Hezbollah Media Relations Chief Killed in Israeli Strike in Central Beirut

Tel Aviv: main spokesman for Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group was killed in first Israeli airstrike on central Beirut in more than a month on Sunday, an official with militant group told Associated Press.

Israeli strikes in Gaza Strip h earlier killed 12 people, Palestinian medical officials said.

Hezbollah official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because y were not authorized to brief media, said Mohammed Afif was killed in strike in central Beirut.

Afif h been especially visible after Israel's military escalation in September and following assassination of longtime Hezbollah leer Hassan Nasrallah, who was also killed in an Israeli airstrike.

Israeli warplanes h earlier pounded sourn suburbs of Beirut after military warned people to evacuate from several buildings. Hezbollah militant group has a strong presence in area, known as Dahiyeh, and strikes came as Lebanese officials are considering a US-brokered cease-fire proposal.

Also on Sunday, Israeli police said y arrested three suspects after flares were fired at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 's private residence in coastal city of Caesarea.

Netanyahu and his family were not at residence when two flares were fired at it overnight, and re were no injuries, authorities said. A drone launched by Hezbollah struck residence last month, also when Netanyahu and his family were away.

police did not provide details about suspects behind flares, but officials pointed to domestic political critics of Netanyahu. Israel's largely ceremonial president, Isaac Herzog, condemned incident and warned against “an escalation of violence in public sphere”.

Netanyahu has faced months of mass protests over his handling of hostage crisis unleashed by Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack into Israel, which ignited ongoing war in Gaza.

Critics blame Netanyahu for security and intelligence failures that allowed attack to happen and for not reaching a deal with Hamas to release scores of hostages still held inside Gaza. Israelis rallied again in city of Tel Aviv on Saturday night to demand a cease-fire deal to return m.