An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) fell in Jordanian territory on Tuesday, 200 meters from the Israeli border and near the Ilan and Asaf Ramon Airport and the city of Eilat.
“A short while ago, a suspicious aerial target that fell outside of Israeli territory northeast of the city of Eilat was identified,” the Israel Defense Forces said, adding that “the incident has concluded and the details are under review.”
The Eilat Municipality confirmed the incident, while the Israel Airports Authority said the airport was not in danger during the incident, which occurred during an aviation exercise at the airport, according to the IDF’s Yoav Brigade, which is responsible for defending the southern Negev and the Arava regions. The drill was halted following the incident.
No injuries or damage were reported.
Pictures of the incident show the drone on fire after crashing in an open area.
The Eilat area has been targeted by several drone attacks during the current Gaza war, including overnight Sunday when a naval base was lightly damaged by a UAV launched from Iraq that entered Israeli territory from Jordan.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq took responsibility for that attack, claiming it struck a “vital target” in Israel.
The same organization has launched other attacks on Israeli territory in recent months, including launching two drones from Syria at northern Israel in early January, which were shot down by Israeli Air Force fighter jets. The Islamic Resistance in Iraq said the attacks were “in support of Gaza.”
In December, Jordanian air defenses intercepted an armed drone fired by the group that was headed towards Eilat.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis have also launched multiple missile and drone attacks at Eilat in support of Hamas. Most of the launches were thwarted by Israeli, U.S. or Saudi forces or missed their targets.
