Israel says strike in Beirut targeted Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah

Israeli intelligence indicated that Iran and its proxies had a long-term a plan to encircle — and eliminate — Israel by 2040, but Yahya Sinwar and Hamas acted early by launching the Oct. 7 terror attacks, a senior Israeli official told NBC News. 

Hassan Nasrallah and Hezbollah were always the lynchpin to the plan to wipe out Israel because they’re the best armed.

Israel decided that if it wanted to get its people back to their homes after a full year, it had to go after Nasrallah in Lebanon and it wanted to do so without a ground invasion if possible, the senior Israeli official said.

Today’s strike in in Beirut was aimed at Nasrallah, but Israel doesn’t know yet if he was killed, the official said. 

So after recent strikes, does Israel feel it has eliminated enough of Hezbollah’s command and control that it can agree to a cease-fire? 

“We are further along than we were, but they still have thousands of rockets,” the official said, adding that it would consider itself even closer if Nasrallah was killed in today’s strike. “But in war, when your guy is down, you keep moving.”

And if Nasrallah is eliminated, “it would break the axis of Iran’s proxies,” he said.

Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said he is hopeful that diplomacy can win out and will continue pushing for that, while adding that Israel has a right to defend itself.

“The way it does so matters,” Blinken said. “The choices that all parties make in coming days will determine which path this region is on with profound consequences for its people now and possibly for years to come.”

Blinken continued, saying diplomacy is the course the U.S. government prefers.

“The path to diplomacy may seem difficult to see at this moment, but it is there and it is necessary. We will continue to work intensely with all parties to urge to choose that course.”

Blinken said violence will only lead to more bloodshed and instability in the region, causing "ripples of which will be felt around the world.”

America, Blinken said, will not shy away from defending itself against attacks on its interests.

“Anyone using this moment to target American personnel, American interests in the region, the United States will take every measure to defend our people,” he said.

Hezbollah fired rockets at the city of Safed in retaliation for Israel’s attack in Beirut.

It said the retaliation strikes were "in support of our steadfast Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and in support of their valiant and honorable resistance, and in defense of Lebanon and its people, and in response to the barbaric Israeli violation of cities, villages and civilians.”

After today's strikes in Beirut, Lebanese Prime Minister Naji Mikati departed early from New York City, where he was attending the United Nations General Assembly.

“In light of the developments in Lebanon after the Israeli aggression on the southern suburbs of Beirut, the Prime Minister decided to end the meetings he is holding in New York during the UN General Assembly and return to Beirut,” Mikati’s office said in a statement.

Mikati will meet with the Council of Ministers for an emergency meeting, the statement said.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also cut his trip to the United States short. Earlier in the day, Netanyahu addressed the UN’s General Assembly.

President Joe Biden's national security team has briefed him several times today on the developments in Beirut, according to the White House.

The president has directed the Pentagon to “assess and adjust as necessary U.S. force posture in the region to enhance deterrence, ensure force protection, and support the full range of U.S. objectives,” according to a statement.

Biden has also ordered his team to ensure U.S. embassies take all necessary protective measures.

Israel's attack on Hezbollah in Beirut killed at least six people and injured 91, the Lebanese Ministry of Health said based on a preliminary death toll.

Of the 91 who were injured in the southern suburbs of Beirut, 14 required hospitalization, the ministry said.

Israel has contacted residents of three buildings in Beirut, urging them to immediately evacuate because it plans to attack the buildings, which it says are housing anti-ship missiles underneath them, according to the Israeli Defense Forces.

Hezbollah has denied claims that weapons are being stored in residential buildings.

IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said during a late-night news conference that an attack is imminent on the buildings hiding Hezbollah weapons.

“These residents are above and near Hezbollah’s strategic assets and must evacuate immediately for their safety and security," he said.

The anti-ship missiles have been used to carry out attacks on the maritime global shipping route and on Israeli civilian and military vessels, Hagari said.

Hezbollah hides its weapons in homes and villages across southern Lebanon, Hagari said.

“Hezbollah has stored these strategic weapons beneath civilian populations. The way the missiles are stored in these buildings allows them to be moved and launched outside of the buildings within minutes,” he said.

“Hezbollah exploits and endangers Lebanese civilians, using them as a human shield for its weapons. We will not allow such a threat to be directed at Israeli civilians, global shipping routes and vital facilities, which any other sovereign state would never permit.” 

 

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian called Israel’s attack on Hezbollah in Beirut an “undeniable and blatant war crime.”

Israel’s strike on Hezbollah amounted to “state terrorism” and a sign Israel is the “greatest threat to regional and international peace and security,” Pezeshkian said in a statement.

