Chief Of Military Staff Hezbollah Killed In Israeli Airstrike In Beirut

Illustration of Israeli fighter jets. (Wikimedia Commons/Amit Agronov/IDF Spokesperson's Unit)

JAKARTA - Chief of Military Staff Hezbollah Haytham Ali Tabababai was killed in an air strike by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to Beirut, Lebanon on Sunday.

The IDF said its forces launched an attack on a prominent member of the Hezbollah militant group in Beirut, quoted from The Times of Israel November 24.

According to Lebanese media, the attack took place on the southern suburbs of Beirut, known as the Hezbollah base.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's (PMO) office confirmed the attack in Beirut targeted Hezbollah's de facto chief of staff, Haytham Ali Tabatabai.

"A few moments ago, the IDF attacked, at the heart of the city of Beirut, Hezbollah's Chief of Staff, leading efforts to increase the organization's military and weapons," PMO said.

"Prime Minister Netanyahu ordered the attack on the recommendation of the defense minister and IDF chief of staff," the statement continued.

"Israel is determined to act in order to achieve its goals, wherever and whenever," the statement said.

Separately, Hezbollah confirmed the death of Haytham Ali Tabatabai in an air strike in Beirut today, hours after Israel announced the death of the commander.

Calling it a "great commander", the militant group said Tabatabai " dedicated his life to resistance from the start" more than four decades ago, and was "one of the leaders to lay the foundations" for the resistance.

It is known that the Israeli military's last attack in Beirut took place in July, targeting Hezbollah's infrastructure following an evacuation warning.