The Israel Defense Forces said Friday that troops intercepted a drone carrying weapons from Egypt into Israel near the Paran Brigade sector along the western border, preventing what officials described as another attempt to smuggle arms into Gaza.
According to an IDF spokesperson, soldiers monitoring the area detected the drone as it crossed from Egyptian territory into Israel. The drone was located and recovered, carrying two firearms and three magazines, which were handed over to security forces for further examination.
The interception, which occurred overnight Thursday, is part of a growing pattern of cross-border smuggling attempts along Israel’s western frontier. Military officials say hostile groups have increasingly turned to using commercially available drones to transport weapons and ammunition into Israeli territory and, in some cases, onward to Gaza.
“The forces acted swiftly and located the drone shortly after it entered Israeli airspace,” the IDF said in a statement. “The weapons and ammunition found on board have been transferred for investigation and security processing.”
This latest incident follows a series of similar operations in recent months in which the army has thwarted efforts to exploit the desert border with Egypt as a conduit for arms transfers. Security sources have warned that criminal and terror-linked networks are taking advantage of the difficult terrain and low flight paths to evade detection.
