Live updates (closed)
The Times of Israel liveblogged Saturday’s events as they unfolded.
Trump reportedly invites Netanyahu to join Gaza Board of Peace
US President Donald Trump (R) and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speak to journalists during a joint press conference at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, on December 29, 2025. (Jim WATSON / AFP)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was invited by US President Donald Trump to join the Board of Peace for the Gaza Strip, according to Ynet.
The Prime Minister’s Office does not respond to requests for comment.
Several other world leaders have been invited to join the board, which is meant to act as a supervisory body.
US kills al-Qaeda affiliate leader tied to December attack in Syria, CENTCOM says
Illustration: US soldiers patrol an area in the town of Tal Hamis, southeast of the city of Qameshli in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh governorate, on January 24, 2024. (Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP)
US military forces yesterday killed an al-Qaeda affiliate leader linked to an Islamic State attack on Americans in Syria last month, US Central Command says in a statement.
Bilal Hasan al-Jasim had “direct ties” to an ISIS gunman who killed and injured US and Syrian personnel on December 13 in Palmyra, Syria, Central Command says.
“The death of a terrorist operative linked to the deaths of three Americans demonstrates our resolve in pursuing terrorists who attack our forces,” says Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command, in a statement.
Since the December 13 attack, US forces have been conducting strikes in Syria, with the US military saying it has hit more than 100 ISIS targets.
Iran authorities said to have arrested members of Bahai minority
Iranian authorities say they have arrested members of the Bahai minority, whom they accused of having been active in what they call “riots,” the Tasnim news agency reported, after the wave of mass anti-government protests that gripped the country.
The Bahais, Iran’s biggest non-Muslim religious minority, regularly experience persecution, and the Islamic Republic has accused its members of being spies linked to Israel.
“A 32-member network of the Bahai espionage cult who were active in the riots and acts of vandalism were identified and 12 main agents were arrested and 13 were summoned,” the intelligence ministry says, quoted by Tasnim.
It says the network was active across Iran, including in the capital Tehran, adding that “their main hideout was located in Mashhad” in the east.
Iran was rocked by weeks of demonstrations sparked by anger over economic hardship that exploded into the biggest protests against the Islamic Republic in more than three years.
But demonstrations have subsided after the crackdown that rights groups say left thousands of people dead.
Human Rights Watch said in 2024 that the “Iranian authorities’ decades-long systematic repression of Bahais… amounts to the crime against humanity of persecution.”
It is unclear how many members of the minority remain in Iran, but their supporters believe there could still be several hundred thousand.
Argentina designates Iran’s Quds Force a terrorist organization; Sa’ar praises move
Argentine President Javier Milei (L) and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar in Buenos Aires on November 25, 2025. (Office of the President of Argentina)
Argentine President Javier Milei designates the Quds Force, the foreign operations arm of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, as a terrorist organization, earning praise from Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar.
An official statement from the Argentine president’s office says that the body specializes in “training for the execution of terrorist attacks in other countries,” adding that Argentina holds it responsible for the 1990s Buenos Aires terrorist attacks on the Israeli Embassy and the Asociacion Mutual Israelita Argentina (AMIA) Jewish center. A court in Argentina said in 2024 that the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group was responsible for the AMIA attack, which killed 85 people.
The designation “entails that members of the Quds Force and their allies are subject to the application of financial sanctions and operational restrictions,” the statement adds, noting that Milei “maintains an unbreakable commitment to recognizing terrorists for what they are.”
Milei has also designated Hamas, the Sinaloa Cartel, and more recently, Muslim Brotherhood chapters in Lebanon, Egypt, and Jordan as terrorist organizations.
Sa’ar welcomes Milei’s decision as a “significant step that strengthens the international front against Iranian terrorism and honors the memory of the victims of the attacks on the Israeli Embassy and the AMIA,” urging other countries to “call these terrorist organizations by their names.”
‘A dangerous downward spiral’: EU warns against Trump’s tariff threat over Greenland
European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen gives a press conference in Brussels on June 10, 2025. (Nicolas TUCAT / AFP)
European Union leaders warn against US President Donald Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on European countries until he has achieved his acquisition of Greenland.
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa, president of the European Council, issues the joint statement hours after Trump threatened multiple European nations with tariffs of up to 25 percent.
“Tariffs would undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral,” they write in a post on social media.
“Europe will remain united, coordinated, and committed to upholding its sovereignty,” they add.
The statement comes days after Danish and Greenlandic officials held talks in Washington over Trump’s bid to acquire the territory, without reaching an agreement.
“The EU stands in full solidarity with Denmark and the people of Greenland,” says the EU statement. “Dialogue remains essential, and we are committed to building on the process begun already last week between the Kingdom of Denmark and the US.”
Iran schools to reopen tomorrow after one-week closure — report
People cross an intersection in downtown Tehran, Iran, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranian schools are set to reopen Sunday, local media reports, following a one-week closure as the country was gripped by mass anti-government protests.
“Schools in Tehran and other cities which were announced closed since January 10 will be resumed from tomorrow,” the ISNA news agency says, adding that university exams that had been postponed will be held on January 24.
