Israel-Lebanon latest: Israeli strikes continue as Iran vows revenge after Hezbollah leader Nasrallah’s death

Israeli bombardment continued in Lebanon after the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in an airstrike at the militants’ headquarters in the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh.

At least six people were killed in the south of Lebanon and nine others in the Beqaa Valley in the northeast, local media reports said.

“The IDF intensified its operations against Hezbollah’s force build-up through a series of targeted strikes on key weapon manufacturing sites. These included a facility used to produce and assemble missile and rocket launchers in southern Lebanon, as well as another site in the Beqaa Valley,” the Israel Defense Forces said.

The UK government has asked Britons in Lebanon to “leave now” amid concerns over the escalating situation in the Middle East following.

Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei said Nasrallah’s death “will not go unavenged” as he remembered the Hezbollah leader as the “flag-bearer of resistance” in the region.

A total of 1,030 people, including 156 women and 87 children, have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon in less than two weeks, the country’s health minister said.

Key Points

• More than 1,000 killed in Israeli strike on Lebanon

• Israel on high alert and ‘ready for a wider escalation’, military says

• Hezbollah confirms decades-long leader Hassan Nasrallah killed in airstrike

Tory leadership hopeful Badenoch praises Netanyahu for ‘extraordinary’ killing of Hezbollah chief

10:08 , Andy Gregory

Diplomatic efforts for ceasefire with Israel ‘under way’, Lebanon minister says

09:59 , Andy Gregory

Lebanon’s information minister said during a cabinet session on Sunday that diplomatic efforts for a ceasefire with Israel were still “under way”.

Senior Hezbollah figure killed in attack, Israel says

09:47 , Andy Gregory

The Israeli military has said that it killed senior Hezbollah figure Nabil Kaouk amid an ongoing exchange of strikes between the two sides.

Hezbollah has not yet commented on Kaouk’s fate, but supporters have been posting mourning messages for him since Saturday.

A former commander who led Hezbollah’s forces in southern Lebanon during Israel’s 18-year occupation, Kaouk then held positions on Hezbollah’s executive council.

Iran’s speaker vows Tehran-backed groups will continue confronting Israel

09:40 , Andy Gregory

Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf has said that militant groups will keep confronting Israel with Tehran’s help following the killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, state media reported.

“We will not hesitate to go to any level in order to help the resistance,” said Mr Qalibaf, referring to the alliance known as the Axis of Resistance, built over decades with Iranian support, which includes Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis.

He also issued a warning to the United States, saying: “The US is complicit in all of these crimes and … has to accept the repercussions,” he said.

Also commenting on Nasrallah’s killing, Iranian Foreign minister Abbas Araqchi said Israel “will not rest” and the action would not go unanswered, state media reported on Sunday. He said the region was in a dangerous situation.

Iran Revolutionary Guards’ deputy commander Abbas Nilforoushan was also killed in the Israeli strikes on Beirut on Friday, Iranian media reported on Saturday.

Israeli strikes ‘killed five members of my family’, says British woman

09:30 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

A British woman returning to the UK from Lebanon said Israeli air strikes have killed five members of her family, including a cousin 10 days away from her wedding day.

Sana Chamseddin clutched her son in her arms at Heathrow Airport on Saturday and spoke of her guilt at escaping besieged Lebanon and leaving behind loved ones in “unsafe places”.

Her uncle, his wife, and his three daughters who were all in their twenties, were killed when their home in the Lebanese city of Tyre was bombed by the Israel Defence Forces, she told the PA news agency.

More here.

Israeli strikes killed five members of my family, says mother returning to UK

Israeli strikes continue in Lebanon despite killing Hezbollah chief

09:15 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Israeli military continued its airstrikes today despite killing Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Friday.

The military said it struck dozens of Hezbollah “terror” targets in Lebanon in the past dozen hours, including launchers aimed toward Israel.

At least six people have been killed in the south of the country and nine others in the Hezbollah stronghold of Bekaa Valley, Lebanese media reported.

Why is Lebanon being attacked and will there be a ceasefire?

