BEIRUT - Hezbollah said it launched rockets at northern Israel on Aug 1 "in response" to a deadly Israeli strike in south Lebanon - the group's first attack after Israel killed a top commander earlier this week.

The Iran-backed group said in a statement that it "launched dozens of Katyusha rockets... in response to the Israeli enemy's attack on... (the southern village of Shama) that killed a number of civilians".

The Israeli military said that shortly after the rocket fire, the air force "struck the Hezbollah launcher from which the projectiles were launched".

Earlier on Aug 1, the Lebanese health ministry said four Syrians were killed in an Israeli strike on the south, where Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged near-daily fire since the Gaza war began in October.

"The health ministry announces... four Syrian nationals were martyred" in an "Israeli strike" on the southern village of Shama, it said in a statement.

The ministry said the toll might rise once DNA tests had been carried out.

The strike also wounded five Lebanese nationals, it added.

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