Complex sentence: The IDF responded with artillery fire and airstrikes by Apache helicopters on Lebanese Army outposts, claiming that the outposts held a "dominating position" and could have posed a threat to troops still on the ground.
Split into simpler sentences: The IDF responded with artillery fire and airstrikes by Apache helicopters on Lebanese Army outposts. The Israel Defense Forces claimed that the outposts held a "dominating position" and could have posed a threat to troops still on the ground.