May 29: US says Israel okayed latest Gaza ceasefire proposal before it was sent to Hamas

COGAT says 76 humanitarian aid trucks entered Gaza today

Humanitarian aid trucks seen at the Kerem Shalom border crossing, on the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip, May 29, 2025. (Flash90)

The Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) announces that 76 trucks carrying humanitarian aid entered the Gaza Strip today.

Israel resumed aid deliveries to Gaza on May 19, after a pause since March 2.

Since then, 952 trucks of aid have entered the Strip.

Some of the truckloads have been taken to the new aid distribution sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. The contents of many of the trucks are still awaiting collection on the Gaza side of the Kerem Shalom crossing.

COGAT says the aid delivery comes “following the recommendation of professional IDF officials and in accordance with the directive of the political echelon.”

Today’s trucks include flour and food, COGAT says.

The aid underwent an inspection first by Israeli authorities before entering Gaza via the Kerem Shalom crossing.

Netanyahu will undergo routine medical exam tomorrow; Levin to be acting PM

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will undergo a “routine medical examination” tomorrow, says his office.

The cabinet is expected to appoint Justice Minister Yariv Levin as the acting prime minister during the check up, says the PMO.

In January, Netanyahu had his prostate removed.

In March 2024, the premier was put under full anesthesia to undergo surgery for a hernia. That same month, he missed several days of work after contracting the flu.

In 2023, he underwent surgery to have a pacemaker installed after suffering a transient heart block. The surgery came a week after he was hospitalized for what he said at the time was dehydration.

Lebanese media reports Israeli strike near 25 km from border

Lebanese media reports an Israeli strike near the village of Bnafoul, some 25 kilometers from the Israeli border and close to the coastal city of Sidon.

The IDF has not yet commented on the strike or earlier strikes in other areas of south Lebanon this evening.

نجاة طاقم الدفاع المدني كشافة الرسالة في بلدة بنعفول من غارة للطيران الحربي بعد توجههم للمكان المستهدف pic.twitter.com/ppcs4TUho7

— AlHadeel News (@news_hadeel) May 29, 2025

High Court rules police can’t ban anti-war posters of children killed in Gaza

The High Court of Justice says that the police are not entitled to ban the use of posters and other forms of expression at demonstrations, and that an anti-war protest planned for Acre on Friday afternoon must be allowed to go ahead.

The police banned the protest when they discovered the protesters would be holding posters with the pictures of Palestinian children killed during the current conflict in Gaza, saying it constituted “nationalistic incitement.” The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) and the Standing Together organization filed an urgent petition against the police on Thursday evening.

The High Court, in its ruling, points to previous court rulings, statements by the police commissioner and instructions issued by the attorney general, asserting that the police are not empowered to issue such restrictions on the freedom of expression at protests.

Hamas official: We’re still reviewing Witkoff proposal, but it doesn’t meet our demands

Hamas official Bassem Naim says in a statement that US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s hostage deal proposal “does not respond to any of our people’s demands.” However, he says his group’s leadership is still studying the document.

The US proposal, which was authorized by Israel before being sent to Hamas, effectively means “perpetuating the occupation and continuing the killing and famine — even during the temporary truce period,” Naim says.

Italy offers to treat Gazan boy who survived Israeli strike that killed his nine siblings

A wounded Palestinian child, the only surviving child of doctor Alaa al-Najjar, lies in a hospital bed at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis after an Israeli airstrike on May 23, 2025, allegedly hit their home. Al-Najjar lost 9 of her 10 children in the attack, which occurred shortly after she had left for work. (Hani Alshaer / Anadolu via Reuters)

Italy’s government has offered to treat a Palestinian child who survived an Israeli military strike in Gaza in which nine of his siblings died, heeding an appeal from the boy’s uncle.

“The Italian Government has expressed its willingness to transfer the seriously injured boy to Italy,” the foreign ministry says in a statement, adding that it was studying the feasibility of the operation.

The boy, Adam Al-Najjar, is in serious condition in Nasser Hospital, one of the few medical facilities still operating in southern Gaza, following the May 25 strike on his home in which he lost his siblings.

His parents are both doctors. His father, Hamdi Al-Najjar, was at home with the children and was also seriously hurt. He is being treated in the same hospital as his son, and where his wife Alaa works.

