Lebanese president: Iran using Lebanon as ‘bargaining chip’ in negotiations with US

Hamas delegation arrives in Cairo ahead of fresh round of talks on ceasefire

Hamas announces that a delegation headed by the terror group’s leader in Gaza, Khalil al-Hayya, has arrived in Cairo for another round of negotiations, set to begin tomorrow.

According to the statement, the delegation will hold meetings with Egyptian officials and mediators in order to complete the implementation of the first phase of the ceasefire, stop the “repeated Zionist attacks,” on the Strip, and find suitable mechanisms for moving to the second phase of the agreement.

The talks were initially set to take place on Thursday, but were reportedly delayed due to Hamas anger over repeated Israeli strikes throughout Gaza.

Discussions have largely hit a wall, with Hamas refusing to accept the Board of Peace’s disarmament proposal, arguing that Israel should first be held to the terms of the first phase.

Both Israel and Hamas have accused each other of repeated violations of the ceasefire that ended two years of war. Hamas is refusing to disarm, while Israel has continued carrying out near-daily strikes throughout Gaza since the ceasefire, saying it is striking “imminent” threats to its forces.

US issues new Iran-related sanctions targeting entities, individuals and tankers

The United States imposed new Iran-related sanctions, targeting several entities, individuals and LPG tankers, the US Treasury Department’s website showes.

Among 12 entities designated are five that are based in the Marshall Islands, four in the UAE, and one in China, according to details posted to the department’s website. Six vessels are targeted, including four Panama-flagged tankers.

NASA instructs crew to return to planned operations on International Space Station

NASA has instructed crew members aboard the International Space Station to return to planned operations after Russia’s space agency Roscosmos paused structural repair efforts inside the Zvezda service module, the space agency’s spokesperson says in a post on X.

“Given this development, NASA has instructed the crew members inside the Dragon spacecraft to end the safe haven procedures and return to planned operations aboard the International Space Station,” NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens says in a post on X.

NASA looks forward to working with Roscosmos on a collaborative approach to address the leaks, she adds.

2 Romanians convicted of stabbing Iran International journalist in UK; prosecutors say they acted for Tehran

Two Romanian men whom British prosecutors say were acting as proxies for the Iranian government are found guilty of stabbing a journalist working for a Persian-language media organization in London.

Pouria Zaratifoukolaei, known as Pouria Zeraati, a British journalist of Iranian origin who works for Iran International, was stabbed three times in the leg near his home in southwest London in March 2024.

Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson told jurors at the start of the trial last month that three men had targeted Zeraati, whose Saudi-funded TV employer is critical of Iran’s government and has been designated a terrorist organization by Tehran.

Atkinson said they had carried out “a planned attack preceded by reconnaissance and which was ordered by a third party acting on behalf of the Iranian state.”

Iran denied any involvement. Nandito Badea, 21, and George Stana, 25, both pleaded not guilty to charges of wounding with intent, but were convicted at London’s Woolwich Crown Court.

The third man accused of involvement, David Andrei, was arrested in Romania but was not involved in the trial.

Atkinson told jurors that posters were put up in Tehran in 2022 featuring pictures of journalists including Zeraati, under the heading “Wanted: dead or alive.”

Iran International has been targeted several times in recent years.

2 officers, including senior commander, hurt in firefight with Hezbollah; another injured by explosive drone

Troops of the Givati Brigade’s Reconnaissance Unit exchanged fire with Hezbollah operatives in the southern Lebanon town of Zawtar al-Sharqiyah this morning, during which two officers were wounded, including one seriously, the IDF announces.

The incident took place at around 8 a.m. The IDF says one officer in the unit was severely hurt in the exchange of fire, and the unit’s commander, a lieutenant colonel, was lightly hurt.

According to the military, the troops opened fire on the Hezbollah gunmen and launched searches, as well as struck Hezbollah infrastructure in the area.

The seriously wounded officer was immediately airlifted to a hospital. The reconnaissance unit commander was evacuated only several hours later, after medical officials decided he required hospitalization.

In a separate incident yesterday, an officer was seriously wounded by an apparent Hezbollah explosive drone in southern Lebanon, the IDF says.

International Space Station astronauts told to prepare for potential evacuation amid air leaks

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station are ordered by NASA to shelter in their spacecraft and prepare for potential evacuation as a Russian crew attempts to fix a worsening leak of air on its portion of the orbital laboratory, NASA says.

