The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Friday that it had targeted the underground headquarters of Hezbollah in Beirut.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah may be among the dead; his fate has yet to be confirmed.
Massive explosions were seen and heard in the Dahiyeh neighborhood, shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu finished his address at the United Nations.
Netanyahu was reportedly speaking with reporters until a military aide whispered in his ear, and he left the briefing suddenly without explanation.
IDF Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari delivered a message in English:
Moments ago, the Israel Defense Forces carried out a precise strike on the Central Headquarters of the Hezbollah terror organization – that served as the epicenter of Hezbollah’s terror.
Hezbollah’s central headquarters was intentionally built under residential buildings in the heart of the Dahieh, in Beirut, as part of Hezbollah’s strategy of using Lebanese people as human shields.
On October 8th, Hezbollah started attacking Israel.
After almost a year of Hezbollah firing rockets, missiles, and suicide drones at Israeli civilians, after almost a year of Israel warning the world and telling them that Hezbollah must be stopped, Israel is doing what every sovereign state in the world would do if they had a terror organization that seeks their destruction on their border, taking the necessary action to protect our people so that Israeli families can live in their homes, safely and securely.
At the United Nations General Assembly, Netanyahu had just warned Iran, Hezbollah’s patron: “If you strike us, we will strike you. There is no place in Iran that the long arm of Israel cannot reach. And that is true of the entire Middle East.”
