Israeli intelligence discovered that Tabatabai was meeting with four aides – but only for a short time.
By Hezy Laing
The Israeli Air Force’s elimination of Hezbollah Chief of Staff Haytham Ali Tabatabai in Beirut on November 23, 2025, has been described as one of the most precise and daring operations in recent memory, carried out within an incredibly narrow window of opportunity.
Tabatabai, a veteran operative who joined Hezbollah in the 1980s, rose through the ranks to command the elite Radwan Force and later oversaw the group’s operations in Syria.
By 2025, after most of Hezbollah’s senior leadership had been killed in the war with Israel, he had effectively become the organization’s chief of staff, consolidating its situational picture and directing force buildup.
His role made him the second most powerful figure in Hezbollah after Secretary General Naim Qassem, and Israeli intelligence considered him the most obstructive factor to any stabilization in Lebanon.
Because of his strategic role, Israel and U.S. intelligence reportedly attempted to target him in past operations, though he survived earlier assassination efforts.
Eliminating Tabatabai was seen as crucial to disrupting Hezbollah’s command structure, weakening its battlefield effectiveness, and sending a deterrent message to Iran.
According to reports, the strike was executed with extraordinary precision.
Israeli intelligence discovered that Tabatabai was meeting with four aides — Qasem Barjawi, Mustafa Barou, Rifaat Hussein, and Ibrahim Hussein — in a safe house in Beirut’s Dahieh quarter.
But surveillance showed he would only be present for a short time, creating an incredibly small window of opportunity.
A decision had to be made quickly.
The IAF contacted the IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir who immediately contacted Defense Minister Yisrael Katz.
He then relayed the details to Prime Minister Netanyahu who made the decision to carry out the strike.
The IAF’s targeted‑killings team, led by a 27‑year‑old combat pilot identified only as Maj. “A,” had prepared the mission for months, running “many cycles, many approvals,” and securing repeated sign‑offs from the Air Force commander.
When the opportunity came, they struck a specific two‑floor section of the building, killing Tabatabai and his aides without wider collateral damage.
The precision strike killed Tabatabai along with four other Hezbollah operatives identified as Qasem Barjawi, Mustafa Barou, Rifaat Hussein, and Ibrahim Hussein.
Hezbollah later confirmed the deaths, and while it vowed retaliation, took no action for fear of escalating the conflict.
Israeli officials emphasized that the mission demonstrated the Air Force’s ability to execute “zero mistake” operations even under extreme pressure.
The Beirut strike was the most aggressive Israeli action against Hezbollah since the November 2024 ceasefire.
It underscored the IDF’s capacity to combine intelligence breakthroughs with rapid decision making, turning a tiny operational window into a decisive blow against one of the last surviving senior commanders of Hezbollah’s military wing.
