Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem gave a speech dedicated to the memory of Hezbollah Chief of Staff Haitham Ali Tabatbai, who was killed this week in Beirut.
Qassem said that “Tabatbay played a significant role in planning, organizing, synchronizing UAV launches and coordinating fire. The purpose of his elimination is to undermine the morale of Hezbollah and sow confusion in its ranks.”
He added that Hezbollah has “the right to respond to this crime” and will do so “with its timing.”
On November 23, the IDF officially confirmed the liquidation in Beirut of Hezbollah Chief of Staff Haitham Ali Tabatbai, known for his activities in Syria and Yemen. Previously, they had already tried to eliminate him in Damascus. In the modern military structure of Hezbollah, he was considered “number 2”, being the de facto chief of staff of the organization.
Tabatbay was a veteran and one of Hezbollah’s key leaders. He joined the Party of Allah in the 1980s and has since held a number of leadership positions, including commander of the Raduan unit and head of Hezbollah’s operations in Syria. In 2023, he was appointed commander of Hezbollah’s operations department. Then, after the liquidation of most of the leadership of Hezbollah, he led the military operations against Israel. In 2025, he became Hezbollah’s chief of staff and led the process of restoring the organization’s combat capability.
On October 26, 2016, the US State Department added Tabatabai to the list of particularly dangerous international terrorists. For information that would allow the terrorist to be eliminated or arrested, $5 million was promised.