Hamas capture of Israeli drone a regional game-changer

Empowering Weak & Oppressed

Crescent International

Rajab 10, 1444 2023-02-01

Daily News Analysis

by Crescent International

The Beirut-based Al-Mayadeen news channel reported on January 29 that “Palestinian resistance movement Hamas said on Sunday it downed and captured an IOF military remote surveillance small drone over Gaza.”

The Lebanese report referenced the footage widely shared on social media showing the captured Israeli drone.

The western corporate media did not report this news, for obvious reasons.

Western media outlets rarely report news which expose Israeli weaknesses or show it as a vulnerable party.

It erodes Israel’s deterrence, the most heavily-armed entity in the region.

The zionist regime has massive amounts of lethal weapons, thanks to the handouts of the US both in military hardware and financial support.

It also manufactures weapons and is a major exporter of such lethal goods.

Zionist Israel likes to project an image of military might to frighten Arabian regimes into submission.

It has been quite successful in this ploy as far as the Arabian regimes are concerned.

The surrender of a number of these regimes to zionist Israel through what is referred to as the process of normalization, or the Abraham Accords, is proof of this reality.

Israeli deterrence, however, was exposed when the Lebanese Islamic resistance movement Hizbullah defeated it in the 33-day war in 2006.

No amount of propaganda can restore Israel’s deterrence now.

Today’s reality is that Israel cannot attack Lebanon due to the deterrence formula which emerged after 2006.

So, why is the recent news from Gaza such an important development?

It reflects the broader changing dynamics in the regional power balance.

It should be kept in mind that the Islamic resistance in Palestine operates under very difficult conditions.

The resistance not only faces political and military pressure from NATO regimes and Israel but is also under a treacherous blockade and political pressure of the autocratic regimes in the Arab world.

Any other resistance movement faced with such conditions imposed on the Palestinians, especially in Gaza, would have crumbled or capitulated decades ago.

If Hamas had shot down an Israeli drone, it would not be such major news or such a blow to apartheid Israel.

However, technological capabilities to capture a drone and force it to land are manifestations of sophisticated military and intelligence capabilities.

Thus, what Hamas has done is no small achievement.

It should be kept in mind that Iran’s advanced ballistic missile system which redrew the region’s war map began with even more modest gains.

Hamas’ achievement in capturing the Israeli drone should be seen in the context of deeper cooperation between Islamic Iran and the Palestinian Islamic resistance movement that rules Gaza.

It is highly unlikely that Hamas developed the required technological capabilities in blockaded Gaza on its own without Tehran’s backing.

The only Muslim country unapologetically providing the means of self-defence to Palestine is Islamic Iran.

Thus, the geopolitical message of the latest drone capture in Gaza is quite clear.

Hamas showing a captured Israeli drone is a sign that the region’s dynamics have changed radically.

Militarily, it is gradually turning a level playing field.

At a time when Israel’s sponsors are entangled in a proxy-war with Russia at the doorsteps of western Europe, news of Hamas’s capabilities will likely make the zionist elite in occupied Palestine very nervous.

After all, it is through military force that zionist Israel continues its brutal policy against unarmed Palestinians.

Gradually, its military superiority is being eroded.