US army soldiers stand near an armored military vehicle on the outskirts of Rumaylan in Syria`s northeastern Hasakah province, bordering Turkey on March 27, 2023. (Photo by AFP)

American forces stationed at Lebanon`s Hamat Air Base have blocked Lebanese authorities at gunpoint from inspecting a downed drone, in an incident that underscores growing tensions over US military presence and Israel`s unchecked violations of Lebanese sovereignty under a US-backed ceasefire.

An unidentified drone was shot down in the early hours of Tuesday after entering the airspace over Hamat Air Base in northern Lebanon, The Cradle reported on Wednesday, citing an unnamed Lebanese security source.

Security at the base, which hosts US forces, intercepted the aircraft, causing it to crash into nearby woodland, but when patrols from Hamat municipal police and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) moved to inspect the wreckage, US personnel intervened and blocked access.

According to the source, US troops raised their weapons and prevented Lebanese officials, including the local mayor, from approaching the crash site, claiming the drone might have been "carrying explosives."

Lebanese authorities were ultimately denied possession of the aircraft, and US officials later disclosed that the drone was no longer at the initially identified crash location.

This is while a US general reportedly attempted to contact the Hamat mayor to apologize, but the mayor refused, protesting the conduct of the foreign troops stationed at the base.

The incident comes as Israel continues repeated violations of Lebanese territory under a US-sponsored "ceasefire."

In early February, UNIFIL troops near Kfar Kila observed two drones, one deemed an "immediate threat," which dropped a stun grenade before exploding about 50 meters from peacekeepers and then heading toward Israeli territory.

The UN mission assessed the drone belonged to the Israeli army and said it crossed the Blue Line "in violation of Security Council resolution 1701," calling such armed drone use "unacceptable."
Sheikh Qassem: Hezbollah won`t surrender arms, state weapons monopoly is US-Israeli plot

Since November 2024, when the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement halted attacks under the US-brokered truce, Israel has committed over 12,000 violations of Lebanese sovereignty, including more than 8,000 airspace breaches and 700 airstrikes.

These attacks have killed 343 Lebanese and wounded nearly 1,000, including dozens of women and children.

Israeli forces remain at several border outposts inside Lebanese territory, blocking the return of more than 64,000 displaced residents after widespread destruction in southern areas.

On Wednesday, Israeli minister for military affairs Israel Katz stressed, "Our presence at five points in southern Lebanon is not part of the ceasefire agreement, but we imposed it, and the United States accepted it."

Lebanon`s government says it will need at least four months to implement the next phase of a plan to disarm Hezbollah, whose Secretary General, Sheikh Naim Qassem, has already vowed the movement will never lay down its weapons

In October 2023, Israel launched military attacks on Lebanon, which escalated into a full-blown war by September 2024, leading to over 4,000 fatalities and approximately 17,000 injuries.

Lebanese authorities have consistently called for pressure on Tel Aviv to stop its assaults and adhere to the ceasefire conditions. They are demanding the removal of Israeli troops from the territories seized in the last war.