A series of intense Israeli airstrikes hit Hezbollah’s main headquarters in one of Beirut’s heavily-populated southern suburbs on Friday as blasts were heard throughout the Lebanese capital.

The massive explosion was so powerful it rattled windows and shook houses some 30 kilometers north of Beirut. Ambulances were seen headed to the scene of the explosions, sirens wailing. The strike targeted Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, Fox News reported, citing security sources. It was not immediately known if he survived or not.

The strike came an hour after thousands of people attended the funeral of a top Hezbollah commander who was killed the day before.

The strike took place just after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed world leaders at the U.N. on Friday morning, vowing to “continue degrading Hezbollah” until Israel achieves its goals along the Lebanon border, further dimming hopes for an internationally backed cease-fire.

Netanyahu was in middle of briefing Israeli reporters following his speech when he abruptly left. The unexpected departure occurred after Netanyahu’s military secretary, Maj. Gen. Roman Gofman, whispered something to him just minutes into the briefing. No official explanation was immediately provided for the sudden exit.

Israel dramatically intensified its airstrikes in Lebanon this week, saying it is determined to put an end to more than 11 months of Hezbollah fire into its territory. The scope of Israel’s operation remains unclear, but officials have said a ground invasion to push the terrorist group away from the border is a possibility. Israel has moved thousands of troops toward the border in preparation.

That has Lebanese fearing a repeat of the last Israel-Hezbollah war, in 2006, which lasted a month and wreaked heavy destruction over parts of their country. Or worse, they fear, Lebanon could suffer devastation on the scale wreaked in Gaza by Israel’s nearly year-long campaign against Hamas.

The Israeli military said it carried out dozens of strikes over the course of two hours around the south on Friday, including in the cities of Sidon and Nabatiyeh. It said it was targeting Hezbollah rocket launchers and infrastructure. It said Hezbollah fired a volley of rockets toward the northern Israeli city of Teverya.

(AP)