Iraq takes full control of air base after US withdrawal, defense ministry says
Illustration: US Soldiers stand at the site of an Iranian bombing at Ain al-Asad air base in Anbar, Iraq, January 13, 2020. (AP/Qassim Abdul-Zahra)
US forces have withdrawn from Iraq’s Ain al-Asad Airbase, which housed US-led forces in western Iraq, and the Iraqi army has assumed full control, the Iraqi defense ministry says.
In 2024, Washington and Baghdad reached an understanding on plans for the withdrawal of US-led coalition forces from Iraq and a move toward a bilateral security relationship.
Ain al-Asad has hosted US and coalition troops for years and has been repeatedly targeted by Iran-backed armed groups during periods of heightened regional tensions, including after the 2020 US killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani.
An Iraqi army colonel confirms the US forces’ withdrawal from the base, saying there were a few soldiers remaining due to some logistical issues. He does not give further details for security reasons.
It is not immediately clear when the withdrawal started, but the initial plan stipulated that hundreds of troops would leave by September 2025, with the rest departing by the end of 2026.
Thousands protest in Greenland, including its leader, against Trump’s threats to take it over
People protest against US President Donald Trump's threats to take over Greenland in front of the US consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, January 17, 2026. (AP/Evgeniy Maloletka)
Thousands of Greenlanders carefully march across snow and ice to take a stand against US President Donald Trump.
They hold signs of protest, wave their national flag and chant “Greenland is not for sale” in support of their own self-governance in the face of increasing threats of an American takeover.
Just as they finish their trek from the small downtown of Greenland’s capital city Nuuk to the US Consulate in rain and near-freezing temperatures, the news breaks that Trump will charge a 10% import tax starting in February on goods from eight European countries over their opposition to US control of Greenland.
Trump has long said he thinks the US should own the strategically located and mineral-rich island, which is a self-governing territory of Denmark. Trump intensified his calls a day after the US military operation to oust Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro earlier this month.
Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen is among those who others described as the island’s biggest protest, drawing nearly a quarter of Nuuk’s population. Others hold rallies and solidarity marches across the Danish realm, including in Copenhagen, as well as in the capital of the Inuit-governed territory of Nunavut in Canada’s far north.
In Nuuk, Greenlanders of all ages listen to traditional songs as they walk to the consulate.
Thousands march in France to back Iranian protesters, condemn Khamenei
Protesters hold banners and Iranian flags during a rally in support of the Iranian people in front of the Pantheon in Paris on January 17, 2026. (JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP)
Thousands of people rally in France in a show of support for demonstrators in Iran who have risked their lives to demand an end to theocratic rule.
The protests in Iran over past weeks are the largest since the “Woman, Life, Freedom” street movement in 2022-2023.
“Woman, Life, Freedom,” chant marchers in the French capital, some holding portraits of deceased Iranian protesters.
“Death to Khamenei,” cry some, in reference to 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Protests also occur in several other French cities.
Norway-based rights group Iran Human Rights (IHR) says it has verified that Iranian security forces have killed 3,428 protesters, but warns the actual toll could be several times higher.
Other estimates place the death toll at more than 5,000 — and possibly as high as 20,000, IHR says.
The opposition Iran International channel, based outside the country, has said at least 12,000 people were killed during the protests, citing senior government and security sources.
US official says PM deliberately not told of Qatari, Turkish inclusion on Gaza panel — report
US President Donald Trump greets Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago club, December 29, 2025, in Palm Beach, Florida. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was deliberately not notified by the United States about the makeup of the Gaza Board of Peace’s executive committee, a senior US official tells Channel 12, in a report following the premier’s statement tonight that the unveiling of the oversight body “was not coordinated with Israel and contradicts its policy.”
The official, who is said to be directly involved in the issue, tells the Hebrew network that the US intentionally chose not to inform Netanyahu about the inclusion of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and senior Qatari diplomat Ali Al-Thawadi on the committee. Their appointments are believed to have angered Netanyahu, as both Turkey and Qatar have been sharply critical of Israel and its conduct of the war in Gaza.
The official asserts that Gaza is now being handled by the US and encourages Netanyahu to focus on other issues, such as developments in Iran, adding that the administration has no intention to argue with the premier and suggesting that his influence on the matter is limited.
Channel 12 also reports that Israeli-Cypriot businessman Yakir Gabay, who will serve on the Executive Committee, is very close to top Trump aide Jared Kushner and former British premier Tony Blair, who were appointed to the body as well. An expert in real estate and infrastructure, Gabay is expected to focus on the reconstruction of the Strip, the network says.
In contrast to the US official cited by Channel 12, a Ynet report cites US officials who claim that Israel was informed in advance about the makeup of the Gaza oversight bodies, despite Netanyahu’s assertion that no coordination took place.
Protesters gather across country to call for state inquiry, return of slain hostage’s body
A large crowd of protesters gathers at Tel Aviv's Habima Square for a weekly anti-government protest on January 17, 2026. (Gilad Furst/Israeli Pro-Democracy Movement)
Protesters gather across the country to demand the return of the remains of the final slain hostage, Ran Gvili, and to call for a state commission of inquiry to investigate the failures surrounding the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, onslaught.
The main weekly anti-government protest, at Tel Aviv’s Habima Square, draws thousands, according to Hebrew media reports and protest organizers.
Protesters hold signs decrying the government’s refusal to establish a state inquiry into October 7. The coalition is instead advancing an effort to form a politically-appointed inquiry into the onslaught. Protesters also oppose the government’s judicial overhaul, which aims to weaken the court.
