May 30th, 2015.

Hezbollah, Drones and the Next War.

A Short History of Hezbollah Drones.

Hezbollah announced their possession of surveillance drones way back in 2004 I was stunned to discover. Using the Iranian made Mojaher in surveillance missions over Israel in 2004 and 2006,

The use of surveillance drones is now commonplace, even amongst non-state actors. It is little more than a remote-controlled plane with a camera attached when you get down to it.

Attack drones, on the other hand are still an “upper end” item requiring a high degree of technical sophistication.

In 2011, Iran gained possession of a US Sentinel drone and claimed to have hacked into the device’s communications a claim that was borne out by the fact that the Iranians were able to display the US drone completely intact.

Breaking News Footage from captured U.S drone RQ 170 by Iran

In October 2012 a Hezbollah drone flew over Southern Israel, near the Dimona Nuclear site, before being destroyed by an Israeli F 16 aircraft. .

‘Hezbollah drone photographed secret IDF bases’ – Defense – Jerusalem Post

Video: IDF downs drone that entered Israel airspace

Later Iran used the information gleaned from the Sentinel, produced by Lockheed Martin, to make their own version. This was followed by a very strange incident in April 2013, when it appears that Hezbollah remotely hacked into and seized control of an Israeli drone forcing the IDF to destroy it.

ISRAEL ARMY Shoots Down Unmanned AIRCRAFT, Is This A HEZBOLLAH DRONE ?

In September 2014, Hezbollah commenced the use of armed drones, killing a claimed 23 al Nusra fighters in a drone attack in Western Syria. This week Hezbollah conducted at least two drone strikes against al Nusra fighters in the Qalamoun border region.

Hezbollah drones wreak havoc on Syrian rebel bases | The Times of Israel

In recent days Hezbollah’s media outlet al Manar television released footage shot by their drones that have successfully targeted al Nusra front fighters in the Syrian/Lebanon border area. This is a video that shows the strikes.

Syria: Hezbollah Operations in Qalamoun – Part 8: Ambush

In the wake of the September, 2014 attacks, Israeli newspapers released imagery purporting to show the site of a Hezbollah runway in the Bekaa Valley region of Eastern Lebanon.

Drones- An Ethical Means of Warfare?

These attacks took place in a remote area and there appear not to be any civilians or villages in the vicinity of the strikes. If Hezbollah were using the drones in the manner of the United States they would blow up the homes of militants and kill their extended family. Armed drones are a tremendous battlefield tool for fairly obvious reasons. They enable the enemy to be identified and targeted without any risk to your own fighters.

The problem with the US drone attacks has been the targets that have been chosen. The funerals, the family homes, the attacks on civilians helping the wounded from previous attacks. Therefore in my opinion the rules for drones are basically the same for any other weapon. If militants are targeted on a battlefield, the use is ethical, if civilian areas are targeted the use is unethical.

War is Not a Game.

The idea that in war you are supposed to give the enemy an even chance and “fight fair.” that you should stand on one hill with a rifle firing at the opposition on another hill and the person with the best aim and eyesight wins, is hopelessly naive. War is the destruction of human beings and infrastructure in pursuit of a political goal.  The object is to destroy the enemy. There is no fairness, no even chance. This is not analogous to a sporting contest. That was a lie the war party sold to a naive public in order to promote war in my opinion. To make it seem like a fun and harmless game. It is the exact opposite.

Will Israel Strike Lebanon?

From the psychopathic Zionist point of view, it would make sense to attack Lebanon while the Hezbollah group are heavily engaged in the Syrian Civil war and taking heavy casualties there. If the Israelis believe that another war with Hezbollah is inevitable, it would make sense for them to conduct the war whilst Hezbollah are stretched, reasoning that this will give them a greater chance of Military success.

The Israelis know that they cannot destroy Hezbollah, or anything resembling that and the Hezbollah possession of attack drones may give the Israelis pause, contemplating the fact that there would be no defense against a large number of Hezbollah UAV’s deployed simultaneously. Even a superficial attack on the Dimona Nuclear plant could lead to a major World War 3 type of dramatic escalation that in a worst case scenario could see both Israel and the surrounding region destroyed.

Israel may well hope to somehow provoke an Iranian response that could derail the detente currently underway between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the West. A detente that is the biggest slap in the face that either Israel or the Saudis could ever suffer. Israel may hope that an attack on Lebanon, under whatever pretext could trigger an Iranian response that would destroy the diplomatic process. Mondoweiss speculated upon this scenario recently,

Turning Lebanon into Gaza — Israel’s hole card against Iran deal?

and the same speculation was also found in this Huff-Po article.

The Iran Talks Game Changer: An Israeli-Hezbollah War? | Trita Parsi

Two of the three months between the implicit Nuclear agreement and the date to actually sign the deal have now passed. If  the month of June passes without calamity the Zionist war party may be facing the death of the cherished dream of the United States violently destroying Iran forever.

If Israel wanted to attack Iran, they would attack Iran, they do not . They want the US to do it and that has been obvious for years.

The Saudis have responded to this disappointment by engaging in the campaign of mass murder and crimes against humanity that is still underway in Yemen. The campaign is ongoing after more than two months and achieving absolutely nothing for the dead men walking of the House of Saud. Israel’s response,  if experience is anything to go by, will make the Saudi crimes against humanity look puny.