Adam’s uncle, Ali Al-Najjar, tells Italy’s la Repubblica newspaper that the 11-year-old boy has burns on his body, head injuries, a broken left hand and is not able to walk, and that the Nasser Hospital is ill-equipped to treat him.

“He needs to be taken away immediately, to a real hospital, outside of the Gaza Strip. I beg the Italian government to do something, take him, Italians save him,” he says.

Three soldiers lightly wounded by RPG fire in south Gaza; troops eliminated assailants

Three IDF soldiers were lightly wounded by RPG fire at a southern Gaza Strip building from which they were operating earlier today, the military says.

According to the IDF, the terror operatives behind the attack were eliminated a short while later.

The wounded troops were taken to a hospital.

NGOs petition High Court against police ban on anti-war posters of dead Gazan children

Activists hold up photos of children killed during the war in Gaza, during a protest calling to end the war, in Tel Aviv, April 26, 2025. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) and the Standing Together organization file an urgent petition to the High Court of Justice requesting that the court order the police to allow an anti-war protest to go ahead tomorrow in Acre, after a permit for the protest was rescinded.

According to the organizations, the police refused to allow the demonstration to go ahead due to the intention of activists to hold up posters bearing pictures of Palestinian children killed in the current conflict in Gaza.

A statement by the two groups said a police officer from the Acre police station phoned one of the activists and told them that holding up such posters was “nationalistic incitement,” that there would be no permit for the protest, and that anyone found to be holding such posters would be arrested.

The petition demands that the police enable the protest to go ahead, prevent it from being disrupted, and protect the demonstrators.

“A silent protest was planned for tomorrow in Acre, calling for an end to the war, the return of the hostages, and in memory of the children killed in Gaza,” Standing Together said.

“The participants intended to hold pictures of the children, without speeches or slogans. The protest was intended to be quiet, focused, and respectful,” the organization continued, adding that the ban on the protest was “a severe step to silence [us] and the silencing of a legitimate protest.”

Sivan Tahel, head of ACRI’s freedom of speech department, said, “The police repeatedly misuse police discretion for the purpose of politically suppressing protests, even though both the court and the police legal advisor have made it unequivocally clear that this is illegal.”

White House: Israel signed off on latest Gaza ceasefire proposal before it was sent to Hamas

Israel signed off on the latest US ceasefire proposal for Gaza before it was sent to the Palestinian Hamas group, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt says.

US President Donald Trump and special envoy Steve Witkoff submitted the proposal to Hamas after Israel signed off on it, she says.

Leavitt appears to be referring to the meeting Witkoff had on Tuesday with visiting Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, where the two went over the latest US proposal.

“I can also confirm that those discussions are continuing, and we hope that a ceasefire in Gaza will take place so we can return all of the hostages home,” Leavitt says at a briefing.

Asked if Hamas had accepted the proposal, she responds, “Not to my knowledge.”

IDF says it intercepted Houthi missile that triggered sirens across central Israel

A ballistic missile launched at Israel by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen was successfully intercepted by air defenses a short while ago, the military says.

Sirens had sounded across central Israel, several West Bank settlements, and towns near Jerusalem. Preceding the sirens by three minutes, an early warning was issued to residents, alerting civilians of the long-range missile attack via a push notification on their phones.

Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen have launched 42 ballistic missiles and at least 10 drones at Israel. Several of the missiles have fallen short.

Sirens triggered across central Israel following launch of missile from Yemen

Sirens are sounding across central Israel following the launch of a ballistic missile from Yemen.

The IDF says it is working to shoot down the projectile.

Before the sirens, an early warning alert was issued for a wider area.

Report: PM tells families of hostages he won’t end war before Hamas defeated

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told families of hostages that Hamas, not Israel, would determine the order in which captives are released under any future deal — and acknowledged that Israel has yet to decide how it would prioritize among the remaining hostages, Channel 12 reports.

The network airs what it says is a transcript of Netanyahu’s conversation with the families during their meeting earlier today:

Netanyahu: We are not ready to end the war without eliminating Hamas.

Family member: So, how will we bring everyone back?

Netanyahu: There are ways…

Family member: And what about the new proposal?

Netanyahu: Basically, we are receiving the new proposal and [US Special Envoy Steve] Witkoff’s outline. I have a real discussion about your loved ones, which is relevant to you.

Family member: But how can you guarantee that it will really reach the second stage?

Netanyahu: Last time, we didn’t break the deal — Hamas did.

