A response from Hezbollah is almost certainpublished at 19:03 British Summer Time 31 July

19:03 BST 31 July

Hugo Bachega
Middle East correspondent, in Beirut

Fuad Shukr is the most senior Hezbollah commander to have been assassinated by Israel in the current hostilities. He was killed in an Israeli attack that hit a building in a densely populated area of Beirut’s southern suburbs where Hezbollah has its base. Four other people were killed, including two children – the siblings Hassan, 10, and Amira, six.

The Israeli military described Shukr as a right-hand man to the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, and someone who was involved in planning and directing operations against Israel.

A response from the heavily armed Iranian-supported group is almost certain. In the past, Hezbollah responded to the killings of senior members by firing barrages of rockets at Israel. Having a high-profile figure killed in its stronghold in Lebanon’s capital will likely be seen by the group as a provocation that merits a stronger response.

Shortly before the announcement that confirmed the killing, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a televised speech, and acknowledged that challenging days lie ahead - but that the country was prepared for any scenario.

In a recent speech, Nasrallah said Hezbollah did not want a war with Israel, but that it was ready for one. His group has an estimated 150,000 missiles and rockets, including precision guided missiles that can strike deep inside Israel. Hezbollah, Nasrallah added, had only used a fraction of its arsenal.

Nasrallah is expected to address supporters on Thursday.

Now Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr has been confirmed killed in the Israeli strike on southern Beirut yesterday, here's a quick reminder of how he died:

• Shukr was inside a building in the Daniyeh area of the Lebanese capital – which is a stronghold of the armed group – when it was hit by an air strike on Tuesday
• The Israeli military claimed responsibility fairly quickly and said Shukr had been the target of an "intelligence-based elimination"
• He's believed to be a senior adviser to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, the US has previously said
• Israel had accused Shukr of being responsible for a rocket attack on Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Saturday
• That attack - which Hezbollah denies responsibility for - led to 12 people, mostly children, being killed

Image source, EPA

Image source, Hezbollah handout

Hezbollah has just issued a statement, confirming that Fuad Shukr was killed in the Israeli air strike in Beirut yesterday.

Sources earlier told the BBC this confirmation was coming, and Shukr's family had been informed of his death.

A bit more from Benjamin Netanyahu now, who said in a televised statement moments ago:

"Citizens of Israel, challenging days lie ahead. Since the strike in Beirut there are threats sounding from all directions.

"We are prepared for any scenario and we will stand united and determined against any threat. Israel will exact a heavy price for any aggression against us from any arena."

Netanyahu said Israel had delivered crushing blows to Iran's proxies over the past few days, including Hamas and Hezbollah.

But he did not mention Haniyeh's killing, which has drawn threats of retaliation.

Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, has just spoken to reporters from Tel Aviv.

He didn't mention the killing of Hamas's political leader Ismail Haniyeh, but warned that his country is "prepared for all scenarios".

We'll bring you some other key lines from the news conference in our next post. Stay with us.

Barbara Plett Usher
News correspondent, in Jerusalem

Al Jazeera has named the two journalists it says were killed in an Israel strike in Gaza City as reporter Ismail al-Ghoul and cameraman Ramy El Rify.

Graphic video posted on social media showed ruins of their car still smoking. You can see a still of the vehicle in our last post.

It’s the latest tragedy for Al Jazeera, which has suffered heavy losses in the Gaza war.

In October last year, the wife and children of reporter Wael Al Dahdouh were killed in an air strike. In December, another Israeli strike killed 22 members of the family of correspondent Moamen Al Sharafi.

And in January 2024, cameraman Samer Abudaqa was wounded in a heavy Israeli bombardment and bled to death because paramedics weren’t able to reach him. Al Jazeera said it had referred the case to the International Criminal Court (ICC), calling it an "assassination".

The Israeli government closed down Al Jazeera broadcasts earlier this year, accusing it of being a "Hamas mouthpiece" which "harmed the security of Israel and incited against IDF soldiers".

The government media office in Hamas-run Gaza says the two new deaths today raise to 165 the number of Palestinian journalists killed by Israeli fire since 7 October.

The television network Al Jazeera says two of its journalists have been killed in an Israeli strike in Gaza City.

The pair were reportedly killed while filming near the house of killed Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in the Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City.

In a statement, Hamas condemned the killings as a "heinous crime" - aimed, it says, "at terrorising and silencing" Palestinian journalists as they reported "the ongoing genocide against our people in the Gaza Strip for nearly ten months".

Israel has not commented on the deaths of the two journalists.

Image source, Reuters

“We call on all parties to exert maximum restraint and avoid any further escalation," a European Union spokesman has said in a statement, calling for restraint in the aftermath of the killing of Ismail Haniyeh.