09:00 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Tensions in the Middle East continue to escalate as Israel ramps up its assault on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.

Beginning with a major bombardment on 23 September, Lebanon has now experienced its deadliest attack since the end of the 1975 – 1990 Civil War, with over 90,000 civilians displaced from their homes.

Since the 7 October Hamas attack where over 240 Israeli hostages were taken, Hezbollah has been striking Israel from Lebanon on the country’s northern border in support of Hamas.

Israeli forces have continued to respond with strikes on the paramilitary group which regularly fired missiles and rockets to intercept military technology like drones or tanks.

More here.

Israel-Hezbollah: Why is Lebanon being attacked and will there be a ceasefire?

In pics: Aftermath of Hassan Nasrallah’s death

08:30 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Iraq’s Islamic Resistance claims drone attack on southern Israel

08:00 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq said it struck Eilat in southern Israel this morning, according to reports.

The Israeli military yesterday said a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted shortly after the sirens were heard. There were no reports of injuries.

The Houthi rebels said they targeted the airport during prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s arrival with a ballistic missile.

UK government reiterates calls for Britons to leave Lebanon

07:58 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

The British government has asked Britons in Lebanon to “leave now” amid concerns over the escalating situation in the Middle East following the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

The Foreign Office had asked Britons to leave Lebanon last week and moved additional troops to Cyprus to aid evacuations.

The government has been working to increase the number of commercial flights available for British nationals, The Guardian reported.

“Our advice is clear, British nationals should register their presence, book the first available flight and leave now,” a spokesperson told the newspaper.

“We have worked with partners to increase flights and secure seats for British nationals to leave and have also sent a rapid deployment team to bolster the efforts of our embassy in supporting British nationals.

“We know it’s a distressing time for British nationals and all people in Lebanon, which is why we are doing everything we can to help.”

Russia says Nasrallah killed to ‘unleash a full-blown war’

07:30 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Russia’s foreign minister claimed a “lot of people” are of the opinion that Israel’s assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was aimed at provoking Iran and the US “to unleash a full-blown war in the entire region”.

Sergey Lavrov told reporters that the killing is “not simply a political assassination. It’s very cynical as an act”.

Hezbollah confirmed yesterday that Nasrallah, its leader and one of its founders, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in a southern suburb of Beirut.

“I think — well not even I think but a lot of people say — that Israel wants to create the grounds to drag the US directly into this, and so to create these grounds is trying to provoke Iran,” Mr Lavrov said.

“The Iran leadership, I think, are behaving extremely responsibly. And this is necessary. This is something that we should take due note of,” he said.

Editorial: The killing of Hezbollah leader will make Israel no safer

07:00 , Jane Dalton

The most hopeful prospect is that Israel’s democracy allows for the peaceful transition to a different strategy:

The killing of Hezbollah’s leader will make Israel no safer

Israel says it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets

06:30 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

The Israeli military today said it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, including launchers that were aimed toward Israeli territory.

Israel infiltrated Hezbollah to obtain intelligence

06:00 , Jane Dalton

After Hassan Nasrallah’s killing, Hezbollah faces the enormous challenge of plugging the infiltration in its ranks that allowed Israel to destroy weapons sites, booby-trap its communications and assassinate the veteran leader, whose whereabouts had been a closely guarded secret.

Israel’s deadly detonation of hundreds of booby-trapped pagers and radios was the culmination of a rapid succession of strikes that have killed half of Hezbollah’s leadership council and decimated its top military command.

One source familiar with Israeli thinking told Reuters, less than 24 hours before the strike, that Israel has spent 20 years focusing intelligence efforts on Hezbollah and could hit Nasrallah when it wanted, including in the headquarters.

The person called the intelligence “brilliant”.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his close circle of ministers authorised the attack on Wednesday, Israeli officials said. The attack took place while Netanyahu was in New York.

Nasrallah had avoided public appearances since 2006.

“This is a massive blow and intelligence failure for Hezbollah,” said Magnus Ranstorp, a veteran Hezbollah expert at the Swedish Defence University. “They knew that he was meeting. He was meeting with other commanders. And they just went for him.”

