Israel Says It Foiled a Smuggling Attempt of Reconnaissance Drones to Gaza Strip

File photo: An Israeli soldier during clashes with Palestinians (dpa)
File photo: An Israeli soldier during clashes with Palestinians (dpa)

The Israeli defense ministry said on Wednesday that security personnel have thwarted an attempt to smuggle ten small drones into the Gaza Strip, the Arab News Agency (ANA) reported.

In a statement, the Ministry said its “security personnel thwarted an attempt to smuggle 10 reconnaissance drones into the Gaza Strip at the Erez Crossing.”

It added that the "drones are suspected to have been intended for reconnaissance purposes by terrorist groups operating within the Gaza Strip.”

According to the statement, the drones were perfectly hidden inside a suitcase and put on a vehicle bound to the Gaza Strip.

It added that the drones were intended to reach Palestinian organizations for the purpose of gathering information.



Lebanon Urges International Probe Into Deadly Golan Strike

Border fence between Lebanon and Israel (AFP)
Border fence between Lebanon and Israel (AFP)
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Lebanon Urges International Probe Into Deadly Golan Strike

Border fence between Lebanon and Israel (AFP)
Border fence between Lebanon and Israel (AFP)

Lebanon on Sunday called for an international investigation into a strike that killed 12 people including children on the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, warning against a large-scale retaliation.

The Israeli military said that an Iranian-made rocket that Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah group fired on Saturday hit a football field in Majdal Shams, a Druze Arab town, killing children and teenagers who were playing there.

Hezbollah, which claimed multiple attacks on Israeli military positions during the day, has denied it was behind the Majdal Shams strike, saying it had "no connection" to the incident.

In a statement on X, Lebanon's Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib urged for an "international investigation or a meeting of the tripartite committee held through UNIFIL to know the truth" about who was responsible for the attack, AFP reported.

The tripartite committee refers to military officials from Lebanon and Israel, which are technically at war, together with peacekeepers from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

He insisted the Lebanese group targets "only military" positions and ruled out them carrying out an intentional attack on civilians in Majdal Shams.

The statement, carried by the state-run National News Agency, said that Bou Habib also "called for the complete and comprehensive application" of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701.

The resolution ended a 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, and called for the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers to be the only armed forces deployed in south Lebanon.

"A large attack by Israel on Lebanon will lead to a deterioration of the regional situation and will spark regional war," Bou Habib warned, according to the statement.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Sunday vowed to "hit the enemy hard" following the Majdal Shams strike, while Iran warned Israel that any new military "adventures" in Lebanon could lead to "unforeseen consequences".