Hezbollah’s drones are a danger to Israel
A drone fired from southern Lebanon by Hezbollah has caused many casualties in Israel:
Launched from southern Lebanon, a drone was able to penetrate Israeli air defenses undetected and hit the Golani Brigade’s base some 40 miles into Israel from the border. It struck on Sunday just after 7pm – at dinner time – and while the military has not released any details about the impact site, photos from the scene make it clear the drone hit the base’s dining hall. …
Both the timing and the location of the strike suggest that Hezbollah had gathered enough intelligence and possesses the capabilities to maximize the number of casualties. The Golani Brigade is regarded as an elite Israeli infantry unit and has been deployed to southern Lebanon as part of Israel’s ground operation there.
Four soldiers were killed, and more than 60 others were injured, eight of them seriously, bringing the total number of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers killed since the start of the ground operation two weeks ago to at least 18.
Sunday’s assault is also the single bloodiest attack on IDF troops inside Israel since the beginning of the war last October.
If Israel didn’t have extremely good warning and interception systems, the death toll in Israel over the last year would have been far higher. But although those systems detect some drones, other drones can evade them and that’s what happened to the soldiers in the dining hall. They had no warning whatsoever.
More about the problem posed by drones can be found here:
Hezbollah has been operating drones, primarily for reconnaissance purposes, since before the Second Lebanon War in 2006. With the advancement of Iran’s unmanned vehicle program over the past two decades, Hezbollah, like other Iranian proxy organizations, has been equipped with a large number of cutting-edge Iranian-made tools for reconnaissance, attack, and target destruction.
The UAV that struck the military base was likely a “Mirsad” drone manufactured by the Iranians. It’s a small aircraft with an explosive warhead of about 44 pounds that can reach speeds of about 124 mph. …
Hezbollah holds an unknown quantity of heavy and large cruise missiles of the DR3 model, originating from Russian-made Tupolev drones converted into “suicide” vehicles that can reach ranges of over 124 miles with a heavy warhead of 661 pounds. These come with significant advantages but also clear drawbacks.
The heavy drone requires a massive launcher that must be placed in a building or on a truck and can be detected relatively easily. In recent weeks, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has successfully documented the destruction of several such drones hidden in civilian homes in southern Lebanon. So far, there is no known successful launch of this weapon …
[The article goes on to describe other types of drones in Hezbollah’s arsenal, and then this] … The Shahed-136 has so far proven to be one of the most significant assets in Hezbollah’s drone arsenal. It has a quiet electric motor and an extremely low radar signature, making it very hard to intercept. It has a range of almost 500 miles and an armor-piercing warhead of about 18 pounds. Due to its difficulty in interception, it is relatively slow and flies at a speed of only about 75 mph, a fraction of that of other suicide drones in Hezbollah’s possession.
However, its relatively simple systems give it another advantage – it’s very cheap, costing only $20,000 per unit, which means it can be held in large quantities, as Hezbollah does. It’s very easy to launch and needs only minimal ground space for deployment. All these qualities make it a perfect drone for attacking in a swarm tactic, as Hezbollah has already demonstrated.
Drones of this type are relatively new and military defenses all over the world are struggling to keep up with the threat they represent:
Tal Inbar, a senior research fellow at the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, explains that the defense establishment is not surprised by this: “The problem starts with topography. The terrain in Lebanon is mountainous, unlike the plain where Gaza is located. It’s carved with mountains and valleys and makes it very difficult to detect aircraft flying low and using the terrain to hide in it.” In conclusion, Inbar says: “We don’t yet have a system that’s a game-changer. Our success will come from the systems and a precise concept of operation.”
A possible partial solution to the threat is a return to using Vulcan cannons, which fire small shells at a tremendous rate and can be placed at many key points throughout the north as a complementary part of the interception array.
Additionally, the entry of a laser system into operational service can at least partially assist in closing gaps during drone swarms and improving interception capabilities.
Oh Brave New World.
Bring on the Frikin’ Lasers! Soonest!
Sure, drones are a danger, but this seemed more about strategy/tactics.
Hez fired something (missiles?) from the SE Lebanon into NE Israel/Golan Heights first, and then launched drones from SW into NW, if I recall correctly.
I think the Russians are helping in this—thru Russian or Iranian contacts…Israel could be in trouble.
Well the drones were reversed engineered by iranian technicians after the drone that crashed in 2012 the following year a drone pilot defected to the regime nurges witte that probably gave them more insights into the technical aspects
The IDF needs to stay in southern Lebanon clearing out Hezbollah armament stores. No ceasefire until Hezbollah armaments south of the Litani are considerably reduced.
