June 25: Witkoff says nuclear enrichment and weaponization are US red lines on Iran

Nuclear enrichment and weaponization are US red lines on Iran, Witkoff tells CNBC

Nuclear enrichment and weaponization by Iran are red lines for the United States, US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff tells CNBC, adding that he is hopeful for a comprehensive peace agreement with Tehran.

“We can’t have weaponization,” he says. “That will destabilize the entire region. Everyone will then need a bomb and we just can’t have that.”

“The conversation with Iran is going to be how do we rebuild a better civil nuclear program for you that is non-enrichable,” Witkoff adds, without elaborating.

CIA: Intel ‘indicates’ Iran nuke program ‘severely damaged,’ several sites ‘destroyed’

This handout satellite picture provided by Maxar Technologies and taken on June 24, 2025, shows new airstrike craters at a perimeter installation on Iran's Fordo nuclear facility, northeast of the city of Qom. (Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies/AFP)

The US Central Intelligence Agency says Iran’s nuclear program “has been severely damaged” by recent strikes carried out by the US and Israel, which “destroyed” several key sites in a manner that will require years to rebuild.

The agency issues a statement attributed to its director, John Ratcliffe, in which it confirms “that a body of credible intelligence indicates Iran’s nuclear program has been severely damaged by the recent, targeted strikes.”

“This includes new intelligence from a historically reliable and accurate source/method that several key Iranian nuclear facilities were destroyed and would have to be rebuilt over the course of years,” the statement adds.

“CIA continues to collect additional reliably sourced information to keep appropriate decision-makers and oversight bodies fully informed,” it continues.

“When possible, we will also provide updates and information to the American public, given the national importance of this matter and in every attempt to provide transparency.”

Palestinian teen shot dead by Israeli troops in northern West Bank village — PA

Rayan Tamer Houshiyeh, who was reportedly killed by Israeli troops on June 25, 2025. (Courtesy)

The Palestinian Authority health ministry says a 15-year-old boy was shot dead by Israeli troops in the northern West Bank town of Al-Yamoun.

The Ramallah-based health ministry says in a statement: “The child Rayan Tamer Houshiyeh was killed after being shot in the neck by soldiers” in Al-Yamoun, northwest of Jenin.

The incident took place shortly before the settler rampage in Kafr Malik.

The Palestinian Red Crescent says that its teams had handled “a very critical case” in Al-Yamoun involving a teenager, before pronouncing him dead.

There is no immediate comment from the IDF.

The Al-Yamoun incident marks the second time a teenager has been reported killed in the West Bank in two days.

On Monday, the PA health ministry said Israeli fire killed a 13-year-old it identified as Ammar Hamayel, also in Kafr Malik.

Earlier this month, the army confirmed it had killed a 14-year-old who threw rocks in the town of Sinjil.

In a similar incident in April, a teenager who held US citizenship was shot dead in the neighboring town of Turmus Ayya. The Israeli military said it had killed a “terrorist” who threw rocks at cars.

IDF confirms opening fire on Palestinian gunmen while responding to settler rampage; 5 Israelis detained

A vehicle set on fire during a settler rampage of the Palestinian village of al-Mughayyir on June 25, 2025. (Yesh Din)

IDF troops returned fire on Palestinian gunmen and rioters hurling stones, as Israeli settlers attacked a village in the West Bank this evening, the military says.

According to the IDF, dozens of Israelis entered the Palestinian village of Kafr Malik and set fire to buildings and cars.

“At the scene, friction erupted between Israeli civilians and Palestinians, including mutual stone-throwing,” the IDF says.

Upon receiving reports of the settler attack, the IDF says troops and police officers were dispatched to the area to “disperse the friction.”

During attempts to disperse the violence, an IDF officer was lightly injured after being hit by a stone. The military does not say which side threw the stone.

Shortly after, the IDF says Palestinian gunmen opened fire on the forces from within the village, and others hurled stones at the troops.

The soldiers returned fire “at the source of the gunfire and the stone throwers,” the IDF says, adding that “hits were identified, and it has emerged there are several injured and dead.”

Three Palestinians were shot dead, according to the Palestinian Authority health ministry.

Meanwhile, five Israelis suspected of participating in the attack on the village were detained and handed over to police for further questioning, the military adds.

Footage shows Israeli settlers torching vehicles during raid of West Bank Bedouin hamlet

Footage shows settlers attacking the bedouin Palestinian village of A-Tayyibe on June 25, 2025. (Screen capture)

Masked Israeli settlers are filmed torching a vehicle during a raid on a Bedouin Palestinian hamlet of A-Tayyibe near Ramallah.

In footage published by the Yesh Din rights group, the assailants can be heard speaking Hebrew while attacking homes and cars.

The attack took place shortly before a more deadly rampage in the nearby village of Kafr Malek, during which three Palestinians were killed.

There are no reports of any arrests in either attack.

במתקפה שהתרחשה מוקדם יותר הערב בקהילת א-טייבה מתנחלים תקפו בתים ורכבים
♦️תיעוד דרמטי: תקיפת מתנחלים הערב מזרחית לצומת טייבה. באירוע הוצתו בתים ומכוניות של פלסטינים שמתגוררים סמוך.
♦️בתיעוד רואים הצתה וזריקת אבנים. וניתן לשמוע את התוקפים מדברים בעברית.
♦️מ- @Yesh_Din נמסר: "בחסות… pic.twitter.com/4K4gmG8Hpa

— Yasser Okbi (@OkbiYasser) June 25, 2025

Israeli security force confirms that troops opened fire while responding to settler rampage

While the IDF has yet to comment on tonight’s deadly settler rampage in the Palestinian village of Kafr Malik, Hebrew media cites an Israeli security official who confirms that dozens of settlers took part in the attack during which they set fire to buildings and vehicles, clashed with residents and spray-painted hate messages on walls across the village.

The security official says Israeli troops arrived at the scene and opened fire under circumstances still under investigation.

Three Palestinians were shot dead during the settler rampage, according to the Palestinian Authority health ministry.

The security official says the incident is still ongoing and that Israeli troops have yet to gain control of the situation.

גורם ביטחוני: עשרות מתנחלים הגיעו אחר הצהריים לכפר מאלכ באזור רמאללה – שרפו מבנים וכלי רכב, התעמתו עם תושבים, וריססו גרפטי. עשרה פלסטינים נפצעו מזריקת אבנים. כוח צבאי הגיע למקום, ביצע ירי- מסיבה שעדיין נבדקת. שלושה פלסטינים נהרגו ואחרים נפצעו

האירוע עדיין מתנהל. בתים וכלי רכב… pic.twitter.com/sfgMYLaOwv

— איתי בלומנטל ???????? Itay Blumental (@ItayBlumental) June 25, 2025

Three Palestinians shot dead during settler rampage of West Bank village — PA health ministry

A vehicle set on fire during a settler rampage of the Palestinian village of al-Mughayyir on June 25, 2025. (Yesh Din)

Three Palestinians were shot dead and seven more were injured during a settler rampage in the West Bank village of Kafr Malik near Ramallah, the Palestinian Authority health ministry reports.

Over 100 settlers took part in the attack that unfolded in the presence of Israeli soldiers, according to the Yesh Din rights group.

مستوطنون يهاجمون قرية كفر مالك في رام الله ويحرقون ممتلكات الفلسطينيين pic.twitter.com/9G3TvpHvhv

— التلفزيون العربي (@AlarabyTV) June 25, 2025

Footage from Kafr Malik shows several homes and cars torched in the attack. Settlers also hurled stones at residents and property during the attack, according to witnesses who spoke to Palestinian media.

Another clip shows Israeli soldiers firing at Palestinians near the entrance to Kafr Malik.

لحظة إطلاق جنود الاحتلال الرصاص بشكل مباشر على الفلسطينيين أثناء تصديهم لهجوم المستوطنين على قرية كفر مالك، شمال شرق رام الله. pic.twitter.com/t6vsOTjlSO

— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) June 25, 2025

“Under the auspices of government and military backing, settler violence in the West Bank continues and becomes more deadly by the day. This is what ethnic cleansing looks like,” the Yesh Din rights group says in a statement.

The IDF does not immediately respond to a request for comment on the incident.

Settler attacks on Palestinians throughout the West Bank have been taking place on a near-daily basis with near impunity, in what has sparked mounting sanctions from Western governments.

The Biden administration led this effort, though US President Donald Trump reversed US sanctions on his first day in office.

European governments have kept them in place, though, and earlier this month, the UK took the unprecedented step of sanctioning Israeli ministers Bezalal Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir, asserting that they have been providing tailwind for the settler attacks.

The head of the Israel Police’s West Bank division is currently under investigation for ignoring settler violence to curry favor in the eyes of Ben Gvir.

Abbas pens letter to Trump hailing him for Iran ceasefire, reiterating readiness for peace with Israel

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas speaks while US President Donald Trump listens before a meeting at the Palace Hotel during the 72nd United Nations General Assembly on September 20, 2017, in New York. (AFP Photo/Brendan Smialowski)

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas pens a letter to Donald Trump in which he hails the US president for securing a ceasefire between Israel and Iran and reiterates his readiness to reach a comprehensive peace deal with Israel.

Abbas says the Iran ceasefire is an important step toward defusing broader regional tensions.

The PA president thanked Trump for his recent “courageous” calls to end the war in Gaza.

“This constitutes an additional step in [your] important efforts to achieve a just and comprehensive peace between us, the Israelis, and the entire world,” Abbas writes.

The letter states Abbas “reiterated our full readiness to work closely with [Trump] and relevant Arab and international parties to immediately negotiate and implement a comprehensive peace agreement within a clear and binding timeframe that ends the occupation and achieves security and stability for all, a just and lasting peace.”

“With you, we can achieve what seemed impossible: a recognized, free, sovereign and secure Palestine, a recognized and secure Israel, and a region that enjoys peace, prosperity and integration,” Abbas tells Trump.

Abbas has been working for months to curry favor in the eyes of the Trump administration, signing a decree that ended a controversial policy that granted welfare stipends to the families of slain terrorists and Palestinian security prisoners based on the length of their sentence.

Abbas has repeatedly condemned Hamas and demanded the release of the hostages, and earlier this month, he condemned Hamas’s October 7 attack for the first time.

But Washington’s attention has largely been elsewhere, and its contacts with Ramallah have been very limited. US hostage envoy Adam Boehler held unprecedented meetings with Hamas officials earlier this year to try and secure the release of American hostages, while Trump has not spoken to Abbas since a November call in which the PA president congratulated Trump on his election victory.

Air France announces plan to resume flights between Paris and Tel Aviv

Air France announces plans to resume flights on its route between Paris and Tel Aviv, starting Monday, July 7.

The French carrier will operate a daily flight on the B777-300 aircraft, which includes premium class, bed seats in business class, and Wi-Fi service for every passenger.

