Author: THE NEW YORK TIMES

Iran’s supreme leader said Israel’s attack should not be “magnified or downplayed,” state media reported. U.S. and Israeli officials were expected to meet in Qatar for talks aimed at reviving cease-fire negotiations.

Israel struck military bases but avoided targeting nuclear facilities. Iran has so far largely played down the attack, but now faces a decision about how to respond.

Iran’s national air defense force said that Israel had attacked military bases in three provinces, including Tehran, causing “limited damage.”

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said U.S. and Qatari negotiators would soon restart long-stalled negotiations, but that it remained unclear if Hamas was willing to engage.

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken sought to ease tensions on a visit to Israel, followed by a meeting with the Saudi crown prince in Riyadh. Israel is pressing on with its military campaigns in Lebanon and Gaza.

Hashem Safieddine was widely seen as a potential successor to his cousin, Hassan Nasrallah, the armed group’s former leader whom Israel also killed in September. There was no immediate confirmation from Hezbollah.

The attacks followed claims from the Israeli military that Hezbollah was operating a command center beneath a hospital in a densely populated neighborhood near Beirut.

The escalation of Israel’s war against the militant group came as rescuers searched for dead and wounded after a devastating Israeli strike in northern Gaza.

Israel carried out a series of strikes near the Lebanese capital on Saturday, killing two people fleeing a vehicle on a busy highway. Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin warned Israel to scale back attacks near Beirut.

Mr. Sinwar had also been hit in the arm during a firefight earlier with Israeli soldiers, according to the Israeli doctor who oversaw the autopsy. Hamas confirmed its leader’s death but said his “banner will not fall.”