Earlier this week, Turkey commemorated the deaths of the “martyrs” who were killed by the IDF five years ago during an attempt to break the blockade of Gaza. Meanwhile, the Turkish government has delivered less than 1 percent of the funds it pledged last year for the reconstruction of Gaza. Burak Bekdil writes:

By discreetly encouraging the flotilla, and possibly calculating its aftermath, the Turkish government aimed at two things: boosting then-prime minister (now president) Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s popularity on the Arab street and consolidating his votes among Turkey’s conservative masses. The first aim has dramatically failed, except in the Palestinian territories and Qatar; but the second has been achieved. . . .

One day, perhaps, the Palestinians will understand that their “cause” is, for their Turkish brothers, merely an ideological feel-good motive and an instrument in a quest . . . to consolidate power both at home and in the Arab world. . . . Underneath its “pro-Palestinian” mindset, Turkish solidarity with the Palestinians is less related to the Palestinian cause and more to [Turkish] Islamists’ devotion to the dream of conquest.

On Tuesday, a Hizballah drone attack injured three people in northern Israel. The next day, another attack, targeting an IDF base, injured eighteen people, six of them seriously, in Arab al-Amshe, also in the north. This second attack involved the simultaneous use of drones carrying explosives and guided antitank missiles. In both cases, the defensive systems that performed so successfully last weekend failed to stop the drones and missiles. Ron Ben-Yishai has a straightforward explanation as to why: the Lebanon-backed terrorist group is getting better at evading Israel defenses. He explains the three basis systems used to pilot these unmanned aircraft, and their practical effects:

These systems allow drones to act similarly to fighter jets, using “dead zones”—areas not visible to radar or other optical detection—to approach targets. They fly low initially, then ascend just before crashing and detonating on the target. The terrain of southern Lebanon is particularly conducive to such attacks.

But this requires skills that the terror group has honed over months of fighting against Israel. The latest attacks involved a large drone capable of carrying over 50 kg (110 lbs.) of explosives. The terrorists have likely analyzed Israel’s alert and interception systems, recognizing that shooting down their drones requires early detection to allow sufficient time for launching interceptors.

The IDF tries to detect any incoming drones on its radar, as it had done prior to the war. Despite Hizballah’s learning curve, the IDF’s technological edge offers an advantage. However, the military must recognize that any measure it takes is quickly observed and analyzed, and even the most effective defenses can be incomplete. The terrain near the Lebanon-Israel border continues to pose a challenge, necessitating technological solutions and significant financial investment.