Jerusalem: The Israel Defence Forces (IDF), on Wednesday, said that it had successfully carried out strikes on around 40 Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon's Ayta ash-Shab area. The strikes, which were carried out using a combination of artillery and airpower, were reportedly aimed at destroying the group's infrastructure in the area. 

The IDF statement noted that the Hezbollah had made use of the area in the past for “terrorist purposes” and that it had placed dozens of sites there.

A follow-up statement, which included a video of the strikes, noted that the IDF attack had hit storage facilities, weapons and “terrorist infrastructure” in the area.  

Prior to the attack, the IDF posted a statement that announced it had commenced its attacks in south Lebanon, an announcement which Times of Israel noted as ‘unusual’ and said that it was a likely indicator that the strikes were on a much larger scale than usual. 

Earlier in the day, Reuters, quoting Lebanese sources, said that Hezbollah and the IDF had exchanged heavy fire, with the group firing dozens of rockets at the Israeli border town of Shomera and the IDF retaliating with more than 10 airstrikes on  Ayta ash-Shab. 

The strikes aside, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, on Wednesday, was quoted in a Times of Israel report as saying that the IDF has eliminated half of the Hezbollah commanders in southern Lebanon, with the other half reportedly hiding and abandoning the area. 

Furthermore, he noted that the IDF's main goal in the area was to create circumstances allowing the return of thousands of Israeli citizens who were displaced by frequent Hezbollah attacks across the border.