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<\/a>\n\t\tIsraeli soldiers are seen in an underground Hezbollah drone facility in Majdal Zoun, southern Lebanon, on June 18, 2026. (Emanuel Fabian\/Times of Israel)<\/p>\n
The operation took place amid a porous ceasefire in which both Israel and Hezbollah have continued to attack each other.<\/p>\n
According to the Israel Defense Forces, the tunnel runs several hundred meters into the mountain, reaching depths of 29 meters (95 feet) under Majdal Zoun \u2014 including beneath a mosque.<\/p>\n
The IDF has uncovered similar Hezbollah tunnels in southern Lebanon in the past, but commanders said this one was built to a \u201cmuch higher standard,\u201d comparable with an underground Iranian missile factory in Syria<\/a> that the military raided in September 2024.<\/p>\n Soldiers and officers were made available to the tour on condition of anonymity, in line with military protocol.<\/p>\n \t Inside the tunnel, which was wide enough for a standard vehicle to drive through, Hezbollah had assembled Iranian-made drones using parts smuggled into Lebanon, according to the army.<\/p>\n Iran, which has invested heavily in drone development and production, has long been understood to supply its Lebanese proxy group with missiles and other arms meant to be used against Israel.<\/p>\n After capturing the tunnel, soldiers found around 50 UAVs with warheads of around 30 kilograms (66 pounds) of explosives apiece, officers said.<\/p>\n \t The drones appeared to be of the same type used in attacks on Israel, such as a deadly October 2024 strike<\/a> on the Golani Brigade\u2019s training base. They can typically fly 200 to 500 kilometers (125 to 310 miles), enough to reach all of Israel, according to IDF officials. Military analyst Fabian Hinz identified the UAVs as an Iranian drone design, known as the Qasef in the service of the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen.<\/p>\n The capture of the tunnel marked the first time that the IDF had access to fully intact Iranian drones of this kind, providing the military with valuable intelligence, one officer told The Times of Israel.<\/p>\n The drones, in various states of assembly, were placed on display along the tunnel\u2019s concrete walls for journalists on the tour to see.<\/p>\n In addition to the UAVs, the troops found around eight tons of explosive material in the underground site\u2019s rooms, according to the army.<\/p>\n \t \u201cThese are drones that threatened the State of Israel throughout its length and breadth. We came here to deprive Hezbollah of these capabilities,\u201d a squadron commander in the elite Yahalom combat engineering unit told reporters.<\/p>\n On the southern side of the mountain were shafts from which Hezbollah would launch the UAVs at Israel.<\/p>\n \u201cAt the end of the tunnel, there are exits, four exits protected by blast doors on rails. They can be opened and allow launching of UAVs at Israel,\u201d the Yahalom officer said.<\/p>\n \t Military officials described the facility as a sort of UAV \u201cairbase\u201d and factory, saying it was built strategically in Majdal Zoun because of its relative proximity to Israel, but not too close to the border.<\/p>\n \u201cSix kilometers from our territory, and it is also close to the coastline. It also enables launches [of UAVs] in those directions,\u201d the Yahalom officer said.<\/p>\n The drone-launching tunnel shafts were inaccessible during the tour. Some 100 meters from the entrance of the facility, journalists hit a dead end where the tunnel had collapsed, with a car buried beneath the rubble.<\/p>\n \t According to the IDF, during the war with Hezbollah in 2024, the Israeli Air Force bombed the site to seal it off and put it out of use. However, military officials said the terror group had later attempted to restore the facility.<\/p>\n As troops advanced into southern Lebanon following hostilities that erupted in early March in reaction to the Iran war, the military decided to push into\u00a0Majdal Zoun on the ground to capture the site and demolish it.<\/p>\n \t Hezbollah briefly attempted to defend the village, according to the IDF. Senior officers said the reservist commandos killed three Hezbollah gunmen in close-quarters combat and directed a drone strike on four other operatives in Majdal Zoun.<\/p>\n Several Hezbollah operatives attempted to approach the village after the IDF captured it, but were also struck before they were able to get close, military officials said.<\/p>\n The IDF was expected to demolish the facility upon completing scans of the tunnels.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t The war with Iran has been draining for all of us in Israel. But when I heard about a high casualty incident \u2013 ballistic missile impacts in Arad and Dimona that left nearly 200 people wounded \u2013 I drank a cup of coffee, packed a bag, and headed south.<\/p>\n There, I spoke with Shilgit, the head of an after-school program for underprivileged youth. Standing outside her destroyed center, Shilgit said it was a miracle that no children were hurt and spoke about the community coming together in the hours since.<\/p>\n As a Times of Israel reporter, I\u2019m committed to telling stories of resilience like Shilgit\u2019s. But my colleagues and I can’t do this alone. If you value work like this, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to keep real human reporting like this going.<\/p>\n \u2014 Stav Levaton, military reporter<\/p>\n \t\t\t
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\n\t\tUnmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) parts in an underground Hezbollah drone facility in Majdal Zoun, southern Lebanon, on June 18, 2026. (Emanuel Fabian\/Times of Israel)<\/p>\n<\/a>
\n\t\tAn Israeli soldier is seen in an underground Hezbollah drone facility in Majdal Zoun, southern Lebanon, on June 18, 2026. (Emanuel Fabian\/Times of Israel)<\/p>\n<\/a>
\n\t\tA room full of explosives in an underground Hezbollah drone facility in Majdal Zoun, southern Lebanon, on June 18, 2026. (Emanuel Fabian\/Times of Israel)<\/p>\n<\/a>
\n\t\tFootage taken by an onlooker in northern Israel appears to show a Hezbollah attack drone that crossed from Lebanon, on August 6, 2024. (Video screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)<\/p>\n<\/a>
\n\t\tA blocked path in an underground Hezbollah drone facility in Majdal Zoun, southern Lebanon, on June 18, 2026. (Emanuel Fabian\/Times of Israel)<\/p>\n<\/a>
\n\t\tSmoke rises from an Israeli airstrike on Majdal Zoun on October 24, 2024. (AP\/Mohammed Zaatari)<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tWe can’t do this work alone.\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tYes, I’ll join\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n