The issue of an unidentified drone being shot down at dawn on Monday above the Hamat military air base in northern Lebanon has drawn widespread attention. The base hosts U.S. forces involved in training members of the Lebanese Armed Forces.
Amid unconfirmed media reports suggesting that the drone was Iranian, high-level security sources told Alhurra that the drone remains of unknown origin. The sources indicated that it was manufactured using very basic technology and of poor quality, noting that it crashed immediately after being jammed. Although the drone has not yet been recovered, the sources ruled out the possibility that it was Iranian-made or of Iranian origin.
No official statement has so far been issued by the Lebanese Army regarding the incident. However, Alhurra’s information indicates that the episode caused confusion and alarm among local residents.
In a press statement, the mayor of Hamat said that the U.S. Embassy sent a delegation to the municipality to apologize for a “misunderstanding,” after reports circulated that members of a U.S. Army unit had arrived on the scene armed immediately following the drone’s fall and prevented civilians from approaching. The mayor added that relations with the Americans in Hamat are strong.
Attention has since turned to the Lebanese Army’s Hamat Air Base after Iran’s Al-Alam TV channel included it in what it described as “U.S. bases under surveillance,” as part of a video series titled “The U.S. Bases Series.” The channel labeled Hamat as “Base No. 9,” within its tally of facilities linked to the U.S. military presence in the region, portraying them as potential targets in the event of a wider confrontation.
In this context, security sources expressed surprise at this classification, stressing that the base is fully Lebanese. They emphasized that there is no official information indicating that it has been converted into a U.S. base or that permanent U.S. combat forces are stationed there. They added that any U.S. presence is typically limited to training missions, maintenance teams, and military assistance programs.
The article is a translation of the original Arabic.
