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German Authorities Arrest Lebanese Man Accused of Procuring Drone Components for Hezbollah

Police officer stand in front of a mosque in Berlin on Dec. 18, 2018 (Paul Zinken/dpa via AP)
Police officer stand in front of a mosque in Berlin on Dec. 18, 2018 (Paul Zinken/dpa via AP)
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German Authorities Arrest Lebanese Man Accused of Procuring Drone Components for Hezbollah

Police officer stand in front of a mosque in Berlin on Dec. 18, 2018 (Paul Zinken/dpa via AP)
Police officer stand in front of a mosque in Berlin on Dec. 18, 2018 (Paul Zinken/dpa via AP)

A Lebanese man accused of being a member of the Hezbollah militant group and procuring drone components that were to be exported for use in attacks against Israel has been arrested in Germany, prosecutors said Monday.

The suspect, identified only as Fadel Z. in line with German privacy rules, was arrested in Salzgitter in northern Germany on Sunday, federal prosecutors said in a statement.

He joined Hezbollah in Lebanon by the summer of 2016, prosecutors said. This year, he allegedly started procuring components in Germany for the assembly of military drones, particularly engines, on the group's orders. “They were supposed to be exported to Lebanon and used in terrorist attacks on Israel,” prosecutors said, The AP reported.

On Monday, Fadel Z. was brought before a judge, who ordered him kept in custody pending a possible indictment.

The Iranian-backed Hezbollah and Israel have been trading near daily exchanges of fire since the Israel-Hamas war broke out nine months ago.

Hezbollah says it is striking Israel in solidarity with Hamas, another Iran-allied group that ignited the war in Gaza with its Oct. 7 attack into southern Israel. Hezbollah's leadership says it will stop its attacks once there is a ceasefire in Gaza and that, while it does not want war, it is ready for one.

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US Approves $20 billion in Weapons Sales to Israel

FILE - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to a joint meeting of Congress at the Capitol in Washington, July 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson, File)
FILE - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to a joint meeting of Congress at the Capitol in Washington, July 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson, File)
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US Approves $20 billion in Weapons Sales to Israel

FILE - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to a joint meeting of Congress at the Capitol in Washington, July 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson, File)
FILE - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to a joint meeting of Congress at the Capitol in Washington, July 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson, File)

The US has approved $20 billion in arms sales to Israel, including scores of fighter jets and advanced air-to-air missiles, the State Department announced Tuesday, The AP reported.

Congress was notified of the impending sale, which includes more than 50 F-15 fighter jets, Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles, or AMRAAMs, 120 mm tank ammunition and high explosive mortars and tactical vehicles and comes at a time of intense concern that Israel may become involved in a wider Middle East war.

However, the weapons are not expected to get to Israel anytime soon, they are contracts that will take years to fulfill. Much of what is being sold is to help Israel increase its military capability in the long term, the earliest systems being delivered under the contract aren't expected until the 2026 timeframe.

“The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to US national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability. This proposed sale is consistent with those objectives,” the State Department said in a release on the sale.

The Biden administration has had to balance its continued support for Israel with a growing number of calls from lawmakers and the US public to curb military support there due to the high number of civilian deaths in Gaza. It has curbed one delivery of 2,000-pound weapons amid continued airstrikes by Israel in densely populated civilian areas in Gaza.

The contracts will cover not only the sale of new 50 aircraft to be produced by Boeing. It will also include upgrade kits for Israel to modify its existing fleet of two dozen F-15 fighter jets with new engines and radars, among other upgrades. The jets comprise the biggest portion of the $20 billion in sales with the first deliveries expected in 2029.