Israel-Palestinian Conflict

A key leader of Israel’s military has visited troops stationed near neighboring Lebanon from where Hezbollah fighters have attacked Israel.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Hamas Wednesday to accept the latest proposal for a cease-fire with Israel that would free hostages and pause the nearly seven months of war in Gaza that has killed thousands.

Amid ongoing legal proceedings to finalize the matter, Israel’s government has told the country’s Supreme Court justices that it is working on the immediate enlistment of army-age ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) men into the Israel Defense Forces, i24News reports.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned reported plans by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue arrest warrants for Israeli government officials on charges related to the conduct of its war against Hamas.

A new report published by Israel’s Innovation, Science and Technology Ministry shows that, since the Oct. 7 massacre which triggered the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, academic researchers from European countries have been increasingly unwilling to cooperate with their Israeli counterparts, the Times of Israel (TOI) reports. The boycott primarily affects research in the fields of medicine, biology, physics, space, and computer science.

Israel has warned that it will destroy Syrian President Bashar Assad’s “regime” if Syria gets involved in the Gaza war, diplomats said Monday.

The European Union’s foreign policy chief says several EU member states will recognize Palestinian statehood by the end of May, despite Israel’s opposition.

Israel is taking proactive measures to prevent the potential arrest warrants from the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Israel’s Defense Forces Chief of Staff Herzl Halevi. Israel has instructed its embassies worldwide to brace for severe anti-semitic backlashes in response to any ICC warrants.

U.S. troops have begun building a maritime pier off the coast of the Gaza Strip to speed up humanitarian aid into the wartorn territory, White House and U.S. military officials say.

Researchers working near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem have uncovered a 2,000-year-old clay token they believe may have been used by Jewish pilgrims to exchange for offerings during visits to the Biblical Second Temple before it was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD, Christian Headlines reports.

In response to escalated attacks during the Passover holiday, Israel targeted multiple sites associated with Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon. Following these operations, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had successfully eliminated half of Hezbollah’s commanders in the region.

Protesters chanting “We won’t allow the abandonment of the hostages” and “their time is running out, a deal is on the table” scuffled with police near the residence of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem and at least two arrests were reported.

Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has asked the US not to proceed with proposals to sanction the IDF’s Netzach Yehuda (Judea Forever) battalion for alleged human rights violations against Palestinians in the West Bank (Judea and Samaria).

As Israel observed Passover on Wednesday, its military stepped up efforts to pressure Hamas to free hostages during this holiday period as it prepared to invade Rafah, one of the last standing cities in the Gaza Strip.

Israel’s military is preparing to target what it describes as the final stronghold of Hamas in Rafah, a city in Gaza where over a million Palestinians are currently seeking refuge.