The airline suspended flights on the Paris-Tel Aviv route after the Israeli airspace was closed on June 13 due to the Iran conflict.

Report: During Tuesday call after Iran ceasefire violation, Trump told PM to ‘turn planes around’

US President Donald Trump ordered Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “turn the planes around” yesterday when they were on their way to strike back after Iran broke the incipient ceasefire, Channel 13 reports.

There seemed to be a misunderstanding over a major strike Israel carried out earlier that night, after the ceasefire was announced but before it went into effect.

“You dropped your entire arsenal on them,” said Trump.

“That’s not true, we did not attack since the ceasefire went into effect,” responded Netanyahu. “That was beforehand.”

“Tell the planes to turn around,” Trump ordered. “I don’t care, blame me. It wasn’t intentional, it didn’t land and didn’t cause damage,” he continued, referring to two ballistic missiles Iran fired after the start of the ceasefire.

Israeli commandos operated inside Iran during war, IDF chief says

Israeli commando forces operated inside Iran amid the war, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir says in a video statement.

“We caused significant damage to [Iran’s] missile capabilities, we removed hundreds of launchers, and we caused a significant delay with their force build-up plans. In addition, we managed to achieve intelligence, technological, and aerial superiority. We reached a level of operational freedom in the skies of Iran and in every location we chose to act in,” Zamir says.

He says these achievements “were made possible, among other things, thanks to full coordination and deception by air and ground commando forces.”

“These forces operated covertly deep in enemy territory and carried out operations that granted us operational freedom of action,” Zamir says.

It is unclear if Zamir is referring to Mossad commandos who, at the start of the operation, carried out actions to neutralize Iranian air defenses and ballistic missiles, or whether he is revealing for the first time actions by IDF commandos.

The IDF declines to clarify when asked by The Times of Israel.

In call with Netanyahu, Macron stresses need for Iran nuclear and missile talks, urges Gaza truce

French President Emmanuel Macron discussed the Israel-Iran ceasefire and the war in Gaza with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the phone today, Macron says in a post on X.

Macron writes that he “emphasized the importance of all parties respecting the current truce” during the call.

France and Israel “share the same objective: that Iran must never acquire nuclear weapons,” Macron continues.

The president says he stressed to Netanyahu “the need to return to negotiations on both nuclear and ballistic issues” in order to address this threat “for the security of Israel and for everyone in the region.”

Macron also reiterated “the absolute necessity” to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, and that “the release of all hostages, large-scale access for humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, and the pursuit of a political two-state solution remain top priorities.”

Following Israel’s strike on Iran, France canceled a UN conference with Saudi Arabia planned for earlier this month aimed at reviving progress toward a two-state solution.

Netanyahu’s office has not published a readout of today’s call.

Syrian officials said not ruling out chance of peace deal with Israel by end of Trump’s term

Against the backdrop of the Israel-Iran war, Syrian officials are privately not ruling out the possibility of normalizing ties with Israel by the end of US President Donald Trump’s term in office, the Kan public broadcaster reports, citing a source familiar with the matter.

IDF chief: Damage to Iran nuclear program not localized, but systemic

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir speaks in a video statement issued on June 25, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, in a video statement, says that “after twelve days of unprecedented fighting, the IDF operated at its best and fully achieved the aims and objectives of the operation.”

“According to the assessment of senior officials in the IDF Intelligence Directorate, the damage to the nuclear program is not a localized blow, but a systemic one,” he says.

“The accumulated achievement allows us to determine that the Iranian nuclear program suffered severe, broad, and deep damage and was pushed back by years,” Zamir says, adding that, “We will not allow Iran to produce weapons of mass destruction.”

Mossad praises ‘historic’ strike on Iran, thanks US and vows continued vigilance

In a rare public message, the Mossad hails Israel’s “historic” operation against Iran, declaring that the longstanding Iranian threat has been significantly neutralized thanks to the 12-day campaign.

“These are historic days for the people of Israel. The Iranian threat, which has endangered our security for decades, has been significantly neutralized thanks to an extraordinary collaboration between the IDF, which led the campaign, and the Mossad, which operated alongside it, together with the support of our ally, the United States,” the agency says in a statement.

In an accompanying video of remarks he made yesterday, Mossad chief David Barnea speaks from the intelligence agency’s operational command center.

“Objectives that once seemed imaginary have now been achieved. Israel, in the merit of this entire security apparatus, today feels like a different country, a safer country, a braver country, that’s prepared for the future,” says the spy chief.

“We will continue to keep a watchful eye on all known Iranian projects—we are intimately familiar with them—and we will be there, just as we have been until now,” he says.

Barnea also expresses “both gratitude and esteem for our central partner, the CIA,” whose cooperation helped “make the operation possible.”

Barnea closes by reminding the audience that Israel must continue its efforts to bring home the remaining hostages from Gaza.

Israel holding off on dispatching delegation of hostage negotiators amid deadlock — official

Israel is holding off on dispatching a hostage negotiating team to Egypt or Qatar for indirect talks with Hamas, as fundamental gaps remain between the sides that prevent an agreement, an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel.

Israel is not budging from its demand for a temporary truce that leaves open the option for it to resume fighting at its conclusion, while Hamas insists on a permanent ceasefire, the official says.

Qatari and Egyptian mediators along with Palestinian-American go-between Bishara Bahbah are continuing their contacts with the sides, the official continues.

If a breakthrough is reached regarding the fundamental disputes, Israel will agree to send a delegation to Egypt or Qatar in order to hold proximity talks with Hamas aimed at closing smaller gaps, the Israeli official says.

El Al announces reopening of ticket sales to general public for all destinations

El Al announces the reopening of flight ticket sales to the general public for all of the destinations that the airline serves.

Starting next week, El Al plans to resume its regular flight schedule to all of its destinations. Customers holding flight tickets for departures from June 29th onwards (and customers of the El Al subsidiary Sun D’Or from July 1st) should check their flight status on the El Al website or via travel agents.

Following the full reopening of the country’s airspace on Tuesday evening, El Al said it began to ramp up its flight schedule and add frequencies from major destinations where Israelis were stranded but have not yet returned to Israel.

The airline advises El Al or Sun D’Or customers, whose flights were canceled since June 13, and who have not yet been assigned to repatriation flights to Israel, to contact the airline’s service center or their travel agents to book an alternative flight at no additional cost.

Customers who hold El Al or Sun D’Or flight tickets for departures through July 15 will be entitled to cancel their flight tickets (up to 72 hours from the departure date) and receive a voucher for future use. The vouchers will be valid for up to two years.

Netanyahu denies report that Israel pushed US into joining campaign against Iran

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denies that Israel pushed the United States into joining its campaign against Iran, dismissing a report by the Washington Post yesterday that claimed otherwise as “nonsense.”

“The Washington Post story suggesting that Israel pushed President Trump into his bold decision to bomb Iranian nuclear sites is nonsense,” writes the official account of the premier on X, adding that Trump “acted in the best interest of the USA based on the same intel we had. We are grateful to President Trump for his decisive leadership and for being a tremendous friend to Israel!”

Current and former Israeli officials told the Post that Netanyahu had issued a general order to prepare for the Iran strikes months before Trump announced that the US and Iran had agreed to hold negotiations on the latter’s nuclear program.

As part of the ongoing preparation, which began in the last year of former US President Joe Biden’s term in office, Israeli officials met with US counterparts in Washington to sway the US into joining the attack, believing this would make it a much more decisive operation, the report said.

Throughout the fall, Israelis met with Biden officials to discuss recent intelligence from both countries that showed nuclear scientists in Iran were meeting to resume theoretical research on weaponization.

However, US intelligence agencies during both the Biden and Trump administrations consistently assessed that Iran’s leadership had not decided to pursue nuclear weapons, multiple sources say in the report.

After the US joined the offensive earlier this week, Channel 12 reported that Trump’s decision came following appeals from Netanyahu and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, who urged the president to “take part in history” by annihilating the Iranian nuclear threat.

Settlers hurl stones at Palestinians in northern West Bank, striking man in the head — report

Israeli settlers hurled stones at Palestinians in the northern West Bank village of Asira al-Qibliya, striking one of the men in the head, according to the official Palestinian Wafa news agency, which published a photo of the victim.

Trump signals US may need to ease Iran oil sanctions to help rebuild country

US President Donald Trump says that Washington has not given up its maximum pressure on Iran, including restrictions on sales of Iranian oil, but signals a potential easing in enforcement to help the country rebuild.

“They’re going to need money to put that country back into shape. We want to see that happen,” Trump says at a news conference at the NATO Summit when asked if he was easing oil sanctions on Iran.

Trump said a day earlier that China can continue to purchase Iranian oil after Israel and Iran agreed to a ceasefire, but the White House later clarified that his comments did not indicate a relaxation of U.S. sanctions.

Trump imposed waves of Iran-related sanctions on several of China’s independent “teapot” refineries and port terminal operators for purchases of Iranian oil.

Report: Efforts to secure a Gaza deal intensify, but no breakthrough yet

While efforts to broker a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal have picked up in recent days, there has been no breakthrough thus far, unnamed Hamas sources tell the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat.

Hamas is pushing back on US-backed Israeli demands that its military wing give up its weapons and that its leaders go into exile, the sources say. Critically, Israel continues to oppose a permanent ceasefire — a demand from which Hamas has not budged.

The sources speculate that a new round of indirect talks in either Egypt or Qatar in the coming days.

Earlier today, senior Hamas official Taher Nounou denied in an interview with Qatar’s Al-Araby channel that there had been any progress in the talks, following an AFP report claiming that “intensive talks” were taking place regarding a ceasefire in Gaza.

Flydubai to become first foreign airline to resume flights to Israel Wednesday night

Emirati carrier Flydubai is set to be the first foreign airline to resume flight operations to Israel tonight, following the ceasefire agreement with Iran and the reopening of the country’s airspace.

Flydubai will resume its twice-daily flights on the Tel Aviv-Dubai route starting Wednesday night.

Cypriot airline TUS Airways and Greek airline Blue Bird Airways are expected to restart services to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport on Thursday. TUS Airways will operate flights from Tel Aviv to Athens, Larnaca, and other destinations. Blue Bird Airways is scheduled to fly from Tel Aviv to Larnaca, Athens, and Sofia.

On Sunday, China-based Hainan Airlines is expected to resume direct flights between Tel Aviv and Beijing.

Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport on Tuesday evening began gradually returning to full operation. That’s as the country’s airspace remained largely closed during the past 12 days of conflict with Iran, except for restricted repatriation flights operated by Israeli airlines, El Al, Arkia and Israir.

On Wednesday, 12,000 passengers came through Ben Gurion Airport on about 88 international flights, both incoming and outgoing, operated by Israeli airlines, according to data by the Israel Airports Authority. About 10,300 passengers were expected to arrive in Israel on incoming flights, and about 1,700 were expected to depart on international flights.

