Dramatic vid shows Israeli drones hunting Hamas terrorists down alleyway in seek & destroy mission before killer strike
ISRAELI troops are flying drones in pairs on seek and destroy missions against terrorists operating in the West Bank and Gaza.
Extraordinary drone footage seen by The Sun shows how four armed terrorists were tracked along an alleyway inside the West Bank town of Nur al-Shams Tulkarm before being killed in a targeted strike.
Israeli operators can be heard discussing the operation in the background while controlling a reconnaissance drone with a handset not much larger than a mobile, to track down the gunmen.
The terrorists appear surprised by the drone as it flies close to them at around head height.
The panicked insurgents begin throwing objects at the drone, with one firing shots from his weapon, as the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) operator withdraws from the alleyway.
Meanwhile, another drone armed with an explosive device moves in on the terrorists and drops a bomb from several hundred feet above, apparently killing all four.
The footage appears to end with the drone camera zooming in on the lifeless bodies of the four gunmen.
Eran Salmon, a bomb disposal officer with the Israeli police, described the footage as “Rare documentation of IDF forces fighting terrorism in an integrated manner using small drones.”
The former IDF special forces commander wrote on social media: “In a recent operation, four armed terrorists concealed in the complex alleys of the Nur al-Shams Tulkarm were surprised when an IDF small drone appeared and located them from a short distance.
“They fired at the drone and threw objects at it, but it managed to evade them.
“Meanwhile, another drone dropped an explosive warhead at their exact location and eliminated them.
“This event underscores the critical role of drone integration in modern urban operations.”
The IDF are increasingly using drones to target terrorists in both Gaza and the West Bank in a bid to reduce their growing casualty toll.
The narrow alleyways make for perfect hit and run ambushes by Hamas terrorists in Gaza and other groups in the West Bank.
Up to 278 Israeli soldiers have been killed in fighting and more than 3,000 have been wounded in action In Gaza.
Another 348 troops were among the 1,200 people killed in Hamas’s unprecedented cross-border attack on southern Israel on 7 October, which triggered the war.
Some were also taken back to Gaza as hostages.
More than 35,270 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
Timeline of the Israel Hamas war since Oct 7
Oct 7, 2023: Hamas gunmen launch horror attack killing thousands of innocent civilians and taking hostages
Oct 7, 2023: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel is at war and prepares revenge airstrikes on Gaza
Oct 13, 2023: Israel tells residents of Gaza City to move south along the Gaza Strip
Oct 19, 2023: Yemen’s Houthi terror groups start attacking cargo ships in the Red Sea linked to Israel including US and UK vessels
Oct 21, 2023: Aid trucks are sent through the Rafah border into Gaza
Oct 27, 2023: Israel launches ground offensive in Gaza
Nov 1, 2023: People try to evacuate Gaza completely as war ramps up but many forced to stay
Nov 15, 2023: Israeli troops enter Gaza’s biggest hospital, Al Shifa, after a siege of several days as they believe Hamas are working inside
Nov 21, 2023: Israel and Hamas announce a ceasefire to last seven days and see the exchange of hostages and Palestinian prisoners
Nov 2023: Truce ends with only half of hostages returned
Dec 1, 2023: Fighting starts up again with first round of airstrikes in weeks
Dec 4, 2023: Israeli forces launch huge ground assault in southern Gaza, towards the main southern city of Khan Younis
Dec 12, 2023: Countries call on Israel to find a new ceasefire deal to stop civilian casualties
Jan 11, 2024: US and British warplanes, ships and submarines launch retaliatory strikes across Yemen
Feb 29, 2024: More than 100 Gazans die as they queued for humanitarian aid with Israel and Hamas having different views on what happened
April 1, 2024: Israeli air strikes kill seven aid workers for the World Central Kitchen charity
April 1, 2024: Iran’s embassy hit in Damascus by a suspected Israeli airstrike killing several military officers and a top general
April 13, 2024: Tehran responds to the embassy strike by firing hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel but most are intercepted
April 19, 2024: Israel hits back at Iran with precision strike near a nuclear site in Isfahan
April 23, 2024: Israel gear up for six-week assault on Rafah
April 24, 2024: Hostage claims 70 people held captive have died after being bombed
April 29, 2024: Israel’s PM Benjamin Netanyahu could be issued with an international arrest warrant over alleged war crimes in Gaza
May 4, 2024: Ceasefire deal agreed between Israel and Hamas for 40-days
May 20, 2024: The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court lodged a formal application for arrest warrants for both Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas terror master Yahya Sinwar