25 minutes agoDaniel RosneyBBCMoments after Austria overtook Israel to win last May's Eurovision Song Contest and in doing so won the right to host this year's event, UK viewers heard commentator Graham Norton say organisers "will be breathing the largest sigh of relief that they're not faced with a Tel Aviv final next year".
Less than a week after the signing of the memorandum of understanding between Tehran and Washington brought the stuttering, three-month-long US-Israel war on Iran to a close – for now – the verdict of Washington’s principal ally, Israel, was in.According to a recent poll, an overwhelming 92 percent of Israelis felt the US has signed away their victory over a decades-old enemy, with almost half of those polled saying Israel should continue its attacks on Lebanon and the pro-Iran group Hezbollah, irrespective of the urgings of Washington, its principal ally and sponsor.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4‘You could’ve been the greatest’: Trump faces Israeli anger over Iran deallist 2 of 4UN starts evacuating 11,000 stranded sailors from Strait of Hormuzlist 3 of 4UN: Israel committed genocide by targeting Gaza childrenlist 4 of 4Israel’s deliberate targeting of Palestinian childrenend of listIsrael has spent the years since the surprise Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, in Israel, which killed 1,139 people, fighting continuous wars across the region.It has committed a genocide in Gaza, killing more than 73,000 Palestinians and razing large swaths of the territory to the ground. It has attacked Iran twice, killed thousands in Lebanon while fighting Iran ally Hezbollah, launched multiple ground incursions into Syria, and launched sporadic strikes on the Houthis in Yemen, also allies of Tehran.Within Israel’s fractious parliament, support for the country’s wars offers one of the few points of consensus, even if individual politicians disagree on how they are prosecuted.Going into the war on Iran, Israel’s former chief of staff and one of the contenders to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Gadi Eisenkot, did not hold back. Speaking during an interview in early March, shortly after the joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran began, he described the unprovoked attacks on Tehran as “the most just war in recent decades against the most bitter enemy”.Opposition leader Yair Lapid was equally supportive of the attacks, with his enthusiasm for renewed conflict against Iran and Hezbollah only eclipsed by his anger following Washington’s decision to make a deal with Tehran. He described the US decision as “one of the most shocking failures of Israel’s foreign and security policy, and it is entirely on Netanyahu’s account”.Israeli sociologist Daniel Bar-Tal from Tel Aviv University said little of this reaction in Israel is surprising. It was, he said, the outcome of a process across Israeli politics, media, and society that linked the Hamas 2023 attack with the “central anchor” of Israeli identity: the Holocaust. In this light, the attack was framed not “merely as a horrific event in its own right, but as the latest chapter in a much older story of Jewish historical trauma”.Bar-Tal added that the “justness of the national goals, glorification of the Jewish nation, [and] sense of collective victimhood”, as well as “the delegitimisation of Palestinians”, were ingrained into the consciousness of most Israelis, and therefore played a role in the support behind Israel’s wars.Gains and losses Despite almost three years of almost constant and unquestioned war, few people in Israel believe that the country is significantly more secure than it was before October 7.In Gaza, Hamas remains in control of large parts of the territory, while in Iran, the regime that Netanyahu is reported to have told his US allies would fall within days of the start of the war, remains steadfast.“There is no particular achievement that will stop this eternal war,” Israeli analyst and academic Shaiel Ben-Ephraim said.“There are two main engines behind it,” he said, describing the catalysts for the seemingly endless push for war. One of those engines, he said, was a reflection of Israel’s immediate circumstances, while the other was a reflection of the fundamental shift in the consciousness of Israelis following the October 7 attack.A member of a civilian respon
‘A shock to all Lebanese’: Israel sends a message as it takes ancient fort The Guardian U.S. push for Lebanon ceasefire stalls as Israel eyes Beirut strikes Axios Israel’s Netanyahu orders attacks in Beirut’s southern suburbs NBC News Netanyahu Orders Israeli Military to Attack Beirut Suburbs The New York Times Israel bombs Beirut, recaptures Crusader castle, but Trump says Israel will dial back war in Lebanon Los Angeles Times
Washington, DC – US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has become the first official from the administration of President Donald Trump to join global criticism of Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir.But as several countries summoned Israel’s ambassadors after Ben-Gvir posted a video of himself taunting abducted foreign activists from a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, Huckabee’s response rang largely hollow, coming a day after the US Department of the Treasury had sanctioned the flotilla organisers.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Israeli forces fire ‘rubber bullets’ at activists on Gaza aid flotillalist 2 of 3US imposes sanctions on Gaza flotilla organisers amid Israeli crackdownlist 3 of 3Gaza aid flotilla organisers say all boats intercepted by Israelend of listIt was the latest incident underscoring a US double standard towards Israel, Palestinians and their supporters, analysts said, and one that showed the US and Israel increasingly out of step with the international community.