Israel says it killed Hezbollah official in first strike on Beirut in months

Israel struck Lebanon’s capital for the first time since June, saying it killed Hezbollah’s chief of staff Haytham Tabtabai and warning the Iran-backed militant group not to rearm and rebuild a year after their latest war.

The strike in Beirut’s southern suburbs killed five people and wounded 25 others, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said.

Hezbollah confirmed Tabtabai’s death.

Earlier it said the strike, launched almost exactly a year after a ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war, threatened an escalation of attacks — just days before Pope Leo is scheduled to visit Lebanon on his first foreign trip.

“We will continue to act forcefully to prevent any threat to the residents of the north and the state of Israel,” Israeli defence minister Israel Katz said.

The military instructed residents in northern Israel near the Lebanese border to continue with daily routines, indicating that it did not anticipate a military response from Hezbollah.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Tabtabai of leading Hezbollah’s efforts to rearm.

Israeli airstrikes over southern Lebanon have intensified in recent weeks while Israel and the US have pressured Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah.

Israel asserts that the group is trying to rebuild its military capabilities.

The Lebanese government, which supports disarming Hezbollah, has denied those claims.

It also says troops have deployed to the south but that its cash-strapped army needs more resources.

Hezbollah has not attacked Israel since the ceasefire began.

In December, it fired a couple of rockets that landed on open territory near an Israeli military base and called it a “warning”.

Tabtabai had been the apparent successor of Ibrahim Aqil, who was killed in September 2024 in Israeli attacks that wiped out much of Hezbollah’s senior leadership, including long-time leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Tabtabai also had led Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Unit.

In 2016, the US designated him as a terrorist, calling him a military leader who led Hezbollah’s special forces in Syria and Yemen, and it offered up to five million dollars for information about him.

“Hezbollah’s leadership is studying the matter of response and will take the appropriate decision,” Mahmoud Qamati, deputy chair of Hezbollah’s political council, told journalists at the scene.

“The strike on the southern suburbs today opens the door to an escalation of assaults all over Lebanon.”

Israeli airstrikes over southern Lebanon have intensified in recent weeks while Israel and the United States have pressured Lebanon to disarm the powerful militant group.

Israel asserts that Hezbollah is trying to rebuild its military capabilities in southern Lebanon.

The Lebanese government, which has approved its military’s plan that would disarm Hezbollah, has denied those claims.

Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun in a statement condemned Sunday’s strike and accused Israel of refusing to implement its end of the ceasefire agreement.

He called on the international community to “intervene with strength and seriousness to stop the attacks on Lebanon and its people”.

Israel’s military statement said Israel remains committed to the “understandings” agreed upon by Israel and Lebanon.

Smoke could be seen in the busy Haret Hreik neighbourhood.

A video circulated on social media showed dozens of people crowded around the area of the strike, which appeared to be on the fourth floor of an apartment building.

Gunshots could be heard to disperse crowds as emergency workers arrived.

“This is definitely a civilian area and void of any military presence, especially the neighbourhood where we stand,” Hezbollah parliamentarian Ali Ammar told reporters near the site.

Lebanon and United Nations peacekeepers have been critical of ongoing Israel attacks in the country and accuse Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement.

Mr Aoun last week said the country is ready to enter negotiations with Israel to stop its airstrikes and to withdraw from five hilltop points it occupies on Lebanese territory.

It was unclear if Israel would agree.

Mr Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam say they are committed to disarming all non-state actors in the country, including Hezbollah.