Lebanon reports casualties in new Israeli airstrike

Witnesses reported seeing more than 20 airstrikes before dawn on September 28 as Lebanese residents in southern Beirut abandoned their homes and gathered in squares, parks and sidewalks in the city center and along the coast, in what was considered the heaviest Israeli attack on Beirut in nearly a year of conflict with Hezbollah.

The new airstrike came just hours after the Israeli military said it had attacked Hezbollah's headquarters in the same Dahiyeh district on the evening of September 27. The raid was carried out by F-35 fighter jets. The Israeli military said Hezbollah's supreme leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and several other senior commanders were killed.

Nasrallah, 64, led Hezbollah in its wars against Israel and the conflict in neighboring Syria. Israel described him as "the central decision-maker and strategic leader of Hezbollah." Observers say Nasrallah's death will be a major loss for the militant group in the future.

Meanwhile, Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani announced that the country's military is on the highest alert, preparing for Hezbollah's retaliatory attacks. The Israeli defense minister has approved an order to limit large gatherings in the central region of Israel.