Inexpensive fiber-optic drones are challenging Israel’s high-tech defenses, shifting the military balance in the Middle East.

A recent video showing an explosive-laden drone striking an Israeli Iron Dome battery couldn’t have been more symbolic: Israel’s famous air-defense system, which cost billions of euros, looked powerless against a small aircraft that cost a few hundred euros.

While the video’s authenticity has not yet been verified, experts believe it is genuine.

The footage was published about a week ago by Hezbollah, a Lebanon-based pro-Iranian militia, which Germany, the US and several Sunni Arab states have classified as a terrorist organization.

The drone strike, if genuine, would mark propaganda victory for Hezbollah and reveal a significant vulnerability in Israel’s military capabilities.

  • Photonic@lemmy.world
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    3 hours ago

    How arrogant the Israeli leadership was to think it couldn’t happen to them when it’s been happening on the Ukrainian battlefield for a few years now. With Iranian-made drones no less.

    • Grandwolf319@sh.itjust.works
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      1 hour ago

      Seriously, given how interconnected all these conflicts are, I’m convinced we are in WWIII,

      No one said it has to have more deaths than the last one to be considered a world war

  • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.works
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    3 hours ago

    The footage was published about a week ago by Hezbollah, a Lebanon-based pro-Iranian militia, which Germany, the US and several Sunni Arab states have classified as a terrorist organization.

    And where’s the parenthetical comma for Israel?

    Israel, the arpartheid Jewish ethnostate, has been globally condemned for its violation of human rights and massive bombings with civilian casualties, is currently invading Lebannon in an effort to expand its territory.

    • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
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      2 hours ago

      The difference is Hezbollah isn’t a country…

      If the conflict was a couple rational countries, then making your distinction makes sense. But Iran and America’s governments are just as bad as Israel’s.

      If you give a parenthetical for Israel you have to do it for America and Iran.

      Hezbollah is the odd one out, because they don’t have soverign soil to be attacked, a pretty important difference

      • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.works
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        2 hours ago

        If your goal is informing your readers, the fact that Israel is invading Lebannon is easily as important as a comically detailed explanation of how terroristy Hezbollah is.

        If your goal is sanctioning violence done by state actors–a common feature of corporate media–you´d do what they did here.

        • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
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          2 hours ago

          the fact that Israel is invading Lebannon

          Is because Hezbollah is based there…

          I’m defending Israel, this is a (not even rare) situation where every government (and non state militant organization) is a piece of shit their citizens would be better off without.

          That shouldn’t be hard to understand, but there’s a weird amount of pro-Iran accounts the last couple months, and they just won’t understand it

          • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.works
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            2 hours ago

            I´m talking about the difference between journalism and propaganda; you don´t think it’s a little weird to come away from an article like this knowing Hezabollah is a terrorist organization according to Germany, the US, and several Sunni Arab states, but not that their country is currently being invaded with tanks?

            • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
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              41 minutes ago

              but not that their country

              Non state organizations do not have their own country’s…

              Hezbollah is based in Lebanon and Lebanon is being invaded, that is not the same as Hezbollah is being invaded.

              Like, you’re mad at an explanation in the article but you obviously need the explanation…

  • itsjustachairmary@lemmy.world
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    3 hours ago

    I did see footage of a drone attacking an Iron Dome site. Looked legit for what it’s worth. Literally flew right up to it. Unfortunately no footage of the aftermath from what I saw. Must have been quite the explosion though. Anyway, this is hopeful news. Let’s hope they keep this up and force Israel to back the fuck off.

    • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
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      2 hours ago

      Literally flew right up to it

      Because you don’t see the 99.99% that were stopped at the defenses, that’s why a “swarm attack” would be so devastating.

      It’s basically the attack scene from Zion in The Matrix. A steady flow of (relatively) inexpensive attack drones. Most will fail, for a very very long time nothing gets thru. But eventually one slips thru or defenses need to reload, but one slips thru and hits something.

      If it hits something important, it’s now easier for every single one to get thru.

      This was likely just proof of concept.

      Send a wave out, aim at something random, and don’t stop till one gets thru. That is invaluable Intel for when/where to aim a swarm attack. They don’t need to breach everywhere, just one small section bearing insurmountable odds.

      It would turn Iran into a super power on the world stage

    • ArbitraryValue@sh.itjust.works
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      2 hours ago

      Let’s hope they keep this up and force Israel to back the fuck off.

      I don’t see the same connection here that you do. A failure of Israel’s defensive weapons would require them to go on the offensive. The status quo from before the October 7 attacks was tolerable to Israel because they could shoot down incoming threats but if they no longer can, they must neutralize the ability of their enemies to launch those threats.