The four astronauts of NASA’s Crew-12 mission on the station – two US astronauts, a French astronaut and Russian cosmonaut – got orders from NASA mission control to enter their Crew Dragon spacecraft docked to the station and don their spacesuits in case the air leak warrants an emergency evacuation, a NASA official says.

Ireland bans Smotrich, Ben Gvir for anti-Palestinian statements, mocking of Gaza flotilla activists

Ireland announces it has banned National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich from entering the country, slamming their anti-Palestinian statements and behavior toward Gaza flotilla activists.

Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan “has instructed immigration officers to refuse entry to Itamar Ben Gvir — Minister for National Security of Israel, and Bezalel Smotrich, Minister of Finance of Israel — should they seek to enter the state,” a justice ministry statement says.

After Ben Gvir mocked Gaza flotilla activists detained by Israel last month, Irish taoiseach (prime minister) Micheal Martin says Ireland will act to bar entry of Israeli officials seen as fomenting conflict in Gaza.

The two far-right ministers’ behavior “not just in the context of the flotilla, but their consistent statements… essentially amount to a desire to see the elimination of Palestinians from Palestine,” Martin tells reporters during a summit in Montenegro.

“In my view, their behavior justifies sanctions at the EU level as well,” he says.

US denies Iranian claim it fired at American warships: ‘Would be gross ceasefire violation’

The US military rejects Iran’s claim that it fired warning shots at American warships, saying it would have been a serious breach of the fragile ceasefire between the two countries.

“Iranian forces did NOT attack or fire at US Navy warships. Doing so would be a gross violation of the ceasefire,” US Central Command, which oversees American forces in the Middle East, says in a post on X.

4 Jewish Israelis extracted from Bayt Jala, Qalqilya by Palestinian Authority security forces

Three Jewish Israeli women were extracted by the Palestinian Authority’s security forces from the West Bank Palestinian town of Bayt Jala overnight, while a man was escorted out of Qalqilya.

The Civil Administration, a branch of the Defense Ministry’s Coordinator for Government Affairs in the Territories (COGAT), says it received a report of three Israeli women wandering around Qalqilya, “while endangering their well-being.”

“Upon receiving the report, officers from the Etzion District Coordination and Liaison office acted to provide immediate protection to the Israelis and at the same time, to transfer them to the security forces through coordination channels,” the Civil Administration says, referring to the Palestinian Authority.

The Civil Administration says that, according to a preliminary investigation, the three were on their way to the nearby Rachel’s Tomb, but took a wrong turn.

In another incident overnight, the Civil Administration says its Ephraim District Coordination and Liaison office received a report of a Jewish Israeli man who was caught by a resident of Qalqilya after he tried to pay in a store in the Palestinian city with counterfeit money.

“Upon receiving the report, officers of the regional district coordination and liaison office acted to provide immediate protection to the Israeli and at the same time to transfer him to the security forces,” the Civil Administration says.

The four are set to be questioned by the police, as Israelis are barred from entering West Bank areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority.

Settlers injure Palestinian in West Bank attack, 2nd Palestinian shot by IDF troops – reports

Palestinian media outlets report that settlers attacked the village of Idhna in the southern West Bank, beating a resident, and set fire to Palestinian-owned fields in the area in the southern West Bank.

According to the reports, one Palestinian was beaten and injured in the attack, while another was wounded by gunfire from IDF troops that arrived in the area. There is no comment from the military.

Settlers are also said to have set fire to fields in the area. No injuries were reported in the arson attack.

Earlier, settlers were reported to have blocked a road leading to the same area, which was later reopened by Palestinians.

مستوطنون يحرقون محاصيل زراعية لعائلات فلسطينية قرب مدينة #الخليل pic.twitter.com/5VJCwDMLLC

— المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام (@PalinfoAr) June 5, 2026

???? صور | في اعتداءات يومية.. مستوطنون يغلقون الطريق المؤدية إلى منطقة الجلاطية شرق بلدة إذنا غرب الخليل، لمنع وصول الأهالي إلى أراضيهم. pic.twitter.com/ykEUdj94b3

— وكالة شهاب للأنباء (@ShehabAgency) June 5, 2026