Former defense minister and IDF chief Moshe Ya’alon addresses the crowd, likening Israel’s government to the authoritarian regime in Iran that crushed nationwide mass protests this week, with thousands reportedly killed.
“Don’t get mixed up: There’s no external existential threat facing Israel, but an internal one,” Ya’alon tells the protesters, according to the Ynet outlet. “The messianic, draft-dodging, corrupt government — our ayatollah regime — is what brought about the October 7 massacre and is endangering the very existence of the state.”
Referring to the far-right national security minister, he adds, “Ben Gvir is looking at how the regime there is handling the protesters, and is jealous.”
A rally is also held in Meitar, the Gvili family’s home community.
13 more people arrested in UK over removal of flag from Iranian embassy
A police van waits outside the Iranian Embassy, flying the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran, central London, January 12, 2026. (HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP)
UK police say they have arrested 13 other people in addition to a protester who climbed across multiple balconies onto a terrace at Iran’s embassy in London and removed a flag.
The man who removed the flag was held on suspicion of criminal damage, trespassing on diplomatic property and assaulting police, London’s Metropolitan Police say in a statement.
“A further 13 arrests were made for several offences, including violent disorder, assault of an emergency worker, criminal damage and trespass on diplomatic premises,” it says.
Four police officers suffered minor injuries during the incident on Friday, it adds.
London police said last week they were deploying additional officers to “prevent any disorder” and protect the Iranian embassy.
Last week, a protester briefly replaced the embassy’s flag with a former flag flown before Iran’s Islamic revolution in 1979.
Islamic Jihad denounces makeup of Board of Peace as serving Israel’s interests
Illustration: Islamic Jihad gunmen search for the bodies of hostages north of Nuseirat, Gaza Strip November 21, 2025. (AP/Abdel Kareem Hana)
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group denounces the White House’s announcement on the Board of Peace yesterday.
“We were surprised by the composition of the so-called ‘Board of Peace’ and the announced names,” says the group in a statement, adding that the members were “in line with Israeli specifications and serves the occupation’s interests.”
The White House last night unveiled some of the members of two committees under the Board of Peace, which itself will be made up of world leaders. Some leaders, including the presidents of Egypt and Turkey, have said they were invited to serve on the board.
Israel also objected to the makeup of the Board of Peace’s executive committee, which includes top officials from Turkey and Qatar, both of which have been highly critical of Israel’s prosecution of the war in Gaza.
Israel reveals identities of senior terror operatives killed in recent Gaza strikes
The IDF and Shin Bet reveal the identities of several Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad operatives killed in recent strikes across the Gaza Strip, which Israel said were carried out in response to a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire in the enclave earlier this week in western Rafah when gunmen opened fire at troops.
Among those killed was Muhammad Hamed Muhammad al-Hawli, identified previously by senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan as a local al-Qassam Brigades commander.
According to the military, al-Hawli was a key figure in the organization for decades, played a significant role in Hamas’s preparations for the October 7, 2023, onslaught, and previously directed a 1995 attack at the Nahal Oz checkpoint, in which security guard Yevgeny Gromov was killed.
Reports at the time indicated that at least five additional people, including al-Hawli’s wife and daughter, were killed in the Thursday strike in Deir al-Balah.
The IDF also confirms it killed Ashraf Adnan Muhammad al-Khatib, who, according to the military, was the commander of Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s rocket and missile array in central Gaza.
Arabic media reported that an airstrike on Thursday night struck a home in the Nuseirat refugee camp, killing al-Khatib along with his wife and wounding several others.
בתגובה להפרה החמורה במרחב רפיח: צה"ל ושב"כ חיסלו מספר מחבלים מארגוני הטרור חמאס והג'יהאד האיסלאמי הפלסטיני ברצועת עזה
במהלך השבוע, צה"ל ושב"כ תקפו וחיסלו מספר מחבלים מארגוני הטרור חמאס והג'יהאד האיסלאמי הפלסטיני ברחבי רצועת עזה, בעקבות הפרת ההסכם החמורה מוקדם יותר השבוע במערב… pic.twitter.com/trjMGWdQzH
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) January 17, 2026
Another operative Israel says it has killed is Saeed Khaled Ali Abd al-Rahman, whom the military identifies as the sniper commander in Hamas’s Deir al-Balah Battalion and a “major source of expertise in the field.” It is unclear where and when al-Rahman was killed.
In an additional strike, the IDF says it killed two more Hamas operatives who were involved in efforts to rehabilitate the group’s infrastructure, without specifying their identities or the location of the strike.
The military says the strikes dealt a “significant blow” to the terror groups’ ability to plan and carry out attacks against IDF troops deployed in Gaza under the ceasefire. It vows to continue acting against attempts to harm Israeli troops and civilians.
Herzog to meet with Honduras’s president-elect in Jerusalem tomorrow
Nasry Asfura, now president of Honduras, gestures during general elections in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, November 30, 2025. (AP/Moises Castillo)
President Isaac Herzog will hold a private meeting with Honduran president-elect Nasry “Tito” Asfura at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem tomorrow, his office announces.
The conservative president-elect, who is of Palestinian Christian descent and is expected to improve ties with Israel after four years of leftist rule in the Central American country, is also expected to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar during his visit this week.