Small-scale ‘border movements’ into Lebanon may have begun – report

05:30 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Small-scale “border movements” into Lebanon may have begun for a limited ground operation against Hezbollah, according to reports.

While Israel has not confirmed a possible launch of a ground operation but is prepared for one, ABC News reported citing US officials.

Officials in America received a “few minutes notice” at best, before Hassan Nasrallah’s assassination on Friday, the officials added.

Biden says killing of Hezbollah leader ‘measure of justice’

05:10 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

President Joe Biden called the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah “a measure of justice” for the thousands of civilians that he and the terrorist organization killed over the last three decades.

“Hassan Nasrallah and the terrorist group he led, Hezbollah, were responsible for killing hundreds of Americans over a four-decade reign of terror,” Biden said in a statement.

“His death from an Israeli airstrike is a measure of justice for his many victims, including thousands of Americans, Israelis, and Lebanese civilians.”

More here.

Biden says killing of Hezbollah leader is ‘measure of justice’ for his victims

Iran says Hezbollah leader’s death ‘will not go unavenged’

04:50 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei said the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah “will not go unavenged” after he was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut.

Khamenei announced five days of public mourning for Nasrallah as he remembered the Hezbollah leader as the “flag-bearer of resistance” in the region.

Israel yesterday said it was on “high alert” for possible retaliation from the Iran-led “Axis of Resistance” in the Middle East.

“Our forces are on high alert, our intelligence is up,” Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Nadav Shoshani told reporters.

Similarly, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the coming days would bring “significant challenges” and warned Iran against trying to strike.

Iran’s Ayatollah urged Muslims across the world to stand by Hezbollah “with their resources and help”. “The fate of this region will be determined by the forces of resistance, with Hezbollah at the forefront,” he said.

Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of Tehran, waving Hezbollah flags and chanting “Death to Israel” and “Death to Netanyahu the murderer”.

Iran’s UN ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani wrote to the heads of the UN and the Security Council yesterday calling for an emergency council meeting over the attack.

He warned Israel not to attack any of its diplomatic or consular premises, or its representatives.

More than 1,000 killed in Israeli strike in Lebanon

04:30 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

A total of 1,030 people, including 156 women and 87 children, have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon in less than two weeks, the country’s health minister said.

The Israeli army again warned Lebanese residents to stay away from Hezbollah combat equipment and facilities, including in the southern suburbs of Beirut and southern Lebanon.

The US state department issued an alert urging American citizens to leave the country.

The Israeli military yesterday carried out more than 140 airstrikes in southern Beirut and eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, including targeting a storage facility for anti-ship missiles in Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh.

Israel braces for retaliation after Nasrallah’s assassination

04:05 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said targeting Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was “an essential condition to achieving the goals we set”.

Hezbollah confirmed yesterday that one of its founding members, who has been linked by Israel to attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets, had been killed in an airstrike in southern Beirut.

In his first public remarks since the killing on Friday, Mr Netanyahu said: “He wasn’t another terrorist. He was the terrorist.”He said Nasrallah’s killing would help bring displaced Israelis back to their homes in the north and would pressure Hamas to free Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

With the threat of retaliation high, he warned the coming days would bring “significant challenges” and warned Iran against trying to strike.

“There is no place in Iran or in the Middle East that Israel’s long arm cannot reach. And today you know how much that is true,” he said.

Nasrallah’s death marks major escalation in conflict

03:45 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

The leader of Hezbollah has been killed in an Israeli airstrike on a building complex in the Lebanese capital Beirut, marking a significant escalation in the conflict and heightening fears of a wider war.

The strikes ramp up pressure on Iran to retaliate as Nasrallah’s death leaves Tehran’s most powerful proxy without the man who has led the group since 1992.

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on people to stand by Hezbollah “with whatever means they have” and assist them in confronting Israel, warning that “the fate of this region will be determined by the forces of resistance, with Hezbollah at the forefront”.