Family member: We’re certain it won’t happen [stage 2]… We’ll find ourselves in the same place we were before.

Family member: You’re influenced by far-right extremists.

Netanyahu: That’s not true.

Family member: Who sets the lists?

Netanyahu: It’s not us, it’s Hamas.

Family member: It is you (Israel).

Netanyahu: Hamas determines the order of the releases. (Channel 12 says this appears to be an acknowledgment that Israel is the one to determine who will be released, while Hamas will decide the sequencing.)

Family member: But we didn’t ask about the order. So, how will you determine which of the kidnapped people will be released?

Netanyahu: I don’t know yet, we haven’t discussed it.

Family member: Of the living [hostages], they are all defined as humanitarian cases; of the dead, it cannot be said who is more dead.

Netanyahu: We haven’t dealt with it yet.

Family member: We ask that you not use the number 20 hostages because there are 58.

Netanyahu: I will take note.

Missile fired from Yemen, IDF says, adding that it’ll likely trigger sirens in central Israel

A ballistic missile has been launched from Yemen at Israel, the military says.

Sirens are expected to sound in the Jerusalem area and central Israel in the coming minutes.

The IDF says it is working to shoot down the projectile.

Report: Key clause of hostage deal would allow truce to extend if sides agree on terms and duration

A clause in the new hostage and ceasefire framework proposed by US special envoy Steve Witkoff could pave the way for a breakthrough agreement between Hamas and Israel, Channel 12 reports this evening.

According to the report, the outline includes a clause stating that if negotiations over a permanent ceasefire are not concluded within the 60-day period of the temporary truce, the ceasefire may be extended, provided both sides agree on the terms and duration.

Clause 10 of the accord, as later confirmed to The Times of Israel, indeed, states: “The negotiation on the necessary arrangements for a permanent ceasefire should be completed within 60 days. Upon agreement, the remaining hostages (living and deceased) from the “list of 58” provided by Israel will be released.”

The same clause goes on to say, however: “In case negotiations on arrangement for a permanent ceasefire are not concluded within the aforementioned time period, the temporary ceasefire may be extended under conditions and for a duration to be agreed upon by the parties so long as the parties are negotiating in good faith.”

Clause 11 elaborates on the point, as regards ongoing guarantees: “The mediators-guarantors (US, Egypt, Qatar) will guarantee that the ceasefire will continue for the 60-day period and for any agreed upon extension, will guarantee that serious discussions will be held on the necessary agreements for a permanent ceasefire and will make every effort to ensure the completion of the above-mentioned negotiations.”

Israel reportedly carrying out wave of strikes in southern Lebanon

Lebanese media reports a wave of airstrikes carried out in southern Lebanon a short while ago.

There is no immediate comment from the IDF.

غارتان عنيفتان إستهدفتا منطقة تبنا عند أطراف بلدة #البيسارية في قضاء صيدا – الزاهرني pic.twitter.com/ABXAKTkhqW

— هنا لبنان (@thisislebnews) May 29, 2025

Hamas leaning toward accepting Witkoff proposal, while making reservations — sources

Families of hostages held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza and activists protest for their release outside the Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv, May 28, 2025. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)

Hamas will likely accept US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s latest hostage deal proposal, while submitting a series of reservations, according to an Arab diplomat and a second source familiar with the negotiations.

Hamas is disappointed with the proposal and feels that Witkoff made crucial changes after conferring with Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer in Washington earlier this week, the second source tells The Times of Israel. Still, it doesn’t want to outright reject the US proposal, fearing it would then be blamed for lack of agreement

Hamas wants a clause added to the proposal requiring Israeli forces to withdraw to where they were stationed at the end of the previous ceasefire in March, along with a clause stipulating that aid will be distributed, according to international humanitarian standards, the two sources say. This appears to be an attempt to undercut Israel’s reliance on the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which international organizations have argued fails to adequately address the humanitarian crisis.

Most critically, Hamas wants the clause regarding the talks on the permanent ceasefire — which the deal envisions taking place during an initial 60-day truce — edited to more clearly prevent Israel from restarting the war, the sources say.

Negotiations are likely to drag out for at least several more days, as Israel and the US will subsequently have to respond to Hamas’s reservations, the Arab diplomat says.

Israeli, Hamas officials deny report that hostage deal reached

An Israeli official tells The Times of Israel that an Al Arabiya report claiming that Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire agreement is false.