Too Fun to Check: Hezbollah May Be Broke
That makes me very sad, that Hez soldiers may not get paid. I wonder how much of that $175m that Kamala said the Biden administration is sending to Lebanon will go to pay the salaries of Hex soldiers. 🙂
Vulcan cannons. Those are 20 MM rounds . What goes up , must come down. A falling 20mm round would be deadly.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/hezbollah-rockets-pummel-swaths-of-israel-as-idf-vows-to-eliminate-groups-drone-unit/
Video of the rocket impact in Karmiel at link.
https://x.com/Doranimated/status/1845858873556521132
Video of a lucky motorcyclist and slightly less lucky pedestrians at second link, as falling rocket chunk bounces within feet of them.
Bibi asks nicely “Please leave so you aren’t harmed” (1:26): https://youtu.be/rBdl32r22tg
But no, says UNIFIL, we like being shields for Hezbollah:
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/defying-israel-unifil-chief-says-peacekeepers-to-stay-in-all-positions-in-lebanon/
Unknown drone force swarmed Langley AFB for seventeen days. Military was prohibited from shooting them down.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/unknown-drone-fleet-breached-us-military-base-airspace-virginia-17-straight-days-report
Law Enforcement usually goes for the Top Criminal in a Criminal Enterprise—you know, like the God Father instead of the dude emptying a trailer or the Drug Supplier instead of the corner Drug Dealer.
This has been one of my complaints about Trump. Sure, one might expect a crooked cop (Obama & Biden) to ignore the Drug Supplier and bust another Dealer instead.
Anyone not seeing Iran as the God Father or Drug Supplier or Head of the Axis of Resistance is…
UN peacekeeping troops failing Israel as Hezbollah creates terror tunnels right under their noses
Am trying to hold off on the Trump bashing for the next few weeks until the election is over—what with nerves getting on edge the closer it gets, but it’s not easy whilst seeing Iran ‘Free as a Bird’ and Israel fighting for its survival…
The drone flyover of Langley, which is home to our most advanced fighter jets, continued on across the water to Norfolk Naval Base, the largest such in the world. The Seal Team complex is nearby at Little Creek.
John Baker,
Anti-aircraft shells are generally equipped with two fuzes. One is the anti-aircraft fuze such as proximity fuze or contact fuze. The other is a time fuze which explodes the round at a distance which is presumed to be beyond its effective range. So they all explode up in the air, someplace, whether they hit the target or go on and self-destruct. That leaves shreds of metal falling.
When the incoming stuff is so effective and hard to stop, it can be considered an escalation. So, instead of batting away the incoming munitions, or failing to due to its qualities, you escalate back and stop playing defense. You hit the launching sites, or other resources like….major command centers. Assembly facilities. Transport hubs.
Wait what
https://twitchy.com/aaronwalker/2024/10/14/did-the-new-york-times-publish-forged-evidence-of-israeli-atrocities-n2402092
Well, we have been witness to Drone warfare in Ukraine now for over a yr. So, it isn’t a surprise that Hezb/Iran is heavy into drones.
As too not shooting down the drones flying over our military bases, that has to stop – but not in this Admin nor hers if she wins.
Maybe the order not to shot stems from the fact the drones are from another Fed agency? Who knows.
WRT the bullets and the kids. I never deployed. However, I did spend a good deal of time on one or another rifle range and saw what happened to various terrain features beyond the target line. Trees were penetrated by bullets. Various wooden supports of warning signs had wooden stands which had through-and-through holes. A kid’s skull or neck….not blown apart and with the pristine bullet still inside? Nope.
And note that they all, eventually, died. Nope. Hit like that and you’re dead instantly and no amount of first aid will get you to the rear in shape for a doctor. You’re dead and you’re missing pieces.
And for the simplest give-away; each bullet is perpendicular to the X-ray camera.
How many of the US Army troops Biden sent to Israel will be killed by these drones?
By the drones? There’s potential I guess, but possibly no greater than by a Pali vehicle ramming attack, a drive-by gunning, or some other more up-close and personal terrorist action. It’s Israel and that sort of stuff happens a lot, despite all the extreme efforts to stop it.
Their duty station will be on an Israeli military reservation so drive by shooting or vehicle ramming is not going to happen. And it would have no chance of happening if Biden hadn’t sent them to Israel.
Guys may find days off and go into town, to bars, whatever. Shit happens.
Let me see, drones comming from Lebanon, AA rounds that miss incomming drones fall in Lebanon or fall onto Israel. The Phalanx type system is radar guided and software operated. Not an inshahalla MK 2 eyeball spray and pray. They use a tungsten or DU round IIRC.
As regards ordnance falling from the sky, it is a war zone after all.
@miguel cervantes:Wait what
NYT publishing unvetted fake atrocity photos implicating Israel is 100% what they do.
One thing we probably should note but haven’t yet: Israel is also a very capable producer of drones, loitering munitions, cruise missiles and alla that juicy technological stuff. Iran itself may get a taste of that capability here in the not too distant future.