The IDF announced late Wednesday afternoon that it completed an “extensive wave” of airstrikes in Lebanese territory following a barrage of precision-guided missiles fired at northern Israeli military bases and the cities of Tzfat and Kiryat Shmona.
A female IDF soldier was killed in the attack and eight others were wounded. An IDF military base in Tzfat sustained a direct hit in the attack.
“IDF fighter jets struck a series of Hezbollah terror targets in the areas of Jabal el Braij, Houneh, Dunin, Aadchit, and Souaneh,” the IDF said.
“Among the targets struck were military compounds, operational control rooms, and terror infrastructure used by Hezbollah terrorists. Several targets belonged to the Radwan Forces,” an elite cadre of Hezbollah special forces.
According to the Qatar-based Al Jazeera news network, at least four people were killed and nine others were injured in the Israeli air strikes. The Hezbollah-linked Al Manar news network claimed that three of the dead were civilians, including two children.
Lebanese media reported that the strikes were carried out deeper in Lebanon than previous IDF attacks, with videos and posts on social media indicating the bombing caused major damage.
IDF Chief of Staff LTC Herzi Halevi traveled to the north to meet with the heads of local municipalities and conduct a situational assessment with military commanders on Wednesday following the rocket fire.
Halevi said during his meeting with the commanders he approved targets to strike in response to the barrage.
“We highly value local leadership and see great importance in it,” he told the local community heads.
“Thanks to you, thanks to the resilience and strength of the residents who pay a complex personal price, the IDF can act decisively to change the security situation in the North.
“I know that the residents of the North will return to their homes and the municipalities of the North will thrive again,” Halevi said.
“There are great achievements in striking Hezbollah in Lebanon, but we continue to operate; this is not the time to stop. We are intensifying the strikes all the time, and Hezbollah are paying an increasingly heavy price.
“The next campaign will have a very strong offensive, and we will use all our tools and capabilities,” he warned. “There is still a long way to go, and we will do it together.”