Deri denies Trump claim that Israel sent agents to Fordo site to review damage after strikes

Shas party chief Aryeh Deri at the scene of suspected arson at a Jerusalem synagogue on June 8, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Shas chairman Aryeh Deri denies US President Donald Trump’s claim that Israel sent agents into Iran’s Fordo nuclear site following this weekend’s American airstrike, declaring that “no one has visited there.”

Trump on Wednesday told reporters at the NATO summit in The Hague that Israel had “guys that go in there after the hit, and they said it was total obliteration.”

Speaking with the ultra-Orthodox Kikar Hashabbat news site, Deri rejects Trump’s claim, stating that “no one has visited there yet.”

Despite the lack of on-the-ground eyes, Deri declares, “I can tell you that the existential threat… has been removed from the people of Israel.”

Deri, a regular observer in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet, was informed of Israel’s June 13 attack on Iran in advance, later writing in the Shas party newspaper HaDerech that Israel chose to take military action against Tehran’s nuclear program following “long months of discussions, hundreds of hours of security reviews, analyses and risk assessments.”

Trump: Iran didn’t have time to move enriched uranium before US strikes

US President Donald Trump says Iran was not able to move highly enriched uranium from key facilities before they were hit by American bombs on Sunday.

“We think we hit them so hard and so fast they didn’t get to move, and if you knew about that material, it’s very hard, and very dangerous to move,” he says at a press conference at the NATO Summit in The Hague.

“Oh yeah, we think we got it. We think it’s covered with granite and steel.”

Trump says US will meet with Iran next week; doesn’t think new agreement necessary

US President Donald Trump says the US is going to meet with Iran next week, but that an agreement with Tehran is no longer necessary.

Speaking at the NATO summit in The Hague, Trump says, “We may sign an agreement. To me, I don’t think it’s that necessary.”

“They had a war, they fought, and now they’re going back to their world. I don’t care if I have an agreement or not.”

“We destroyed the nuclear,” Trump says.

“It’s blown up, to Kingdom Come,” he continues, “so I don’t feel strongly about it… We’re gonna meet with them, actually. We’re gonna meet with them.”

Reporter: Are interested in restarting negotiations with Iran?

Trump: I’m not. They fought, the war is done. I just asked him the question as we were walking on the stage. Do you want to draw up a little agreement for them to sign? Because I think we can get them to sign it.. I… pic.twitter.com/abozY2QhkP

— Acyn (@Acyn) June 25, 2025

“I could get a statement that they’re not going to go nuclear, we’re probably going to ask for that,” he says. “But they’re not going to be doing it anyway. They’ve had it.”

He says he asked US Secretary of State Marco Rubio if he wants to draft an agreement for Iran to sign.

Trump: I’ve spoken to people who’ve been at Fordo and said it’s obliterated

The US “had a great victory” in Iran, says US President Donald Trump at a press conference at the NATO summit in The Hague.

He says he “dealt with” Iran and Israel, and “they’re both tired and exhausted.”

“They were both satisfied to go home and get out.”

“Can it start again? I guess someday, it can. It could maybe start soon,” Trump admits.

Iran “fought bravely,” says Trump, noting that Tehran “somewhat, not much, violated the ceasefire.”

“I don’t see them getting back involved in the nuclear business anymore,” he says.

Israel had 52 planes heading out to attack Iran when he called on Israel to turn its jets around yesterday morning, he says.

Trump says he is not relying on Israeli intelligence for his assessment that Iran’s nuclear sites were “obliterated.”

Trump says he has spoken “to people who have seen the site, the site is obliterated.”

He says that “you can’t get into the tunnels…There’s no way you can even get down. The whole thing is collapsed and a disaster. And I think all the nuclear stuff is down there because it’s very hard to remove.”

An angry US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, also present at the press conference, says the evidence regarding what is left of Iran’s nuclear facility at Fordo “is buried under a mountain, devastated and obliterated.”

“So if you want to make an assessment about what happened at Fordo, you’d better get a big shovel, and go really deep,” he fumes.

“Those that dropped the bombs precisely in the right place know exactly what happened when that exploded,” Hegseth argues.

The US is going to issue a report on Fordo, Trump says.

5 members of UK Jewish group suspended for open letter criticizing Israel’s war against Hamas

Five members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews have been suspended for two years for organizing an open letter condemning Israel’s prosecution of the war against Hamas in Gaza.

The letter, published in the Financial Times on April 16, accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of implementing harmful policies to appease the government’s far-right flank.

Around 10 percent of the umbrella organization for UK Jewry’s members signed the letter, which said that “our Jewish values compel us to stand up and to speak out.” The letter sparked an uproar among more hawkish parts of the UK’s Jewish community at the time.

Following a two-month investigation, all 36 signatories of the letter have been found to have breached the Board of Deputies’ code of conduct, the organization said Tuesday.

For 31 who signed the letter, but did nothing more, a notice of criticism will be sent, with a warning that similar breaches could lead to a suspension.

The five who incurred the additional sanctions were more actively involved with the letter’s publication, the Board of Deputies says.

Three of them have been given the opportunity to reduce their suspension to six months by apologizing, it adds.

NATO’s Rutte compares Trump to a ‘daddy’ with children fighting, after US president’s profane comments

US President Donald Trump arrives for a social dinner at the 'Huis ten Bosch' Royal Palace during a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Heads of State and Government summit in The Hague, on June 24, 2025 (JOHN THYS / AFP)

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte likened US President Donald Trump to a “daddy” intervening in a schoolyard brawl after the US leader used profanity when describing the war between Israel and Iran.

In comments to the press during a NATO summit in The Hague, Trump had compared fighting between Iran and Israel to children quarreling.

“They’ve had a big fight, like two kids in a schoolyard. You know, they fight like hell, you can’t stop them. Let them fight for about 2-3 minutes, then it’s easy to stop them.”

Rutte laughs and adds: “And then daddy has to sometimes use strong language to get (them to) stop.”

On Tuesday, following a ceasefire deal between Iran and Israel, Trump said the countries had been fighting “so long and so hard that they don’t know what the fuck they’re doing.”

NATO did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump also compared on Wednesday the impact of the US bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites to the end of World War II, when the United States bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

“I don’t want to use an example of Hiroshima, I don’t want to use an example of Nagasaki, but that was essentially the same thing. That ended that war. This ended the war,” Trump said.

PM says he presented Trump with plans in February for Fordo strikes with and without US help

US President Donald Trump (center) meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) in the Oval Office of the White House, Feb. 4, 2025, in Washington, as Vice President JD Vance listens. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Israel achieved “a great victory” in its campaign against Iran, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says at the start of a cabinet meeting in Jerusalem.

“With this victory we have removed two immediate existential threats to ensure the existence of Israel,” he says.

Netanyahu says that during his February visit to the White House, “we presented the plans for an attack in Iran with American participation, and also without,” according to Israel Hayom. ‘This is what we are going to do — the decision is yours.'”

Israel didn’t ask for a “green light,” Netanyahu continues.

“Trump got involved and decided to carry out the attacks,” says Netanyahu, according to the report.

“I had conversations with him almost every day, and [Strategic Affairs Minister Ron] Dermer’s conversations with [US Vice President JD] Vance, [US Secretary of State Marco] Rubio, and [US special envoy Steve] Witkoff. There was maximum coordination, which became operational coordination.”

IDF says it shot down drone from Yemen before it entered Israeli airspace

A drone apparently launched from Yemen was shot down by the Israeli Air Force a short while ago, the military says.

According to the IDF, the drone did not enter Israeli airspace.

110 new immigrants arrive in Israel a day after Iran ceasefire

Children of new immigrants at Ben Gurion Airport, June 25, 2025 (Sivan Shahar/GPO)

Just a day after the ceasefire between Israel and Iran, 110 new immigrants from Europe have arrived in Israel on a flight organized by the Immigration and Absorption Ministry and the Jewish Agency, in cooperation with the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews.

The flight, which was planned before Israel launched its preemptive strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities on June 13, left from Paris Wednesday morning.

Most of the new immigrants are from France, along with some from the UK, Spain and the Netherlands, the Immigration Ministry notes. They were welcomed at a ceremony at the airport.

“In other countries, when there is war, people flee, but in our country, people come to join us,” Immigration Minister Ofir Sofer said at the ceremony.

Since October 7, 2023, more than 45,000 new immigrants have arrived in Israel, with about a third under age 35, the ministry notes.

After Israel registered 46,590 new immigrants in 2023, the number declined by 30% in 2024 to 32,161, despite rising antisemitism worldwide, according to the ministry.

White House shares Israel Atomic Energy Commission assessment that Fordo ‘inoperable’

This handout satellite picture provided by Maxar Technologies, and taken on June 22, 2025, shows Iran's Fordo Fuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP), northeast of the city of Qom, after US strikes on the site. (Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies / AFP)

As it works to push back against initial intelligence assessments that deemed damage to Iran’s nuclear sites following US and Israeli strikes to be limited, the White House shares with reporters a yet-to-be-seen statement from the Israel Atomic Energy Commission that finds that the underground Fordo nuclear site is now “inoperable.”

“The devastating US strike on Fordo destroyed the site’s critical infrastructure and rendered the enrichment facility inoperable,” the statement reads.

“We assess that the American strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, combined with Israeli strikes on other elements of Iran’s military nuclear program, have set back Iran’s ability to develop nuclear weapons by many years,” the statement continues.

“This achievement can continue indefinitely if Iran does not get access to nuclear material.”

GHF says it distributed 33,600 boxes of food at three sites on Wednesday

The US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation says it distributed 33,600 boxes of aid today.

As it did yesterday, the GHF opened three sites today — two in southern Gaza, and the Wadi Gaza site in the central Strip.

GHF says its boxes contain enough food for 5.5 people for 3.5 days, but the contents are dry food products that need to be prepared elsewhere in war-ravaged Gaza, where community kitchens and cooking supplies are limited.

Netanyahu thanks Trump after US president says PM should be proud of Israeli strikes on Iran

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanks US President Donald Trump for publicly praising Israel’s strikes on Iran, after Trump said earlier today that the Israeli leader “should be very proud of himself” for the operation.

In a post on X, Netanyahu shares a video of Trump speaking at the NATO summit in The Hague, where the president added that Iran “won’t be building bombs for a long time.”

תודה לך הנשיא טראמפ. ????????????????

Thank you President Trump ???????????????? pic.twitter.com/xHytn2wMrf

— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) June 25, 2025

Trump also posts today on Truth Social, sharing footage of billboards in Tel Aviv showing his photo alongside the message “Thank you, Mr. President,” in response to the US joining Israel’s offensive by striking key Iranian nuclear sites.

