Israel Invests Nearly $300 Million in Countering Hezbollah’s Fiber-Optic Guided Drone Threat
The Israeli Ministry of Defense has already spent about one billion shekels (approximately $290 million) out of the two billion shekels allocated by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu two months ago to address the threat posed by Hezbollah’s drones. This extensive investment, managed by the Ministry’s Procurement and Technology Division (Maf'at) and the Directorate of Defense Research and Development (Mantar), responds to the complex challenge of detecting, identifying, and intercepting drones guided by fiber-optic cables, which evade traditional radio frequency (RF) detection methods.
Hezbollah’s drones carry up to 2.5 kilograms of explosives and use fiber-optic guidance, limiting their range and lethality but complicating early warning and interception. Israeli defense efforts have shifted from RF-based detection to a combination of radar, optics, LIDAR, and acoustic sensors. Notably, the company Magos from Rehovot recently secured a 21 million shekel contract to supply hundreds of radar systems designed for early detection of fiber-optic drones. Additionally, the public company Ein Shlishit, which integrates AI into electro-optical systems, supports identification efforts.
Maf'at has developed a rapid evaluation model to accelerate field deployment of solutions, receiving 250 proposals from various companies, including large defense firms like Elta, which operates radars in southern Lebanon. The diverse detection technologies require sophisticated command and control systems to reduce false alarms, with the startup Kela providing an open-architecture platform to integrate sensors and weapons.
On the defensive side, improvements include networks to protect troops and the use of cutting fences that sever fiber-optic cables, causing drones to crash. Personal defense weapons firing 5.56 mm frangible rounds, such as those developed by Smart Shooter and IWI’s new Arbel computerized fire control system, enhance soldiers’ ability to neutralize drones at close range.
Long-range interception solutions focus on innovation, including interceptor drones and directed-energy weapons. Companies like Elbit, Israel Aerospace Industries, Rafael, and the American firm Anduril are developing interceptor drones capable of neutralizing threats hundreds of meters away. Directed-energy weapons, including Rafael’s high-power laser "Or Eitan" and Ashtech’s "Dronelight" system, offer promising countermeasures, though challenges remain in deployment speed and system weight.
Electromagnetic microwave weapons are also under development to disable swarms of drones simultaneously, offering advantages over laser systems but posing risks to friendly aircraft. While operational interception of fiber-optic drones has not yet been publicly confirmed, Israeli defense industries are rapidly advancing toward effective solutions, making the question one of timing rather than possibility.
