Simultaneous to the air force attacks, infantry, artillery and armored forces deployed along the border fired hundreds of artillery shells and dozens of tank shells at targets in Gaza.
The strike dealt a heavy blow to Hamas' underground tunnels, destroying many kilometres of tunneling infrastructure.
"Tonight we carried out an integrated air and ground attack, with over 160 planes from six bases," Brigadier-General Hidai Zilberman said. According to him, the massive attack began at midnight and 450 munitions were aimed at 150 targets within a span of 35 minutes.
"In addition, we apparently succeeded in injuring a senior official in the [Islamic] Jihad anti-tank force," he added.
Towards morning, soldiers manning the Iron Dome system intercepted an additional Hamas drone, in southern Gaza, the IDF spokesman added.
The air attack was orchestrated by IAF Commander Amikam Norkin.
The attack comes in retaliation for several heavy barrages of rockets, especially on the Jewish communities near the Gaza border, Ashdod, and Ashkelon. Magen David Adom (MDA) reported that a seven-story building in Ashkelon was hit by a rocket, and that a 57-year-old man was moderately to severely injured by shrapnel and underwent surgery at the Barzilai Medical Center. A 90-year-old man was lightly injured while running to a bomb shelter.