“I express my condolences to the nation and government of Lebanon and extend my sympathies to the families of the proud martyrs of this incident,” Pezeshkian said. “I share in the grief of you, the dear and honorable people of the Lebanese resistance.”

Iran will pursue the crime against Israel and stands alongside Lebanon, Pezeshkian said.

The Israeli Defense Forces are expected to release a statement later tonight regarding its attack on Hezbollah in Lebanon.

The IDF said spokesperson Daniel Hagari is expected to address the media.

Israel’s attack in Lebanon today crosses Iran’s “red lines,” a senior Iranian official said.

Senior official Ali Larijani said on State TV Iran will resist under all circumstances and Israeli’s attack targeting a leader went beyond "red lines."

Any assassination of resistance leaders will result in others taking their place, Larijani said. The people of Lebanon will become more determined to “confront the Zionists,” Larijani said.

An Israeli official told NBC News that the target was the Iran-backed militant group’s powerful leader, Hassan Nasrallah.

 

The Israeli military said it was continuing to strike Hezbollah sites throughout Lebanon.

Fighter jets struck the targets deep in Lebanon over the past hour, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

Some of the targets included launchers aimed at Israelis as well as structures storing weapons, the IDF said.

The IDF said it was continuing to “degrade and dismantle” Hezbollah’s capabilities and infrastructure.

The U.S. Embassy in Beirut said the Lebanese military was setting up a protective cordon around the embassy compound amid Israel's intensifying strikes targeting Hezbollah.

British nationals in Lebanon were today urged to take the “next available flight” following Israel’s attack on Hezbollah in Beirut.

“British nationals in Lebanon should leave now,” the United Kingdom’s government said in a post on X. “You should take the next available flight. We are working to increase capacity and secure seats for British nationals to leave.”

Britons were also urged to register with the embassy to be provided the latest information.

Tel Aviv Municipality said it was on a “heightened alert” and emergency teams working with the Home Front Command in the aftermath of Israel's huge airstrikes on the Lebanese capitol, Beirut.

Bomb shelters throughout the city were open, the municipality said.

Residents were urged to find the shelters on the “My Digital” app or the municipal website — https://bit.ly/3Qi4ijM — and to stay alert and follow orders from the Home Front Command.

A Hezbollah spokesman said that Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, was not in one of the buildings in Beirut struck by Israeli missiles earlier today and is "fine."

"His Eminence the Secretary-General is fine and well and was not in the targeted location," Hezbollah Media Relations Officer Hajj Muhammad Afif said on Iranian television.

Residents of Israel close to the border with Lebanon were told to stay in safe areas after Israel’s attack today on Hezbollah in Beirut.

Residents of Safed, Meron, the Golan Heights, the Galilee panhandle and the Upper Galilee were told to stay in protected areas, according to the Israeli Army Radio.

A series of huge explosions destroyed several buildings in southern Beirut, sending up clouds of smoke into the sky.

At least two people were killed and dozens were wounded in the biggest explosion to hit the Lebanese capital in the past year, Lebanon’s health ministry said. 

President Biden's National Security team has briefed him on the Israeli attack on Hezbollah's headquarters in Beirut, Lebanon, a White House official told reporters.

The United States had “no advanced warning” that Israel would target Hezbollah’s headquarters in southern Beirut, according to a U.S. official.

“Secretary Austin spoke … earlier today with Minister Gallant. The US was not involved in this operation and we had no advanced warning,” Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said today during a news conference, referencing U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s conversation with Yoav Gallant, Israel’s Minister of Defense. Singh said when Austin spoke with Gallant “the operation was already underway.”

Paramedics and various rescue teams at the targeted site in the southern suburb of Beirut are calling on citizens to donate blood at hospitals in the area and across Beirut, according to the staterun Lebanese National News Agency.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said that Israel's attack on southern Beirut today proves the government "does not care" about international calls for a cease-fire.

"The new aggression proves that the Israeli enemy does not care about all international efforts and calls for a ceasefire, which places the international community before its responsibilities in deterring this enemy and stopping its tyranny and the war of extermination it is waging against Lebanon," Mikati said in a statement.

Mikati instructed the National Committee for Coordination of Disaster and Crisis Response Operations to mobilize "concerned agencies" following reports of a large number of victims, according to the statement.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he will be returning to Israel earlier than planned. He will leave the U.S. tonight.

The decision came after Israel launched airstrikes on southern Beirut today that targeted Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah.

