The Israel Defense Forces stopped a drone smuggling attempt on Wednesday, as a drone carrying a number of Glock pistols was interdicted by the IDF.
“Yesterday [Wednesday], IDF observation posts identified a drone that crossed into Israeli territory from the east in an attempt to smuggle weapons,” the report said. “Following the identification, IDF troops intercepted the drone. The drone carried ten firearms. The firearms were transferred to the security forces for further handling.”
The last incident showed that the drone smuggling threat is growing, as the last attempts occured on the Egyptian and now apparently also the Jordanian border. Drones not only smuggle guns, but they are sometimes used multiple times to try to bring weapons over the border.
Reports of drones that have been stopped may be the tip of the iceberg. The overall threat remains unclear; however, the IDF continues to report intercepting drones every week.
On the Egyptian border, it appears that the drones are increasingly able to carry multiple M-16s. The drone smuggling issue is also increasingly being noticed abroad. Xinhua reported at the end of December that “the Israeli military said it had foiled an attempt to smuggle weapons into the country using a drone. The military said in a statement that troops brought down the drone overnight after it was detected by the air force crossing from the west into Israeli territory, carrying 20 M-16 rifles, a barrel, and a stock for additional weapons.”
Meanwhile, gun violence is at an all-time high in Arab communities in Israel. This appears to mean that the guns are reaching Arab communities, and they may also be fueling threats in the West Bank.
Gun violence become a reality in Arab communities in Israel
"The weapons detected were transferred to the security forces for further processing," the military added, Xinhua noted. “Israeli security officials have voiced growing concern over what they describe as a surge in weapons smuggling into the country using drones from the borders with Jordan and Egypt. Shin Bet domestic security agency chief David Zini called it an 'ongoing catastrophe' and a 'strategic threat to Israel' earlier this month,” the report added. The same report quoted a Kan TV report as saying "tens of thousands" of drone incursions have happened.
In November, a report also noted that the IDF’s 80th Division had intercepted drone smuggling from Egypt. A report from the ‘Post’ said the IDF had stopped 130 drones in October 2025.
There is no doubt that Israel takes this threat seriously. However, it is also clear that more needs to be done in Jordan and Egypt to crack down on this problem. As these countries seek to join US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, perhaps they could help to stop the drone gun smuggling threat.
Israel has invested heavily in fences and more security along the Jordanian and Egyptian border in recent years. However, the drone threat shows how one is always destined to plan for the “last war.”
The last threat was from land invasions and land smuggling; however, now, the drones are taking over the airspace and leading to a new type of threat. Israel has the technology to track and identify the drones and also take them down.
There are many ways to take down drones, from jamming to shooting them down to using lasers. However, Israel’s borders with Egypt and Jordan are long. The smugglers clearly know this and want to exploit this problem.
Drone threats increase exponentially. Drones are also constantly evolving in complexity and the ease with which various enemies can acquire this technology. As such, the threat grows in unique ways.