The unidentified object that crossed into Israel from Lebanon on Saturday night was most likely a balloon or a device floating on hot air, not a drone or unmanned aerial vehicle, the IDF said on Tuesday following an in-depth investigation.
The IDF Spokesperson said the object may have been an innocent item that drifted into Israeli territory, but stressed that its origin and purpose cannot yet be determined with certainty.
The incident began at around 8 p.m. on Saturday, when IDF lookouts identified an unidentified aerial object in the area of Arab al-Aramshe, a village in the Western Galilee on the border with Lebanon, according to Israeli media reports. The object set off alerts in the village, and large forces were dispatched to the area. Roadblocks were set up, and searches continued through the night in nearby communities.
According to the IDF, the object was detected by lookouts and Air Force detection systems, which tracked it and directed forces on the ground throughout the incident.
Defenses in communities in the area were reinforced, including local rapid response teams, until all checks are complete. The object has not yet been located, and aerial and ground searches are continuing. The IDF said there has been no change in Home Front Command guidelines.
The IDF also addressed recent reports of false detections and interceptions of suspicious targets, saying the Air Force has been conducting detection and interception operations on multiple fronts throughout the war, with the safety of civilians and troops as its top priority.
“The difference between a drone and a bird is very small,” the IDF said. “Because of this, we don't take any risks. Once a potential threat is identified, a rapid and decisive process is carried out up to the interception of the target.”
The IDF added that its detection systems are being reviewed in order to improve identification capabilities and draw lessons from the incident.