Hamas’s Al Aqsa TV channel also denies the report, saying that the group is still reviewing the US proposal.

Citing unnamed sources, the Al Arabiya report claimed that the temporary truce would last 60 days and that US President Donald Trump would announce it later today.

There are no indications that the report is accurate.

Milan’s La Scala theatre fires usher who shouted ‘Free Palestine’ at gala event

Milan’s famed La Scala opera house has fired one of its ushers after she shouted a pro-Palestinian slogan at a gala event attended by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni earlier this month, two trade unions says.

The woman shouted “Free Palestine” as Meloni was taking her seat in the Royal Box at a May 4 concert in honor of the Asian Development Bank meeting in Milan, the theatre’s trade unions says.

“In the dismissal order, signed by Superintendent Fortunato Ortombina, it is emphasized that she betrayed trust by disobeying service orders, but we believe that she listened to her conscience,” the CUB union says in a statement.

“We will deploy all trade union actions to defend this brave girl who has our utmost solidarity,” CUB adds.

Italy’s government has been a vocal supporter of Israel, but its foreign minister said on Wednesday that Israel’s continued assault on the Gaza Strip had become unacceptable and had to stop immediately.

In Italy, opposition parties are planning a rally on June 7 calling for an end to the war in Gaza, while unions at La Scala have asked for a banner to be put up before performances on June 6 and 11, saying “Ceasefire, stop the massacres.”

UK man charged with 7 offenses for driving into Liverpool crowds

UK police have charged a 53-year-old man with seven offenses for allegedly ramming a car into crowds celebrating Liverpool’s Premier League title earlier this week.

The counts against Paul Doyle include dangerous driving and causing grievous bodily harm with intent, Merseyside Police assistant chief constable Jenny Sims tells a press conference.

US judge says she will block Trump freeze on foreign students at Harvard

A US judge says she will temporarily halt the Trump administration’s efforts to block Harvard university from enrolling and hosting foreign students.

The eventual order “gives some protection to international students” as Harvard and the administration prepare to make their cases, Judge Allison Burroughs says at a hearing in Boston.

WSJ: Lebanese army using Israeli intel to locate, destroy remaining Hezbollah stockpiles

The Lebanese army has been using Israeli intelligence to help locate and destroy remaining Hezbollah stockpiles in southern Lebanon, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The Israeli intelligence has been passed to the Lebanese army via the US, WSJ says.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam tells WSJ that the country has disarmed roughly 80% of the militias in southern Lebanon.

Czech Republic cools on near-term move of Israel embassy to Jerusalem

The Czech Republic will move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem “at the right moment,” Prime Minister Petr Fiala says, cooling the likelihood of a near-term move that the government had signaled after the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel.

The Czech Republic has been a strong ally of Israel on the international scene, at times breaking ranks with EU allies in United Nations votes on Middle East affairs.

After the October 2023 attack, Fiala said the embassy move to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv could come in a matter of months, but on Thursday, he indicated the move was some way off.

“Let’s make it clear: The Czech Republic will move the embassy, because it is right, the question is not if but when,” Fiala tells a hearing in the upper house of the Czech parliament.

He says the move should come at a time when Israel is not in a state of war with the Palestinian terror group Hamas in Gaza, and ideally when the Abraham Accords are widened to include more partners.

“Let’s be a little patient, but at the same time ready to make this step as soon as the right moment arrives.”

The Czech Republic opened a diplomatic office in Jerusalem in 2021, a step that drew protests from the Palestinian Authority and the Arab League.

It would be the second NATO country to move its embassy to Jerusalem after the United States, which did so in 2018 under the first Trump administration. It would be the first European Union state to move its embassy.

Israel’s government regards Jerusalem as the eternal and indivisible capital of the country, although that is not recognized by the vast majority of the international community.

Palestinians want East Jerusalem, which Israel captured in the 1967 Six Day War and later annexed, as the capital of a future Palestinian state.

Netanyahu said to tell hostage families he’s prepared to move forward with new Witkoff proposal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told hostage families earlier today that he is prepared to move forward with US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s latest temporary ceasefire and hostage deal proposal, the Axios news site reports.

Channel 12 reports that Netanyahu told the families that he “principally accepts” the proposal.

Hamas is reportedly unsatisfied with it, as it leaves an opening for Israel to resume fighting after the temporary truce concludes.