The posts follow a sharp rebuke Trump gave Netanyahu yesterday, expressing his frustration over Israeli plans to strike Iran in reaction to what Trump described as a minor violation of a US-brokered ceasefire.

IDF Home Front Command says test alert mistakenly sent to some phones a short while ago

The IDF Home Front Command mistakenly sent out a test alert via the cell broadcast system a short while ago, which was received by some phones.

“During internal system checks to assess the readiness of the Home Front Command’s alert systems, a technical malfunction occurred that caused the test to be distributed as an alert to some users’ phones,” the military says.

“There is no security incident, and the event is under investigation,” the IDF adds.

The “extreme alert” seen on some phones just read “Test” in Hebrew.

Qatar says Israel-Iran ceasefire created ‘momentum’ for Gaza deal talks

Protesters call for a deal to secure the release of hostages held captive by Hamas in Gaza, at Dizengoff Square in Tel Aviv, June 18, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Qatar has been in touch with “all sides” involved in Gaza hostage-ceasefire deal talks in an attempt to take advantage of momentum in the wake of the Israel-Iran ceasefire, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari tells CNN.

“This is the time now for President Trump to push for it and we believe he is sincere about it… We are willing to help on that,” says Ansari.

“There was momentum created by the ceasefire in Iran and Israel,” he continues, “but we’re not out of the woods yet. There are a lot of details that I can’t discuss right now about the deal in place but I can tell you it’s the same parameters that keeps going in and out of the talks.”

Ansari also calls the Iranian strikes on a US base inside of Qatar a “scar on the relationship” of his country with Tehran.

Israeli hospitals start moving patients back above ground after Iran ceasefire

A newborn returns to the regular ward at Ichilov Medical Center after a ceasefire with Iran, June 25, 2025 (Ichilov/ Jenny Yerushalmi)

Medical centers around Israel report that they have begun moving patients back to aboveground areas after the 12-day conflict with Iran ended yesterday.

Rambam Medical Center in Haifa says the first to leave the protected underground hospital, which normally serves as a parking lot, were women who gave birth underground.

“No less than 800 patients will return to regular wards,” the hospital spokesperson says.

At Ichilov Medical Center, the at-risk newborn unit was moved back to its regular floor.

Also, Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya and Beilinson Medical Center in Petah Tikvah say they have moved patients from their protected underground facilities.

Italian supermarket chain says it has stopped selling Israeli products

An Italian supermarket chain says it has stopped selling Israeli products in solidarity with Palestinians affected by war and hunger in the Gaza Strip.

The decision will mean that Coop Alleanza 3.0 will remove Israeli peanuts, tahini sauce, and SodaStream carbonated water makers from its shelves, a statement says.

In an additional sign of support for people in Gaza, where Israel is fighting the Hamas terror group in a war sparked by its October 7, 2023, attack, supermarkets have also started selling the pro-Palestinian Gaza Cola fizzy drink, the statement adds.

Coop Alleanza 3.0 is the largest cooperative in the Coop Italia network, comprising almost 350 stores in eight Italian regions from Friuli-Venezia Giulia in the north to Puglia in the south.

The cooperative “cannot remain indifferent to the ongoing violence in the Gaza Strip and [is] united in calling for the immediate cessation of military operations,” it says.

Coop supermarket chains in Florence and the central regions of Tuscany, Lazio and Umbria are also no longer stocking Israeli products, spokespeople say, insisting, however, that this did not amount to a formal boycott of Israeli products.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

Iran’s foreign ministry says nuclear facilities ‘badly damaged’ by US strikes

This handout satellite picture provided by Maxar Technologies and taken on June 22, 2025, shows a crater after US strikes on Iran's Natanz nuclear enrichment facility in central Iran. (Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies / AFP)

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei confirms the country’s nuclear facilities had been “badly damaged” in American strikes over the weekend.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Baghaei refuses to go into detail but concedes the Sunday strikes by American B-2 bombers using bunker buster bombs had been significant.

“Our nuclear installations have been badly damaged, that’s for sure,” he says.

IDF withdraws reserve division from Gaza, to be replaced by another

Troops of the 252nd Reserve Division operate in the Gaza Strip in a handout photo published June 25, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

The IDF has withdrawn the 252nd Reserve Division from the central and northern Gaza Strip area, after four and a half months of operations, the military says.

The division operated in the Netzarim Corridor area and some of Gaza City’s eastern neighborhoods, where the IDF says it killed numerous terror operatives, demolished six kilometers worth of tunnels, and destroyed dozens of other Hamas infrastructures.

The 252nd is being replaced in the area by the 99th Division.

Results of US strikes on Fordo ‘really not good,’ Israeli sources say

This handout satellite picture provided by Maxar Technologies and taken on June 22, 2025, shows Iran's Fordo Fuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP), northeast of the city of Qom, after US strikes on the site. (Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies / AFP)

The results of the damage done to Iran’s uranium enrichment facility in Fordo, while still being assessed, are not satisfactory, Israeli sources tell ABC News.

The achievements of Israeli and US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities are still being evaluated, and it’s too early to determine operational success, two Israeli sources tell the network, with one source downplaying the damage at Fordo and calling the outcome there “really not good.”

Both sources said they are unaware of how much enriched uranium Iran may have relocated ahead of the strikes, or how many centrifuges remain and are usable to enrich uranium in the future.

Conclusive findings may take months, if they are obtained at all, a source tells the US network.

The report comes as US President Donald Trump said that Israel sent agents into Fordo after the US strikes who said that the key nuclear site had been “obliterated.” Israeli officials told the Kan public broadcaster that they were unaware of an Israeli operation at the site.

Israel says 71 humanitarian aid trucks entered Gaza Strip on Tuesday

Trucks and humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip are seen at the Kerem Shalom border crossing, on the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip, May 29, 2025. (Flash90)

Yesterday, 71 humanitarian aid trucks entered the Gaza Strip, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) announces.

Israel resumed aid deliveries to Gaza on May 19, after a pause since March 2. Since then, 2,104 trucks have entered the Strip.

The aid underwent an inspection by Israeli authorities before entering Gaza via the Kerem Shalom and Zikim crossings.

The UN has said 600 trucks of aid need to be distributed each day in order to properly feed the Strip’s roughly two million people.

Iran eases internet restrictions after ceasefire with Israel

Iranian authorities announce the gradual easing of internet restrictions imposed during the 12-day war with Israel, following the implementation of a ceasefire.

“The communication network is gradually returning to its previous state,” says the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ cybersecurity command in a statement carried by state media.

The country’s communications minister, Sattar Hashemi, says in a post on X: “With the normalization of conditions, the state of communication access has returned to its previous conditions.”

MKs pass bill extending IDF, Shin Bet’s authority to hack into civilian security cameras

A law extending the Israel Defense Forces and the Shin Bet’s authority to covertly break into civilian security camera systems by another six months passes its third and final reading 13-4 in the Knesset.

Following October 7, 2023, the Knesset approved a temporary measure to permit the IDF and the Shin Bet to hack into security camera back-end technology in order to prevent or thwart access by nefarious actors.

The temporary emergency measure permits the IDF and the Shin Bet to access the cameras only if the visual material endangers national security or IDF operations connected to the ongoing war.

In its explanatory notes, the legislation says that Israel’s security agencies believe an additional extension is necessary “in light of the continuation of the fighting.”

The measure will now be extended until December 31, 2025.

6 Ben Gurion University research labs destroyed, 9 damaged by Iranian missile last week: ‘Years of work wiped out’

Smokes rises from a building of the Soroka hospital complex after it was hit by a missile fired from Iran in Beersheba, Israel, Thursday, June 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Six Ben Gurion University research laboratories were destroyed and nine others were damaged by the impact of an Iranian missile that struck the Soroka University Medical Center campus on June 19, the educational institution says in a postwar update.

The damage to the six destroyed laboratories “wiped out years of work on diverse research projects in medicine and biology,” the university says.

Classrooms, teaching laboratories, and the dissection room of the Faculty of Health Sciences were also significantly impacted, along with 30 buildings on the main Marcus Family Campus.

The university, still assessing the costs, estimates they will run into “tens, and perhaps even hundreds of millions of shekels.”

The homes of 50 faculty or staff members and 48 students were damaged, with 25 of the former and 41 of the latter having to evacuate.

Four families from the city whose homes were damaged are being housed in student dormitory facilities, along with some of the evacuated employees.

Israeli officials say unaware of Israeli agents entering Fordo nuclear facility after US strike

This handout satellite picture provided by Maxar Technologies and taken on June 24, 2025, shows new airstrike craters at a perimeter installation on Iran's Fordo nuclear facility, northeast of the city of Qom. (Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies/AFP)

Israeli officials tell the Kan public broadcaster that they are unaware of an Israeli operation inside the Fordo nuclear facility after the US strike on Sunday.

Earlier today, US President Donald Trump indicated that Israeli operatives had entered the site after the US attack and determined that there was “total obliteration.”

Trump: Israel sent agents into Iran’s Fordo nuclear site after US strikes ‘and they said it was total obliteration’

US President Donald Trump at the NATO summit of heads of state and government in The Hague on June 25, 2025. (Piroschka Van De Wouw / POOL / AFP)

Israel sent agents into Iran’s Fordo nuclear site after US strikes earlier this week, US President Donald Trump tells reporters at the NATO summit in The Hague.

“You know they have guys that go in there after the hit, and they said it was total obliteration,” says Trump.

“Israel is doing a report on it now, I understand, and I was told that they said it was total obliteration.”

“I believe it was total obliteration,” says Trump, “and I believe they didn’t have a chance to get anything out because we acted fast.”

The bombs “landed precisely where they were supposed to,” adds US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. “Flawless mission, right down where we needed to enter… It was devastation underneath Fordo.”

Otzma Yehudit: Gafni’s questioning of need for Gaza war damages national security

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir speaks during a rally outside the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, June 5, 2025. (Arie Leib Abrams/Flash90)

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit party slams United Torah Judaism lawmaker Moshe Gafni, asserting that his questioning of the necessity of the war in Gaza damages national security.

During a meeting of the Knesset Finance Committee on Wednesday, Gafni said that he did not understand “what we are fighting for” in Gaza and that Israel needs US President Donald Trump “to come and say we are returning the hostages, stopping all these things and returning to normal. But apparently we haven’t merited this yet.”

This rhetoric “recalls similar statements by the extreme leftist Moshe Ya’alon, harms Israel’s security and the families of the fallen heroes,” Otzma Yehudit says in a statement — referring to former defense minister Moshe Ya’alon’s assertion that Israel was carrying out “ethnic cleansing” in the northern Gaza Strip.

