Non-state group learns from Ukrainian warfare to develop cabled drones that evade hi-tech defences of state army
T
he three Israeli soldiers clustered by a tank heard the noise before they saw its source. By the time they spotted the drone, it was too late. The video feed goes black as the small fibre-optic first-person-view (FPV) drone explodes next to them, killing one soldier and injuring six more.
Footage of the drones hitting Israeli tanks, soldiers and bulldozers in south Lebanon has become increasingly common as Hezbollah puts the weapon at the centre of its guerrilla war against Israel’s occupation of south Lebanon.
They are cheap, disposable and hard to evade. Unlike radio-controlled drones, they are connected to their operators by a kilometres-long fibre optic cable that cannot be jammed by electronic warfare defences. And they are a serious challenge for the Israeli military.
