Tehran warned of broader retaliation if attacked again as Washington defended its military action, while unrest spread to Beirut after Israel and Lebanon signed a US-brokered framework agreement.

The Arab League, meanwhile, warned that Israeli occupation policies and military actions across Palestinian, Lebanese and Syrian territories undermine peace efforts and regional stability.

The exchange came as regional tensions remained high and Iran intensified diplomatic efforts to secure a broader halt to hostilities, dispatching Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to Pakistan and preparing for talks in Moscow.

With airspace across parts of the Middle East locked down and thousands of flights cancelled or delayed, King Khalid International Airport remains one of the few major hubs still operating.

Mahmud Qamati, a Hezbollah official, described the strike in the Bekaa Valley as “a new massacre and a new aggression” in remarks broadcast on the group’s Al-Manar television channel.

After two days of blue skies and sunshine, the heavens opened, but the downpour did little to dampen the enthusiasm of those in attendance, some of whom had travelled for hours to see Leo on his first overseas trip as pope.

Hezbollah's leader on Friday said the group had the right to respond to Israel's assassination of its top military chief in a strike on Beirut's southern suburbs days ago.

Haytham Ali Tabatabai is the most senior commander from the Iran-backed group to be killed by Israel since a November 2024 ceasefire sought to end more than a year of hostilities between the two sides.

Beirut, Lebanon - Haytham Ali Tabatabai, Hezbollah's top military chief whom Israel killed on Sunday, had taken the role after the group's senior leaders died in the most recent war with Israel. He is the most important Hezbollah figure to have been killed since a November 2024 ceasefire sought to...

Nabatieh, Lebanon -- Hundreds of people gathered in south Lebanon's Nabatiyeh on Sunday to mourn five Hezbollah members killed in recent Israeli attacks, an AFP correspondent said, as Israel warned of intensifying attacks against the Iran-backed group. On Saturday, an Israeli strike killed four people in Kfar Rumman, Nabatiyeh district,...

Palestinian factions handed over weapons from Lebanon's largest refugee camp on Saturday, a Palestinian official said, as part of a push by the government to disarm non-state groups.

Responding to questions from journalists, Morcos said "the Lebanese army will begin implementing the plan, but in accordance with the available capabilities, which are limited in terms of logistics, material and human resources".

The Lebanese government is set to discuss on Friday an army plan to disarm Hezbollah, which the Iran-backed group opposes, accusing the cabinet of playing into the hands of Israel and the United States.

Beirut, Lebanon -- Lebanon's Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri, an ally of the Iran-backed Hezbollah, called on Sunday for dialogue over its weapons, days before the government is expected to approve an army plan to disarm the group. Months after Hezbollah's devastating war with Israel and under heavy US pressure,...

Amnesty International said Tuesday that the Israeli army's extensive destruction of civilian property in south Lebanon, including after a ceasefire with Hezbollah was struck, should be investigated as a war crime.

Hezbollah's chief on Monday doubled down on his refusal to give up the group's weapons ahead of talks between Lebanese officials and visiting US envoys after Lebanon's government opted to disarm the Iran-backed militants.

Syria's foreign minister met with an Israeli diplomatic delegation in Paris on Tuesday to discuss "de-escalation and non-interference in Syria’s internal affairs", state news agency SANA reported.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem vowed Friday to fight government plans to disarm his group, with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam accusing him of making "unacceptable" threats to unleash civil war.

Beirut, Lebanon - Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem has thanked a senior Iranian official for his country's ongoing support in confronting Israel, the Lebanese militant group said on Thursday. For decades, Tehran has been the main backer of the Shiite Muslim group, which emerged badly weakened from last year's war with...

Lebanese leaders firmly rejected any efforts at foreign interference during a visit by Iran's security chief Wednesday, with the prime minister saying Beirut would "tolerate neither tutelage nor diktat" after Tehran voiced opposition to plans to disarm Hezbollah.

Ali Larijani, the head of Iran's top security body, met with senior officials in Iraq on Monday, ahead of a visit to Lebanon, where the government plans to disarm Tehran-backed group Hezbollah.

Iran opposes the Lebanese government's decision to disarm the Tehran-backed militant group Hezbollah, a senior adviser to supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei said Saturday according to the Tasnim news agency.

With Washington pressing Lebanon to take action on the matter, US envoy Tom Barrack has made several visits to Beirut in recent weeks, presenting officials with a proposal that includes a timetable for Hezbollah's disarmament.

Hezbollah said Wednesday that it would treat a Lebanese government decision to disarm the militant group "as if it did not exist", accusing the cabinet of committing a "grave sin".