More here.

Israel kills Hezbollah chief in strike marking major escalation in conflict

European, Arab and Muslim nations launch drive for Palestinian state

03:30 , Jane Dalton

Europeans, Arab and Muslim nations launch a new initiative for an independent Palestinian state

Second round of Israeli strikes ‘kill 33’

02:30 , Jane Dalton

Thirty-three people were killed and 195 wounded in Israeli strikes on Lebanon on Saturday, the Lebanese health ministry said.

Families fleeing Beirut sleep on beaches and streets

01:45 , Jane Dalton

People escaping Friday night’s airstrikes on Beirut joined tens of thousands who have already fled there to escape Israel’s bombardment:

Hundreds of fleeing families sleep on beaches and streets after Israel’s strikes shake Beirut

Germany striving for ceasefire, minister says

Sunday 29 September 2024 00:15 , Jane Dalton

Germany is continuing efforts to enable a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah group, its foreign minister has said, adding that the situation was extremely dangerous.

“There is a threat that this entire region will slip further into an absolute spiral of violence,” Annalena Baerbock was quoted as saying.

Germany last month called for “de-escalation and regional stability” in the Middle East.

PM joins French and German leaders in Middle East ‘de-escalation’ call

Israel’s military mobilises extra reservists as tensions escalate

Saturday 28 September 2024 22:10 , Jane Dalton

Israel’s military mobilizes additional reserve soldiers as tensions escalate with Lebanon

Opinion: There’s still a chance to avert war

Saturday 28 September 2024 21:15 , Jane Dalton

With the world overwhelmingly opposed to a new all-out war, it could yet be avoided, writes Mary Dejevsky:

The Middle East is closer than ever to all-out war – but there is a path to peace

US committed to Israel’s defence, says Pentagon

Saturday 28 September 2024 20:20 , Jane Dalton

The United States is determined to prevent Iran and Iran-backed groups from exploiting the situation in Lebanon or expanding the conflict, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has told Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant in phone calls.

Mr Austin expressed full US support for Israel’s right to defend itself and made clear that “the United States remains postured to protect US forces and facilities in the region and committed to the defense of Israel”, Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder said.

Fire and smoke at Lebanese border

Saturday 28 September 2024 19:30 , Jane Dalton

Smoke billows over Khiam, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as pictured from Marjayoun, near the Lebanese border with Israel:

Armed men fire into air and shut down shops as Hezbollah supporters in shock

Saturday 28 September 2024 18:40 , Jane Dalton

Armed men fired shots in the air and shut down shops in parts of Beirut after the death of Hassan Nasrallah.

Hezbollah supporters said they were in a state of shock and disbelief.

“God, I hope it’s not true. It’s a disaster if it’s true,” said Zahraa, a young woman displaced overnight from Hezbollah’s stronghold in the southern suburbs of Beirut.

“He was leading us. He was everything to us. We were under his wings,” she said tearfully.

She said other displaced people around her fainted or began to scream when they received notifications on their phone of Hezbollah’s statement confirming his death.

“We’re still waiting for him to come out on the television at 5pm and tell us that everything is okay, that we can go back home,” Zahraa said.

In some parts of Beirut, armed men went into shops and told owners to shut them down, witnesses said. It was not immediately clear what faction the armed men belonged to.

Search for victims goes on as more strikes expected

Saturday 28 September 2024 17:59 , Jane Dalton

Rescue workers in Beirut are still looking for victims under the rubble and more strikes are expected across southern Lebanon overnight, writes Cosette Moljin in the city.

At least six buildings were destroyed in Friday night’s airstrike that killed Hassan Nasrallah.

The site is close to Rasoul al-Aazam Hospital, near the entrance of the Palestinian refugee camp Bourj el-Barajneh, and along a main road that leads from the centre of Beirut to the Beirut national airport.

Killing of Hezbollah chief ‘a measure of justice’, says Biden

Saturday 28 September 2024 17:49 , Jane Dalton

US president Joe Biden has said the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was “a measure of justice” for his many victims.

