Lebanese political and paramilitary force Hezbollah claimed a major victory in its information warfare campaign against the Israeli Defense Force this week, publishing footage shot from one of its Hoopoe unmanned aerial vehicles operating unmolested in northern Israel, snapping high-resolution video of IDF facilities and assets at a major base.
The footage, released by Hezbollah’s Military Media Unit on Wednesday, shows Hezbollah militiamen operating a large, airplane-style turboprop-powered drone over Israel’s Ramat David Airbase –situated about 20 km southeast of Haifa, about 46 km from the border with Lebanon, in northern Israel.
The IDF appeared to confirm the authenticity of the footage on Wednesday, assuring that the base’s operations were not affected by the Hezbollah drone’s flyover, and saying the military will continue to work to “neutralize threats” posed by Hezbollah’s aerial capabilities.
A Hezbollah source told Beirut-based satellite news channel Al Mayadeen that the footage was shot on July 23, and that its release Wednesday was “linked” to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trip to Washington, sending a “message with clear implications” to Tel Aviv.
The video is the second time in less than two weeks that the militia has released footage of one of its drones freely operating inside Israeli territory. Earlier this month, the group published images captured by a drone of over a dozen strategic Israeli military sites in the occupied Golan Heights, ranging from artillery batteries, HQs and radar sites to Iron Dome platforms, radars and barracks.
Hezbollah’s ‘Hudhud’ (lit. ‘Hoopoe’) drones are named after the Israeli national bird. Media reports suggest the Hudhud is 1.5 meters long, has a 1.9 meter wingspan, an endurance time of up to half an hour, and a cruising speed of about 32 km an hour.
Senior Israeli military sources have told Israeli media that the country’s sophisticated air and missile defense network has had a hard time effectively responding to the Lebanese militia's surveillance and strike drone threat.