Israel said it carried out strikes on Thursday on sites used by Hezbollah to manufacture and store missiles in Lebanon, where Israel has launched multiple attacks despite a November ceasefire.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said Sunday his group would not surrender or lay down its weapons in response to Israeli threats, despite pressure on the Lebanese militants to disarm

Lebanese militant group Hezbollah on Wednesday hailed what it called its ally Iran's victory over Israel after 12 days of war, declaring it the start of a "new historical phase".

The US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack warned Lebanese militant group Hezbollah on Thursday against getting involved in the war between its main backer Iran and Israel.

Thursday's attacks on what the Israeli military said were underground Hezbollah drone factories came after an Israeli evacuation call on the eve of Eid al-Adha, a key Muslim religious festival, and sent huge numbers of residents of Beirut's southern suburbs fleeing.

Under a November ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group was required to pull its fighters out and dismantle its military infrastructure south of the Litani.

Beirut, Lebanon -- Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Sunday that disarming Hezbollah group was a "delicate" matter whose implementation required the right circumstances, warning that forcing the issue could lead the country to ruin. His remarks came as Lebanon's health ministry said two people were killed in Israeli strikes in...

Qatar is to renew a $60 million grant to pay the salaries of Lebanon's army and provide 162 military vehicles, the two countries said on Wednesday following Lebanese President Joseph Aoun's first official visit to the Gulf state.

Beirut, Lebanon - The once unthinkable disarmament of Hezbollah could finally be within reach, as the United States pushes Lebanon to act and applies pressure to the group's backer Iran over its nuclear programme, analysts said. Hezbollah was left badly weakened by more than a year of hostilities with Israel,...

Israeli defence chiefs said they held the Lebanese government responsible for all hostile fire from its territory regardless of who launched it.

Beirut, Lebanon - Hezbollah supporters blocked the Beirut airport road and burned tyres on Thursday to protest a decision barring two Iranian planes from landing in the Lebanese capital, state media and an airport official said. "Young men set tyres on fire in front of the airport entrance, raising banners supporting...

The occupied Golan is home to about 23,000 Druze Arabs, whose presence predates the occupation and most of whom retain Syrian citizenship, as well as around 30,000 Israelis.

The United States said Saturday it had made contact with Syria's victorious Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebels, despite previously designating the group as terrorists, following Bashar al-Assad’s ouster last weekend

The Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebels shocked the world by swiftly seizing Aleppo and Damascus, overshadowing global focus on the Gaza war and Israel's strikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Bashar al-Assad's whereabouts not clear, but his key backer Russia said he had resigned from the presidency and left Syria. Crowds loot his home and vandalize the Iranian embassy.

Many strikes on villages in southern Lebanon on Monday, after Israel said it was taking aim at dozens of Hezbollah targets during a fragile ceasefire, Both Israel and Hezbollah faced accusations Monday of breaching the truce,

US president says ceasefire takes effect on Wednesday at 4:00 AM Beirut time, as Lebanese officials accuse Israel of trying to inflict maximum damage through a wave airstrikes in Beirut before the truce deadline.

Israeli attacks have killed dozens in Gaza and Lebanon is the past 24 hours, while EU chief visits Beirut asking for immediate halt of war between Israel and Hezbollah. UN envoy to Syria says "extremely critical" to avoid Syria being dragged into war.

U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein announced "additional progress" in Lebanon-Israel ceasefire talks, heading to Israel to finalize an agreement amidst escalating clashes and a dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

US special envoy said he was in Beirut because he saw "real opportunity" to end the Israel-Hezbollah war

Israel escalated strikes on Hezbollah in Beirut and Tyre, targeting strongholds, while Hezbollah launched retaliatory attacks on Haifa, hitting a synagogue and injuring civilians, with mounting casualties on both sides.

Beirut, Lebanon -- More than a year of clashes that recently escalated into war have cost Lebanon more than $5 billion in economic losses and damaged nearly 100,000 homes, the World Bank said on Thursday. Since September 23, Israel has ramped up its air campaign in Lebanon, later sending in ground...

Israel intensifies airstrikes across Lebanon and Gaza, escalating cross-border violence as Netanyahu urges troops to push Hezbollah back and prevent rearmament, while Hezbollah claims missile attacks on an Israeli base in Haifa.

A US-brokered plan reportedly under consideration would see Hezbollah pull back 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the border, north of the Litani River, with Israeli forces withdrawing and the Lebanese army patrolling the border alongside UN peacekeepers.

Israel’s security cabinet discussed terms, including Hezbollah’s withdrawal north of the Litani River and Lebanese army deployment along the border to facilitate a 60-day truce.

Qassem replaces Hasan Nasrallah who was assassinated by Israel on September 27 after more than 30 years at the helm of the Iran-backed group.