Israel says potential Hezbollah successor killed in early October Beirut airstrike

• The State Department listed Safi al-Din as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in May 2017.
• Hezbollah on Wednesday confirmed Safi al-Din's death.

What they're saying: The IDF said he had "significant influence" over Hezbollah's decision-making and "filled in as the Secretary-General of Hezbollah" when Nasrallah wasn't in Lebanon.

• Hazimah, also known as "Mortada," was responsible for "directing numerous attacks on IDF soldiers," the IDF said.

State of play: The strike took place in a suburb south of Beirut, where many Hezbollah compounds are located.

• According to Lebanese press reports, the Israeli strike was far larger than the one that killed Nasrallah the previous week. The number of casualties is not yet known.
• The IDF said earlier in a statement that the strike was focused on Hezbollah's intelligence headquarters.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with Israel's announcement that it confirmed the deaths of Hashim Safi al-Din and Hussein Hazimah, and Hezbollah confirming Safi al-Din died.