The IDF suggested in a tongue-in-cheek Thursday tweet that its followers might be inspired to “steal the look” of shepherds allegedly hired by Hezbollah to spy across the border.
Need a last-minute Purim costume?Year-round, Hezbollah hires civilian shepherds to "accidentally" cross Israel’s northern border and gather intelligence. It’s quite convincing—until we catch them, of course.In the spirit of Purim, here's what you need to qualify for the job: pic.twitter.com/USakKtLkVU
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) February 25, 2021
The tweet includes a photo of a man and the made-up cost of the various items found upon his person. The image includes an antique walking cane worth $6,500 and a portable radio valued at $6,000. Other items include designer jeans to the tune of roughly $500 and sheep, the cost of which is not listed.
“Year-round, Hezbollah hires civilian shepherds to 'accidentally' cross Israel’s northern border and gather intelligence,” the tweet says, “until we catch them...”
Israel returned to Syria two such persons in exchange for a young Israeli woman who crossed into Syria as part of a deal which is still mostly under gag order. It is unclear if the event is what the IDF is referencing.
However, in January a shepherd crossed into Israel from Lebanon and was later apprehended by IDF soldiers and taken for further interrogation.
Hezbollah is known to use shepherds near the border to track IDF movements in the area. At the time, that shepherd was believed to be part of a group that works in cooperation with Hezbollah and crossed into Israel on purpose.