The Israel Defense Forces used an Iron Dome air-defense system to shoot down an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) it said belonged to the Hamas terror organization on Tuesday.
The UAV had approached “the Gaza maritime zone and was intercepted,” the IDF said in a statement.
“The Israeli Air Force monitored the UAV throughout the entire incident,” it said. “The IDF will continue to protect Israel’s airspace and its civilians.”
Israel’s Channel 12 news cited a resident at a local kibbutz reporting hearing a “frightening explosion” after seeing the trail of the interceptor missile.
Hamas launched six drones from the Gaza Strip during the 11-day conflict with Israel in May; the IDF intercepted all of them.
Iron Dome intercepted some 90 percent of projectiles—nearly 4,400 in total—headed for residential areas in Israel fired by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad based in Gaza during “Operation Guardian of the Walls” in May.