"No country and no nation stand to gain from a further escalation in the Middle East."

Fears of the war between Israel and Hamas escalating have been voiced in various ways today, with Air France and its subsidiary Transavia France announcing that flights to Beirut are suspended until Saturday.

They'd initially called them off for just two days.

German airline group Lufthansa already suspended all flights to Beirut on Monday, until 5 August.

Image source, Reuters

Kasra Naji
Special correspondent, BBC Persian

Iran says Ismail Haniyeh and his bodyguard were killed at a guest house in northern Tehran at 02:00 local time, in the early hours of Wednesday, by a missile that had been fired from beyond Iran’s borders.

The attack brings Iran’s security agencies under question and their control over Israeli actions of this sort inside Iran.

Israel has assassinated a string of Iranian nuclear scientists over the last decade or so, but never has it targeted a dignitary or a prominent Iranian political leader.

Three years ago the former intelligence minister, Ali Yunessi, said the Israeli infiltration is so deep in Iran that all officials should fear for their lives.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani have spoken about continuing work towards a ceasefire in Gaza.

In the aftermath of Ismail Haniyeh's killing – a significant figure in the ceasefire negotiations – Blinken said the "imperative of getting a ceasefire, the importance that that has for everyone, remains".

Qatar – which has been brokering talks between Hamas and Israel – suggested Haniyeh's killing could jeopardise the talks.

Earlier today, Qatar's prime minister asked: "How can mediation succeed when one party assassinates the negotiator on other side?" in a post on X.

An Israeli government spokesperson said they were committed to ceasefire negotiations and that they wanted the hostage deal to succeed.

Image source, Reuters

A little earlier, we brought you the update that the family of Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr has been notified of his death, following an air strike in Beirut on Tuesday.

Here's a bit more on what happened last night - and why:

• Israel had accused Shukr of being responsible for a rocket attack on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Saturday which killed 12 people, mostly children. Hezbollah denied any involvement in that attack
• Shukr was inside a building in the Daniyeh area of Beirut – a stronghold of the armed group – when it was bombed yesterday
• Hezbollah said afterwards that a number of people were killed in the attack, but refused to say if Shukr was among them
• The Israeli military claimed responsibility fairly quickly and said Shukr had been the target of an "intelligence-based elimination"
• Shukr is believed to be a senior adviser to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, the US has previously said

Humiliation for Iran as new president takes officepublished at 15:28 British Summer Time 31 July

15:28 BST 31 July

Caroline Hawley
Diplomatic correspondent

It’s a very bad first day in office for the new Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian – a relative moderate – who was elected on a promise of easing social restrictions and improving the country’s relations with the outside world, including the West.

Yesterday, along with the customary criticism of Israel, came a pledge from him to pursue "the needs of peace and security in the region and the world".

Then came the overnight killing of one of the VIP guests of his inauguration ceremony – an embarrassing humiliation for the Iranian regime.

Today, the new president says Iran will "defend its territorial integrity, dignity, honour and pride and will make the terrorist occupiers regret their cowardly act".

The question is how.

The Supreme Leader – who wields ultimate power in the country - has spoken of Iran’s "duty" to avenge Ismail Haniyeh’s death.

Image source, Reuters

Nafiseh Kohnavard
Reporting from Beirut

The family of Fuad Shukr have been notified that he was killed, sources tell me.

I'm told a Hezbollah statement will be released confirming his death.

He was inside the building in Dahiyeh, Beirut, that was bombed by Israel yesterday evening, but his fate was unknown until now – because Hezbollah weren’t able to find his body in the rubble.

It seems they have found it now.

Israel said yesterday Shukr had been killed, a short time after claiming responsibility for the air strike.

Image source, US government

Ismail Haniyeh's "official and public" funeral ceremony will be held tomorrow in Tehran, Hamas says.

His body will then be moved to Qatar's capital, Doha – his base in recent years.

His final funeral is scheduled on 2 August, after which he will be buried in a cemetery in Lusail.

Israel's foreign minister says a full-scale war with Hezbollah could be prevented if a UN resolution banning armed groups being near the border is enforced.

Israel Katz says he has sent dozens of fellow foreign ministers a letter calling for UN resolution 1701 to be implemented.

The resolution says armed groups – other than the Lebanese military or UN peacekeepers – should not be operating between the border and the Litani River in Lebanon, which is around two miles (3km) from the border at its closest point.

It was agreed after the end of the 2006 Hezbollah-Israel war.

"Israel is not interested in an all-out war, but the only way to prevent it is the immediate implementation of Resolution 1701," Katz writes in the letter.