Lazar Berman contributed to this report.
After PM knocks Trump on Gaza panel, Ben Gvir calls for return to war with ‘overwhelming force’
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir attends a National Security Committee meeting at the Knesset on December 31, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir calls for a full return to war in Gaza after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office stated that the US did not coordinate with Israel on the composition of a key panel intended to play a central role in the Strip’s postwar governance.
The panel, the Gaza Board of Peace’s executive committee, includes top officials from Turkey and Qatar, both of which have been highly critical of Israel’s prosecution of the war in Gaza. The premier’s office said the unveiling of the board “contradicts” Israeli policy.
“I commend the Prime Minister for his important statement. The Gaza Strip does not need any ‘governing council’ to oversee its ‘rehabilitation’ — it needs to be cleared of Hamas terrorists, who must be eliminated, alongside the encouragement of large-scale voluntary emigration, in accordance with President Trump’s original plan,” writes the far-right minister in a Hebrew-language post on X.
Trump called early last year for the permanent relocation of Gaza’s population and for the US to take over the postwar Strip, but has since abandoned that plan and is focused on implementing the current Gaza peace framework, which calls for Palestinians not to be displaced from Gaza.
Ben Gvir calls on Netanyahu “to instruct the IDF to prepare to return to the fighting in the Strip with overwhelming force, in order to achieve the central objective of the war: the destruction of Hamas.”
In first, Trump appears to call for end of ‘sick man’ Khamenei’s rule in Iran
US President Donald Trump speaks to the press before boarding Marine One as he departs from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, on January 16, 2026 (Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)
US President Donald Trump for the first time appears to call for the end of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s rule in Iran.
“It’s time to look for new leadership in Iran,” Trump tells Politico.
The comments are the closest Trump has come yet to calling for regime change in Iran, though he seemed to direct his ire in the interview at the supreme leader personally, and not at the broader Islamic Republic system.
They come after Trump on Friday indicated he had moved away from the idea of striking Iran after the regime had allegedly agreed to cancel the planned executions of 800 protesters.
Days earlier, Trump had threatened to strike if Iran killed protesters, urging the latter group to “take over institutions” and assuring that “help is on its way.”
But his satisfaction with the regime’s move on Friday suggested that his threat regarding protester deaths only referred to planned executions, and not killings that reportedly took place during the regime’s crackdown on the demonstrations, where the death count was said to be in the thousands. Trump had insisted some of those deaths were caused by stampedes.
Asked about the scope of a potential military strike in Iran, Trump tells Politico, “The best decision [Khamenei] ever made was not hanging more than 800 people two days ago.”
Trump speaks to Politico shortly after Khamenei, 86, posted a series of tweets blaming the US president for the unrest in Iran.
“We find the US president guilty due to the casualties, damages and slander he inflicted upon the Iranian nation,” Khamenei wrote.
Responding to the posts, Trump tells Politico, “What he is guilty of, as the leader of a country, is the complete destruction of the country and the use of violence at levels never seen before.”
“In order to keep the country functioning — even though that function is a very low level — the leadership should focus on running his country properly, like I do with the United States, and not killing people by the thousands in order to keep control,” the US president says.
“Leadership is about respect, not fear and death,” Trump adds.
“The man is a sick man who should run his country properly and stop killing people,” Trump says. “His country is the worst place to live anywhere in the world because of poor leadership,” he says.
Trump: 8 European countries to get 10% tariff for opposing US control of Greenland
US President Donald Trump speaks during a ceremony to congratulate the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League, winners of the 2025 Stanley Cup, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, on January 15, 2026. (Mandel Ngan/AFP)
US President Donald Trump says he will charge a 10 percent import tax starting in February on goods from eight European countries because of opposition to US control of Greenland.
He said in a social media post that Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland would face the tariff, which would be raised to 25% on June 1 if a deal is not in place for “the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland” by the United States.
“These Countries, who are playing this very dangerous game, have put a level of risk in play that is not tenable or sustainable,” Trump writes. “Therefore, it is imperative that, in order to protect Global Peace and Security, strong measures be taken so that this potentially perilous situation ends quickly, and without question.”
In break with Trump, PM says makeup of key Gaza oversight panel ‘contradicts’ Israeli policy
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a 40-signature debate at the Knesset plenum in Jerusalem, January 5, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
In a rare break with US President Donald Trump’s administration, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office says yesterday’s White House unveiling of the Gaza Board of Peace’s executive committee “was not coordinated with Israel and contradicts its policy.”
The executive committee includes top officials from Turkey and Qatar, both of which have been highly critical of Israel’s prosecution of the war in Gaza.
While it will technically operate beneath the Board of Peace, which is headed by Trump and made up of world leaders, the executive committee will be more directly involved in overseeing the postwar management of Gaza, playing a critical role, as opposed to the more symbolic Board of Peace.
Netanyahu’s office says in the statement that the premier instructed Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar to raise Israeli opposition to the executive board’s makeup with his US counterpart, Marco Rubio. Sa’ar has largely been kept away from involvement in Israel-US relations, which have been run by Netanyahu’s office and his top advisers.
Israeli, Emirati education ministers met recently, says Israel’s envoy to UAE
Israel’s Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates Yossi Shelley says he recently participated in a meeting with Emirati Minister of Education, Sarah Al Amiri, and her Israeli counterpart, Yoav Kisch.