Half of Americans support Israel's military offensives against Hamas and Hezbollah since Oct. 7, according to a new survey commissioned by the Council for a Secure America, a think tank, and conducted by the Morning Consult polling company.

The survey also found that 25% of Americans want to see the U.S. increase its support for Israel and 25% want the opposite.

Around 56% of Americans support "keeping U.S. military action against Iran and its proxies (Hamas, Hezbollah) where it is today, while 27% of Americans would like to increase U.S. military action and 17% would like to decrease U.S. military action against Iran and its proxies," according to Morning Consult.

More than half of Americans, or 62%, feel that America's relationship with Israel is important while 9% feel it isn't.

Israel’s strike in southern Beirut was targeting Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, an Israeli official told NBC News.

The IDF is currently assessing whether or not it had killed Nasrallah, whose death would be a huge blow to the powerful Iran-backed group.

Ten teams from the Lebanese Red Cross are headed to site of an IDF airstrike.

The state-run Lebanese National News Agency reported "extensive destruction, leading to the collapse of several residential buildings" in Haret Hreik, in the suburb of Dahieh.

Israel expects Hezbollah will attempt to mount a major retaliatory attack after the IDF struck the militant group’s command center in south Beirut, an Israeli official told NBC News.

The Israel Defense Forces launched airstrikes at Hezbollah's central headquarters today, which they said "is located under residential buildings" in Dahieh, a suburb in southern Beirut, shaking the capital and sending a thick plume of smoke over the city.

Hezbollah's Al Manar TV reported that several buildings were destroyed. An NBC News crew witnessed an explosion near the Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport, that did not appear to have affected airport operations. A commercial airplane took off about 15 minutes later.

The number of casualties was not immediately available, but Lebanese civil defense have indicated that there are deaths.

The Israel Defense Forces has mobilized two reserve brigades to northern Israel in preparation for a possible ground incursion into Lebanon.

The goal of mobilizing the 6th and 228th Reserve Brigades is to "target Hezbollah’s military capabilities, and create the conditions for residents of northern Israel to return safely to their homes," the IDF said in a statement.

The reserve soldiers have been armed with logistical equipment and combat gear from emergency storage units, the IDF said.

Ylron Levgoren, 63, was among the few dozen protestors on Friday picketing along the barricades outside the UN. With what he called his “democracy saving dog” Auggie in his car’s passenger seat, Levgoren drove nine hours to New York City from Ontario, Canada to protest Netanyahu’s speech, he said.

Levgoren — who said he was born in Israel — was wearing a homemade contraption that resembled a prison cell, which he said was to represent the plight of the remaining Israeli hostages held inside Gaza. He called on Netanyahu to strike a hostage deal with Hamas.

“We don’t need you,” Levgoren said of the Israeli prime minister. “Israel can survive much better without you, but if you are still in power, you need to bring them back home.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel must defeat Hezbollah, which he called "the quintessential terror organization in the world today," during remarks at today's General Assembly meeting.

"It has tentacles that span in all continents," he said. "Israel has been tolerating this intolerable situation for nearly a year. Well, I’ve come here today to say enough is enough. We won’t rest until our citizens can return safely to their homes."

Netanyahu defended Israel's actions in Lebanon, which includes airstrikes that killed more than 700 people in southern, central and eastern Lebanon since Monday, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

In his General Assembly speech, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directed a message to Iran — and the Middle East.

"I have a message for the tyrants of Tehran," he said. "If you strike us, we will strike you. There is no place — there is no place in Iran that the long arm of Israel cannot reach, and that’s true of the entire Middle East."

Read more on his speech here.

The streets around an area in southern Lebanon that was targeted by Israeli warplanes earlier this week were eerily deserted Friday.

Among the buildings hit were a motorcyle repair factory which is still smoking, the smell of the fuel still present.

Netanyahu pledged that unless Hamas surrendered and laid down arms in Gaza, Israel would fight the group “until we achieve total victory.”

On Hezbollah, the prime minister told the U.N. General Assembly that Israel would not rest "until our citizens can return safely to their homes."

Tens of thousands of civilians were driven from their homes on both sides of the Lebanon-Israel border as Israel and Hezbollah traded fire after the Oct. 7 attack.

On Monday, Israel launched an intense aerial assault in Lebanon, killing some 700 people since then.

Read more on Netanyahu's U.N. speech here.

A group of about two dozen Orthodox Jewish men and boys stood outside barricades surrounding the streets near the United Nations building in New York on Friday to protest Netanyahu’s speech.

“Anti-Zionism is not antisemitism,” the group chanted in unison.