“We see a big difference between the US and other Western countries… who see things like freedom of navigation in international waters as a fundamental concept of international law that should be respected, not to mention the mistreatment of civilians,” said Michael Omer-Man, the Israel-Palestine director at the DAWN advocacy group.Huckabee made his comments on Wednesday, shortly after Italy, France, the Netherlands and Canada summoned Israeli ambassadors over Ben-Gvir’s video, which showed detained activists kneeling on the floor with their hands bound, and at times being shoved to the ground.Ben-Gvir is seen waving an Israeli flag, shouting and pointing over the detainees.In a post on X, Huckabee referenced a slew of Israeli officials who have criticised Ben-Gvir for the video, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Foreign Affairs Gideon Saar.Huckabee pointed to “universal outrage from every high-ranking Israeli official”, tagging Netanyahu, Saar, the office of Israeli President Isaac Herzog, and Israel’s ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter.“Flotilla was stupid stunt, but Ben Gvir betrayed dignity of his nation,” Huckabee wrote.Rights observers have long documented Israeli abuses against Palestinian detainees and their supporters from abroad, including detained activists flotilla activists. Israeli authorities have largely dismissed such accounts.Critics questioned whether the groundswell of condemnation from officials in Netanyahu’s government, which has emboldened far-right figures like Ben-Gvir, was motivated by the abuses committed or by Ben-Gvir’s decision to post it online.“I do believe that they’re more focused on the public relations side of it,” Omer-Man told Al Jazeera, “both with regards to the international community… and because it’s election season [in Israel] and they’re trying to distinguish themselves as the more stately, less radical actors”.Annelle Sheline, a research fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, said Ben-Gvir’s actions should be seen not as an aberration, but also as part of a manifestation of a US policy that has long fostered impunity and emboldened Israel’s far right.“Israel knows that as long as it has the unconditional support of the US, it will face no real consequences,” Sheline told Al Jazeera.One-sided sanctionsThe former administration of US President Joe Biden had ruled out sanctioning Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich as its term ended in 2024, despite mounting calls from US lawmakers to do so.In a letter that year, nearly 80 members of Congress charged that Ben-Gvir had played a role in “inciting violence against Palestinian civilians, encouraging the construction of illegal outposts, and preventing enforcement against violent settlers” in the occupied Palestinian territory.That included using his position to “prevent police from protecting humanitarian convoys bound for Gaza, allowing settlers to attack and halt aid”
17 minutes agoRushdi Abualouf,Gaza correspondent,andAleks PhillipsGetty ImagesA Hamas official has confirmed to the BBC that Izz ad-Din al-Haddad, commander of the group's armed wing, was killed in an Israeli air strike in Gaza City on Friday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a joint statement that Haddad had been "responsible for the murder, kidnapping and injury of thousands of Israeli civilians and IDF [Israel Defense Forces] soldiers".Israel described him as "one of the architects of the October 7 massacre". The strike is the latest launched by Israel on Gaza despite a ceasefire with Hamas.Three eyewitnesses told the BBC that a residential building known as Al-Mu'taz was struck by three missiles launched simultaneously from two separate directions, before a fleeing car was hit.The air strike, targeting the apartment block in the centre of Gaza City, sparked a large fire.Rescue teams rushed to the scene but faced significant difficulties evacuating the wounded, witnesses said.One eyewitness told the BBC that a body and several injured people had been removed from the building.A second air strike, targeting a car seen leaving the scene, killed three people, according to eyewitnesses and a local source.Sources said the vehicle may have been carrying Haddad after he had been seriously injured in the initial strike.Eyewitnesses and a local source said armed members of Hamas dressed in civilian clothing evacuated a severely wounded person through a side entrance and placed him in a vehicle.Witnesses said the car was hit around 1.5km (0.9 miles) from the apartment block.A senior Israeli security official said preliminary information indicated that Haddad had been successfully targeted.ReutersThe air strike on the apartment block in the centre of Gaza City sparked a large fireA ceasefire in Gaza came into effect on 10 October, but Israel has conducted regular strikes across the Palestinian territory since then.Hamas has repeatedly accused Israel of breaching the terms of the ceasefire and attacking civilians. The Israeli government maintains it has license to target Hamas members.It, in turn, accuses Hamas of refusing to disarm in breach of the ceasefire agreement.Meanwhile, US-led peace efforts have stalled since the start of the Iran war, with latter phases of the plan yet to come into effectThe US announced the start of the second phase of the plan in January, with governance of Gaza assumed by a transitional, technocratic administration alongside the demilitarisation and reconstruction of the territory.Netanyahu and Katz said Haddad had "refused to implement the agreement led by US President Trump to disarm Hamas and demilitarise the Gaza Strip".They added: "We will continue to act forcefully and decisively against anyone who took part in the October 7 massacre."The two-year-long Gaza war was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.Israel responded by launching a military campaign against Hamas in Gaza, during which more than 72,744 people have been killed, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Of these, 857 have been killed since the ceasefire began, it says.
