Israel says it struck Hezbollah HQ in downtown Beirut

Israel said it carried out a strike on Hezbollah’s central headquarters in Beirut on Friday, with media reports indicating a large explosion and plumes of orange and black smoke billowing above the skyline.

The strike came shortly after Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the United Nations General Assembly and said Israel has “the right to remove” the threat from Hezbollah on its northern border “and return our citizens to their homes safely.” 

“Israel has been tolerating this intolerable situation for nearly a year. Well, I’ve come here today to say enough is enough,” he said. 

Israeli military spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said Israel “carried out a precise strike on the Central Headquarters of the Hezbollah terror organization — that served as the epicenter of Hezbollah’s terror.”

Hagari accused Hezbollah of having “intentionally built” its headquarters “under residential buildings in the heart of the Dahieh, in Beirut, as part of Hezbollah’s strategy of using Lebanese people as human shields.”

He did not mention whether Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah was a target of the strike, or present at the site.

The strike came as Israel has rebuffed U.S. and international efforts to secure a 21-day cease-fire; it’s unclear if Hezbollah was open to accepting the truce.

Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said the U.S. was not involved in this operation and had no advanced warning, even as Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin held a phone call this morning with Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.  

“Minister Gallant spoke with Secretary Austin as the operation was already underway. This operation happened within the last few hours. We are still assessing the event and don’t have any additional information or further specifics to provide at this time,” she said. 

Hezbollah began attacking Israel across the Israeli-Lebanese border in the aftermath of Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel, but fighting has escalated dramatically in recent weeks. 

Updated: 1:31 p.m.