Hezbollah shoots down $6 million Israeli UAV

Hezbollah claims to have shot down a $6 million Israeli UAV, with the country's military saying the aircraft was hit by an anti-aircraft missile and crashed in Lebanese territory.

"The Israeli military drone shot down by the Islamic resistance forces over Lebanese territory was a Hermes 900 model," Hezbollah announced on April 6, releasing the moment the vehicle was hit by a bullet and fell to the ground.

Avichay Adraee, an Arabic-language spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), later said that an Israeli military UAV was hit by an anti-aircraft missile while flying over Lebanese airspace.

"The UAV crashed on Lebanese territory. We are investigating the incident," Mr. Adraee said, but did not disclose information about the model of the downed vehicle.

Hezbollah shoots down $6 million Israeli UAV — UAV shot down by Hezbollah in Lebanese territory on April 6. Video : *Hezbollah*

Hours after Hezbollah downed the drone, the IDF carried out airstrikes in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon. Among the targets hit were a Hezbollah training camp in the village of Janta, near the Syrian border, and a target near the town of Safri, according to two Lebanese security sources.

The Hermes 900 costs around $6 million each and is used for reconnaissance, surveillance, intelligence gathering and target designation. It has a wingspan of 15 meters, weighs 970 kg and can fly up to 9,000 meters. The Hermes 900 is the second largest reconnaissance UAV in the IDF's inventory.

Since the Gaza war began in October 2023, cross-border fighting between Lebanon's Hezbollah and the Israeli military has been taking place almost daily. Hezbollah has claimed that it carried out the attack on Israel in a show of solidarity with the people of the Gaza Strip.

Hassan Nasrallah, leader of Hezbollah, announced on April 6 that the group has not used weapons or sent its main force into battle with Israel. Mr. Nasrallah affirmed that Hezbollah "is not afraid of war and is fully prepared for any war with Israel".