“Our heroic warriors are fighting an obligatory war against the modern Amalek — the Nazi terrorist organization Hamas” in order to “restore security to the residents of the south in particular and to the residents of Israel in general, and to return all of our hostages, living and dead,” the statement adds, asserting that the sacrifice of fallen soldiers requires Israel to continue until victory.

Gafni’s Degel Hatorah faction is part of the larger United Torah Judaism faction, which recently threatened to topple the government over efforts to conscript Haredim into the IDF. Lawmakers within the coalition and the opposition have been pushing for legislation that would end the longstanding exemption of yeshiva students from military service to make up for a wartime manpower shortage and ease the burden on reservists.

Likening strikes to Hiroshima, Trump says US will hit Iran again if it tries to restart enrichment, but is sure he won’t need to

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands, Wednesday, June 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

US President Donald Trump says he will strike Iran again if it tries to restart its nuclear enrichment program, but he’s sure it won’t be necessary.

Asked by a reporter if the US would carry out more attacks if Tehran rebuilds its uranium enrichment facilities, Trump says, “Sure. But I’m not going to have to worry about that. It’s gone for years.”

Asked how long he thinks the Iranian nuclear program has been set back, Trump says: “I think it’s basically decades, because I don’t think they’ll ever do it again. I think they’ve had it. I mean, they just went through hell. They’ve had it.”

“The last thing they want to do is enrich anything right now,” says Trump. “They want to recover.”

“They’re not going to have a bomb and they’re not going to enrich.”

Trump compares the US bombing of three Iranian nuclear sites to the nuclear weapons America dropped on Japan to end World War II: “That hit ended the war. That hit ended the war. I don’t want to use an example of Hiroshima, I don’t want to use an example of Nagasaki, but that was essentially the same thing. That ended that war. This ended [the] war [with Iran]. If we didn’t take that out, they would have been fighting right now.”

“I think we’ll end up having somewhat of a relationship with Iran,” he says.

The ceasefire that Israel and Iran agreed to was “a very equal agreement,” says Trump. “They both said, ‘That’s enough.'”

“We had a tremendous victory, a tremendous hit,” says Trump.

“Israel got hit very hard,” Trump continues, “especially the last couple of days. Israel was hit really hard. Those ballistic missiles, boy they took out a lot of buildings.”

“And they’ve been great,” he says, “Bibi Netanyahu should be very proud of himself.”

UN watchdog chief: Iran said at start of war it was taking ‘special measures’ to protect enriched uranium

Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi at an extraordinary IAEA Board of Governors meeting at the agency's headquarters in Vienna, Austria on June 23, 2025. (Joe Klamar/AFP)

UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi says his top priority is getting his inspectors back to Iran’s nuclear facilities to assess the impact of US and Israeli military strikes and verify its stocks of enriched uranium, which Tehran said it took “special measures” to protect.

“This is the number 1 priority,” International Atomic Energy Agency chief Grossi tells a news conference at an Austrian security cabinet meeting.

He is seeking IAEA inspectors’ return to Iranian sites, including the three plants where it was enriching uranium until Israel launched strikes on June 13.

Asked if Iran had informed him of the status of its stocks of enriched uranium, particularly its uranium enriched to up to 60% purity, close to weapons grade, he points to a letter he received from Iran on June 13, saying Iran would take “special measures” to protect its nuclear materials and equipment.

“They did not get into details as to what that meant but clearly that was the implicit meaning of that. We can imagine this material is there,” Grossi says, suggesting much of the uranium had survived the attacks.

Iran, which avowedly seeks Israel’s destruction, has enriched uranium to levels that have no peaceful application, has obstructed international inspectors from checking its nuclear facilities, and expanded its ballistic missile capabilities. Israel says Iran has recently taken steps toward weaponization.

Trump praises Israel for scaling back Iran strikes after ceasefire: ‘I was so proud of them’

US President Donald Trump speaks at a NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands, June 25, 2025. (Piroschka Van De Wouw, Pool Photo via AP)

After blasting Israel yesterday for striking Iran after a ceasefire was announced, US President Donald Trump praises Israel for scaling back a planned major attack yesterday.

“I was so proud of them,” Trump says at the NATO summit in The Hague.

“It was a great thing.”

He says that “technically they were right,” referring to Israel’s claims that Iran violated the ceasefire by firing missiles at Israel after the 7 a.m. start of the truce. “It was a little bit of a violation.”

Asked if he would strike Iran again if it rebuilds its uranium enrichment facilities, Trump says, “Sure.”

Trump: ‘Great progress’ made on reaching Gaza hostage-ceasefire deal as result of Iran strikes

US President Donald Trump speaks at a NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands, June 25, 2025. (Piroschka Van De Wouw, Pool Photo via AP)

Speaking at the NATO summit in The Netherlands, US President Donald Trump says there is “great progress” on reaching a ceasefire deal in Gaza.

“I think that because of this attack that we made,” he continues, referring to strikes on Iran’s nuclear program, “I think we’re going to have some very good news… Gaza is very close.”

Trump rejects leaked intelligence reports indicating that US and Israeli strikes on Iran only set its nuclear program back a few months.

“They really don’t know,” says Trump, adding that the attacks resulted in a “total obliteration” of three key Iranian nuclear sites. He says it was a “devastating attack,” and that destroying Iran’s nuclear facilities is what forced Tehran to settle for a ceasefire.

The “conversion facility” Iran needed for making nuclear weapons is gone, says US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, without specifying the location of the facility. “Everything underneath that mountain is in bad shape,” Rubio insists, adding that Tehran’s nuclear program is “way behind” what it was before the operation.

“Any assessment that tells you it was something otherwise is speculating with other motives,” insists US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, adding that the intelligence report in question has “low confidence.”

Senior Haredi lawmaker: ‘I don’t understand what we are fighting for in Gaza’

Knesset Finance Committee chair MK Moshe Gafni during a committee meeting at the Knesset, in Jerusalem, on September 26, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

MK Moshe Gafni, the leader of the ultra-Orthodox Degel Hatorah faction, declares that he does not understand what Israel is fighting for in Gaza.

Opening a meeting of the Knesset Finance Committee, Gafni tells lawmakers that he is thankful to God and US President Donald Trump for the end of the war with Iran, before expressing his condolences over the deaths of seven soldiers in Gaza yesterday.

“But I don’t understand until this moment what we are fighting for there. I don’t understand what the need is. What are we going to do there when soldiers are being killed all the time? I don’t understand this. We needed Trump here to come and say we are returning the hostages, stopping all these things, and returning to normal. But apparently we haven’t merited this yet,” he declares.

Gafni’s Degel Hatorah faction is part of the larger United Torah Judaism faction, which recently threatened to topple the government over efforts to conscript Haredim into the IDF. Lawmakers within the coalition and the opposition have been pushing for legislation that would end the longstanding exemption of yeshiva students from military service to make up for a wartime manpower shortage and ease the burden on reservists.

Far-right Religious Zionism party director-general Yehuda Wald declares Gafni’s statement to be “atrocious.”

“What is it saying to the 879 families of the heroic IDF fallen, that their sons fell in vain? What does he say to all the residents of the surrounding area who fear another massacre, that we will abandon them to Hamas terrorists?” Wald asks in a post on X.

“Only a person who does not send his sons to war can speak with such detachment,” Wald declares, calling Gafni a “shame and a disgrace.”

According to the Israel Defense Forces, as of 2024, over one in five combat soldiers is female, with mandatory conscription applying to all non-religiously observant women. Thirty-seven female soldiers have been killed in the war.

Israelis submitted over 403,000 requests for firearms licenses since Oct. 7, ministry says

Illustrative: A man practices shooting a handgun at a Jerusalem shooting range, April 3, 2022 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Israelis have submitted over 403,000 requests for firearms licenses since October 7, out of which more than 217,000 conditional approvals have been granted, the National Security Ministry informs the Knesset National Security Committee.

Out of the 217,000 conditional approvals, 165,000 permanent licenses have been granted, while 177,000 applications have been rejected, according to statistics presented to lawmakers. According to the ministry, around 335,000 Israelis currently hold firearms licenses.

Requests for gun permits surged following Hamas’s massive attack on southern Israel, in which 1,200 people were slaughtered, many amid brutal atrocities, and a further 251 taken hostage to Gaza. Last March, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir celebrated the approval of 100,000 new gun licenses since October 7, stating that putting more weapons on the streets has made Israel safer. Women’s groups have decried the rising number of guns in Israeli homes, saying it poses a risk to victims of domestic violence.

In the wake of October 7, the National Security Ministry also granted temporary authority to approve gun license applications to Ben Gvir’s personal staff appointees, Knesset employees, and others. Several were subsequently investigated by police on suspicion that the ministry issued firearms permits without authority.

Last November, the High Court of Justice said that licenses were issued “seemingly without authority.”

The National Security Committee approves a measure granting extensions on refresher training for gun owners in light of the current security situation.

IDF strike killed head of currency company involved in moving funds from Iran to Hezbollah, military says

An Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon yesterday killed the head of a currency exchange company, who the IDF says was involved in transferring funds from Iran to Hezbollah.

Haytham Abdullah Bakri had headed the Al-Sadiq currency exchange.

The military says the company “serves as a funds storage and transfer mechanism for the Hezbollah terror organization, for funds originating from the Iranian Quds Force,” adding that Bakri operated with Hezbollah to transfer the funds.

“These funds are used by Hezbollah for military purposes, including purchasing weapons, means for manufacturing [weapons], and providing salaries to operatives, and are diverted for terrorist purposes and to finance the continuation of Hezbollah’s terrorist activities,” the IDF says.

Last week, during the war in Iran, the IDF killed Behnam Shahriyari, the head of the IRGC Quds Force’s Unit 190, responsible for the clandestine transfer of weapons to Iran’s proxy groups, especially Hezbollah.

“Shahriyari exclusively oversaw the mechanisms that enabled the transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars annually to the Quds Force and its proxies. These mechanisms included money transfer routes from the Quds Force to Hezbollah, using offsets between currency exchanges in Turkey, Iraq, and the United Arab Emirates with Lebanese currency exchanges,” the IDF says.

“These two eliminations constitute a severe blow to the Iranian financing routes to Hezbollah,” the military adds.

Israel’s Leviathan natural gas field to resume operations

View of the Israeli Leviathan natural gas field gas processing rig as seen from Dor Habonim Beach Nature Reserve, on January 1, 2020. (Flash90/File)

Israel’s NewMed Energy says the Leviathan natural gas field that supplies gas to Egypt and Jordan will resume operations in the next few hours after receiving permission from the Energy Ministry.

Two of Israel’s three offshore gas fields were closed on June 13 at the start of fighting between Israel and Iran.

IDF spokesman: ‘Too early’ to assess damage to Iran’s nuclear program

This handout satellite picture provided by Maxar Technologies and taken on June 22, 2025, shows a crater after US strikes on Iran's Natanz nuclear enrichment facility in central Iran. (Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies / AFP)

IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin says it is still “too early” to assess the damage to Iran’s nuclear program following the war.

