Israel destroys 3 Hezbollah drones heading towards Karish gas field in Mediterranean Sea

Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) on Saturday shot down three Hezbollah drones heading towards the disputed Karish gas field in the Mediterranean Sea. In a statement, the IDF confirmed the interception and said that all the drones were launched from Lebanon. Later, Hezbollah-an Iran backed Lebanese terror group- released a brief statement to take responsibility for the failed attacks, asserting that they had targetted the oil rig as part of a reconnaissance flight. 

Karish gas field has been a bone of contestation

The oil rig, located off the Israeli coast, has been a bone of contention between the Jewish administration and Hezbollah (which indirectly controls power in Lebanon) for a long time. Israel says the drilling platform is in part of its UN-recognised exclusive economic zone, but Beirut insists it is in a disputed area. Notably, both the countries, with no existing diplomatic ties, have long been involved in a US-mediated negotiation to resolve the conflict.

Earlier, Israel’s Defence Minister Benny Gantz said the Islamist group was "preventing the state of Lebanon from reaching an agreement regarding maritime borders, which are critical to the economy and prosperity of the Lebanese nation".

Meanwhile, the IDF on Saturday, in its release, said that all three drones were neutralized by a combination of an F-16 jet and missiles fired from a ship. They explained that the UAVs were intercepted “at a safe distance from” the drilling platform. Interestingly, it was the first time that Israel used the Barak 8- missiles jointly developed by the Israeli Military and India's DRDO. 

"The detection and alert systems functioned as required. This embodies the concept of multi-layered air defense in the best possible manner in unison with the professional activities of the soldiers at sea and in the air who successfully carried out the defensive mission," IDF said.

Israel, which has been mired by faltering political stability in the past few weeks, has been on alert owing to escalating tensions with the militant group Hezbollah. Apart from the escalation on the Lebanese border, attacks in the Gaza Strip are also increasing with the Hamas terror group abducting Jewish troops. The attacks come days before US President Joe Biden's visit to Israel and West Bank, wherein he is poised to meet leaders from both sides. 

(Representative Image: AP)