In a post on X, Shelley says the meeting “focused on expanding cooperation in the field of education, advancing academic exchange, and promoting innovation, with a shared commitment to equipping the next generation with the skills and knowledge needed for a common future.”
Shelley adds that education is a “central pillar” of the “growing” Israel-UAE relationship.
The Israeli envoy does not say when the meeting was or where it took place, but the image shared in his post appears to show the group in an Emirati government office.
I had the pleasure of participating in a meeting with Israel’s Minister of Education, @YoavKisch , and UAE Minister of Education, Sarah Al Amiri.
Our discussion focused on expanding cooperation in the field of education, advancing academic exchange, and promoting innovation,… pic.twitter.com/XBcuu3onhC
— Ambassador Yossi Shelley (@ambshelley) January 16, 2026
Canadian PM Carney invited to join Trump’s Gaza board; aide says he plans to accept
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has been invited by US President Donald Trump to join a board to supervise post-war Gaza, an offer he intends to accept, a senior aide told AFP on Saturday.
Trump has declared himself the chair of a Gaza “Board of Peace.” He has so far tapped former UK prime minister Tony Blair and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to fill senior roles, and asked the leaders of Egypt, Turkey and Argentina to take part.
The senior Canadian government official did not provide further details
Hamas-run health ministry says one killed by IDF, baby girl dead of cold exposure over past 24 hours
Gaza hospitals received the body of one person killed by the IDF over the past 24 hours, the Hamas-run health ministry says in a noon report.
The report does not identify the dead person or say where they were killed.
Palestinian media reported yesterday evening that a teenager was killed by IDF gunfire on the Hamas-controlled side of the Gaza ceasefire line in northern Gaza’s Beit Lahiya. The IDF has not commented on the reports.
Media identified him as Muhammad al-Brawi, 16. His body was reportedly brought to Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital and taken by his family for burial earlier today.
نقل جثمان الشهيد الفتى محمد رائد البراوي (16 عامًا) من مستشفى الشفاء في غزة، تمهيدًا لوداعه وتشييعه بعد أن ارتقى متأثرًا بإصابته برصاص الاحتلال في بيت لاهيا شمالي قطاع غزة. pic.twitter.com/wKigiyLuof
— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) January 17, 2026
Gaza hospitals also attended to six people wounded by IDF gunfire in the past 24 hours, the Hamas-run health ministry says. It does not specify where the people were wounded or the severity of their wounds.
In addition, the health ministry reports a 27-day-old baby girl died of cold exposure over the past day. Palestinian media identifies her as Aisha al-Agha. She reportedly died today in Khan Younis, in the Strip’s south.
According to the ministry, she is the eighth child to die of cold exposure in Gaza this winter season, starting last month.
Argentina’s Milei invited by Trump to join Gaza Board of Peace, calls it ‘an honor’
US President Donald Trump greets Argentina's President Javier Milei at the White House in Washington, DC, on October 14, 2025. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)
Argentinian President Javier Milei said Sunday that he was invited by US President Donald Trump to join the “Board of Peace” meant to oversee post-war Gaza.
Sharing an image of the invitation letter, Milei wrote on X that it would be “an honor” to participate in the initiative which is chaired by Trump and already has US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and former British prime minister Tony Blair among its members.
GRACIAS PRESIDENTE TRUMP @realDonaldTrump@POTUS
Es un honor para mí haber recibido esta noche la invitación para que la Argentina integre, como Miembro Fundador, el Board of Peace, una organización creada por el Presidente Trump para promover una paz duradera en regiones… pic.twitter.com/ORalzkzhlv
— Javier Milei (@JMilei) January 17, 2026
Pennsylvania boy allegedly shoots father to death after being told to go to bed, Nintendo Switch confiscated
An 11-year-old boy faces homicide charges for allegedly shooting his father to death after he confiscated his Nintendo Switch gaming device in Pennsylvania, the Guardian reports.
Police found the man, Douglas Dietz, 42, with a gunshot wound to the head in his bed on January 13, the report says.
The child told authorities that he became “mad” after his father told him to go to bed, the report says.
The boy said that he found the key to his father’s gun safe, which he opened while searching for the Nintendo Switch, which had been confiscated.
Instead, the boy found the gun, which he admitted to firing at his father, the report says. Police officers reportedly heard the son tell his mother, “I killed Daddy,” when they arrived at the home.
The local WGAL News 8 news outlet reports the child is being held in custody and was denied bail.
Khamenei says Iran ‘must break the back of the seditionists’ after unrest
PARIS, France — Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says authorities “must break the back of the seditionists” after a crackdown on a protest wave against the country’s clerical authorities.
“We do not intend to lead the country to war, but we will not spare domestic criminals… worse than domestic criminals, international criminals, we will not spare them either,” he tells supporters during an address marking a religious holiday.
“By God’s grace, the Iranian nation must break the back of the seditionists just as it broke the back of the sedition.”
Egypt says it’s reviewing Trump’s invitation to Sissi to join Board of Peace
US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi during a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, September 23, 2019. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)
Egypt is reviewing an invitation by US President Donald Trump to Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to join the so-called Board of Peace for Gaza, Egypt’s foreign minister says in a press conference.
The board is set to supervise the temporary governance of Gaza, which has been under a fragile ceasefire since October.
