World
Israel targets Hezbollah leader Nasrallah in strike on Beirut headquarters
The Israeli Defense Forces targeted Hezbollah leader Hassan Hasrallah in a “precise strike” Friday on the central headquarters of Hezbollah in Beirut, Lebanon.
IDF spokesperson Rear admiral Daniel Hagari said the headquarters were intentionally built in the heart of the Dahieh in Beirut under residential buildings “as part of Hezbollah’s strategy of using Lebanese people as human shields.”
Video and images show plumes of smoke rising over Beirut following the Israeli strikes. Witnesses say they heard multiple strikes. It is unclear if Nasrallah was struck.
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Smoke rises, after what Hezbollah’s Al-Manar tv says was an Israeli strike, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, Lebanon, Sept. 27, 2024. (Reuters)
Hezbollah’s al-Manar television reported that four buildings were destroyed and there were many casualties in the multiple strikes, which marked an escalation of Israel’s conflict with the heavily armed, Iran-backed Hezbollah.
Security sources in Lebanon said the attack targeted an area where top Hezbollah officials are usually based. It was the heaviest attack in Beirut in almost a year of conflict between Hezbollah and Israel.
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“On Oct. 8, Hezbollah started attacking Israel after almost a year of Hezbollah firing rockets, missiles and suicide drones at Israeli civilians,” Hagari said.
“After almost a year of Israel warning the world and telling them that Hezbollah must be stopped, Israel is doing what every sovereign state in the world would do if they had a terror organization that seeks their destruction on their border, taking the necessary action to protect our people so that Israeli families can leave their homes safely and securely.”
Fox News has learned the target of the attack was Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, pictured in a televised speech in January. (REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir)
Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh says the U.S. was not involved in this operation and had no advance warning.
“Minister [Yoav] Gallant spoke with Secretary Austin as the operation was already underway,” Singh said. “This operation has happened within the last few hours. We are still assessing the event.”
The Pentagon also declined to speculate on whether the Hezbollah leader was still alive.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approving the strikes on Friday from a hotel in New York. (Fox News)
A White House official says that President Biden has been briefed on the operation.
The strikes hit Beirut shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to continue Israel’s attacks on Iranian-backed fighters in Lebanon in a closely watched United Nations speech, as hopes faded for a cease-fire that could head off an all-out regional war.
A car sits in a huge hole at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburbs (The Associated Press)
Netanyahu will cut short his stay in the U.S. and will depart for Israel Friday, Fox News sources say. This is understood to be a rare move by an Israeli prime minister, as Shabbat is a day of rest for Jews.
WATCH: SMOKE FROM STRIKE RISES OVER BEIRUT
The fighting between Israel and Hezbollah has drastically escalated over the last month as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has begun targeting the terrorist network’s hot spots and military storage units, all of which are strategically embedded within civilian villages.
Reuters contributed to this report.
new video loaded: Train Crashes Into Bangkok Traffic, Killing at Least 8 People
By Jorge Mitssunaga
May 16, 2026
World
WHO declares Ebola outbreak in Central Africa a public health emergency after 80 suspected deaths
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The World Health Organization declared an Ebola outbreak in Central Africa an international public health emergency on Sunday after dozens of suspected deaths were reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring Uganda.
The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, does not meet the criteria for a pandemic emergency, the WHO said.
The declaration follows reports of 80 suspected deaths, eight laboratory-confirmed cases and 246 suspected cases as of Saturday across at least three health zones in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including Bunia, Rwampara and Mongbwalu.
The development comes as global health officials continue monitoring a rare hantavirus outbreak tied to the MV Hondius cruise ship, which left multiple passengers and crew members sick, and caused three deaths.
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A health worker sprays disinfectant on a colleague after working at an Ebola treatment center in Beni, eastern Congo, on Sept. 9, 2018. (Al-hadji Kudra Maliro/AP)
As of May 13, the WHO said 11 hantavirus cases had been identified in connection with the cruise outbreak, including eight confirmed cases, two probable cases and one inconclusive case.
In neighboring Uganda’s capital, Kampala, the WHO said two apparently unrelated laboratory-confirmed Ebola cases — including one death — were reported Friday and Saturday involving people who had traveled from the DRC.
Another laboratory-confirmed case was reported in the DRC capital of Kinshasa involving a person returning from Ituri province.
Initial tests suggested the outbreak does not involve the Ebola Zaire strain, which caused Congo’s devastating 2018–2020 epidemic that killed more than 1,000 people.
EBOLA OUTBREAK REPORTED IN AFRICAN COUNTRY — HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Health workers wearing protective suits tend to an Ebola victim in an isolation tent in Beni, Congo, on July 13, 2019. (Jerome Delay/AP)
However, unlike Ebola-Zaire strains, there are currently no approved vaccines or therapeutics for the Bundibugyo strain, which the WHO described as making the outbreak “extraordinary.”
The WHO warned the outbreak could be larger than currently reported due to the high positivity rate among initial samples and the growing number of suspected cases.
The outbreak also poses a public health risk to other countries, the WHO said, urging nations to activate emergency-management systems and implement cross-border screening measures.
‘DISEASE X’ HAS KILLED DOZENS IN THE CONGO — HERE’S WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE MYSTERY ILLNESS
Ambulances parked at Bunia General Referral Hospital following confirmation of an Ebola outbreak involving the Bundibugyo strain in Bunia, Ituri province, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 16, 2026. (REUTERS/Victoire Mukenge)
Ebola is a highly contagious and often fatal disease spread through bodily fluids, including blood, vomit and semen. Symptoms can include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle pain and internal bleeding.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus recently said Congo has a “strong track record” responding to Ebola outbreaks while announcing the release of $500,000 in emergency funding to support containment efforts.
The WHO said it will convene an emergency committee to review recommendations for how affected countries should respond.
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Health workers dressed in protective gear begin their shift at an Ebola treatment center in Beni, Congo, on July 16, 2019. (Jerome Delay/AP)
The organization did not recommend border closures or travel restrictions.
Congo has now recorded 17 Ebola outbreaks since the virus was first identified in the country in 1976.
Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr and Brittany Miller, along with Reuters, contributed to this report.
Iran to reveal its plan for Strait of Hormuz soon as Israel attacks Lebanon and Gaza, killing and wounding dozens.
Published On 17 May 2026
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