No quiet on the northern front: UNIFIL shoots down Israeli recon drone; IDF eliminates several Hezbollah terrorists

Despite the ostensible ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, the country’s northern border continues to be tense as the Israeli military seeks to identify and attack any instance of Hezbollah trying to restore its capabilities.

On Sunday, one of the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) reconnaissance drones was on one such mission, when it was shot down by the United Nations Peacekeeping Force (UNIFIL), the IDF said.

“An IDF intelligence-gathering drone was downed in the area of Kfar Kila in southern Lebanon during a routine intelligence-gathering activity in the area. An initial inquiry suggests that UNIFIL forces stationed nearby deliberately fired at the drone and downed it. The drone's activity did not pose a threat to UNIFIL forces,” IDF International Spokesman, Lt.-Col. Nadav Shoshani stated.

The UN force claimed that its troops “applied necessary defensive countermeasures” after the drone flew over its patrol “in an aggressive manner.”

It also claimed that another Israeli drone then dropped a grenade close to the patrol, and that an Israeli tank opened fire toward the peacekeepers, without causing any injuries.

Yesterday, an IDF intelligence-gathering drone was downed in the area of Kfar Kila in southern Lebanon during a routine intelligence-gathering activity in the area.

An initial inquiry suggests that UNIFIL forces stationed nearby deliberately fired at the drone and downed it. The… https://t.co/GPaQU1xiRM

— LTC Nadav Shoshani (@LTC_Shoshani) October 27, 2025

Shoshani denied that any fire was directed at the UNIFIL force, or that the drone had posed a threat to it. He acknowledged that a grenade was dropped at the drone’s crash site. This is a standard protocol meant to prevent data leakage after a drone or other equipment crashes in enemy territory.

The incident followed a series of targeted eliminations over the preceding weekend, which prompted Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem to threaten that “the possibility of war exists, but it is not certain. I advise [Israel], even though they are enemies, to go and implement the agreement that was reached.”

On Sunday, an airstrike in the Bekaa Valley in northern Lebanon killed Ali Hussein Al-Mousawi, a weapons dealer and smuggler for Hezbollah.

“He handled the purchasing and transfer of weapons from Syria to Lebanon. Additionally, he played a significant role in the reestablishment and strengthening of Hezbollah. Throughout the past year, the terrorist has continuously smuggled weapons for Hezbollah,” the IDF said.

In another strike the same day, the IDF killed Abd Mahmoud Al-Sayed in the area of An-Naqoura in southern Lebanon.

Al-Sayed served as “the local representative of Hezbollah in the area of Al-Bayada,” being responsible for communication between the organization and the residents of the area regarding financial and military subjects.”

However, he was also engaged in advancing “Hezbollah’s attempts to reestablish its military capabilities in the town.”

בתוך שעה: צה"ל חיסל סוחר אמצעי לחימה ואת הנציג המקומי של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה במרחב אל ביאצ׳ה

צה״ל תקף בהכוונת אמ״ן ובאמצעות חיל האוויר מוקדם יותר היום, וחיסל את המחבל עלי חסין אלמוסוי, מבריח אמצעי לחימה בארגון הטרור חיזבאללה במרחב הבקאע שבלבנון.

אלמוסוי פעל כסוחר ומבריח אמצעי… pic.twitter.com/JguTxWpHna

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 26, 2025

On Saturday, another Israeli airstrike killed a commander in Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force in southern Lebanon, after he had worked toward the reestablishment of the terror group’s combat capabilities and terror infrastructure.

Before that, a strike in the area of Jibchit in southern Lebanon eliminated a commander in the anti-tank unit of the Radwan Force, who also took part in the effort to reestablish terror infrastructure in the area.

“The IDF will continue to operate in order to remove any threat posed to the State of Israel,” the military stated.

According to Ynet News, the IDF’s Northern Command has eliminated about 330 Hezbollah terrorists since the ceasefire started, including ten in the past two weeks alone.

This is in addition to a large number of airstrikes carried out against its infrastructure.

Speaking to the news outlet al-Manar, which is affiliated with the terror group, Hezbollah leader Qassam vowed, “We, as the resistance, are ready to defend ourselves, but we have not decided to open a battle or initiate fighting.”

“However, if a battle is forced upon us, even if we have nothing but a wooden plank, we will not allow the Israelis to pass. We will fight them even if no men or women remain between us.”