Hamas leader's son dies of wounds sustained in Israeli strike on Gaza, report says We earlier reported Hamas's political bureau telling Al Jazeera that Israeli strikes on Gaza seriously wounded his son, Azzam.
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait cut US base, airspace access, forcing pause of Trump's 'Project Freedom' US President Donald Trump’s abrupt reversal on his “Project Freedom" plan to help ships go through the Strait of Hormuz came after Saudi Arabia suspended US access to Prince Sultan Airbase and Saudi airspace to carry out the operation, NBC News reported, citing two US officials. The report said that Trump's announcement of the plan on social media Sunday afternoon frustrated leadership in Saudi Arabia. The Kingdom then informed the US that it would not support the plan.
The myth of Gulf exceptionalism and US protection is over Submitted by Hind Al Ansari on Tue, 05/05/2026 - 21:18 The Iran war has reduced these nations to collateral damage in a war they hoped their alliances would keep at bay The Dubai skyline is pictured as a smoke plume rises from a fire near the city’s international airport, amid Iranian attacks across the Gulf, on 16 March 2026 (AFP) On Growing up in Doha, Qatar , during the 1990s and 2000s, I recall how the presence of US troops in public spaces would puncture the rhythm of normality. While the country has always been diverse, with people passing through and blending into the background, American soldiers never quite could. Their visibility was hard to ignore.
Around 1,600 vessels still stranded near Hormuz Strait About 1,600 vessels are still stranded nearby the Strait of Hormuz, with 32 ships having been struck with missiles since the start of the war in late February. At least 10 have died as a result of these strikes, and a dozen more injured.
From Kabul to Tehran: How US diplomacy turned transactional Submitted by Tam Hussein on Wed, 05/06/2026 - 11:36 Afghanistan showed America’s allies what transactional power looks like in retreat. Iran now shows what it looks like in escalation US President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised Nato allies for failing to support the US-Israeli attack on Iran on 28 February, an escalation that led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz - the world’s most critical energy artery - bringing misery to millions across the globe. Trump has gone so far as to threaten his allies, especially Spain, over their intransigence.
Under rubble and rain, Gaza women try to save rare books in centuries-old library Submitted by Ahmed Dremly on Wed, 05/06/2026 - 14:27 Volunteers work to salvage rare manuscripts from Gaza’s Great Omari Mosque library, left in ruins after Israeli bombardment Raneem Mousa is part of a group of Palestinian women volunteers working to save rare books and manuscripts at the destroyed Great Omari Mosque in Gaza City (Ahmed Dremly/MEE) Off Raneem Mousa lifts a heavy volume from a shattered shelf inside the centuries-old library of Gaza’s Great Omari Mosque. With a small brush, she gently sweeps away layers of dust before passing the book to a colleague, who wipes it clean with a soft cloth. Together, they carry it to what they call the “safest corner” - a small space reserved for the volumes they have managed to salvage.
Morning update Good morning Middle East Eye readers, The US and Iran are moving closer to a one-page memorandum to end the war in the region, several reports have indicated. Meanwhile, intensifying Israeli attacks on Lebanon have escalated worries of a collapse in the current ceasefire. Lebanese officials reported that least 16 people have been killed in Israeli assault across south and east Lebanon on Wednesday.
Outrage after Ben Gvir posts video glorifying executing Palestinian detainees Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir is facing backlash after posting a TikTok video glorifying executions just weeks after Israel passed a controversial death penalty law targeting Palestinian detainees. The video used the viral “voices in my head” trend and featured AI-generated images of nooses while Ben-Gvir declared he “dreams” about executions. Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir is facing backlash after posting a TikTok video glorifying executions just weeks after Israel passed a controversial death penalty law targeting Palestinian detainees.
MSF says Israel has 'manufactured malnutrition crisis' in Gaza Doctors Without Borders on Thursday accused Israel of having deliberately restricted food and aid in Gaza, creating a "manufactured malnutrition crisis" with particularly devastating impacts on infants and pregnant and breastfeeding women. The report also examined what it said was the harm done by the US and Israeli-backed private organisation set up last year to largely replace UN distribution of aid in Gaza. The medical charity, known by its French acronym MSF, based its case on an analysis of the situation between late 2024 and early 2026 at four health facilities it supports in the Gaza Strip.
Israel targets pickup truck in south Lebanon, kills two Israeli warplanes killed two people after targeting a pickup truck on Thursday morning in Nabatieh, south Lebanon, the National News Agency (NNA) reported. The state-owned agency noted other shelling and strikes in the past few hours, particularly targeting south of the country.
