The Israel Defence Forces declared Hezbollah secretary general Hassan Nasrallah dead in Friday's Beirut strike. IDF said Nasrallah was at the group's underground headquarters in the Lebanon capital.
"Hassan Nasrallah will no longer be able to terrorise the world," stated the IDF while military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani posted on X that "Hassan Nasrallah is dead".
Though Hezbollah is yet to release a clarifying statement, its spokesperson said Nasrallah is alive. "The secretary-general is fine and well and not in the targeted location," said the Hezbollah representative on Iranian TV.
Nasrallah has led Hezbollah for more than three decades since mid-1980s
The announcement comes after it was reported that the Hezbollah chief's daughter Zainab Nasrallah was also killed in strike.
Israel continues to bombard Hezbollah power centres in Beirut suburbs. Hezbollah missile unit commander Muhammad Ali Ismail and his deputy Hossein Ahmed Ismail were also killed in IDF strikes.
An Israeli military spokesperson said Hezbollah had planned to infiltrate Israeli communities and kidnap or murder its citizens. The latest attacks, including explosions of pagers and walkie-talkies, are reportedly carried out in a bid to thwart an October 7-like Hamas attack on Israel again.