Israel says it has shot down an unmanned drone from Lebanon off its northern coast.
Military officials said the plane was intercepted off the coast in Israeli airspace near the city of Haifa.
Deputy defence minister Danny Danon confirmed the incident to Israeli army radio.
"We're talking about another attempt by Hezbollah to send an unmanned drone into Israeli territory," he said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "I see this attempt to breach our borders as extremely grave - we will continue to do whatever we must to protect the security of Israel's citizens."
It is the second known instance in which the Lebanese militant group, a bitter enemy of Israel, is believed to have sent a drone into its airspace.
Hizbollah has repeatedly fired rockets into Israel from Gaza Last October, the Israeli air force shot down an unmanned aircraft in a similar incident. Israel and Hizbollah fought a month-long war in 2006 that ended in a stalemate.
Mr Netanyahu recently warned that Hizbollah might try to take advantage of the instability in neighbouring Syria to obtain what he called "game-changing" weapons.
Military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner said the unmanned aircraft was detected flying over Lebanon and tracked as it approached Israeli airspace.
Lt Col Lerner said the military waited for the aircraft to enter Israeli airspace, confirmed it was "enemy," and an F-16 fighter shot it down.
The drone was flying at an altitude of about 6,000 feet and was downed roughly five miles off the coast.
Israel has become a world leader in drone technology Israeli naval forces started a search operation to find its remains.
Unnamed military sources said they believed it had been manufactured in Iran.
Mr Netanyahu was informed of the unfolding incident as he was flying north for a cultural event with members of the country's Druze minority.
Officials said his helicopter landed briefly while the drone was intercepted before Mr Netanyahu continued on his way.
Drones have become an increasingly important tool for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) for the world's military forces.
Israel is one of the world's leaders in drone technology and the ISR kit fitted on the aircraft.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Israeli Jets Shoot Down 'Hizbollah' Drone
Dengan url
http://anterinjemput.blogspot.com/2013/04/israeli-jets-shoot-down-hizbollah-drone.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Israeli Jets Shoot Down 'Hizbollah' Drone
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Israeli Jets Shoot Down 'Hizbollah' Drone
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar