A drone of unknown origin crashes in the hills of Batroun, causing no casualties, MP reacts

BEIRUT — A drone of unknown origin crashed in an open field, away from inhabited areas, near Assia, in the hills of Batroun, North Lebanon, without causing any injuries, according to our correspondent in the region.

Contacted by L’Orient-Le Jour, retired officer and military expert Khaled Hamadé said there is “no doubt this is an Iranian Shahed-type drone,” based on images of its debris. “Iran has two objectives in Lebanon: the Lebanese Army airbase at Hamat [which hosts U.S. troops] and the U.S. embassy,” he added, noting that the incident does not confirm the drone’s intended target.

The Hamat base, regularly hosting U.S. personnel and aircraft, is located along the coast about 10 km from Assia. Tehran had previously threatened to target the facility.

Former General Charles Chikhani, also consulted, said there is “no proof the drone was aimed at the base” and suggested it might have been conducting surveillance instead.

While Hezbollah — claiming daily drone attacks on Israeli positions in southern Lebanon and northern Israel—does have Shahed-type drones, these are Shahed 101 models, which lack the triangular shape of the Shahed 136 seen earlier over northern Lebanon before it crashed.

A loud detonation was heard in the area, while plumes of smoke were seen rising from the wooded areas between Assia and Nahla, according to the state-run National News Agency (NNA). Assia's mukhtar, Abdallah Bassil, told L'Orient Today that this was the first incident of its kind in the area, noting that the drone’s origin remained unknown. "We heard the noise and the incident occurred at a distance from residences," he explained, adding that the situation had "returned to normal."

Patrols from army intelligence services, security forces and the municipal police were immediately dispatched to the site. A security perimeter was established around the crash site, while the relevant authorities launched an investigation to determine the circumstances.

This incident comes as North Lebanon has so far been spared from Israeli strikes, a month after the outbreak of war between Hezbollah and Israel, whose bombardments have mainly affected South Lebanon, the southern suburbs of Beirut and the Bekaa.

Reacting to this incident, Batroun MP Ghayath Yazbeck (Lebanese Forces) referred to an “Iranian-made drone” that fell in the Batroun district, saying that Hezbollah “has lost its bearings both politically and in the air.”

He suggested that the likely target of the drone was the Lebanese army’s Hamat air base, which regularly hosts U.S. aircraft and troops and is located on the coast, about ten kilometers from Assia. Tehran had previously threatened to target this facility.

Yazbeck also called on the state to “say loud and clear to the leaders of the Revolutionary Guards operating in Lebanon” that it is forbidden to “expose the residents of Mount Lebanon and the North to danger,” noting that these regions are hosting displaced people.