IDF’s hands tied in countering Hezbollah drone threat due to truce, says official

The Israeli military is optimistic that a solution will be found to counter the threat of Hezbollah’s first-person view (FPV) fiber-optic cable-guided drones, which have been repeatedly used in attacks on Israeli troops in southern Lebanon and northern Israel in recent weeks.

A military official says the IDF has been taking the threat seriously and has been working to develop and test systems to counter the fiber-optic FPV drones, which are immune to electronic jamming. However, it is unlikely that any such system will be ready in the short term, nor will it provide a hermetic solution to the threat.

Still, the official says the most effective way to counter the threat would be to target the drone operators and Hezbollah’s supply chain for the drones. However, this is currently not possible due to the ceasefire, as Israel is only permitted to target imminent threats to troops in Lebanon, such as a drone operator actively piloting a drone.

The Israeli Air Force has been assisting ground troops in Lebanon in dealing with the FPV drone threat by deploying mobile radars to detect them and alert forces, who can then attempt to shoot them down. The IAF has also supported interceptions, reporting that it shot down at least 27 FPV drones using the short-range Iron Dome air defense system.