CNN —
Israeli leader Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s seaside home was damaged in a drone attack claimed by Hezbollah, CNN showed geolocated video footage. The attack came as the extremist group was shaken by sustained Israeli shelling and penetrated deep into Israel.
Israeli officials said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife were not at home at the time of Saturday’s attack in the coastal city of Caesarea, but no one was injured.
But the incident raised questions about how the drones managed to evade Israeli air defenses, even as Hezbollah’s leadership has been ousted and Israeli forces have stepped up attacks across Lebanon.
CNN affiliate station Kan 11 published photos of the exterior of the house with cracked windows and damage that appears to be burn marks. Kan 11 reported that the damaged window was a bedroom window.
The caption of the photo shared by the reporter reads: “Permission to publish: A drone launched by Hezbollah crashes into the prime minister’s residence in Caesarea.”
A video geolocated by CNN shows the same scene outside a window in what appears to be the backyard of a home.
The Israeli military announced on Saturday that “three unmanned aerial vehicles were observed entering Israeli territory from Lebanon.” Two of the UAVs were intercepted. Another UAV crashed into a structure in the Caesarea area. ”
A spokesman for the Israeli prime minister confirmed the attack that day, but it was not until Tuesday that Israeli authorities confirmed that a drone had struck the home.
Hezbollah claimed “full and exclusive responsibility” for the attack on Tuesday, saying, “If we have not reached out to you yet, there is no battlefield between us and you, day or night.” Please be aware that there may be.”
In a post on X after Saturday’s attack, Netanyahu blamed “Iranian agents” for the attack and said they “made a painful mistake.”
“I say to Iranians and our partners in the axis of evil: anyone who harms the Israeli people will pay a heavy price,” Netanyahu added.
Iran denied involvement in the drone attack and said the operation was “carried out by Hezbollah.”
Drones have proven to be a low-tech but deadly threat to Israel.
The country’s air defense system is excellent and intercepts and destroys most projectiles launched towards the country. However, they are primarily designed and developed to counter rockets and missiles, and are not drones that can be launched from anywhere, fly low, fly slowly, and change direction quickly.
A deadly attack by Hezbollah in early October killed four soldiers at a military base about 40 miles into Israel from the border.
In July, a drone fired by Iran-backed Yemeni Houthi rebels killed one man and injured at least 10 others in Tel Aviv. Sirens were not activated during that attack. The Israel Defense Forces said two drones were fired, one was intercepted, and the other was not, and attributed the failure to human error.
The attack on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s home comes amid widespread fires in the Middle East. Israel has yet to carry out its expected response to a ballistic missile attack on Iran earlier this month and continues its military operation against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The incident also comes as the United States is investigating the leak of highly classified U.S. information about Israel’s retaliatory plans against Iran following an October 1 barrage of Iranian missiles targeting Israel.
CNN’s Eyad Kurdi and Ivana Kottasova contributed reporting.