“We met all the objectives of the operation as defined for us, even better than we thought. But it is still too early to determine, we are investigating the results of the strikes on the different sections of the nuclear program,” Defrin says in response to a question at a press conference.

“The assessment is that we significantly damaged the nuclear program, and I can say we set it back by years,” he says.

Last night, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said that, “We have set Iran’s nuclear project back by years, and the same goes for its missile program.”

Rubio: Iran ‘much further away’ from building nuclear weapon after US strikes

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio listens as President Donald Trump meets with El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, April 14, 2025. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio tells Politico that Iran is “much further away from a nuclear weapon” after a US strike on Iran’s three main nuclear sites over the weekend.

“The bottom line is, they are much further away from a nuclear weapon today than they were before the president took this bold action,” Rubio tells Politico.

“Significant, very significant, substantial damage was done to a variety of different components, and we’re just learning more about it,” he adds.

It was reported yesterday that a preliminary US intelligence assessment has determined that US strikes over the weekend on Iranian nuclear facilities have set back Tehran’s program by only a matter of months.

The US carried out the strikes after over a week of attacks by Israel on Iran’s nuclear and military sites.

Iran’s parliament backs bill to suspend cooperation with IAEA until security of nuclear sites guaranteed

This handout satellite picture provided by Maxar Technologies and taken on June 24, 2025, shows new airstrike craters at a perimeter installation on Iran's Fordo nuclear facility, northeast of the city of Qom. (Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies/AFP)

Iran’s parliament has approved a bill to suspend cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog, Iran’s Nournews reports.

The country’s Supreme National Security Council would still need to give final approval to the move, the report says.

“The International Atomic Energy Agency, which refused to even marginally condemn the attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, put its international credibility up for auction,” Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf says, according to state TV, announcing that “the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran will suspend its cooperation with the IAEA until the security of the nuclear facilities is guaranteed.”

It was reported yesterday that a preliminary US intelligence assessment has determined that US strikes over the weekend on Iranian nuclear facilities have set back Tehran’s program by only a matter of months.

Iran, which avowedly seeks Israel’s destruction, has consistently denied seeking to acquire nuclear weapons. However, it has enriched uranium to levels that have no peaceful application, has obstructed international inspectors from checking its nuclear facilities, and expanded its ballistic missile capabilities. Israel says it has recently taken steps toward weaponization.

IDF names 7th soldier killed yesterday when armored vehicle hit by explosive in south Gaza

Staff Sgt. Alon Davidov killed in the Gaza Strip on June 24, 2025 (IDF)

The Israel Defense Forces names the seventh soldier killed during fighting in Gaza yesterday as Staff Sgt. Alon Davidov, 21, from Kiryat Yam.

Davidov and the six other soldiers named earlier this morning were killed in the southern Gaza Strip yesterday, when an armored vehicle they were in was hit by an explosive device.

They all served with the 605th Combat Engineering Battalion. Davidov served as a medic.

According to an initial IDF probe, a Palestinian terror operative planted a bomb on the solders’ Puma armored combat engineering vehicle while they were driving in Khan Younis.

The blast set the vehicle on fire, and efforts to extinguish it were unsuccessful. All the soldiers inside perished in the blaze.

Fire at empty house in Palestinian West Bank village blamed on settlers; no injuries reported

An overnight fire at an empty house in the Palestinian village of Susiya in the South Hebron Hills in the West Bank was caused by settlers, witnesses say.

Nobody was inside the building at the time of the fire, and no injuries were reported.

Palestinian media outlets also report that the blaze was an arson attack by settlers.

A resident of the village tells The Times of Israel that an eyewitness who noticed the fire said two individuals fled the scene, heading toward the nearby Susiya archaeological site, which is under Israeli control — a detail that, according to the resident, supports the claim that the fire was an arson attack by settlers.

The source says settlers were filmed last week stealing from that same house.

مستوطنون يشعلون النار في مساكن بقرية سوسيا في مسافر يطا جنوب الخليل.#الميادين pic.twitter.com/0BPbo584pt

— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) June 24, 2025

Herzog mourns 7 soldiers killed in Gaza: ‘Flowers plucked while defending our people and homeland’

From left to right: Lt. Matan Shai Yashinovski, Staff Sgt. Ronel Ben-Moshe, Sgt. Ronen Shapiro, Sgt. Maayan Baruch Pearlstein, Staff Sgt. Niv Radia and Sgt. Shahar Manoav. The IDF announced that the six were among seven soldiers killed amid fighting in the southern Gaza Strip on June 24, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

President Isaac Herzog mourns the seven soldiers killed in Gaza yesterday.

“A very painful morning in which we learned of the deaths of our dear and beloved sons in battle in Khan Younis. Seven flowers plucked while defending our people and homeland – Matan, Ronel, Niv, Ronen, Shahar, Maayan, and another fighter whose name has not yet been released for publication,” Herzog writes on X.

“The [fighting] in Gaza is tough, the battles are fierce, and the burden is heavier than can be borne. We bow our heads and embrace with pain and tears the bereaved and grieving families,” he says. “We pray for the recovery of the wounded fighters and strengthen all IDF soldiers and their commanders who carry on their shoulders the defense of all our lives.”

Iran to hold state funerals for top commanders, scientists killed in war with Israel

Top (L-R): IRGC chief Hossein Salami; head of the Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters, Gholam Ali Rashid; Bottom (L-R): IRGC air force chief Amir Ali Hajizadeh; Iran's Armed Forces chief Mohammad Hossein Bagheri. All were reported killed in Israeli strikes on Iran, June 13, 2025. (IRGC; Tasnim News; Courtesy)

Iran will hold on Saturday state funerals for senior military commanders and top scientists killed during the country’s 12-day war with Israel, official media says.

“The national funeral ceremony for… commanders and scientists martyred in the Zionist regime’s aggression will be held on Saturday from 8:00 am (0430 GMT)” in Tehran, official news agency IRNA reports, a day after the warring sides had agreed to a ceasefire.

IRNA says that Hossein Salami, the Revolutionary Guards chief killed by Israel on the war’s first day on June 13, will be buried on Thursday.

Israel said its sweeping assault on Iran’s top military leaders, nuclear scientists, uranium enrichment sites, and ballistic missile program was necessary to prevent the Islamic Republic from realizing its avowed plan to destroy the Jewish state.

Anti-Hamas protester hospitalized in Gaza after he was beaten by Hamas operatives, activists say

Activists in Gaza say on social media that Ahmad al-Masri, a known figure in the anti-Hamas protests in the northern Strip, was beaten by Hamas operatives and hospitalized in recent days.

In footage and images circulated online, Al-Masri can be seen with injuries to his legs, apparently as a result of the attack.

According to the reports, he was hospitalized at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. His condition is currently unclear.

Al-Masri, a resident of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, had been filmed in recent months holding a sign during protests that read, “Hamas does not represent us,” referring to the people of Gaza.

In another video from a demonstration, he is heard saying: “We don’t want Hamas. Hamas has destroyed us. Enough!”

هكذا كرّمت ميليشيا حما$ المواطن أحمد المصري، الذي صمد في شمال قطاع غزة طيلة الإبـ ـادة، وكان من المساهمين في إفشال خطة الجنرالات لإفراغ الشمال من أهله.
كرّمته بالخطف، وتهشيم أطرافه، فقط لأنه خرج وقال: “حما$ لا تمثلنا.”

• نعم، أيها الإرهـ ـابيون، حما$ لا تمثلنا، وإلى مزابل… pic.twitter.com/futEgUEaMW

— مصطفـ????ـى عصفــور (@ustafa_ad) June 24, 2025

Palestinian media reports woman, 66, shot dead by cops during East Jerusalem operation

Palestinian media outlets report that a 66-year-old woman was shot and killed by police overnight in the Shuafat refugee camp in East Jerusalem.

According to the reports, Zoheya al-Obeidi was shot in the head during a police operation.

Palestinian outlets report that dozens of Border Police entered Shuafat last night in what appeared to be a large-scale operation in the refugee camp.

Police say they launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of the East Jerusalem resident, who they claim was brought to the Shuafat checkpoint with severe injuries.

The woman was pronounced dead by paramedics after reaching the checkpoint, police say.

Violence across East Jerusalem and the West Bank has spiked since the Hamas onslaught on October 7, 2023.

Schools reopen after IDF lifts restrictions imposed during war with Iran; some 300 institutions said damaged

A few students go back to school in Tel Aviv following a teachers' strike, on May 6, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Schools across Israel are reopening their gates for the first time since fighting broke out with Iran, after the IDF’s Home Front Command announced yesterday that it was removing all restrictions imposed on civilians throughout the conflict with Tehran.

Local authorities must also approve the decision, and schools damaged by Iranian fire, or in areas with damage from a direct impact, won’t be forced to reopen. Some municipalities have decided not to open schools today.

According to Channel 12 news, some 300 educational institutions sustained damage in ballistic missile attacks from Iran.

Additionally, the situation is complicated for children who have had to leave their homes as a result of missile damage, and may not be staying close to their schools.

Israeli schoolchildren have had their education disrupted for prolonged periods of time since 2020, the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

In addition to pandemic lockdowns, schools have been shut for rounds of fighting against terror groups in Gaza, as well as for a number of months due to the ongoing war sparked by the October 7, 2023 attacks. The education system also often shuts down due to strikes.

Iran arrested 700 people accused of wartime ties with Israel, state-affiliated media says

Iran has arrested 700 people accused of ties with Israel during the 12-day conflict, the state-affiliated Nournews reports.

Iran has executed a number of people during the war that it has accused of working for Mossad.

Iran hangs 3 men accused of spying for Israel, in 3rd set of executions of alleged Mossad agents within days

Iran says it executed three men accused of spying for Israel, the day after a truce between the two countries came into effect.

“Idris Ali, Azad Shojai and Rasoul Ahmad Rasoul, who attempted to import equipment into the country to carry out assassinations, were arrested and tried for… cooperation favoring the Zionist regime,” the judiciary says, referring to Israel.

“The sentence was carried out this morning… and they were hanged.”

The executions took place in Urmia, a northwestern city near the border with Turkey, the judiciary says, sharing photos of the three men in blue prison uniforms.

Tehran regularly announces the arrest and execution of agents suspected of working for foreign intelligence services, particularly Israel.

After the Iran-Israel war erupted on June 13, Tehran vowed swift trials for people arrested on suspicion of collaborating with its arch-foe.

It carried out executions of men accused of being Mossad agents on both Sunday and Monday.

Iran is the world’s second-most prolific executioner after China, according to human rights groups, including Amnesty International.