Trump invites Erdogan to be Board of Peace member, Turkey says
US President Donald Trump greets Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a summit to support ending the more than two-year Israel-Hamas war in Gaza after a breakthrough ceasefire deal, October 13, 2025, in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, Pool)
ISTANBUL, Turkey — US President Donald Trump has invited Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan to join the so-called Board of Peace that will oversee postwar Gaza, Turkey says.
Erdogan received the proposal in a letter yesterday from Trump inviting him to “become a founding member” of the board, Turkish presidential communications director Burhanettin Duran posts on social media.
Erdogan, while close to Trump, is one of the most bitter critics of Israel and Jerusalem has repeatedly opposed Turkish involvement in Gaza.
Tony Blair says he’s ‘honored’ to be part of Gaza Board of Peace executive board
Britain's former prime minister Tony Blair walks through the COP28 UN Climate Summit, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, December 3, 2023. (Rafiq Maqbool/AP)
LONDON — Former UK prime minister Tony Blair says he was “honored” to be tapped by US leader Donald Trump to a fledgling board to help rebuild Gaza.
“I thank President Trump for his leadership in establishing the Board of Peace and am honoured to be appointed to its Executive Board,” the veteran politician and former UN Quartet Middle East envoy says in a statement sent to AFP.
Khamenei calls Trump a ‘criminal,’ blames him for protest casualties and damage
In this photo released by an official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks in a meeting, in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP)
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei says that Iran considers US President Donald Trump a “criminal” for inflicting casualties, damage, and slander on the Iranian people during the protests.
“The latest anti-Iran sedition was different in that the US President personally became involved,” Iranian media quoted Khamenei as saying.
Two Syrian troops killed in Kurdish attack; SDF says Damascus violated agreement
DEIR HEFER, Syria — Syria’s army says two soldiers were killed today in an attack by Kurdish forces as the military deployed in an area east of Aleppo after Kurdish personnel agreed to withdraw.
In a statement to state media, the army says the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces “violated the agreement” and targeted a patrol near the town of Maskana, “killing two soldiers.”
The SDF instead accuses Damascus of violating the agreement, saying the army entered the towns of Deir Hafer and Maskana “before our fighters had fully withdrawn, creating a highly dangerous situation,” and reported clashes in Maskana “as a result of violations committed by the Damascus government.”
Iran’s regime plans to completely cut its people off from internet — watchdog
People walk along a street, some while browsing phones, in Tehran, Iran, on September 4, 2023. (ATTA KENARE / AFP)
The Islamic Republic is planning to completely seal off Iran from the internet, a report from Filterwatch, an Iranian censorship watchdog, reports.
Citing exclusive intelligence, Filterwatch says a “confidential state project” aims to “transform the country’s internet infrastructure into a ‘Barracks Internet,’ whereby access to the outside world is only granted to a select few with security clearance.
The rest of the Iranian public would only be granted access to a limited, domestic internet without free access to information.
A former US State Department official tells the Guardian that such plans were “plausible and terrifying,” but also may have massive negative consequences.
“It’s not out of the question that they’re going to do it, but seeing these situations unfold, the economic impact and the cultural impact will be really massive. And they may overplay their hand,” the official says.
On Saturday, more than 200 hours after the regime shut down the internet amid widespread protests, monitoring group NetBlocks said internet connectivity in Iran rose “very” slightly.
IDF thwarts attempt to smuggle M-16s from Egypt using drones
M-16 weapons seized by IDF troops after a smuggling attempt on the Egyptian border, January 16, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
IDF soldiers thwarted an attempt to smuggle weapons across the Egyptian border using drones yesterday, the military says.
After the two drones were identified, troops arrived at the area and stopped the smuggling attempts, seizing six M-16 guns, the IDF says.
Syrian army has ‘full military control’ over Deir Hafer, day after Kurdish forces leave
People sit in a vehicle along with their belongings as they flee from the vicinity of the Humaymah village, east of Aleppo city, Syria, on January 16, 2026. (OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP)
DEIR HAFER, Syria — Syria’s army says it took control of the town of Deir Hafer outside Aleppo city, a day after Kurdish forces agreed to withdraw from the area following recent clashes.
In a statement to state television, the army says it had established “full military control” of Deir Hafer, while an AFP correspondent on the ground saw troops deploying inside the town.
Syrian army moves into area east of Aleppo after Kurdish troops agree to withdraw
ALEPPO, Syria — Syria’s army says its forces have begun entering an area east of the city of Aleppo after Kurdish forces agreed a day earlier to withdraw from the region following recent clashes.
In a statement carried by state television, the army says its forces “began entering the western Euphrates area, starting with the town of Deir Hafer,” after Kurdish forces had agreed to withdraw this morning.
US attorney general says office seeking death penalty for man accused of killing Israeli embassy staffers
Left: Yaron Lischinsky and his partner Sarah Milgrim, employees of the Israeli Embassy in the US, killed in a shooting in Washington, DC, on May 21, 2025, in an undated photo. (Israeli Embassy, Washington); Right: The suspect in the shooting, Elias Rodriguez, shouts 'Free Palestine' as he is arrested. (Screenshot: X; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
The US Justice Department will seek the death penalty for a man charged with killing two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington, DC, last year, Attorney General Pam Bondi tells a pro-Israel group.
