Live: Israel ramps up strikes on Gaza after Iran attack

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, one of the most powerful Arab figures in the Middle East, has left a lasting mark on modern Lebanon, the Arab-Israel conflict and the wider region.

He was killed aged 64 in a series of powerful Israeli air strikes in south Beirut on 27 September.

Under Nasrallah, whose surname translates as "victory through God", Hezbollah has grown from a local armed movement to the largest political party in Lebanon’s recent history. 

In the 2018 parliamentary elections, Hezbollah won more than 340,000 preferential votes, the most for any party in Lebanon since independence. 

Read more: Who is Hassan Nasrallah, leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah - and why does he matter?

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant issued a brief statement following the confirmation of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s death, saying that Israel’s war is not against the Lebanese people.

Addressing the Lebanese population, Gallant said: “It’s time for change.”

However, Israeli strikes across Lebanon over the past week have resulted in the deaths of hundreds, including many children, and displaced tens of thousands.

The air strike that killed Nasrallah on Friday targeted a densely populated civilian area in southern Beirut, destroying several residential buildings. Israel claimed the attack was aimed at a Hezbollah command centre.

Gallant further stated: “To our enemies, I say, we are strong and determined. To our partners, I would say, our war is your war."

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Syria has officially declared a three-day national mourning period and ordered flags to be lowered in honour of the "martyrdom of Hassan Nasrallah", according to a statement.

Russia has strongly condemned Israel's killing of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, with its foreign ministry urging Israel to halt hostilities in Lebanon.

“This forceful action is fraught with even greater dramatic consequences for Lebanon and the entire Middle East,” the ministry stated.

The Israeli army announced that it intercepted a missile launched from Yemen after sirens rang out in central Israel. 

In its statement, the military confirmed that its aerial defence unit intercepted the projectile before it entered Israeli territory.

The Yemeni group has been conducting attacks in support of Palestinians in Gaza since the start of Israel's war on the besieged territory. 

In a statement, the Houthis declared: “The martyrdom of Hassan Nasrallah will increase the flame of sacrifice, the heat of enthusiasm and the strength of resolve.” They pledged to achieve “victory and the demise of the Israeli enemy”.

The Lebanese minister of health reported that the death toll since the Israel-Lebanon conflict began on October 8 of last year has risen to at least 1,640, with more than 8,408 people wounded.

The minister highlighted that many people remain trapped under the rubble, with missing people and dismembered bodies still being recovered. 

Among those killed by Israeli strikes are 104 children and 194 women. Additionally, 41 health and ambulance workers have been killed and 111 others have been injured since the onset of the war. 

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (Unrwa) reported that more than 50,000 Lebanese and Syrians living in Lebanon have fled to Syria to escape the Israeli air strikes.

Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri condemned the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, saying: "This cowardly act has plunged Lebanon and the region into a new phase of violence, and we condemn it in its entirety."

Hariri also offered his condolences to Nasrallah's family, stressing that "Lebanon must remain our priority".

Jean-Luc Melenchon, a left-wing French politician and former Member of the European Parliament (MEP), expressed his outrage over the ongoing violence in Lebanon.

"[I'm] appalled by the scale of the ongoing massacre in Lebanon," Melenchon stated in a post on X. 

He added: "Netanyahu is violating the sovereignty of states throughout the region with the complicity of Europe and the USA. The genocide in Gaza is spreading without limits."

In a follow-up post, Melenchon added that "the assassination of Hassan Nasrallah is one more step towards the invasion of Lebanon and general war".

"France no longer counts on the ground. Netanyahu's crimes will continue since they are unpunished. The danger is extreme for the region and the world," he added.

On Saturday, Yemen's Houthi movement mourned the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli air strike in Beirut on Friday night.

“The resistance will not be broken," the Houthi movement said in a statement, as quoted by Reuters, adding that it will continue to support Lebanon and Palestine, vowing that the "support fronts will strengthen and grow".

Lebanon has become "the new target of Israel's policy of genocide, occupation and invasion," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, as quoted by Reuters.

"Hassan Nasrallah and his comrades have joined the long caravan of martyrs on the road to Palestine. I extend my condolences to Hezbollah and pay tribute to the lives of innocent civilians," Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt wrote on X, sharing a photo of the Dome of the Rock in Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Lebanon's health minister, Firass Abiad, reported at a news conference that Israeli strikes killed 11 people and wounded at least 108 yesterday.

The European Commission and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have advised European airlines to avoid operating in the airspace of Lebanon and Israel at all altitudes.

The advisory will remain in effect until October 31 but may be reviewed, adapted or withdrawn based on a revised assessment, the agencies added.

The Iranian foreign ministry expressed its sorrow over the assassination of Hezbollah's secretary general, Hassan Nasrallah, saying: "The glorious path of the resistance leader will continue, and his goal of liberating Jerusalem will be achieved."