Yokonan Landau, 25, was among the group of men. He said the group had “no choice” but to “travel to New York City on Friday morning from Upstate New York to denounce Netanyahu’s visit. We cannot be silent, we have to stand up,” he said. “We have to have the world stop this genocide.”

Some passersby clapped in favor of the group’s chants, while others hurled expletives. One man stood in front of Landau, pointed his finger in his face and shouted: “You are not a real Jew.” 

Netanyahu said that for Israel to achieve peace, it needed to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia. He also said that before Oct. 7, a pact between the country was close.

One of Netanyahu's signature achievements as prime minister was the signing of the Abraham Accords, which helped normalize relations between Israel and Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

Saudi Arabia, long a leader in the Muslim and Arab worlds as well as a rival of Israel's arch-enemy Iran, had recently sought warmer relations with Israel.

These efforts were scuppered, for the time being at least, by the war in Gaza, which has spurred despair and anger against Israel among millions of Muslims and others around the war.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the UNGA that he had’t intended to travel to the annual event this year, but “lies and slander” against his country had convinced him to.

“My country is at war fighting for its life,” he said amid loud cheers and some boos. He also vowed “to set the record straight” about Israel’s fight against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. 

As he often does, he tied Iran to Oct. 7. While Tehran has supported Hamas, it is not believed they were part of the planning for the Hamas terrorist attack.

BEIRUT — No one will know whether harried negotiations to reach a cease-fire between Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Israel can succeed until the end of the United Nations General Assembly session on Monday, a Western diplomat in Beirut told NBC News Thursday.

“The idea of intensification even under negotiation is something that we can expect from both sides,” said the diplomat, who asked to remain anonymous because they were not authorized to speak publicly. 

The diplomat did not rule out the possibility of an escalation over the border even as a broad coalition of diplomats push for peace.

The multinational proposal for a 21-day ceasefire between Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah and Israel faltered on Thursday morning, crushing sky-high hopes the previous evening that the proposal could halt the sudden escalation to months of fighting and avert and all-out war.

Rescuers gathered at the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike in the southern Lebanese village of Shebaa on Friday.

TYRE, Lebanon — The devastation caused by Israeli airstrikes is clear in this normally picturesque coastal town south of capitol Beirut.

Smoke rises from a motorcycle repair shop and fuel storage site demolished by an Israeli airstrike completely flattened a four-storey building earlier this week.

Tyre, an ancient city with luscious banana groves, feels sparsely populated, with many people having fled the violence. But it's still standing despite some destruction, with some small grocery shops and restaurants open.

About 140,000 children have had to flee their homes in southern Lebanon in the past four days, with many arriving at shelters showing signs of severe distress, Save the Children reported yesterday.

The organization's staff are raising the alarm over the psychological impact of the fighting on children, many of whom are showing signs of severe distress due to the displacement and constant shelling.  

All schools in Lebanon have been closed, impacting all of the country’s 1.5 million children, it added.

Following the sirens that sounded in the Haifa area in northern Israel early this morning, the Israeli military said about 10 projectiles were identified as crossing from Lebanon.

Some of the projectiles were intercepted and others were identified as having fallen in open areas, the Israeli army said, without elaborating on any casualties or damage.

In a later statement, the IDF said the launcher from which the rockets were fired was struck by Israeli fighter jets. It added that it "struck terrorist infrastructure sites and terrorist cells belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist organization in numerous areas in southern Lebanon" in dozens of additional strikes.

Attacks on health care are on the rise in Lebanon amid a ramped up offensive by Israel, the World Health Organization representative in the country, Abdinasir Abubakar, said on X today.

"24 attacks on health care were recorded so far, resulting in 27 deaths & 55 injuries for health workers," Abubakar said.

"This is unacceptable trend," he added.

Smoke billows from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese area of Mahmudiyah on Friday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Friday after striking a defiant note the day before as he vowed to continue hitting Hezbollah "with all our might."

Netanyahu said Israel will not stop "until we achieve all our goals" despite international calls, including from the U.S., for an immediate 21-day cease-fire across the Israel-Lebanon border.

However, another statement from the prime minister's office today cited "a lot of misreporting around the U.S.-led ceasefire initiative," saying Israel shares its aims and "appreciates the U.S. efforts in this regard."

It added that Israeli and American teams met yesterday to discuss the proposal and more discussions will be held in the coming days.

Lebanon's health ministry said that 92 people had been killed and another 154 injured in Israeli raids across southern, central and eastern Lebanon during the previous 24 hours.

The ministry said over 700 people have been killed since the start of Israel's new aerial offensive on Lebanon on Monday.