Hezbollah vows “no surrender” after Israeli strike kills senior commander

Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah issued a sharp warning to Israel, insisting the group will not accept any form of “surrender,” as tensions escalate following the killing of senior Hezbollah commander Haytham Ali Tabtabai.

Fadlallah’s remarks, reported by Israeli media, came in direct response to Israel’s confirmation that it had carried out airstrikes in southern Beirut on November 24 that killed Tabtabai, whom the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) identified as Hezbollah’s Chief of Staff and “a key operative and veteran in the terrorist organisation.”

“We are not seeking war and we do not want it, but we will not accept surrender to the enemy,” Fadlallah declared. He stressed that Hezbollah would not permit Lebanon “to surrender under any name, slogan, or initiative.”

The IDF described the operation as its first strike in Beirut in months, noting that it has largely avoided targeting Lebanon’s capital since early June, when it said it destroyed underground drone production sites operated by Hezbollah. Tabtabai’s death is the latest in a series of Israeli blows to the group’s leadership over the past year, including the killing of long-time Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in southern Beirut in September 2024. In addition to senior figures, Israeli strikes have hit communication systems such as pagers and walkie-talkies and killed dozens of Hezbollah fighters.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps condemned the killing and called for “revenge,” signalling a risk of further escalation in the region.

The United States has long viewed Tabtabai as a central figure in Hezbollah’s military structure, designating him a terrorist in 2016 for commanding the group’s special forces in Syria and Yemen. The US Rewards for Justice program had offered up to $5 million for information leading to his capture.

Although a US-brokered ceasefire took effect in November 2024, it has not stopped Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley, and tensions between Israel and Hezbollah remain high.

By Tamilla Hasanova