Live: Israel strikes Beirut's southern suburbs, Netanyahu says targeted top Hezbollah commander
Issued on: 06/05/2026 - 02:06Modified: 06/05/2026 - 20:48
Share By: FRANCE 24 / Louise NORDSTROM
Israel on Wednesday unleashed the first air strikes in weeks on Beirut’s southern suburbs. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed the attack, saying a top commander of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group was targeted in the operation. Follow our liveblog for all the latest updates.
06/05/2026 - 20:24UAE condemns Iran’s ‘hostile’ statements
The United Arab Emirates said its ties and its international and defence partnerships are a “purely sovereign matter,” rejecting an earlier statement by Iran saying that Abu Dhabi’s cooperation with the US threatens Iran’s security and national interests.
The UAE’s foreign ministry said the Gulf country reserves its full sovereign, legal, diplomatic and military rights to address any “threat, allegation or hostile act”.
The intensifying spat between the two countries come after the UAE reported being attacked in the past days by Iran after four weeks of relative calm since the ceasefire was announced by the US. Iran denied carrying out operations against the UAE in recent days, yet warned of a “crushing response” if any action was launched from the UAE against Iran.
06/05/2026 - 14:19- Trump pauses US Strait of Hormuz escort operation amid Iran talks
- Chinese and Iranian foreign ministers hold talks in Beijing
- French shipping firm says container ship 'target of attack' in Strait of Hormuz
- US and Iran closing in on one-page memo to end war, Axios reports
- At least 4 killed in Israeli strike in eastern Lebanon
- Trump says it is too soon for direct talks with Iran
- Israeli strike hits Beirut's southern suburbs
Researchers say hantavirus is on the rise due to climate change
Researchers have noted a rise in the hantavirus in Argentina. Higher temperatures expand the virus’ range because, in part, as it gets warmer and ecosystems change, rodents that carry the virus can thrive in more places, experts say.
“With the climate changing, the epidemiological picture has completely changed,” said Hugo Pizzi, a prominent Argentine infectious disease specialist. “The ship may be an isolated case. But this virus isn’t going anywhere.”
06/05/2026 - 19:58Senior Hezbollah commander killed by Israel in Beirut suburbs, group source says
A senior Hezbollah commander from the group's elite Radwan force was killed in Israel's strike on Beirut's southern suburbs, a source close to the group said.
"Malek Ballout, the operations commander in the Radwan force" was killed, the source told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his military had targeted "the commander of Hezbollah's Radwan force".
06/05/2026 - 19:46Trump says United States will get uranium from Iran
President Donald Trump said the United States willget enriched uranium from Iran, as the two countries struggle to reach an agreement on ending the Gulf war.
"We're going to get it," Trump told a reporter as he left a White House event.
One of Trump's central objectives in launching military strikes against Iran was to ensure Tehran does not develop a nuclear weapon.
Iran has yet to hand over more than 900 pounds (408 kg) of highly enriched uranium.
06/05/2026 - 19:26Israel PM says targeted a top Hezbollah commander in Beirut strike
06/05/2026 - 19:26Israeli strike hits Beirut's southern suburbs
"Israeli warplanes launched an attack, targeting Ghobeiri" in the southern suburbs, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a top Hezbollah commander was targeted
06/05/2026 - 19:23Netanyahu says Israel and US agree all enriched uranium must be removed from Iran
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that US President Donald Trump agrees with him that all enriched uranium must be removed from Iran.
“There is full coordination between us, there are no surprises. We share common goals, and the most important goal is the removal of the enriched material from Iran, all the enriched material, and the dismantling of Iran’s enrichment capabilities,” he said.
He added that he would speak to Trump later today.
06/05/2026 - 19:06Israel ‘ready for all scenarios’ regarding Iran, Netanyahu says
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video released by his office that his country is “prepared for all scenarios” in dealing with Iran.
“We are... prepared for all scenarios, and those are the instructions I have given to the army and our security services.”