Jewish candidate Mark Levine wins race for New York City comptroller

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine (C) speaks during a press conference joined by descendants of Holocaust survivors, and advocates from the World Jewish Congress to call on city leaders to remove the names of former French Minister of War Philippe Pétain and former French Prime Minister Pierre Laval from the "Canyon of Heroes," in New York City on January 27, 2023. (Angela Weiss/AFP)

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, who is Jewish, wins the primary race for New York City comptroller.

His leading opponent, Justin Brannan, concedes, saying in a statement that he called to congratulate Levine on his win.

With 91% of the votes counted, Levine leads Brannan by about 15 points.

The current comptroller, Brad Lander, who is also Jewish, is leaving the post due to his run for New York City mayor.

The comptroller position is responsible for overseeing the city’s finances, acts as a check on the mayor, and is the second-highest elected office in the city government.

Levine is a well-known figure at Jewish and pro-Israel events, where he often addresses crowds in Hebrew.

Seven Israeli soldiers killed after armored vehicle hit by explosive in southern Gaza

From left to right: Lt. Matan Shai Yashinovski, Staff Sgt. Ronel Ben-Moshe, Sgt. Ronen Shapiro, Sgt. Maayan Baruch Pearlstein, Staff Sgt. Niv Radia and Sgt. Shahar Manoav. The IDF announced that the six were among seven soldiers killed amid fighting in the southern Gaza Strip on June 24, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

Seven Israeli soldiers were killed during fighting in the southern Gaza Strip yesterday, after an armored vehicle they were in was hit by an explosive device.

Six of the slain soldiers are named as:

Lt. Matan Shai Yashinovski, 21, from Kfar Yona.

Staff Sgt. Ronel Ben-Moshe, 20, from Rehovot.

Staff Sgt. Niv Radia, 20, from Elyakhin.

Sgt. Ronen Shapiro, 19, from Mazkeret Batya.

Sgt. Shahar Manoav, 21, from Ashkelon.

Sgt. Maayan Baruch Pearlstein, 20, from Eshhar.

The name of the seventh soldier is expected to be released in the coming hours.

They all served with the 605th Combat Engineering Battalion.

According to an initial IDF probe, a Palestinian terror operative planted a bomb on the Puma armored combat engineering vehicle the soldiers were in while they were driving in Khan Younis.

The blast set the CEV on fire, and efforts to extinguish it were unsuccessful. All the soldiers inside perished in the blaze. The burnt remains of the CEV were later towed out of Gaza.

In a separate incident in the Khan Younis area, two soldiers of the 605th Battalion were wounded, one seriously and one lightly, by RPG fire.

Pro-Israel Cuomo concedes to socialist Mamdani in NYC mayoral primary

Former New York State governor Andrew Cuomo appears to concede to State Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani in New York City’s Democratic party primary, in a stunning defeat for a veteran politician who had leaned into the Jewish vote and his pro-Israel bona fides during his campaign against his anti-Zionist opponent.

With 91% of votes counted, Mamdani leads Cuomo by more than 7 points.

“Tonight was not our night. Tonight was Assemblyman Mamdani’s night,” Cuomo tells supporters.

“I want to applaud the assemblyman for a really smart and good and impactful campaign. Tonight is his night. He deserved it. He won,” Cuomo says.

Mamdani has not officially won the race. In the city’s ranked-choice voting system, voters can select up to five candidates. If no candidate wins a majority of first-choice votes, the candidates with the least votes are eliminated in successive rounds of counting and their next selection is reapportioned, until one of the candidates wins a majority.

The early vote count measures voters’ first-choice selection. Since no candidate won a majority, that counting will now take place, and the final results are expected next week.

Despite the ranked-choice counting, Cuomo appears to have acknowledged his loss. He says he called Mamdani to congratulate him.

The third-place candidate is New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, a Jewish progressive who cross-endorsed Mamdani, so it’s unlikely that Cuomo has a path to winning in the ranked-choice count.

The primary typically determines the winner of the general election in the mostly Democratic city. Cuomo has registered to run as an independent in the general election in November.

A spokesperson for Cuomo says he is looking at the numbers and considering his options for November.

Anti-Israel NYC council member Hanif wins race animated by Israeli-Palestinian conflict

New York City Council member Shahana Hanif, a far-left, harsh critic of Israel, defeats her Jewish opponent, Maya Kornberg, to hold onto her seat in Brooklyn.

Hanif represents the city’s District 39 in the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Park Slope, Windsor Terrace and Kensington.

Hanif has a history of anti-Israel activism, such as sharing social media calls for an intifada and voting against a city council measure opposing antisemitism.

Kornberg, a progressive, challenged Hanif for her seat because she believed Hanif was too focused on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, to the detriment of local concerns.

Kornberg concedes, saying on X, “While the result was not what we hoped for, I’m immensely proud of the positive, issues-oriented campaign we ran.”

Mamdani leads vote count in NYC mayoral primary

Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani participates in a District Council 37 New York City mayoral forum, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York State Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani, a harsh critic of Israel, is ahead as voting begins in New York City’s Democratic party mayoral primary.

Mamdani has about 44% of first-choice votes in the city’s ranked-choice voting system that allows voters to select up to five candidates in order of preference.

Former New York State governor Andrew Cuomo is in second place with 36%, according to the Associated Press.

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander trails Cuomo with 11%.

The vote count includes early voters, which were expected to favor Mamdani. Around 77% of votes have been counted. Polls closed less than an hour ago.

The early tally also does not factor in ranked-choice voting. If no candidate secures more than 50% of first-choice votes, ranked-choice votes come into play. The counting for that process could take a week.

Mamdani alarmed many Jewish voters with his harsh criticism of Israel. He has identified as an anti-Zionist, repeatedly accused Israel of genocide, backs the boycott movement targeting Israel, and defended the phrase “Globalize the intifada.” Mamdani is a member of the far-left Democratic Socialists of America.

Cuomo, a centrist, is a staunch Israel supporter who leaned into his pro-Israel bona fides and ties to the community during the campaign.

The Democratic party primary typically determines the winner of the general election in the mostly Democratic city, home to the largest Jewish population outside of Israel.

Following ceasefire, US embassy in Jerusalem to reopen as usual on Wednesday

Illustrative: A road sign shows the way toward the US embassy in Jerusalem on April 19, 2024. (Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP)

The US embassy in Jerusalem will open as usual on Wednesday, the embassy says in a statement.

The embassy had been largely closed due to the war with Iran.

85% of US Republicans back strikes on Iran — poll

A B-2 bomber arrives at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/David Smith)

A large majority of US Republicans — 85% — back the US strikes against Iran, according to a CBS News poll.

A majority of 87% of Democrats and 64% of Independents disapprove of the strikes, the poll says.

Overall, 56% of respondents disapprove and 44% approve.

The survey says so-called MAGA Republicans overwhelmingly back the strikes, with 94% in favor and only six percent opposed, but the report does not say how it defined that group.

Respondents were split about the Trump administration’s handling of Iran, with 49% expressing confidence and 51% saying they did not have confidence in the administration.

The YouGov polling firm carried out the survey for CBS. The poll queried 1,720 US adults earlier this week, after the US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, but before the Israel-Iran ceasefire. The margin of error is 3 points.

Trump posts ‘Bomb Iran’ parody song with video of bombers

US President Donald Trump boards Air Force One on June 24, 2025, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

US President Donald Trump posts the parody song “Bomb Iran,” over a video montage of B-2 bombers, on the Truth Social platform.

The 1980 song by Vince Vance & the Valiants is a parody of “Barbara Ann,” a 1962 song by the Regents.

The song includes lyrics such as, “Ol’ Uncle Sam’s getting pretty hot, time to turn Iran into a parking lot.”

Donald J. Trump Truth Social 06.24.25 07:15 PM EST pic.twitter.com/51nR30m1w9

— Commentary Donald J. Trump Posts From Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) June 24, 2025

Several versions of the song were first released after the Iran hostage crisis in 1979.

The track came to prominence again when US Senator John McCain drew criticism for quoting the lyrics during his run for the presidency in 2007.

Trump’s video is not the only offbeat governmental response to the Israel-Iran conflict today.

Iranian state TV aired a Lego animation depicting the conflict with Israel, according to the Middle East Media Research Institute.

The video shows Lego characters rallying around the Iranian flag, firing missiles, and fleeing from explosions in Israel.

A Lego Trump is seen in the video talking on the phone with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while eating a cheeseburger.

Iranian State TV Airs Lego-Style Animation Glorifying Its War with Israel: Iran Launches Missile Barrages at Israel, Downs Israeli Aircraft, Destroys High-Rises, Port, Air Base; “We Are the Ones Who Control the Game” pic.twitter.com/q43sHRvqhJ

— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) June 24, 2025

A message in Hebrew at the video says, “We control the game.”

The video is set to the theme music of the Israeli TV thriller “Tehran.”

Iran’s Channel 3 aired the video earlier today, MEMRI says.

Trump envoy says US and Iran discussing return to negotiating table

US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff delivers remarks in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, May 28, 2025. (Andrew Harnik / Getty Images via AFP)

US President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, says the US and Iran are already in early discussions about resuming negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program.

Witkoff says the US and Iran are engaged in direct talks and through intermediaries about getting back to the table after Israeli and US strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities ended yesterday in a ceasefire that Trump helped mediate.

“The conversations are promising. We’re hopeful,” Witkoff says in an interview with Fox News. “Now it’s time to sit down with the Iranians and get to a comprehensive peace deal.”

Hostage families ask Trump to prioritize captives’ release after Iran ceasefire

Protesters rally in support of the hostages in Central Park, New York City, June 8, 2025. (Luke Tress/Times of Israel)

Advocates for the Israelis held hostage in Gaza appeal to US President Donald Trump following the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Iran.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum advocacy group meets with members of Congress and issues an open letter to Trump.

The letter applauds Trump’s actions against Iran, calling the US-Israeli campaign “a significant blow to one of the most dangerous threats,” but adds, “our hearts remain consumed with fear for our loved ones still trapped in Gaza.”

“We face a fleeting opportunity: to bring all 50 of them home, together, in one swift and decisive action,” the letter says. “President Trump, the United States has shown its power, its resolve, and above all, its unwavering commitment to Israel and its people.”

“You have demonstrated true friendship and deep allegiance. We are asking you now — please prioritize the release of our hostages. Do not forget them. Help secure their return,” the letter says.

The forum says that hostage families and former captives visited Congress to push for a release deal after the Iran ceasefire.

The advocates met with more than 150 members of Congress and the Senate and distributed posters showing the faces of the captives.

“We came to Washington to thank the US for standing with Israel in our fight against Iran. But now we face an even holier mission — the mission to bring home the 50 remaining hostages,” says Moshe Lavi, the brother-in-law of hostage Omri Miran.