Mr Biden said: “Hassan Nasrallah and the terrorist group he led, Hezbollah, were responsible for killing hundreds of Americans over a four-decade reign of terror.

“His death from an Israeli airstrike is a measure of justice for his many victims, including thousands of Americans, Israelis, and Lebanese civilians.

“The strike that killed Nasrallah took place in the broader context of the conflict that began with Hamas’s massacre on October 7, 2023.

“Nasrallah, the next day, made the fateful decision to join hands with Hamas and open what he called a “northern front” against Israel.”

The president said the US fully supported Israel’s right to defend itself against Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and any other Iranian-supported terrorist groups, adding: “Just yesterday, I directed my Secretary of Defense to further enhance the defense posture of US military forces in the Middle East region to deter aggression and reduce the risk of a broader regional war.

“Ultimately, our aim is to de-escalate the ongoing conflicts in both Gaza and Lebanon through diplomatic means.

“In Gaza, we have been pursuing a deal backed by the UN Security Council for a ceasefire and the release of hostages. In Lebanon, we have been negotiating a deal that would return people safely to their homes in Israel and southern Lebanon.

“It is time for these deals to close, for the threats to Israel to be removed, and for the broader Middle East region to gain greater stability.”

Airstrikes killed five relatives, says British woman

Saturday 28 September 2024 17:20 , Jane Dalton

A British woman returning to the UK from Lebanon said Israeli airstrikes had killed five members of her family, including a young engineer due to be married in 10 days’ time.

Sana Chamseddin, who clutched her son in her arms in Heathrow Airport, spoke of her guilt at escaping besieged Lebanon and leaving behind loved ones.

Her uncle, his wife and his three daughters, all in their twenties, were killed when their home in the Lebanese city of Tyre was bombed, she told the PA news agency.

Two of the daughters were doctors and one was an engineer who was due to be married in 10 days, said Mrs Chamseddin.

She and her husband, both British citizens, returned to London with their sons, two-month-old Zien and one-year-old Jawad.

She broke down in tears as she said: “On Monday morning we wake up as a big bomb (hit) just beside our house, and we saw on the news that they said another round (of attacks) will start in one hour, so we didn’t take it seriously because we don’t fight – we are normal civilians.

“I was talking with my uncle over WhatsApp, he told me that it’s okay, it’s not going to bomb him, but we lost the connection when they bombed around us.

“When we arrived after 10 hours on the road we found out that he didn’t make it – me and my husband feel very guilty to come here (to England) and (leave) our family in unsafe places.”

Smoke rises from Beirut suburbs after Israeli attacks

Saturday 28 September 2024 16:50 , Jane Dalton

Recap:

Israel-Hamas war latest: Smoke rises from Beirut’s southern suburbs after a night of Israeli attacks

Missile intercepted over Israel as air raid sirens sound

Saturday 28 September 2024 16:38 , Jane Dalton

Air raid sirens have sounded across central Israel, including at Tel Aviv international airport, shortly after prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu landed from a trip to the US.

The Israeli military said a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted shortly after the sirens were heard. There were no reports of injuries.

It was not immediately known whether the missile strike was aimed at Mr Netanyahu’s flight.

Iran Guard ‘was in charge of protest suppression’

Saturday 28 September 2024 16:20 , Jane Dalton

The killing of a prominent general in Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard further ratchets up pressure on Tehran to respond to Israel’s strikes on Lebanon, although the country has signalled in recent months that it wants to negotiate with the West over sanctions crushing its economy.

General Abbas Nilforushan , 58, was killed yesterday in the strike that killed Hassan Nasrallah, the state-owned Tehran Times reported.

The US Treasury had identified Nilforushan as the deputy commander for operations in the Guard. It sanctioned him in 2022 and said he had led an organisation “directly in charge of protest suppression”.

Those sanctions came amid the months-long protests in Iran over the death of Mahsa Amini following her arrest for allegedly not wearing her headscarf or hijab.

Nilforushan also served in Syria, backing President Bashar Assad in his country’s decades-long war that grew out of the 2011 Arab Spring. Like many of his colleagues, he began his military career in the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s.