Just nowBrandon DrenonEPALebanese army soldiers man a checkpoint in BeirutIsrael and Lebanon have agreed a 45-day extension to a shaky ceasefire, following two days of negotiations in Washington DC, the US state department said."We hope these discussions will advance lasting peace between the two countries, full recognition of each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and establishing genuine security along their shared border," said state department spokesman Tommy Pigott.US President Donald Trump announced the truce on 16 April, but Israel and Hezbollah have continued to exchange fire since then.On Wednesday, Lebanon's health ministry said Israeli air strikes had killed 22 people, including eight children, across the south.The state department said it would "reconvene the political track of negotiations" in June."In addition, a security track will be launched at the Pentagon on May 29 with military delegations from both countries," Pigott added. Israel's Ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, said the talks were "frank and constructive". Lebanon's Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said that he hoped to "mobilise all Arab and international support to bolster our position in the negotiations" with Israel.There have been almost daily reports of Hezbollah and Israel trading fire across the southern border of Lebanon since the ceasefire began.Israel has intensified its air and artillery strikes in recent days, particularly in southern Lebanon, saying it was targeting Hezbollah fighters and infrastructure.Lebanon's health ministry has accused Israel of targeting civilians and paramedics, which Israel denies. The Israeli military says it is aiming to create a buffer zone in southern Lebanon to thwart future Hezbollah attacks. In those areas, entire villages have been destroyed in similar tactics deployed by the Israeli military in Gaza. Human rights groups say some cases could amount to war crimes, which Israel denies.Hezbollah has carried out its own attacks on Israeli troops in Lebanon and northern Israel with rockets and drones.Southern Lebanon is the heartland of the country's Shia community, from which Hezbollah gets most of its support, and has been under constant Israeli bombardment. More than one million people, amounting to one in five of the population, have been forced from their homes across Lebanon, most of them from the south, the eastern Bekaa Valley, and the southern suburbs of Beirut known as Dahieh, areas where Hezbollah holds sway. The conflict started on 2 March, two days after the US and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran. Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel, and Israel responded with widespread air strikes and a ground invasion of southern Lebanon.At least 2,896 people have been killed in Lebanon since then, according to the health ministry.Israeli authorities say 18 soldiers and four civilians have been killed over the same period.BBC asks Trump if China will help open the Strait of Hormuz
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a ceremony commemorating Israel's Remembrance Day for fallen soldiers, or Yom HaZikaron, at the Military Cemetery on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, Tuesday April 21, 2026.
Ilia Yefimovich/AP/Pool AFP
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JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quietly visited the United Arab Emirates during the Israeli-U.S. war with Iran, his office said Wednesday. The UAE later denied any secret visit had occurred.
Netanyahu met with UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in a gathering that "resulted in a historic breakthrough in relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates," according to the Israeli statement. The Gulf nation normalized relations with Israel in 2020.
The UAE's official WAM news agency later posted an article denying "reports circulating" about a Netanyahu visit. According to WAM, the country's relations with Israel "are public and conducted within the framework of the well-known and officially declared Abraham Accords, and are not based on non-transparent or unofficial arrangements."
The Emirati report also denied any Israeli military delegation was received in the UAE.
Israel's announcement came a day after U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee revealed that Israel had sent Iron Dome air-defense weapons and personnel to operate them to the UAE.
The UAE has faced Iranian missile and drone fire even after the ceasefire was reached last month. It has been trying to signal to nervous investors that it remains open for business and safe.
Last week, WAM reported that Netanyahu was among the leaders who called the Emirati president to condemn Iranian attacks and express their solidarity with the Gulf federation.
It was rare public acknowledgment of direct talks between the countries that normalized relations in the 2020 Abraham Accords and have strengthened their ties during the Iran war.
Iran has criticized that agreement and has repeatedly suggested over the years that Israel maintained a military and intelligence presence in the Emirates.
