Lebanon says Israeli strikes kill three Hezbollah said its fighters were fighting the Israeli military on Thursday as Lebanese state media reported that Israeli strikes in the south killed three people. Hezbollah's statement came a day after the United States and Iran signed an agreement to end the war on all fronts, including in Lebanon. Hezbollah said on Thursday it was fighting "a force of the Israeli enemy army that attempted to advance from the town of Arnoun towards the outskirts of Kfar Tibnit", near the key town of Nabatieh.
Israel plans expanded occupation of Lebanon in defiance of US-Iran pact The Israeli army published a map on Thursday of a new expanded zone of control in southern Lebanon, detailing a significant expansion in military occupation and operations, Reuters reported. Israeli forces have said they will not rule out carrying out attacks beyond occupation lines, challenging the recently signed Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding between the US and Iran, which categorically calls for a halt to fighting between Israel and Lebanon. The first point of the MoU, which ended the US-Israel war on Iran, declares an “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon” as well as “ensuring the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Lebanon”.
Trump says US expects 'complete ceasefire on all fronts' following Iran deal US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States expects "a complete ceasefire on all fronts," including Lebanon, Hezbollah, and Israel. "We encourage everyone in the Middle East Region to maintain their commitment to allowing our negotiations to beautifully unfold," Trump wrote on Truth Social, one day after he signed a memorandum of understanding to end a nearly four-month war on Iran.
Israel plans expanded occupation of Lebanon in defiance of US-Iran pact Submitted by MEE staff on Thu, 06/18/2026 - 18:50 A map published by the Israeli army reveals that it has been operating deeper within Lebanese territory than previously reported A map published by the Israeli army indicates areas where its forces are operating in southern Lebanon, on 18 June 2026 (Israel army/Handout via Reuters/Third party) Off The Israeli army published a map on Thursday of a new expanded zone of control in southern Lebanon, detailing a significant expansion in military occupation and operations, Reuters reported. Israeli forces have said they will not rule out carrying out attacks beyond occupation lines, challenging the recently signed Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding between the US and Iran, which categorically calls for a halt to fighting between Israel and Lebanon. The first point of the MoU, which ended the US-Israel war on Iran, declares an “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon” as well as “ensuring the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Lebanon”.
Hezbollah lawmaker says Israel's war failed to crush group The head of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc, Mohammad Raad, said on Thursday that Israel's war in Lebanon had "failed" to eliminate the group. Raad said in a statement that "the enemy's war aimed at crushing the resistance in Lebanon has failed and will not achieve its objectives". He also called on Lebanese authorities to "adopt a framework for indirect negotiations with the enemy" to stop the fighting.
Israel 'will be at war with Syria sooner or later', says Likud minister An Israeli minister from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party said this week that Israel “will be at war with Syria sooner or later”. The remarks came in a series of radio interviews given by Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli on Wednesday and Thursday, in which he outlined what he dubbed a "radical Sunni axis of evil" in the Middle East. “There is no way that a jihadist regime rooted in Isis and al-Qaeda, whose aspiration is the unification of Jerusalem, can live in peace alongside the State of Israel,” the far-right minister said, referring to Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government.
Israel 'will be at war with Syria sooner or later', says Likud minister Submitted by Nadav Rapaport on Thu, 06/18/2026 - 16:01 Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli outlined a 'radical Sunni axis of evil' made up of Pakistan, Turkey and Qatar Israeli Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli (R) sits beside Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, as they attend a conference on antisemitism in Jerusalem on 27 March 2025 (AFP) Off An Israeli minister from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party said this week that Israel “will be at war with Syria sooner or later”. The remarks came in a series of radio interviews given by Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli on Wednesday and Thursday, in which he outlined what he dubbed a "radical Sunni axis of evil" in the Middle East. “There is no way that a jihadist regime rooted in Isis and al-Qaeda, whose aspiration is the unification of Jerusalem, can live in peace alongside the State of Israel,” the far-right minister said, referring to Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government.
UK minister urges Israel to withdraw from southern Lebanon Britain's international development minister Jenny Chapman called on Thursday for Israel to withdraw from southern Lebanon so that families displaced by three months of war could return to their homes. "Israel should withdraw from southern Lebanon, absolutely. Displacement we know anywhere in the world causes huge disruption," she told Reuters while visiting a school where displaced families were sheltering.
Israeli forces kill three people in southern Lebanon Israeli attacks on south Lebanon killed three people on Thursday, Lebanese state media reported, hours after the US and Iran signed an agreement to end the war. "An enemy drone targeted a car" in the Kfar Tebnit area, killing two people, the official National News Agency (NNA) reported. In the neighbouring village of Zebdine, another drone killed one more person, NNA said.
Former senior Israeli officials issue 'final warning' over West Bank settler terror Submitted by Ayse Betul on Thu, 06/18/2026 - 11:48 Dozens of former high-ranking officials, including two prime ministers, are threatening to go to court if Netanyahu's government continue to enable settler violence An armed Israeli settler stands overlooking Nablus from the Mount Ebal settlement in the occupied West Bank, on 28 April 2026 (Ilia Yefimovich/AFP) Off A broad coalition of former high-ranking Israeli officials, including former prime ministers and defence chiefs, have issued what they termed a “wake-up call” and “final warning”, demanding that the Israeli government act against Jewish settler “terrorism” in the occupied West Bank . In a joint statement reported by Haartez on Thursday, the ex-officials, who include former prime ministers Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert, warn Benjamin Netanyahu’s government that they will appeal to the Supreme Court if immediate action is not taken to change policies on the matter. The letter states that the government and its ministers “have done nothing to eliminate Jewish terrorism” and that some of its officials have even provided support to illegal settlement outposts where the attackers reside.
