The USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier, dispatched to the Middle East ahead of the outbreak of war with Iran, returned home to the United States on Saturday after a 326-day deployment, the Pentagon said.Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth was on hand in Norfolk, Virginia to welcome home the largest aircraft carrier in the world, the US military said on X. It was the longest deployment for a US carrier strike group since the Vietnam War. The Ford's deployment saw it take part in US operations in the Caribbean, where Washington's forces have carried out strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats, interdicted sanctioned tankers and seized Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.It was then dispatched to the Middle East to participate in combat operations against Iran. The carrier's long deployment included a fire in a laundry room on March 12, which injured two sailors and caused major damage to some 100 beds, according to the US military. The carrier also reportedly suffered significant problems with its toilet system while at sea.Meanwhile, Israel launched a massive series of airstrikes on southern Lebanon on Saturday, despite an extension of the truce between the two countries. Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah, but the strikes were preceded by an evacuation warning covering nine villages. Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported strikes on more than two dozen villages on Saturday, including one more than 50 kilometres (30 miles) from the border.It also reported a new exodus of residents towards the southern city of Sidon and the capital, Beirut. Later Saturday, Hezbollah announced it had struck a military target in northern Israel. It said its fighters had targeted "the Ya'ara barracks... with a swarm of attack drones", after having announced multiple operations against Israeli forces in southern Lebanon.On Friday, the two countries agreed to extend a ceasefire, which began on April 17 but has been marred by numerous violations, by another 45 days. Despite the ceasefire, Israel continues to conduct strikes in Lebanon, and its forces are occupying territory near the border. Hezbollah, meanwhile, regularly claims attacks on northern Israel and against the Israeli military in southern Lebanon, including multiple attacks on Israeli forces on Saturday. Israel's military said Saturday that one of its soldiers died in combat in southern Lebanon, bringing its losses to 21 personnel since the war with Hezbollah began in early March.