Israeli leaders have made occasional visits to the UAE in recent years after normalizing relations.
Iran demands Kuwait release detainees
Iran's foreign minister accused Kuwait of attempting to "sow discord" by detaining four Iranians that the Gulf Arab country accuses of being Revolutionary Guard operatives.
In a post Wednesday on X, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi demanded the Iranians' immediate release and said Iran reserved the right to respond.
"This illegal act took place near an island used by the U.S. to attack Iran," Araghchi wrote.
A day earlier, Kuwait said four men were detained and two escaped while trying to infiltrate Bubiyan Island in the northwest corner of the Persian Gulf on May 1.
Bubiyan Island is home to Mubarak Al Kabeer Port, which is under construction as part of a Chinese plan to build infrastructure across the world. It also came under Iranian attack during the war.
Iranian human rights lawyer released
Prominent Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh has been released from prison more than a month after being detained, a rights group and her daughter said Wednesday.
Sotoudeh, who is known for defending activists, opposition politicians and women prosecuted for removing their headscarves, was detained by Iranian intelligence agents at her house in Tehran in April.
Her release comes as U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in China for a long-anticipated visit that is expected to touch on the war in Iran.
The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which closely tracks developments in Iran, said that Sotoudeh was released on bail from Tehran's Evin Prison.
Her daughter, Mehraveh Khandan, posted on social media that Sotoudeh was released on temporary custody. Iran's semiofficial ISNA news agency also reported Sotoudeh release.
Sotoudeh has been imprisoned multiple times. Her activist husband, Reza Kh
25 minutes agoDaniel RosneyBBCMoments after Austria overtook Israel to win last May's Eurovision Song Contest and in doing so won the right to host this year's event, UK viewers heard commentator Graham Norton say organisers "will be breathing the largest sigh of relief that they're not faced with a Tel Aviv final next year".Anti-Israel protests had built ahead of the contest. At a demonstration of several hundred people in Basel, Switzerland, where the final was held, protesters wore the Palestinian flag and smeared themselves with fake blood to symbolise the killings in Gaza. During the grand final the Israeli singer Yuval Raphael was targeted when two people attempted to storm the stage, and threw paint which ended up hitting a Eurovision crew member.The atmosphere in the arena as the results came in was easily the most tense I've experienced in my years of reporting on the song contest. People were praying. Some were crying. There were chants of "Austria, Austria" as the audience awaited the final scores.TT/ReutersSome have opposed Israel's inclusion since the start of the war in GazaIf many in the crowd didn't appear to want Israel to win, the public vote showed a different perspective. Yuval Raphael, who received middling points from the competition's judges, outperformed every other participant when it came to the public vote.A number of broadcasters subsequently queried Israel finishing so highly. They pointed to the fact that official social media accounts linked to Israel's government, including that of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had been asking people to vote for its representative 20 times, the maximum the contest allowed.Their implication was that the public vote result was less a reflection of widespread public support for Raphael, and more the product of some people voting for Israel as many times as they could.The Israeli government itself has frequently claimed it faces a global smear campaign.Some broadcasters wanted an audit. There were calls to review the voting system, which had been in place for many years, to ensure that, in the words of Flemish public broadcaster VRT, it could guarantee "a fair reflection of the opinion of viewers and listeners".In response, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organises the event, confirmed the vote had been independently checked and verified, and there was no evidence that voting up to 20 times "disproportionally affects [sic] the final result", later clarifying it was "a valid and robust result".The near victory for Israel, which first entered the contest in 1973 and has won it four times, brought to boiling point what for many years had been a simmering backstage dispute over the influence of geopolitics and conflict on Eurovision voting.The contest's biggest boycottThe Eurovision Song Contest is now facing its biggest boycott in its 70-year history.While 35 countries are participating in the 2026 contest, broadcasters from Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Iceland and Slovenia have withdrawn from this week's event in opposition to Israel's inclusion.Their precise reasons for doing so vary and are not always explicit. Some say they are boycotting the 2026 contest in protest at the military offensive in Gaza that began in 2023 and has seen more than 72,000 people killed, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry. Israel's offensive began after the militant group Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage. Some broadcasters have also accused Israel's government of genocide, which Israel strongly denies.It's notable that most of the boycotting broadcasters are in broad alignment with the policies of their governments. Some are from countries where governments have explicitly and strongly criticised the state of Israel. Last month, politicians from Spain, Slovenia and Ireland tried and failed to push the European Union to suspend the bloc's preferential trade relations with Israel. The broadcasters insi
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