In 2020, Iranian state television called him a “comrade” of Gen Qassem Soleimani, the head of its expeditionary Quds Force who was killed in a US drone attack in Baghdad that year.

More than 1,600 people killed in a year, Lebanon says

Saturday 28 September 2024 15:43 , Jane Dalton

Lebanon’s health ministry says the death toll in its country since the day after the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October last year is 1,640, with 8,408 people wounded.

In the past 12 days, 1,030 have been killed, including 56 women and 87 children, it said, with 6,352 people wounded.

Israel brands Nasrallah murderer of innocent civilians

Saturday 28 September 2024 15:19 , Jane Dalton

The head of the Israel Defence Forces has said Hassan Nasrallah “indiscriminately murdered Israeli civilians and aimed to end this war with the destruction of the State of Israel”.

Hezbollah has “murdered innocent people worldwide, hiding weapons under the homes of families, women and children and turning them into human shields”, said Chief of the General Staff Herzi Halevi.

“The IDF is at peak readiness, both in defense and offense, across all fronts, and is prepared for what comes next,” he said.

“We have more missions ahead on all fronts—destroying terrorist organisations and their capabilities, returning our hostages—the mission is constantly before our eyes! As well as the safe return of the residents in the north and south to their homes.”

Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the Hezbollah headquarters in Beirut where Nasrallah was killed was a legitimate military target under international law.

Israel had issued stricter guidelines to civilians by limiting the size of gatherings in areas of central Israel to 1,000 people, he added.

He said: “Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of an evil terrorist organisation; the senior terrorists eliminated with him, and the central headquarters they were in, were legitimate military targets under international law. Nasrallah intentionally built Hezbollah’s central headquarters under residential buildings in Dahiya, Beirut, because Hezbollah intentionally uses Lebanese civilians as human shields. While Hezbollah seeks to maximize civilian harm, Israel seeks to minimize it.”

Recap: Nasrallah and his role in Middle East fighting

Saturday 28 September 2024 14:40 , Jane Dalton

Nasrallah’s significance and events that led to his death:

Hassan Nasrallah, longtime leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah, is killed by his archenemy Israel

Analysis: Does Hezbollah chief’s death bring Israeli victory closer?

Saturday 28 September 2024 14:20 , Jane Dalton

Israel has has yet to show it has a strategy to persuade its enemies to accept defeat, writes Mark Almond:

Has the death of Hezbollah’s leader brought Israel any closer to victory?

Beirut strikes ‘killed Iranian military chief’

Saturday 28 September 2024 14:05 , Jane Dalton

Iran Revolutionary Guards’ deputy commander Abbas Nilforoushan was killed in the Israeli strikes on Beirut on Friday, Iranian media reports.

Iranian state television read the announcement from Hezbollah confirming Nasrallah’s death live, but there was no other immediate comment.

The country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a statement read on television: “The resistance movement, headed by Hezbollah, will decide the fate of the region.”

Nasrallah: His power and influence

Saturday 28 September 2024 13:50 , Jane Dalton

Idolised by his Lebanese Shi’ite followers and respected by millions of others across the Arab and Islamic world, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah lived largely in hiding in the past years for fear of an Israeli assassination:

Who is Hassan Nasrallah, shrewd strategist of Lebanese militant group Hezbollah?

UK repeats plea for ceasefire

Saturday 28 September 2024 13:40 , Jane Dalton

The UK government has repeated its plea for calm following the death of Hezbollah’s leader.

British officials reiterated the foreign secretary’s message to the UN this week in which he called for a ceasefire and a political solution to the conflict.

David Lammy told the UN Security Council on Wednesday: “A full-blown war is not in the interests of the Israeli or Lebanese people.”

But pleas for a ceasefire from Western leaders including US president Joe Biden have so far proved unsuccessful, with both Israel and Hezbollah vowing to fight on.

Saturday 28 September 2024 13:33 , Jane Dalton

Palestinian militant group Hamas said on Saturday it mourned Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah following his killing in an Israeli airstrike, saying his death would only fuel the fight against Israel.

