Exclusive Body Camera Footage: Explosive Drone Strikes Near IDF Forces

By Nitzan Shapira

In the exclusive footage we published yesterday (Sunday), it is possible to closely see how Hezbollah’s explosive drones threaten IDF forces. In the footage, captured by a GoPro camera mounted on the head of one of the fighters, the unit is seen on high alert. "Don't sit on your butt, be ready to respond. That was a UAV – try to identify it, another one is heading our way," the soldiers can be heard saying in the video.

Shortly afterward, the soldier wearing the camera wondered why another soldier, who was some distance away, started running. Seconds later, a sudden explosion occurred near the spot where the soldier had been running.

The explosive drones launched by Hezbollah during the "ceasefire" in the north are exacting a heavy, harsh, and painful toll. The published footage highlights the danger facing forces in the field, where explosive drones can appear at any moment and strike them.

Just this morning, it was cleared for publication that Staff Sgt. Adam Tzarfati was killed by an explosive drone strike during operations in southern Lebanon; three additional soldiers were wounded. Yesterday, the name of Staff Sgt. Michael Tyukin was cleared for publication – he fell as a result of an explosive drone strike during the capture of the Beaufort outpost. Michael, of blessed memory, is the 13th casualty since the "ceasefire" with Hezbollah was declared in April, with the vast majority of those killed falling victim to fiber-optic explosive drones.

Yakir Parti, one of the injured from the explosive drone attack in Shomera in which Sergeant Rotem Yanai was killed, spoke publicly for the first time from his hospital bed and described the chain of events that led to the strike.

Parti was initially called up together with his emergency response unit partner, Tamir Malkov, to a fire near the settlement of Even Menachem. After they finished handling the incident and refilled the water tank of their fire truck, another call came in to a military base in the Shomera area, where another fire had been reported. The two arrived at the base entrance and waited for permission to enter.

At that time, the drone incident in which Rotem Yanai was killed was already underway inside the base. Parti and Malkov entered the area to assist but did not manage to reach the scene. “Two minutes after entering the base, Tamir spotted it on the left coming toward us, the drone,” he said. “I told him to step on it and we tried to escape.” According to him, within seconds the drone had already locked onto them. “After twenty seconds it identified us, chased us, and exploded behind us.”

Parti said this was the first time he was directly exposed to a drone threat: “First time I was exposed to incidents like this. Actually seeing it with my eyes.” When asked what it looks like when a drone locks onto a target, he replied: “It literally chases you. Once they identify a target and lock on, there’s nothing you can do.” He added that this is a threat that must be addressed. “The amount of explosives is small, but the power is truly dangerous. We were very lucky to get out alive.”