Elias Rodriguez is accused of fatally shooting Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, 26, on May 21 as they were leaving an American Jewish Committee event for young professionals and diplomats at the Capital Jewish Museum. The couple was about to get engaged to be married.
“Sarah and Yaron were shot, murdered because they were Jewish,” Bondi tells the Israeli American Council Summit in Florida, according to the Miami Herald.
“It was horrible. Horrible. We will not tolerate that in our country any longer.”
Kurdish forces to withdraw from disputed area in Syria
Rohlat Efrin, center, a commander in the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, speaks with an SDF member as American soldiers stand guard during a meeting in Deir Hafer, Syria, January 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)
DEIR HAFER, Syria — The leader of Kurdish-led forces in Syria announces that they will withdraw from a contested area in northern Syria, potentially heading off a major clash with government forces.
The announcement by Mazloum Abdi, the leader of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, comes as the Syrian military announced it had begun striking SDF positions, while the SDF reports “intense artillery shelling” in the town of Deir Hafer east of the city of Aleppo.
Hours earlier, a US military delegation had visited Deir Hafer and met with SDF officials in an apparent attempt to tamp down tensions.
The US has good relations with both sides and has urged calm. A spokesperson for the US military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Abdi says in a statement posted on X that “based on calls from friendly countries and mediators and in a demonstration of good faith,” the SDF would redeploy its forces to areas east of the Euphrates River Saturday morning.
Shortly before Abdi’s announcement, interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa had announced issuance of a decree strengthening Kurdish rights.
Police arrest protester who removed Islamic Republic flag from London embassy
A police van waits outside the Iranian Embassy, flying the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran, central London, January 12, 2026. (HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP)
LONDON — A protester who climbed onto the roof of Iran’s embassy in London and removed a flag was arrested with several others, police say, adding multiple officers were injured in the demonstrations.
“During the ongoing protest at the Iranian Embassy this evening, a protester illegally accessed private property and climbed across multiple balconies onto the roof of the Embassy and removed a flag,” the Metropolitan Police says in a post on X.
“Several officers have suffered injuries,” the UK capital’s police adds, saying in the “ongoing disorder” objects had been thrown at officers and “a number of people have been arrested on suspicion of violent disorder.”
London police said last week they were deploying additional officers to “prevent any disorder” and protect the Iranian embassy.
Trump says he may put tariffs on countries that don’t back US control of Greenland
US President Donald Trump speaks during an event to promote investment in rural health care in the East Room of the White House, January 16, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — US President Donald Trump suggests that he may punish countries with tariffs if they don’t back the US controlling Greenland, a message that came as a bipartisan Congressional delegation sought to lower tensions in the Danish capital.
Trump for months has insisted that the US should control Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark, and said earlier this week that anything less than the Arctic island being in US hands would be “unacceptable.”
During an unrelated event at the White House about rural health care, he recounts how he had threatened European allies with tariffs on pharmaceuticals.
“I may do that for Greenland too,” Trump says. “I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security. So I may do that,” he says.
As Iran protests appear quelled, rights group raises death toll in crackdown to 3,090
There have been no signs of protests for days in Tehran, where shopping and street life have returned to outward normality, though a week-old internet blackout has continued.
Authorities have not reported any unrest elsewhere in the country, and Tehran residents say the deadly crackdown appears to have broadly quelled protests for now.
Several residents of the capital reached by Reuters say Tehran has now been comparatively quiet for four days. Drones are flying over the city, but there was no sign of major protests on Thursday or Friday. Another resident in a northern city on the Caspian Sea says the streets there also appear calm. The residents decline to be identified for their safety.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency puts the death toll at 3,090. The number, which exceeds that of any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the 1979 revolution, continues to rise. The agency has been accurate throughout the years of demonstrations, relying on a network of activists inside Iran that confirms all reported fatalities.
White House unveils two new committees that will support Gaza Board of Peace’s work
US President Donald Trump speaks at a dedication ceremony for a portion of Southern Boulevard, which the Town of Palm Beach Council recently voted to rename,"President Donald J. Trump Boulevard," January 16, 2026, at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
The White House unveils a new pair of committees that will be tasked with operationalizing the vision of US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, which is responsible for overseeing the postwar management of Gaza.
The first is a founding Executive Board composed of leaders with experience in diplomacy, development, infrastructure and economic strategy. Its members will be US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, US special envoy Steve Witkoff, top Trump aide Jared Kushner, former UK prime minister Tony Blair, Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan, World Bank president Ajay Banga and Trump’s former deputy national security adviser Robert Gabriel.
“Each Executive Board member will oversee a defined portfolio critical to Gaza’s stabilization and long-term success, including, but not limited to, governance capacity-building, regional relations, reconstruction, investment attraction, large-scale funding, and capital mobilization,” the White House says.
A second committee of senior officials called the Gaza Executive Board has also been established, with the White House saying it will “help support effective governance and the delivery of best-in-class services that advance peace, stability, and prosperity for the people of Gaza.”
This second committee’s members will be Witkoff, Kushner, Blair, Rowan, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, senior Qatari diplomat Ali Thawadi, Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad, UAE Minister of International Cooperation Reem Al-Hashimy, Israeli-Cypriot businessman Yakir Gabay, former UN humanitarian coordinator Sigrid Kaag, and former UN envoy to the Middle East Nickolay Mladenov,
Mladenov will also serve as the High Representative for Gaza. “In this capacity, he will act as the on-the-ground link between the Board of Peace and the Nation Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG),” the White House says. The latter committee of Palestinian technocrats held its first meeting with Mladenov in Cairo on Thursday, during which Kushner and Witkoff joined virtually.
