IDF concealed: Hezbollah launched an explosive drone at forces in Southern Lebanon
First publication: Ynet has learned that the terrorist organization has again violated the ceasefire and launched an explosive drone at forces in Southern Lebanon. There were no casualties and no damage, but the regional commander instructed not to report it. The army confirmed the details following a Ynet inquiry.
Another ceasefire violation: Hezbollah launched an explosive drone at IDF forces in Southern Lebanon in the last 24 hours. There were no casualties and no damage. This was learned by Ynet. The IDF chose not to report the incident, but confirmed the details in response to an inquiry. The instruction not to publish the launch was given by the Northern Command commander, Major General Rafi Milo. At the request of military sources, no further details regarding the forces' activities will be published.
The incident occurred after two reservists from the 55th Paratroopers Brigade were killed the day before yesterday — Major (res.) Harel Birenstock and Sergeant Major (res.) Tamir Vaknin — and four other soldiers were seriously wounded in an IED explosion during the scanning of a booby-trapped building. These were the first IDF casualties since the ceasefire in June 2026. The army defined the act as a violation and demanded to attack with force, but the political echelon blocked the decision, requiring the IDF to settle for pinpoint strikes last Wednesday.
The IDF is investigating the incident in depth, specifically checking when the explosive device was placed and whether its activation was carried out by Hezbollah terrorists who knew IDF forces were in the area.
Last week, Hezbollah also launched an explosive drone at an IDF engineering vehicle operating near the Ali Taher ridge. The drone hit the vehicle, but there were no casualties. The Northern Command did not respond immediately, and the issue reached the political echelon. According to sources, the Chief of Staff commented to Major General Rafi Milo, instructing that any such incident must end with an immediate attack on available Hezbollah targets before awaiting political instructions.
The Israeli response came later, following the Prime Minister's approval: the IDF destroyed a large-scale underground headquarters of Hezbollah's "Badr" unit in the Beaufort area using about 700 tons of explosives. Both political and military echelons directly linked the destruction of the headquarters to the drone launch.
