Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Galant said on Wednesday that Israeli forces have killed half of the commanders of the "Hezbollah" in southern Lebanon, as the Israeli Defense Forces carried out a large wave of strikes against dozens of sites belonging to the terrorist group, writes the Times of Israel.
"Half of the commanders of "Hezbollah" in southern Lebanon have been eliminated ... and the other half are hiding and abandoning southern Lebanon to the Israeli Army's operations,'' Gallant said after conducting an assessment at the headquarters of the Northern Command in Safed with the head of the command, Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin, and other senior officers.
He said Israel's main goal in the north is to return tens of thousands of Israelis displaced by Hezbollah's daily attacks to their homes.
"We are looking at a number of alternatives to address this issue and the coming period will be crucial in that regard," Gallant said.
The Israeli army reported that about 40 targets of "Hezbollah" in the city of Aita al-Shabaab were struck in just a few minutes by warplanes and artillery fire.
The wave of strikes came hours after the terrorist group fired anti-tank rockets at a community in northern Israel.
The military said the targets included weapons depots and other assets belonging to "Hezbollah" and accused Aita al-Shabaab of being used by the terror group and having dozens of its sites in the area.
In a statement, the Israeli military said the strikes were "part of efforts to destroy the organization's infrastructure in the border area" and not in response to any specific attack.
Ahead of the strikes, the military issued an unusual statement announcing that it had begun attacking targets of "Hezbollah" in southern Lebanon. Amid the ongoing war, the military usually only announces strikes in Lebanon after they are completed. The announcement stated that the strikes were on a much larger scale than usual.
Hours before the wave of strikes "Hezbollah" fired several anti-tank guided missiles at the northern community of Avivim, hitting two houses and causing a fire.
The Merom Hagalil Regional Council, which has jurisdiction over Avivim, said the rockets caused no injuries.
"Hezbollah" claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement, saying it was "targeted at a building in Avivim where "enemy soldiers" were present.
The rocket attack on Avivim came after a wave of strikes by the Israeli air force overnight against positions of "Hezbollah" in Lebanon.
The overnight strikes targeted a rocket launcher in the town of Tyre Harfa after it was used in an attack on the northern community of Shomera on Tuesday evening, the Israeli army said.
Additional targets include infrastructure of "Hezbollah" in Markaba, a building in Aita al-Shab and an observation post in Marwahin.
Troops also shelled areas near Chikhine and Kfarchuba with artillery to "eliminate threats," the military added.