Middle East latest: Netanyahu says Israel has killed the successor to the head of Hezbollah

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that Israel has killed the successor to the head of Hezbollah while the militant group's acting leader promised more fighting in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah’s overall leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and several of his top commanders were killed in recent weeks after heavy Israeli airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon. Netanyahu did not name the successor who was killed Tuesday.

Sheikh Naim Kassem, the acting leader of Hezbollah, said in a defiant televised statement that his group's military capabilities are still intact and that Hezbollah has replaced all of its senior commanders.

Palestinian militants in Gaza fired a barrage of rockets into Israel on Monday, the anniversary of Hamas' Oct. 7 attack, underscoring their resilience in the face of a devastating Israeli offensive in Gaza that has killed about 42,000 people, according to local medical officials.

A year ago, Hamas-led militants blew holes in Israel’s security fence and stormed into army bases and farming communities, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250. They are still holding about 100 captives inside Gaza, a third of whom are believed to be dead.

Israel is now at war with Hamas in Gaza and its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon, which began firing rockets at Israel on Oct. 8, 2023.