World
Top Hezbollah commander killed in Israeli strike on Beirut, IDF confirms
A top Hezbollah commander has been killed in an Israeli strike in the suburbs of Lebanon’s capital of Beirut on Friday, the Israeli military has confirmed.
Ibrahim Aqil, Hezbollah’s operations commander, was killed in a strike that killed three people and wounded 17 others, Lebanon’s health ministry said.
Israel’s Defence Forces (IDF) have confirmed they killed Aqil and other senior commanders of Hezbollah’s Radwan special forces unit.
“The IDF will continue to act to degrade Hezbollah’s capabilities, strike at it, and operate on all fronts to protect the citizens of Israel,” a statement reads.
What Israel had earlier today referred to as a “targeted” strike was also reported to have killed five children, according to the Lebanese National News Agency.
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Sky News’ special correspondent Alex Crawford said the attack appeared to have hit a residential apartment block.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said Friday’s strike shows Israel “gives no weight to any humanitarian, legal or moral considerations”.
It comes as fighting between Iranian-backed Hezbollah and Israel has intensified in the past few days after 37 people were killed when pagers and radios across Lebanon blew up in two separate attacks.
That attack was widely believed to have been carried out by Israel, which has neither confirmed or denied its involvement.
Aqil has served as the head of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force and Jihad Council, the group’s highest military body.
Ibrahim Aqil
The US State Department has sanctioned him for his alleged role in carrying out the 1983 bombing of the US Embassy in Beirut, which killed 63 people.
It had been offering a reward of $7m (£5.3m) for information about Aqil.
The US said he was the “principal member” of the group that bombed the American embassy in 1983, and the US Marine barracks in the same year, killing 241 US personnel.
Aqil’s death marks the second time in less than two months Israel has targeted a top Hezbollah commander.
In July an Israeli airstrike killed Fuad Shukr, the militant group’s top military commander.
Israel’s rare strike on the capital’s southern suburbs came after Iranian-backed Hezbollah pounded Israel with 140 rockets, which the Israeli military said came in three waves targeting sites along the ravaged border with Lebanon.
Following the attacks, the Israeli military said that it had struck areas across southern Lebanon targeting Hezbollah infrastructure, but did not provide details of damage.
Hezbollah said that its attacks had targeted several sites along the border with Katyusha rockets, including multiple air defence bases as well as the headquarters of an Israeli armoured brigade they said they had struck for the first time.
The developments of the past few days have raised strong concerns of an all-out war in the region, with Israel also engaged in an 11-month war with Hamas, another militant group backed by Iran, in Gaza.
According to Gaza’s health ministry, more than 41,000 people have been killed since the war broke out following Hamas’ massacre of 1,200 people in southern Israel on 7 October.
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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.
NEW EBOLA OUTBREAK LEAVES 65 DEAD AS OFFICIALS WARN OF CROSS-BORDER SPREAD
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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