06/05/2026 - 19:05US forces disable Iran-flagged vessel in Gulf of Oman 'attempting to violate blockade'
US military forces have fired several rounds at an Iranian-flagged tanker, disabling the vessel as it attempted to sail toward an Iranian port in violation of the blockade, the US Central Command said in a post on X.
06/05/2026 - 18:58Trump says Iran wants to ‘make a deal’
President Donald Trump says that Iran wants to negotiate and make a deal.
“We’re doing very well in Iran. It’s going very smoothly, and we’ll see what happens. They want to make a deal, they want to negotiate,” Trump said at an event at the White House.
“We’re dealing with people that want to make a deal very much, and we’ll see whether or not they can make a deal that’s satisfactory to us.”
06/05/2026 - 18:49French President Macron meets Iranian counterpart Pezeshkian
French President Emmanuel Macron has met with his Iranian counterpart Massoud Pezeshkian, he said in a post on X.
“I expressed my deep concern over the ongoing escalation, and condemned the unjustified strikes against Emirati civilian infrastructure and several ships,” he said, adding that: “All parties must lift the blockade of the Strait, without delay and without conditions.”
Macron said that he had also told Pezeshkian that the multinational mission that France and Britain have set up “can help restore confidence among shipowners and insurers. It will, by its very nature, be distinct from the warring parties”.
The pre-positioning of the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle would fit within this context, he said.
06/05/2026 - 18:44French President Macron has spoken to Iranian counterpart
06/05/2026 - 18:25Watch: The environmental impact of Israel's air strikes on Lebanon
06/05/2026 - 18:19UNESCO has expressed concern over Narges Mohammadi's medical condition
06/05/2026 - 18:03French government says margins on fuel sales have returned to pre-crisis levels
Fuel retailers in France are now earning the same gross profit margins as before the Iran war after an initial short-lived spike in prices, the French finance ministry said in a statement.
The data release follows an April announcement — heavily criticised by the industry — that the French government was considering fixing prices at the pump to ensure fuel distributors would not earn windfall profits due to the record high prices caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
“The government will continue to vigilantly monitor the evolution of prices and margins, in close dialogue with industry actors,” the ministry said.
06/05/2026 - 17:46US gas price hike is widening inequalities among Americans, new report shows
Lower-income Americans sharply reduced their gas consumption in the month following the Iran war, yet spiking prices still forced them to spend more at the pump, worsening the economy’s economic disparities, a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows.
Higher-income households, meanwhile, ratcheted up their spending on gas while barely reducing their consumption. Middle-income households fell in-between.
The gaps between how each group reacted were larger than in 2022, when a similar gas-price shock occurred after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the report found. Higher-income households cut back more on their gas consumption four years ago than in March, while poorer households likely benefited more from government stimulus programs in 2022.
06/05/2026 - 17:31Amnesty calls for release of Gaza flotilla activists detained in Israel
06/05/2026 - 17:27Iran’s top negotiator says US aiming to force Tehran’s ‘surrender’
According to Iran’s top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Washington is seeking Tehran’s surrender through various means, including a naval blockade.
“The enemy, in its new design, is seeking, through a naval blockade, economic pressure and media manipulation, to destroy the country’s cohesion in order to force us to surrender,” Ghalibaf said in a voice message published on his official Telegram channel.
06/05/2026 - 17:22US airlines spent $5 billion on fuel in March, up 56% over prior month
Major US airlines spent just over $5 billion on jet fuel in March, up 56% and $1.8 billion over February costs, the US Transportation Department said.
The cost per gallon of fuel in March was $3.13, up 74 cents, and 31% over February. Fuel use rose 20% in March.
Global carriers are contending with surging jet fuel prices since the US-Israeli strikes on Iran disrupted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, in the air travel industry’s worst crisis since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Yesterday's key developments:
• US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told a White House press briefing that the United States had completed Epic Fury, its offensive operation against Iran.
• Jailed Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi is fighting for her life after being hospitalised under guard for the last five days with a heart condition.
• According to US General Dan Caine, 22,500 mariners remain trapped in the Gulf, unable to transit due to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
(FRANCE 24 with Reuters, AP and AFP)
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