IDF hits Beirut as army officials warn U.S. limits hinder anti-Hezbollah drone operations
The IDF said it conducted a targeted airstrike in Beirut against a Hezbollah official on Thursday. Lebanese media reported the strike took place in front of a mall in a residential area of the Lebanese capital, with Qatari outlet Al-Araby reporting that one person was killed and several others wounded.
At least 14 people, including three children, were killed on Thursday, Lebanese health officials said, in a series of attacks the IDF said targeted over 135 Hezbollah sites. The strikes came after the IDF on Wednesday declared all of southern Lebanon a combat zone, two hours before carrying out airstrikes in Tyre, the Bekaa Valley, and southern Lebanon.
In Israel, 20-year-old soldier Rotem Yanai was killed Thursday morning by an explosive Hezbollah drone inside Israeli territory. The attack came after Israeli defense sources said Wednesday that a U.S. directive barring strikes deep inside Lebanon was undermining efforts to eliminate Hezbollah's explosive drone threat. Washington has prohibited Israel from targeting most sites deep inside Lebanon, including in Beirut, though U.S. officials recently loosened some restrictions to allow broader operations against Hezbollah.
Military sources said the expanded ground operation launched by the IDF in recent days is intended to make it more difficult for Hezbollah to launch drones toward northern Israeli communities. However, the sources acknowledged that the campaign has so far failed to stop the attacks. One IDF source told Haaretz that the drone threat "caught us unprepared."
The developments come as Israeli officials believe progress toward a U.S.-Iran agreement is increasing pressure on both Israel and Hezbollah to end the fighting in Lebanon. Israeli and Lebanese delegations are also slated to hold another round of U.S.-mediated talks in Washington over the weekend.
"There is no purpose to this war. Hezbollah is a malevolent organization, fueled by money and Iranian-Shi'ite ideology. It isn't nice. But it is possible to reach a genuine cease-fire and a political settlement in Lebanon under regional and international auspices" – Uri Misgav
U.S. President Donald Trump points his finger during a cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room at the White House, in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 27, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci
Trump 'not sure' Iran deal possible unless Saudis, Qatar join Abraham Accords
Iran said on Thursday that it targeted a U.S. airbase after the United States carried out strikes on what a Washington official described as an Iranian drone operation near the Strait of Hormuz. The strikes came hours after President Trump rejected a report that he was close to a compromise deal with Tehran, dampening hopes for a peace agreement.
But later Thursday, two U.S. sources told Axios that the U.S. and Iran have reached an agreement in principle on a 60-day cease-fire extension during which negotiations on Iran's nuclear program would take place. Trump has not yet approved the deal and requested several days to consider it after the U.S. negotiating team briefed him on the agreement's final terms, according to the report.
The developments came after Trump said on Wednesday that he was "not sure" Washington should reach a deal with Iran unless Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Arab states join the Abraham Accords and normalize relations with Israel. "I think they owe that to us," Trump said, adding that it would be "a tremendous sign" of goodwill.
At the same time, the IDF is preparing for the possibility that Israel may not receive advance warning before any renewed fighting with Iran. Military officials said the regional situation has changed dramatically compared with the previous operation, with several major powers now involved – a shift they say has reduced Israel's ability to make independent decisions regarding the resumption of hostilities and the identity of mediators who could determine the conditions for ending the conflict.
Meanwhile, in Gaza, at least 10 people were killed and 18 wounded in an Israeli strike targeting an apartment in a Gaza City building on Wednesday evening, Al-Araby reported. Earlier, the Israeli military said it had struck "two central Hamas terrorists" in the northern Gaza Strip.
