Featuring the glorification of martyrdom, maps from which Israel is missing, and promises of hellfire for infidels, the textbooks issued by the Palestinian Authority cannot be said to be preparing a generation of young Palestinians for peaceful coexistence with the Jewish state. Dov Lieber writes:

In the Palestinian history books for grades ten through twelve, there are full chapters dedicated to World War II but no mention of the Holocaust. . . . Islamic-studies textbooks . . . celebrate martyrdom, including a fourth-grade textbook that invites the children to write about a Palestinian martyr of their choice. . . . The issue of paradise and the division between believers (Muslims) and nonbelievers permeate the textbooks. . . .

The erasure of Israel’s physical existence begins early, with cartoons in first-grade textbooks showing stores in Arab Palestine—among them a pharmacy in Safed, a supermarket in Haifa, and a candy store in Beersheba. All three cities were under Israeli control long before 1967.

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.