Rushdi Abualouf
Gaza correspondent

Image source, Reuters

The succession process could be quite chaotic and one that isn't decided quickly. It could pave the way for more extremist pro-Iran figures leading Hamas.

One of the people in the frame is Yehiya Sinwar – the group's current head in the Gaza Strip. He is believed to be the mastermind of Hamas's deadly attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.

And there are at least two more senior Hamas officials who might step up to succeed Haniyeh.

Khaled Meshaal, seen as less extreme, could be preparing to launch a leadership challenge. In fact, he had led Hamas for years before Haniyeh – but has always had difficult relations with Iran.

Another potential candidate is Zaher Jabareen, who is responsible for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. He could play a key role in ongoing negotiations on prisoner swaps with Israel.

All three Hamas figures are current Haniyeh's deputies.

Read more: Who are Hamas's most prominent leaders?

What could Iran's response mean for the region?published at 14:03 British Summer Time 31 July

14:03 BST 31 July

Kasra Naji
Special correspondent, BBC Persian

The immediate concern now is Iran’s response and what shape it might take – and what such a response would mean for tensions in the region.

In April, Iran fired more than 300 missiles and drones at Israel in reaction to the killing of a top commander of its Quds Force in Syria and six other members of the revolutionary guards at its consulate building in the Syrian capital, Damascus.

The action was unprecedented in its scope and seriousness. Now Iran could unleash an attack of similar kind on Israel.

Iran also could ask its proxy militias in the region to step up their attacks on Israel. Hezbollah will have a reason of its own to escalate its cross border missile war with Israel.

Already there are commentators in the region who believe that the tensions between Israel and Hezbollah will reach a new high, with a full-scale war between the two breaking out a distinct possibility.

Will all this lead to an all-out war in the region? It's difficult to say. It's clear that no one wants such an outcome at the moment, but wars are not always the result of calculated risks.

Israel and Iran have been engaged in a years-long shadow war – attacking each other's assets without admitting responsibility.

Those attacks have ratcheted up considerably during the current war between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza, sparked by Hamas's attack on nearby Israeli communities last October.

In April of this year, Iran launched a direct missile attack on Israel, saying it was retaliation for an Israeli strike on the Iranian consulate in the Syrian capital Damascus, which killed senior military commanders.

The two countries were allies until the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, which brought in a regime that has used opposing Israel as a key part of its ideology.

Now, Iran does not recognise Israel's right to exist and seeks its eradication. Israel believes Iran poses an existential threat as evidenced by Tehran's rhetoric, its build-up of proxy forces in the region – including the Lebanese Shia militant group Hezbollah – and its funding and arming of Palestinian groups, including Hamas.

• Read more on this here

Countries and groups affiliated with Iran have been continuing to respond to the death of Hamas's political leader, Ismail Haniyeh. As a reminder, Israel has not commented on claims it was responsible.

Here's a look at some of the reaction we've seen so far:

• Hamas's armed wing say the killing of Haniyeh will have major repercussions
• Iran's Revolutionary Guards say it "will be met with a harsh and painful response" - echoing threats from Iran earlier
• But at the same time, Iran's vice-president is quoted by state media as saying his country has no intention of escalating the Middle East conflict
• Hezbollah sends its condolences and says it will make Iran-aligned groups more determined to confront Israel
• Egypt echoes some of Qatar's comments, saying the strike suggests Israel lacks the political will for de-escalation

• And Iraq calls Haniyeh's killing a "serious violation" that could destabilise the region

Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent, in the West Bank

With the shops closed and the midday sun beating down, Palestinians took to the streets in the centre of Ramallah to vent their anger.

Ramallah, home of the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority, is not exactly a stronghold of Hamas. The demonstration wasn’t huge – a few hundred people at most.

But no one should doubt the strength of feeling, the sense of shock and anger, generated by the killing of Ismail Haniyeh. The green banners of Hamas were held aloft, alongside – but outnumbering - the black, white, green and red, Palestinian flag. Children rode on their fathers’ shoulders, carrying toy machineguns.

Defiant chants echoed through the streets. But there’s real anxiety here too. Palestinians feel that a wider conflict might be looming, one that could engulf the West Bank. They feel that this is what the right-wing government of Benjamin Netanyahu wants.

“I think the Israeli government has just committed one of the gravest mistakes in its life,” the moderate Palestinian politician and former presidential candidate Mustapha Barghouti told me earlier, as he prepared to walk with the demonstrators.

“This was a political, criminal act and if they think that this act of assassination will break the Palestinian resistance, they are absolutely wrong.”

Image source, EPA