The group said: “Crimes and assassination by the occupation will only increase the determination and the insistence of the resistance in Palestine and Lebanon to go forward with all their might, bravery and pride on the footsteps of the martyrs… and pursue the path of resistance until victory and the dismissal of the occupation.”

His death marks a heavy blow to Iran, given the major role he has played in the Tehran-backed regional “Axis of Resistance”.

Read more about the Iran-allied groups in the Middle East:

From Hamas to Hezbollah, a look at the groups rallying to arms around Middle East

Saturday 28 September 2024 13:20 , Andy Gregory

Lebanon health minister says 11 killed and 108 wounded in Israeli strikes on Friday

Saturday 28 September 2024 13:15 , Andy Gregory

Lebanon’s health minister has said that 11 people were killed and 108 injured in Israeli strikes on Friday, after the attack which killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah levelled six blocks of flats.

Iran in precarious position after assassination of Hezbollah chief, analyst says

Saturday 28 September 2024 12:57 , Andy Gregory

Iran is in a precarious position after the killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, having not yet responded either to the death of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, warned Chatham House analyst Dr Sanam Vakil.

“An attack from Tehran will certainly invite an Israeli response – one that Netanyahu is clearly looking for, said Dr Vakil, who leads the think-tank’s Middle East and North Africa programme.

“Its reputation as the patron of the axis is certainly damaged. Iran’s intelligence continues to be compromised and its positioning in Syria too remains under persistent attack. Furthermore, it is clear that the axis has not proven effective at providing Iran deterrence, defence against Israel or a ceasefire in Gaza.

“Pezeshkian, Iran’s new president also seeks negotiations and sanctions relief. A military response to Nasrallah’s death will, for the time being, close down the path of diplomacy. “

“Despite these risks and calculations, Iran will be looking for some way to turn the tables and save some face. This could result in a coordinated axis response including from Iraq and the Houthis or another direct Iranian strike on Israel itself.

“By maintain pressure or even escalating, Tehran is aware that this will invite further attacks, but it will choose to do so keep pressure on Israel, perhaps return the focus to Gaza and a ceasefire and above all to stop further Israeli attacks.”

Breaking: Hezbollah confirms Nasrallah’s death in Israeli airstrike

Saturday 28 September 2024 12:39 , Andy Gregory

Hezbollah has confirmed its leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israel airstrike.

France says it has information confirming Hezbollah chief is dead

Saturday 28 September 2024 12:25 , Andy Gregory

France’s foreign ministry has said that, according to its information, Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah is indeed dead, as claimed by Israel.

“According to the information we have, Hassan Nasrallah, secretary general of Hezbollah, would indeed have died,” the French foreign ministry said in a statement.

EU aviation safety agency advises airlines not to operate in Israel or Lebanon

Saturday 28 September 2024 12:14 , Andy Gregory

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has recommended that airlines do not operate in Lebanese or Israeli airspace for the next month.

The agency said that “an overall intensification of air strikes and degradation in the security situation has been noted, impacting the safety of airspace over Israel and Lebanon”.

It did not cite any one specific event in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah as a trigger for issuing its “conflict zone information bulletins” for the two countries.

It said the recommendation is valid until 31 October but could be reviewed earlier and adapted or withdrawn.

Hezbollah threat ‘hasn’t gone away’, Israeli military official warns

Saturday 28 September 2024 12:02 , Andy Gregory

Israeli military spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani has said that much of Hezbollah’s arsenal remains intact despite intense Israeli strikes over the past week, and that Israel will continue to target the group.

“This isn’t a threat that has gone away,” he said, adding that it is “safe to assume” that Hezbollah will retaliate.

But he said Israel hopes the blow “will change Hezbollah’s actions” and alter the course of the war.

Mr Shoshani said the airstrike targeting Nasrallah was based on years of tracking him, along with “real-time information.” He said Israel confirmed the death through various types of intelligence, though he declined to elaborate.