TEL AVIV, December 8. /TASS/. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) struck a number of targets on Syrian territory last night in response to the shelling launched on December 7, the army's press service reported.

"In response to yesterday's launches [of shells] toward northern Israel, the IDF struck a number of targets in Syria," the statement said.

In addition, an Israeli drone struck a group of armed radicals in the Har Dov area near the Lebanese border. "Overnight, a UAV struck an armed terrorist cell identified by IDF soldiers in the area of Har Dov in northern Israel," the army’s press service said.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the Gaza Strip-based radical Palestinian movement Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from Gaza, killing residents of Israeli border settlements and taking over 200 hostages, including women, children and the elderly. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. In response, Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to 2.3 million Palestinians, and has been delivering air strikes on Gaza as well as some parts of Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also underway in the West Bank.