Hezbollah confirms leader Hassan Nasrallah is dead

• The IDF said on Saturday that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had been killed.
• Hezbollah confirmed the news.
• Nasrallah's death is likely to further concerns about a broader conflict in the Middle East.

The Israel Defense Forces said on Saturday morning that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had been killed after it carried out an airstrike in Lebanon.

In a post on X, the IDF said: "Hassan Nasrallah will no longer be able to terrorize the world."

Hezbollah confirmed Nasrallah's death in a statement released later on Saturday afternoon. The Lebanese militia group pledged to "continue its jihad in confronting the enemy, in support of Gaza and Palestine, and in defense of Lebanon."

The news of Nasrallah's death came after the Israeli military said on Friday it had carried out a series of air strikes in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon.

Nasrallah led the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon for more than three decades and is credited with expanding the group's military capabilities and stockpile of rockets and missiles.

His killing is a significant development in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict and is likely to raise further fears about the potential for a wider Middle East war. Israel had readied reservist troops on the Lebanese border earlier this week.

Israel's airstrikes on Friday destroyed several high-rise apartment buildings in the residential neighborhood of Haret Hreik in south Beirut. The Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said on X that six people had died and 91 people were injured in the blasts, according to an early toll.

Television footage from Beirut on Saturday morning showed plumes of smoke billowing from damaged buildings.

Israel has increasingly targeted top Hezbollah officials and operatives in recent weeks in strikes that have killed hundreds of people.

Hezbollah members were also targeted by a covert operation that involved detonating electronic communications devices . The sophisticated attack was attributed to Israel, though it hasn't claimed responsibility.

Tensions between the two sides have been on the rise since last October 8, the day after the attack on Israel by Hamas. Hezbollah launched projectiles into Israel in what it said was a show of solidarity with Hamas and the Palestinians affected by the conflict.

Israel warns of challenging days ahead

The IDF said the attack that killed Nasrallah and some of his other top officials on Friday was part of a precision strike by Israel's air force on Hezbollah's central headquarters, which it said was located underground below a residential building.

In a televised press conference Saturday, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that Israel was on peak alert and warned of challenging days ahead.

"Israel does not seek a wider escalation," Hagari said, adding that the army was seeking to bring home hostages held by Hamas in Gaza and to ensure its borders are safe.

Israel's government has ordered its citizens not to hold large gatherings of more than 1,000 people in the central area of the country from today amid fears of a retaliation.

In a series of posts on X, Ayatollah Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, condemned the Lebanon strikes and showed solidarity with Hezbollah.

"Lebanon will make the trangressing, malicious enemy regret its actions," a post on Khamenei's account reads .

Iran is a close ally of Hezbollah and has funded the group for decades. Iran's IRNA state news agency said Saturday that Iranian Brigadier Gen. Abbas Nilforoushan also died in the Israeli strike that killed Nasrallah.

A spokesperson for the United States Pentagon said on Friday it had received no forewarning of Israel's operation in the Lebanese capital this weekend. The US and allies including the United Kingdom, France, and Germany issued a joint statement earlier this week calling for an immediate 21-day ceasefire across the Lebanon-Israel border.

Hezbollah is a US-designated foreign terrorist organization with fighters numbering between 40,000 and 50,000, according to the Congressional Research Service . The group also has close relationships with the government of Syria and Houthi militants in Yemen.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for further updates.