Israel sharpens top-level travel warning for Sinai, cites rising terror threats

The National Security Council renews its Level 4 travel warning for the Sinai Peninsula, saying that the threat of terrorism to Israelis in the area has recently increased even further.

The NSC stresses in a statement that the threat of terrorism in the peninsula, which has been under an elevated warning since the war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, “has been high for some time, and that recently, these threats have become more acute specifically toward Israelis intending to visit the area.”

“The NSC urges the Israeli public to carefully review their travel plans and to act in accordance with the NSC’s recommendations and guidelines, which appear on its website,” writes the council.

Witkoff proposal doesn’t stipulate IDF redeployment or aid mechanisms — official

The latest hostage deal proposal from US special envoy Steve Witkoff does not delineate where IDF forces would have to redeploy once it comes into effect, a senior Israeli official says.

Hamas has demanded that Israeli forces eventually be fully withdrawn from the Strip.

The senior Israeli official adds that the new Witkoff terms do not dictate “the manner in which aid would be distributed within the framework of a ceasefire.”

A separate Israeli official told The Times of Israel earlier today that the United Nations would resume providing aid during a ceasefire instead of the Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Fund, which began operations this week amid chaos and occasional violence at newly opened distribution points.

Hamas said disappointed with latest Witkoff proposal as it gives Israel opening to resume fighting

Hamas is disappointed with the latest US hostage deal proposal, as it does not include a clear US guarantee that the temporary truce it outlines will lead to a permanent ceasefire, a source familiar with the negotiations tells the Axios news site.

The proposal from US special envoy to the Mideast Steve Witkoff envisions the sides holding negotiations on the terms of a permanent ceasefire during the 60-day temporary truce. However, the offer doesn’t stipulate that if those talks extend beyond 60 days, the temporary truce will be extended accordingly, the source says.

Hamas is seeking a proposal that ensures this extension, given that in the previous deal signed in January, Israel refused to hold negotiations on the terms of a permanent ceasefire and resumed fighting in Gaza after the temporary truce expired.

The source says that Hamas officials have not yet formally rejected the proposal — only moments ago did they publicly confirm having received it. However, they have expressed their disappointment with its terms to the mediators.

Gaza Humanitarian Foundation says it distributed 18 trucks of aid today after opening third site

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation says it opened up a third aid distribution site today in the Strip.

The third site is located in the central Gaza’s Bureij, adjacent to the IDF’s Netzarim corridor. It joins two sites that began operating earlier this week in Rafah. An additional site in Rafah is slated to open in the coming days. GHF has faced criticism due to the lack of access for tens of thousands of residents still located in north Gaza, but it says that it plans to open additional sites — including in the northern Strip — in the coming weeks.

GHF says it distributed 17,280 boxes of aid at all three of its sites today.

Each box is meant to provide three meals a deal, for roughly four days, for a family of roughly five people.

The total number of trucks unloaded at the three GHF sites today was just 18, though. 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.

After denying that Palestinians at its sites have been shot at, a GHF spokesperson confirms that its American security contractors operating its Bureij distribution center fired smoke bombs and warning shots at a crowd that wouldn’t disperse. There were no injuries. Footage posted on social media of the incident showed dozens of civilians fleeing the scene as shots and stun grenades were apparently fired in their direction.

Hamas says it has received latest Witkoff hostage deal proposal and is reviewing it

Hamas announces that it has received US special envoy to the Mideast Steve Witkoff’s latest hostage deal proposal.

The terror group says it will “review it responsibly” and will respond to it in a way that “realizes the interests of our people and [secures] a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.”

WATCH: Capital Jewish Museum reopens after killing of Israeli embassy staffers

The Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, reopens after a shooter killed two Israeli embassy staffers outside the museum last week.

Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, a couple, were gunned down after leaving an event at the museum on Wednesday night. The alleged attacker shouted “Free Palestine” after the shooting and told police, “I did it for Gaza.”

The museum reopens with a program memorializing Lischinsky and Milgrim.

Speakers at the event include the museum leadership, elected officials and local clergy.

The museum will reopen to the public today at noon.

Russia slams Israeli attacks on Gaza as ‘collective punishment’ of civilians

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov slams Israeli strikes in Gaza as “collective punishment of the civilian population,” in some of Moscow’s strongest criticism of Israel as it steps up its offensive.

