The Israel Defense Forces said Sunday morning it was conducting retaliatory strikes against the Iranian-backed terror group Hezbollah in Lebanon.
This comes after the IDF says Hezbollah launched about 115 aerial attacks towards civilian areas in northern Israel over the span of a few hours.
The IDF said its defensive arrays are deployed in northern Israel and are on high preparedness to thwart threats targeting the area. Air defense systems had intercepted multiple projectiles over Haifa, Israel.
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The military said strikes will continue and will intensify against Hezbollah.
The IDF also said the Israeli Air Force conducted a precise strike on Hamas terrorists in a compound in the northern Gaza Strip.
Before the strike, the IDF says numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians, including the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance and additional intelligence information.
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Israel’s Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant spoke with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin several times over the weekend about developments in northern Israel.
Gallant briefed Austin on the precise operation conducted by the IDF to take out the head of Hezbollah’s operations unit and commander of the Radwan Forces, Ibrahim Aqil, who is a senior Hezbollah leader and planner of several terror attacks against Israel and who is also wanted by the U.S. for the killing of its citizens.
The minister also talked about Israel’s defensive position and operations against the ongoing strikes by Hezbollah against northern cities and civilian areas in Israel. He said the goal is to ensure Israel’s northern communities can return to their homes.
Gallant additionally told Austin about the IDF’s ongoing activities in Gaza against Hamas and emphasized his commitment to freeing the more than 100 hostages still held by Hamas.
He expressed his appreciation to Austin and U.S. leadership for reaffirming their commitment to Israel.
Fox News’ Yael Kuriel contributed to this report.