Mladenov “will support the Board’s oversight of all aspects of Gaza’s governance, reconstruction, and development, while ensuring coordination across civilian and security pillars,” the White House says.
It’s not fully clear from the White House announcement what the practical differences are between the founding Executive Board and the Gaza Executive Board, which also share similar names.
The White House says additional members of both executive boards will be announced in the coming weeks, and two of Trump’s current aides, Aryeh Lightstone and Josh Gruenbaum, have been appointed as senior advisers to the Board of Peace.
Both boards are expected to work closely with the NCAG led by former Palestinian Authority deputy planning minister Ali Shaath, who the White House calls “a widely respected technocratic leader who will oversee the restoration of core public services, the rebuilding of civil institutions, and the stabilization of daily life in Gaza, while laying the foundation for long-term, self-sustaining governance.”
“Dr. Sha’ath brings deep experience in public administration, economic development, and international engagement, and is widely respected for his pragmatic, technocratic leadership and understanding of Gaza’s institutional realities,” the White House says.
As for the yet-to-be-established International Stabilization Force, which will be tasked with providing security for the Strip and gradually phasing out the IDF, the White House announces that Central Command Special Operations Commander Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers has been appointed commander of the ISF, “where he will lead security operations, support comprehensive demilitarization, and enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid and reconstruction materials.”
The US had struggled to convince countries to contribute troops to the ISF board, amid heavy speculation that Hamas will disarm and that the IDF will further withdraw from Gaza. One of the two countries Washington had publicly touted, Azerbaijan, announced earlier this month that it would not be participating.
US officials briefing reporters earlier this week insisted that they now have enough countries offering troops and that an announcement can be expected in about two weeks.
Moreover, one of the briefers appeared to confirm The Times of Israel’s reporting on the shrinking of the ISF mandate to more limited tasks such as securing borders and humanitarian aid, rather than kinetic activity to disarm Hamas.
“A lot of the work inside Gaza will be done by the local Palestinian police forces, which we think is the most important element of this plan, so we’ve been putting a lot of time into that,” the US official said.
Still left to unveil is the Board of Peace, which is slated to meet next week on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and be comprised of world leaders. The Times of Israel reported last month that the US had informed interlocutors that it secured commitments from Egypt, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany to have their leaders join Trump on the Board of Peace.
“The Board of Peace will play an essential role in fulfilling all 20 points of the President’s plan, providing strategic oversight, mobilizing international resources, and ensuring accountability as Gaza transitions from conflict to peace and development,” the White House says.
“The United States remains fully committed to supporting this transitional framework, working in close partnership with Israel, key Arab nations, and the international community to achieve the objectives of [Trump’s 20-point plan for ending the Gaza war],” the White House continues. “The president calls on all parties to cooperate fully with the NCAG, the Board of Peace, and the International Stabilization Force to ensure the swift and successful implementation” of the 20-point plan.”
French publisher recalls school dictionary that describes Oct. 7 victims as ‘Jewish settlers’
An Israeli soldier walks by a house destroyed by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Be'eri, October 11, 2023. (AP/Baz Ratner)
French publisher Hachette says it has recalled a dictionary that described the Israeli victims of the October 7, 2023 attacks as “Jewish settlers” and promises to review all its textbooks and educational materials.
The Larousse dictionary for 11- to 15-year-old students contained the same phrase as that discovered by an anti-racism body in three revision books, the company tells AFP.
The entry in French reads: “In October 2023, following the death of more than 1,200 Jewish settlers in a series of Hamas attacks, Israel decided to tighten its economic blockade and invade a large part of the Gaza Strip, triggering a major humanitarian crisis in the region.”
The worst attack in Israeli history saw Palestinian terrorists kill some 1,200 people and take 251 hostages.
The four books, which were immediately withdrawn from sale, are subject to a recall procedure and will be destroyed, Hachette says, promising a “thorough review of its textbooks, educational materials and dictionaries.”
President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday said that it was “intolerable” that the revision books for the French school leavers’ exam, the baccalaureat, “falsify the facts” about the “terrorist and antisemitic attacks by Hamas.”
“Revisionism has no place in the Republic,” he wrote on X.
New Zealand, Slovakia shut embassies in Tehran and evacuate diplomats
New Zealand and Slovakia say they have temporarily closed their embassies in Tehran and flown out their diplomats due to worsening security in Iran.
The foreign ministry in Wellington says its diplomatic staff left Iran safely on commercial flights overnight, with the embassy’s operations moved to Ankara, Turkey.
Slovakia’s Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar says its decision was prompted by the “significant” deterioration in security and the “real threat of an escalation of the military conflict.”
“At the moment, all diplomats and employees of the Slovakian embassy in Tehran are safe and out of danger,” he says in a statement.
New Zealand advises against all travel to Iran and has urged any citizens in the country to leave immediately, as its ability to give consular help was “extremely limited.”
The foreign ministry has also urged New Zealanders in the country to contact their relatives when they can, because severe communications challenges were making it hard for people to get in touch with family and friends.
read more: