The Israel Defence Force (IDF) on Wednesday said that it struck as many as 40 Hezbollah “terrorist targets” in southern Lebanon as the ongoing near-daily clashes along the border between the two nations continue to rage.
“A short while ago, IDF (army) fighter jets and artillery struck approximately 40 Hezbollah terror targets around Aita al-Shaab in southern Lebanon, including storage facilities and weaponry, the Israeli army said in a statement.
The recent strike comes hours after Lebanese group Hezbollah claimed that it had launched drone attacks on Israeli bases north of the city of Acre in retaliation for the killing of one of its fighters. The Hezbollah attack is said to be the deepest attack on Israeli territory since the Gaza war began.
Hezbollah launched “a combined air attack using decoy and explosive drones that targeted” two Israeli bases halfway between Acre and Nahariyya, it said in a statement released on Tuesday.
The Iran-backed group retaliated in response to the previous Israeli strike that resulted in the death of one of its members.
Hezbollah also released what seemed to be a satellite image, depicting the attack site marked by a flash enclosed within a red circle.
However, the Israeli military said it had no information regarding any of its facilities being targeted by Hezbollah, but had said earlier that it shot down two “aerial targets” off Israel’s northern coast.
Ever since Hamas, in an unprecedented move, attacked Israel on October 7 last year, there have been cross-border exchange of fire between Hezbollah and the Israeli army, almost on a daily basis. As per media reports, the IDF strikes have killed about 270 Hezbollah fighters, as well as about 50 civilians.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah’s rocket and drone attacks have killed arouns a dozen Israeli soldiers and some civilians. Notably, the ongoing shelling has displaced tens of thousands on each side.