'This was not easy': Trump and Iran sign interim ceasefire deal in France Submitted by Ayse Betul on Thu, 06/18/2026 - 09:24 The 14-point memorandum of understanding affirms reopening of Hormuz and a 60-day window to negotiate a permanent peace treaty involving nuclear down-blending Videograb from the X account of French President Emmanuel Macron shows Trump and Macron during the signing of the deal with Iran in Versailles, Paris 17 June 2026 (X) Off US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to end a war that has devastated the Middle East since late February. The White House has confirmed the digital signing, noting that an initial phase of the agreement was signed on Sunday by US Vice President JD Vance and Iran's chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, with President Trump witnessing. Trump had previously announced that both sides had agreed on the deal on 14 June.
Iranian press review: Conflict revived Iran’s regional power, says anti-war analyst Submitted by MEE correspondent on Thu, 06/18/2026 - 11:05 Meanwhile, new details emerge of US missiles used for first time, first motorcycle licences issued for women, and economist warns of hyperinflation risk A man in Tehran reads the Iranian daily newspaper Hamshahri bearing an image of the US president and the headline 'Gone with the wind', on 18 June 2026 (AFP) Off War renews confidence in regional alliances Iranian analyst Mehrdad Ahmadi Sheikhani said the recent US-Israeli war on Iran has renewed support for one of the country's key regional policies of expanding its strategic depth. Since the end of the Iran-Iraq war in 1988, Tehran has built ties with armed and political groups across the Middle East that share its ideological views. Iranian political and military leaders have long argued that these alliances help the country deter attacks by Israel .
Israeli military: Our forces are operating in southern Lebanon The Israeli military said on Thursday that its forces were operating in what it described as a security zone extending about 10 km into southern Lebanon, despite a provision in the interim US-Iran agreement calling for an immediate halt to military operations in Lebanon. The military said the deployment was dictated by operational needs and that troops remained stationed in their designated area of operations, Reuters reported.
Russia welcomes US-Iran ceasefire The Russian foreign ministry said on Thursday that it welcomed the ceasefire agreement between the US and Iran. US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the war on Iran on Wednesday.
Germany deploys ships to Red Sea for possible mission in Hormuz Strait Germany is deploying two ships to the Red Sea to arrange for a possible military mission in the Strait of Hormuz, the country's Defence minister Boris Pistorius said on Thursday. "As we speak, our minesweeper Fulda and the supply ship Mosel are sailing through the Suez Canal towards the Red Sea," he told reporters. Pistorius noted that approval would be needed from Iran and Oman before any participation in a minesweeping operation, with the mission depending on further developments between Tehran and Washington.
US senators threaten to withhold Hegseth’s travel budget over Iran school attack US senators are threatening to withhold 75 percent of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s travel budget amid increasing frustration with the Pentagon's refusal to comply with congressional requests. Lawmakers have sought information on the military’s investigation into the US targeting of girls school in Iran on 28 February - which killed 165 people, the majority of them children. No one has been held account for the killings as of now.
US used Musk’s Grok AI to deploy 2,000 munitions during war on Iran US forces employed Elon Musk’s Grok AI to strike over 2,000 targets in 96 hours during the joint US-Israel war on Iran, according to a written declaration from the US Department of Defense’s digital and artificial intelligence chief, Cameron Stanley. The details of the department’s use of AI were revealed in the submission to the United States District Court, Northern District of Mississippi, where Musk’s xAI is facing a lawsuit from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s (NAACP), which contends the company is illegally running natural gas turbines. Grok was developed by xAI.
Israeli settlers torch two West Bank mosques, Palestinian officials say Israeli settlers set fire to mosques in two villages in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, their mayors said, with AFP journalists at one site seeing scorched walls and graffiti. The incidents come during a period of increased attacks against Palestinian communities by settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank since the start of the Gaza war in 2023. Osama Abdullah, head of the village council in Jiljiliya, north of Ramallah, told AFP that "settlers set fire to the ablution room, caused damage to the village's main mosque, and scrawled hostile slogans on the outer walls".
US used Musk’s Grok AI to deploy 2,000 munitions during Iran war Submitted by MEE staff on Wed, 06/17/2026 - 21:33 A Trump administration official reveals in written testimony the US used the trillionaire's AI during the Iran war to strike 2,000 targets Photograph shows screens displaying the logo of Grok, a generative artificial intelligence chatbot developed by xAI, an American company specialising in artificial intelligence, and its founder, South African businessman Elon Musk, on 13 January 2025 in Toulouse, France (Lionel Bonaventure/AFP) Off US forces employed Elon Musk’s Grok AI to strike over 2,000 targets in 96 hours during the joint US - Israel war on Iran , according to a written declaration from the US Department of Defense’s digital and artificial intelligence chief, Cameron Stanley. The details of the department’s use of AI were revealed in the submission to the United States District Court, Northern District of Mississippi, where Musk’s xAI is facing a lawsuit from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s (NAACP), which contends the company is illegally running natural gas turbines. Grok was developed by xAI.
Trump thanks China's Xi, Russia's Putin for being 'neutral' in Iran war US President Donald Trump on Wednesday described Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin as "neutral" during the war with Iran, saying they had not thwarted his efforts to curb Tehran's nuclear ambitions. "I just want to thank them because they made it a lot better," Trump said following the adoption of a ceasefire agreement. Speaking at a press conference at the Group of Seven conference in Evian-les-Bains, France, Trump told reporters he was grateful to the leaders for staying out of the conflict.