Senior Hezbollah commander killed by Israel in Beirut: Report An Israeli strike on Beirut's southern suburbs on Wednesday killed a senior commander from Hezbollah's elite force, a source close to the group told AFP. The source indicated that Malek Ballout, an operations commander in the Radwan Force, was killed. Another Lebanese security source told the agency that the strike hit the apartment while the force's leaders were holding a meeting.
Iran denies involvement in attack on South Korean vessel in Hormuz Strait Iran has formally denied any involvement in an explosion that hit a South Korean cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week. The blast and subsequent fire occurred on Monday onboard the Panama-flagged HMM Namu, which was carrying 24 crew members at the time. "The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran firmly rejects and categorically denies any allegations regarding the involvement of the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the incident involving damage to a Korean vessel in the Strait of Hormuz," the Iranian Embassy in Seoul said in a statement Wednesday.
Israeli soldier places cigarette near Virgin Mary statue's mouth in Lebanon A viral image of an Israeli soldier desecrating a Christian statue in southern Lebanon has caused widespread outrage amid growing concern over Israeli attacks against Christians. The soldier is seen placing a cigarette near the mouth of the Virgin Mary statue, reportedly located in the predominantly Christian town of Debel. According to Israeli reporting, the army said that the soldier's behaviour "completely deviates from the values expected of its fighters", adding that the photo was taken a few weeks back.
Iran will control Strait of Hormuz 'forever', former senior US official says Iran will control the Strait of Hormuz “forever”, regardless of what a peace deal between the US and the Islamic Republic says, forcing Gulf states to build new pipelines to bypass Iran’s chokehold, a former senior US official said on Tuesday. “The Strait of Hormuz is under Iranian control forever - basically for the foreseeable future,” Amos Hochstein, an energy and Middle East adviser to former US President Joe Biden, told Bloomberg. “Nobody in the market should look at what the deal says eventually and believe it on [the] straits.
Israel struck Lebanese capital in the first attack since April ceasefire Israel has bombed Beirut’s southern suburbs in its first direct strike on the Lebanese capital since the April ceasefire. The air strike targeted the Ghobeiry area in southern Beirut, causing major destruction in densely populated neighbourhoods. Israel has bombed Beirut’s southern suburbs in its first direct strike on the Lebanese capital since the April ceasefire, escalating fears of a wider regional war as Israeli attacks across Lebanon continue.
Israeli air strike kills one Palestinian, severely wounds Hamas leader's son An air Israeli air strike on al-Daraj neighborhood, in Gaza City, reportedly killed at least one Palestinian and seriously wounded the son of Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya. While local media speculate that Hayya's son was seriously injured in the attack, Israeli reports suggest that he was assassinated.
Trump says war on Iran will be 'over quickly' US President Donald Trump said that the war on Iran will be "over quickly", as reports indicate Washington and Tehran moving closer to a memorandum. "When you look at the kind of things that are happening, we are doing that for one very important reason: We cannot allow them to have a nuclear weapon," Trump said during a tele-rally for Georgia Republican governor candidate Burt Jones. "So I think most people understand that.
Israeli assault across Lebanon kills 16 people, wounds over a dozen more Israeli drone and air strikes in southern and eastern Lebanon have killed 16 people, Lebanese officials said on Wednesday. At least 21 others, including paramedics, have been wounded in these attacks. Amongst the areas hit were a school, a number of residential areas and civilian infrastructure.
Hamas calls on US, mediators to stop the escalating Israeli attacks in Gaza In a press statement, Hamas said the latest Israeli attacks waged on Gaza represent a "blatant violation" of the ceasefire agreement signed in October. "The US administration and the guarantor states of the Sharm El-Sheikh agreement must take immediate action to restrain the fascist occupation and compel it to cease its aggression against innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip," the movement added. On Wednesday, several civilians were killed and wounded in Israeli air strikes across the besieged enclave.
Israeli forces carry out incursion in southern Syria Israeli forces late on Wednesday carried out a raid in the western countryside of Daraa province, south Syria, according to the Syrian state news agency SANA. Eight military vehicles reportedly advanced toward a bridge in Wadi al-Raqad, located in the Yarmouk Basin, and subsequently deployed across the area. The latest incursion comes less than a week before Israeli forces carried out a similar raid into the nearby town of Jamlah.
