I was interested to recently read about the shooting down of a drone that penetrated Israel’s border and air defenses on October 6th, and flew approximately 35 miles over Israeli settlements and military bases in the southern part of the country. The drone was eventually shot down by an Israeli Air Force F-16 fighter. It is thought that the drone entered Israel from over the Mediterranean Sea, flying from west to east. No one has yet claimed responsibility for sending it on its mission.

While much attention has been focused on Iran’s nuclear ambitions, this event points out that in the long run the use of drones to attack Israeli targets should also be of great concern to the country. Israeli defense officials believe the drone was launched by Hezbollah in Lebanon, and intended to collect intelligence and test Israel’s response time.

Some reports state that the drone was on a track that would put it over the Negev Nuclear Research Center near Dimona. Aiming drones at Israeli nuclear research facilities is just one of many potential applications for this technology, which can be very difficult to detect, and Israel’s government has good reason to be concerned.

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I am looking forward to watching the Vice Presidential debate this week. I think it will be an entertaining one.

– Bob