Israel attacks Beirut, targets Hezbollah chief of staff

The IDF said Haitham Ali Tabataba'i was killed in the strike.

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November 16, 2025, 7:00 PM ET

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials reiterated their intention to block future Palestinian statehood ahead of the United Nations Security Council vote to authorize the U.S. plan for post-war Gaza on Monday.

There are three remaining deceased hostages in Gaza. Israeli authorities have been releasing the bodies of Palestinians in exchange for the return of hostage remains.

The ceasefire is broadly holding in Gaza, with Israeli forces inside the strip having pulled back to the so-called "yellow line." Still, renewed Israeli strikes have killed dozens of Palestinians in the past week.

Elsewhere, Israel is continuing strikes on what it says are Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon and on Sunday launched an airstrike in the capital Beirut. The Israel Defense Forces is also continuing raids in parts of the occupied West Bank.

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Nov 23, 9:02 AM EST

Beirut strike targeted Hezbollah chief of staff, Netanyahu’s office says

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement that Sunday's airstrike in the Lebanese capital Beirut targeted Hezbollah's chief of staff.

Netanyahu's office said the target "led the strengthening and arming of the terrorist organization."

"Prime Minister Netanyahu ordered the attack on the recommendation of the minister of defense and the chief of staff," the prime minister's office said.

-ABC News' Anna Burd and Victoria Beaule

Nov 23, 8:26 AM EST

Israel attacks Beirut, targets 'key' Hezbollah figure

The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement on Sunday that it "targeted a key terrorist in the Hezbollah terrorist organization" in the Lebanese capital of Beirut.

The IDF has been increasing the rate of strikes targeting alleged Hezbollah members and infrastructure in southern Lebanon in recent months, but until Sunday had not resumed attacks inside the capital.

Local media reports suggested that Sunday's attack occurred in a southern suburb of the city which is known as a Hezbollah stronghold.

Nov 23, 3:12 AM EST

IDF says it killed 2 people in southern Lebanon

The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement that it killed two alleged Hezbollah members in strikes in southern Lebanon on Saturday.

The IDF said it killed Kamel Reza Karnabsh in the Mayfadoun area of southern Lebanon. Karnabsh, the IDF said, "took part in Hezbollah's reestablishment attempts in the area."

Another alleged Hezbollah member was killed in the Houla area in southern Lebanon, the IDF said.

The man "served as the local representative of Hezbollah in the Houla area" and was "responsible for communication between the terror organization and the residents of the area regarding financial and military subjects," the IDF claimed.

Nov 23, 2:55 AM EST

24 killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza, officials say

At least 24 people were killed and 87 people injured in renewed Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, according to a statement from the Hamas-run Government Media Office in Gaza.

The Israeli strikes came after the Israel Defense Forces alleged a "blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement" after what it described as an "armed terrorist" crossed into Israeli-controlled territory in southern Gaza and shot at troops.

Hamas denied any involvement in the incident and said it remains committed to the ceasefire agreed last month.

The Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza said on Saturday that a total of 318 people have been killed by Israeli forces since the ceasefire came into effect on Oct. 11. Another 788 people have been injured, the ministry said.

A further 572 bodies have been recovered from under rubble during the ceasefire, the ministry said.

As of Saturday, the total death toll in Gaza since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023, stood at 69,513 people, per ministry figures.

-ABC News' Samy Zyara and Victoria Beaule