Beirut (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – On Monday, the Israeli military alleged that UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon shot down one of its drones during an intelligence-gathering mission the previous day.
An Israeli military drone was shot down by the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, during a regular surveillance mission in the Kafr Kila area yesterday.
How did Israel respond to UNIFIL’s action?
“Yesterday, an IDF intelligence-gathering drone was downed in the area of Kfar Kila in southern Lebanon during a routine intelligence-gathering activity in the area,”
military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said on X.
“An initial inquiry suggests that UNIFIL forces stationed nearby deliberately fired at the drone and downed it. The drone’s activity did not pose a threat to UNIFIL forces.”
Yesterday, an IDF intelligence-gathering drone was downed in the area of Kfar Kila in southern Lebanon during a routine intelligence-gathering activity in the area.
— LTC Nadav Shoshani (@LTC_Shoshani) October 27, 2025
An initial inquiry suggests that UNIFIL forces stationed nearby deliberately fired at the drone and downed it. The… https://t.co/GPaQU1xiRM
How did UNIFIL justify firing at the Israeli drone?
A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon spokesperson confirmed that the Israeli drone, which crashed in Kfar Kila, was shot down by U.N. peacekeepers during their patrol in the area.
Statement on grenade attack on peacekeepers:
— UNIFIL (@UNIFIL_) October 26, 2025
This afternoon, at about 5:45 p.m., an Israeli drone came close to a UNIFIL patrol operating near Kfar Kila and dropped a grenade.
UNIFIL stated that the drone flew over its patrol “in an aggressive manner.” It added that
“the peacekeepers applied necessary defensive countermeasures to neutralise the drone.”
After UNIFIL shot down the drone, the IDF reported that it deployed another drone over the area, which dropped a grenade—likely to keep suspects away from the site of the downed drone.
UNIFIL reported that a grenade was dropped close to its patrol and that an Israeli tank fired towards its observers. The IDF denies these claims, stating that no gunfire was aimed at the UNIFIL observers.
“These actions by Israel Defence Forces (IDF) are in violation of Security Council resolution 1701 and Lebanon’s sovereignty, and show disregard for safety and security of the peacekeepers implementing Security Council-mandated tasks in southern Lebanon,”
the statement further added.
Have similar Israeli drone incidents occurred in Lebanon recently?
Moreover, earlier this month, UNIFIL reported that one of its observers was lightly hurt by a grenade dropped by an Israeli drone in the Kafr Kila area of southern Lebanon yesterday, marking the third such incident in just over a month.
“Just before noon yesterday, an Israeli drone dropped a grenade that exploded near a UNIFIL position”
in Kafr Kila, the international observer force stated that the lightly wounded observer received medical assistance.
“Before the grenade was dropped, peacekeepers had observed two drones flying near their position,”
said UNIFIL.
