The Israeli Defence Forces said three drones were fired from Lebanon into Israel, with two shot down by air defences but a third hitting a building in the upmarket town of Caesarea
Israel has blamed Iran for a drone attack on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s private residence near Tel Aviv.
The Israeli Defence Forces said that three drones were fired from Lebanon into Israel, with two of them shot down by air defences but a third punching through and hitting a building in the upmarket town of Caesarea. The prime minister’s office later confirmed that a drone had hit his residence, but that Netanyahu nor his wife Sara were there at the time. No further casualties were reported.
Locals said they heard a massive explosion. Usually, Israeli defence systems will ring out an air raid siren though none were heard on this occasion. Local resident Noam told Israel Hayom: “I live in close proximity to the prime minister’s house. I immediately went outside and came here. There was a loud boom, so I rushed to the scene. The police had established a roadblock, preventing access to the street. A helicopter was circling overhead, likely in pursuit of the drone, but it didn’t open fire.”
After the botched attack, a senior Israeli government official directed the blame at Iran, saying: “Iran tried to eliminate the Prime Minister of Israel”.
The Israeli military added that a total of more than 100 rockets were fired across northern Israel from Lebanon. At least 13 people were injured. Al Jazeera said that Israeli officials are treating the attack as an assassination attempt.
It comes after another remotely-controlled drone showed the moment of Yahya Sinwar’s death. The Hamas warlord was seen in the rubble of the shelled-out building, sitting on a dust-laden chair, with his head covered in a scarf to try and protect his identity. Sinwar looks directly at the drone, with his right hand wounded by bullets. In his left hand, he is seen throwing a stick toward the drone to try and defend himself before Israeli forces destroy the building.
Israel’s foreign minister called Sinwar’s killing a “military and moral achievement for the Israeli army.” In a statement, Minister Katz said: “The assassination of Sinwar will create the possibility to immediately release the hostages and to bring a change that will lead to a new reality in Gaza – without Hamas and without Iranian control.”
Confirmation of the death of the chief architect of last year’s attack on Israel that sparked the war came after a joint statement from the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and Israel Securities Authority (ISA) that they were “checking the possibility” that Sinwar, 62, was dead after “three terrorists were eliminated”.
It is believed Sinwar was killed on Wednesday night in the southern Gaza Strip during a routine patrol by the IDF. Soldiers reportedly came across three armed men and exchanged fire with them before killing them. With Hamas leader Sinwar now confirmed to be among the dead, it means Israel has taken out their main target in the brutal and bloody war that has raged for over a year.
