Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Sunday said all of its drones successfully entered the Israeli airspace and the mission was a success.
Nasrallah added that the response was delayed due to several reasons, including ongoing ceasefire talks in Cairo and negotiations over hostage release.
“The group decided not to respond to the killing of top commander by targeting civilian areas...We wanted to target military sites close to Tel Aviv...military intelligence base 110 km into Israeli territory—1.5km away from Tel Aviv was targeted,” he said in a televised address.
It was the first time, Hezbollah had sent drones to Israel from the Bekaa region. Katyusha rockets were also fired to distract the Iron Dome, paving the way for the other drones to enter the airspace.
“We launched drones from both south and north of Litani River,” Nasrallah said.
All drones launched successfully and entered Israeli air space, he added.
Hezbollah had no plans to fire at targets in Tel Aviv, including Ben Gurion airport and the Israeli Defence Ministry.
He also added that none of the precision or strategic missiles were damaged in Israeli strikes. “We had no intention to use precision missiles today, but may use them in the near future,” Nasrallah said.
“Our military operation was completed as planned, with precision...We will assess the impact of today's operation if results are not seen to be enough...we will respond another time,” he added.
Israel’s preemptive strike across southern Lebanon has escalated the cross-border conflict. Though both sides halted the offensive, the situation remained tense in the region.
The Israeli military said it had launched around 100 fighter jets for the preemptive strikes. PM Benjamin Netanyahu said, “this is not the end of the story.” “We would hurt anyone, who would try to hurt us,” he added.