Trump administration postpones classified briefings for lawmakers on Iran

US President Donald Trump adjusts his cap as he exits Air Force One, which landed at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, to attend the NATO summit in The Hague, on June 24, 2025. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP)

The Trump administration postpones classified briefings for Senate and House members as lawmakers look for more answers about US President Donald Trump’s directed strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend and his announcement yesterday that the two countries had reached a ceasefire agreement.

The Senate briefing has been rescheduled for Thursday so that US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio can attend, according to multiple people with knowledge of the scheduling change who would only discuss it on the condition of anonymity.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, says on social media that the House briefing will now be held on Friday, “details to follow.”

The separate briefings for the House and Senate were to be led by CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, along with General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and deputy secretaries of state Christopher Landau and Steve Feinberg.

Democrats in Congress, along with some Republicans, have many questions about Trump’s unilateral decision to launch military action, arguing he should have gone to Congress for approval — or at least provided more justification for the attacks.

Congress has not received any new intelligence since Gabbard told lawmakers in March that the US believed Iran was not building a new nuclear weapon, according to two people familiar with the intelligence. The people insisted on anonymity to share what Congress has been told.

Many lawmakers feel they have been left in the dark on what led to the strikes and amid escalating tensions between the White House and Congress over the role of the United States internationally — disagreements that don’t always fall along party lines.

Democrats have been generally suspicious of the Republican president’s strategy, and his motives abroad, but some believe the US could have a role in supporting Israel against Iran. Others strongly believe the US should stay out of it.

Some of Trump’s strongest Republican supporters agree with the Democrats who oppose intervention, echoing the president’s years of arguments against “forever wars.” But most Republicans enthusiastically backed the strikes, saying Trump should have the power to act on his own.

France urges Iran to reach nuclear deal this summer or face ‘snapback’ UN sanctions

Ambassador Jerome Bonnafont, permanent representative of France to the United Nations office in Geneva, gives a speech during a special session of the UN Human Rights Council on the war in Ukraine, in Geneva on May 12, 2022. (Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

France’s US ambassador calls on Iran to resume full cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency and allow access for UN nuclear inspectors as soon as possible to its nuclear facilities to determine that its uranium stocks have not been moved.

Jerome Bonnafont also calls on Tehran to return to negotiations on “a robust, verifiable and lasting diplomatic solution” that responds to international concerns that it is pursuing nuclear weapons.

He speaks at a UN Security Council meeting on its resolution endorsing the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers to rein in its nuclear program that imposed wide-ranging sanctions on the Islamic Republic. The last sanctions, on Iran’s nuclear activities and transfers, expire on October 18.

Bonnafont says France and its European partners Britain and Germany, who are still part of the nuclear deal — US President Donald Trump pulled the US out in 2018 — are ready to use the 2015 resolution’s provision to “snapback” UN sanctions “if such an agreement were not to be found by the summer.”

He says an agreement with Iran needs to take into account the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons, regional stability and European security interests.

More than 830,000 New Yorkers vote in mayoral primary despite blistering heat

New York mayoral candidate, former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, comments after marking his ballot in the Democrat mayoral primary election in New York, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

More than 830,000 New Yorkers have voted in the city’s Democratic party mayoral primary, the city’s Board of Elections says.

The polls close in a few hours, at 9 p.m. local time.

The race will likely decide the next mayor of the mostly Democratic city, home to the largest Jewish community outside of Israel.

Jewish issues and Israel have been a central focus in the race.

Polls show that the two leading contenders are the pro-Israel Andrew Cuomo, New York State’s former governor, and the anti-Zionist Zohran Mamdani, a state assemblymember from Queens.

Temperatures soar to around 100°F (38°C), marking the hottest day in the city since 2012.

The heat has played a role in the election. Mamdani’s supporters tend to be younger, according to polling, and are expected to turn out in the heat at higher numbers.

Cuomo pushed for accommodations such as bottled water and air conditioning at polling stations to encourage his older supporters to vote.

Turnout is highest in Brooklyn, the most populous borough, with more than 300,000 voters casting ballots.

More than 380,000 New Yorkers also cast ballots during the election’s early voting.

Turnout is set to be higher than the last mayoral primary, in 2021, when slightly more than 1 million voters participated.

FBI shifts some agents back to counter-terrorism following Iran strike

The seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is seen on the Headquarters in Washington, Saturday, December 7, 2024. (AP/Jose Luis Magana, File)

The FBI has ramped up its efforts to monitor potential threats to the US from Iran following US President Donald Trump’s decision to attack the country’s nuclear facilities, two people briefed on the matter tell Reuters.

FBI officials have informed some agents in recent days that they will be exempt from a mandate to focus part of their time on immigration enforcement given the elevated threat level from Iran, the people say.

The directive relates to counter-terrorism, counterintelligence and cyber security agents who work on issues connected to Iran.

FBI field offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Philadelphia have canceled rotations for agents to work on immigration issues, one of the sources says.

NBC News and the Wall Street Journal earlier reported the shift in FBI resources.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards deny reports of drone attack in Tabriz

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards denies earlier reports today that there was a drone attack in the northwestern city of Tabriz, three Iranian news sites report.

Earlier today, Iranian media said air defenses were activated in the area amid a shaky ceasefire between Israel and Iran.

Trump says Israel won’t face consequences for violating Iran ceasefire because it ‘didn’t do anything’

US President Donald Trump adjusts his cap as he exits Air Force One, which landed at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, to attend the NATO summit in The Hague, on June 24, 2025. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP)

US President Donald Trump said earlier today that there would not be any consequences for Israel because it “didn’t do anything” against Iran after the ceasefire came into place this morning.

Speaking to reporters while en route to the Netherlands on Air Force One, Trump said Israel would have struck Iran had he not issued a statement on Truth Social warning against it.

Israel did end up hitting an Iranian radar target, but reportedly held back a much more expansive strike after a call Trump held with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Trump says he’s confident that there won’t be additional violations because “they’re both tired of it. I don’t think they want it to happen again.”

He insists that Iran won’t be able to have a nuclear weapon, but dodges two questions about whether he secured a commitment from Tehran that it won’t try to enrich uranium again.

“They’re not going to have enrichment, and they’re not going to have a nuclear weapon. They’re going to get on to being the great trading nation. They have a lot of oil,” he says.

Asked whether he’s concerned about Iranian sleeper cells in the US, Trump says that he is because former US president Joe Biden led them in. He doesn’t provide proof.

“But hopefully, we’ll take care of them,” he adds.

Trump mediator says Israel-Hamas ceasefire-hostage deal possible ‘within days’

Republican nominee Donald Trump and Arab Americans for Trump chair Bishara Bahbah at a campaign event ahead of the 2024 US presidential election. (Bisharah Bahbah/X)

The Palestinian-American political activist who has been mediating between the Trump administration and Hamas says it is possible to reach a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal “within days.”

Bishara Bahbah, who is mediating alongside Egypt and Qatar, says in an interview with the Al Ghad TV channel that he is optimistic about the chances for a deal following today’s ceasefire between Israel and Iran, which returns Gaza to the top of the regional agenda.

A senior Arab diplomat tells The Times of Israel that he is not as optimistic, saying that Israel has not budged from its refusal to provide an upfront commitment to permanently end the war. Israel has instead offered to spread out the release of hostages throughout the temporary ceasefire on the table, but the sequencing of the releases is not a critical issue blocking a deal, the Arab diplomat says.

While Bahbah clarifies that the Israel-Iran war is not linked to the Israel-Hamas war, he tells Al Ghad that Qatari and Egyptian mediators are now determined to secure a deal that ends the latter conflict now that the former one has been settled.

He asserts that there are very few disagreements remaining between Israel and Hamas and that the main one is about the wording of a particular sentence — an ostensible reference to the clause pertaining to the end of the temporary ceasefire and whether it is extended if the sides haven’t reached an agreement on the terms of a permanent ceasefire by then, as Hamas is demanding.

The interview is held in Egypt where Bahbah is now stationed in order to advance an agreement. He says he met with senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad in order to discuss remaining gaps in the talks.

Bahbah says there are several hostage deal proposals being discussed, with some being comprehensive and others being partial. He stresses that one of the key goals is to secure a surge of humanitarian aid into the Strip, given that Israel has only been allowing an average of roughly 60 trucks per day over the past month — far below the hundreds that the UN says is needed to address the humanitarian crisis.

US tells UN that strikes degraded Iran’s capacity to build nuclear weapon

US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Camille Shea speaks during a Security Council Meeting on the Israel-Iran conflict at United Nations headquarters on June 24, 2025 in New York. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP)

US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities “effectively fulfilled our narrow objective: to degrade Iran’s capacity to produce a nuclear weapon,” acting US envoy to the UN Dorothy Shea tells the United Nations Security Council.

“These strikes – in accordance with the inherent right to collective self-defense, consistent with the UN Charter – aimed to mitigate the threat posed by Iran to Israel, the region and to, more broadly, international peace and security,” Shea tells the 15-member council.

US President Donald Trump has said the strikes over the weekend “completely and totally obliterated” Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities. Earlier today, he announced that a ceasefire between Iran and Israel had started.

“I think it’s still early to assess all the strikes. We know we were able to push back the [nuclear] program. We were able to remove the imminent threat that we had,” Israel’s UN Ambassador Danny Danon tells reporters.

The UN Security Council met to discuss the implementation of a resolution adopted in 2015 to enshrine Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers, which lifted sanctions on Tehran in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program.

Trump quit the deal in 2018, during his first term, and restored all US sanctions on Tehran. In response, Iran began moving away from its nuclear-related commitments under the accord.

UN political affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo tells the Security Council that the objectives of the Iran nuclear deal and the UN resolution “have yet to be fully realized,” adding: “This is regrettable.”

Israeli intel said to assess Iran’s nuclear program set back ‘several years,’ not destroyed; US intel said to say ‘months’

This satellite picture by Planet Labs PBC shows Iran's underground nuclear enrichment site at Fordo following US airstrikes targeting the facility, on June 22, 2025. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

Israeli intelligence assesses that US and Israeli strikes set back Iran’s nuclear program by “several years,” but did not completely destroy it, as US President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed, a senior Israeli official tells The Times of Israel.

The Israeli intelligence assessment is constantly being updated and refined, and a more concrete understanding of the status of Iran’s nuclear program will be available in the coming weeks, the senior Israeli official says.

The Israeli official argues that the military strikes were still worthwhile because the negotiations that the US had previously been pursuing with Iran would not have been able to achieve such results.

Moreover, the strikes on the nuclear program along with other military targets in Iran will serve as a deterrent against the Islamic Republic again trying to enrich uranium.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir also said this evening, “We have set Iran’s nuclear project back by years, and the same goes for its missile program.”

CNN reported earlier that an early US intelligence assessment indicates the US military strikes did not destroy the core components of Tehran’s nuclear program and likely only set it back by months.