The Israeli military has recently stepped up its offensive in the territory in what it says is a renewed push to destroy Hamas, whose October 7, 2023, attack triggered the war.

“What is happening in Gaza is incomprehensible and indescribable,” Lavrov says at a regional forum.

“The measures taken by Israel” in response to the October 7 attack by Hamas “constitute collective punishment of the civilian population,” he added.

Russia and Israel have traditionally enjoyed warm relations — almost a fifth of Israel’s population is Russian-speaking and Moscow has for years strove to maintain cordial ties with all major powers in the Middle East.

The two countries also closely coordinate military actions in Syria, and Israel has so far abstained from sharp criticism of Russia’s offensive on Ukraine and has not joined Western-led sanctions on Moscow.

But amid its offensive in Ukraine, Russia has been establishing closer diplomatic and business ties with Arab countries.

“We, together with our Arab friends and the overwhelming majority of other countries, insist that the bloodshed must stop immediately,” Lavrov says.

UK slams new Israeli settlements as ‘deliberate obstacle’ to Palestinian state

Israel’s approval of 22 new settlements in the West Bank is a “deliberate obstacle to Palestinian statehood”, Britain’s Middle East minister Hamish Falconer says.

“The UK condemns these actions,” he writes on X. “Settlements are illegal under international law, further imperil the two state solution, and do not protect Israel.”

The Israeli government’s approval of 22 new settlements in the occupied West Bank is a deliberate obstacle to Palestinian statehood.

The UK condemns these actions. Settlements are illegal under international law, further imperil the two state solution, and do not protect Israel.

— Hamish Falconer MP (@HFalconerMP) May 29, 2025

Defense Ministry civilian contractor killed in blast during IDF operations in northern Gaza — army

David Libi, a Defense Ministry contractor killed in Gaza on May 29, 2025. (Courtesy)

A Defense Ministry civilian contractor was killed by an explosive device during IDF operations in the northern Gaza Strip earlier today, the military announces.

He is named as David Libi, 19, from the West Bank settlement outpost of Malachei Shalom.

Libi was operating heavy engineering machinery in the Jabalia area, when he was hit by a bomb apparently planted there by terror operatives, according to an IDF probe.

He is the third Defense Ministry contractor to be killed amid army operations in Gaza since the start of the war.

44-year-old shot dead in northern town of Tamra — police

A 44-year-old man was shot dead in the northern town of Tamra earlier today, police say.

He was critically injured in the shooting and taken by paramedics to the Rambam Medical Center, then pronounced dead by hospital staff.

An additional victim was also injured and taken to the hospital in critical condition, per the Arab48 outlet.

Police are investigating the incident. They have not yet apprehended any suspects.

Gantz brands current and previous coalitions ‘failures,’ while urging broad centrist gov’t

National Unity party head Benny Gantz calls for a broad centrist government that would bridge Israel’s political divide, rejecting both the current hard-right coalition and the previous “change government” as failures — and appearing to dismiss a center-left merger proposal put forward earlier in the day by The Democrats party chairman Yair Golan.

At the Berl Katznelson Foundation conference, Gantz says a 75-seat coalition representing “100% of Israelis” is needed to stabilize the country and tackle unresolved issues ranging from constitutional reform to religion and state.

Forming another narrow government — even with a slim majority — would only deepen the rifts in Israeli society, Gantz warns, calling instead for a cross-bloc consensus that would isolate extremists.

“I want to defeat our enemies and reach internal consensus within Israeli society,” he says. “The next election is about whether the Israeli majority can isolate the extremists and reach agreements across blocs.”

Gantz emphasizes that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could not lead such a government, calling him “the father of division.”

“I humbly believe I am the best person to lead such a government,” Gantz claims, stressing that his plan “is not a political strategy to gain votes.”

Argentina’s Milei to receive Genesis Prize in Israel on June 11

Argentina's President Javier Milei waves as he arrives for his speech at the Annual Meeting of World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, January 23, 2025. (AP Photo/ Markus Schreiber)

Argentina’s President Javier Milei will visit Israel on June 11 to receive the Genesis Prize at a special ceremony at the Knesset.

The prize will be presented to Milei by Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana and chairman of the Genesis Prize Stan Polovets, after which Argentina’s president will deliver a nationally televised speech to Israel’s lawmakers. A previous visit scheduled for March was postponed for Milei to tend to domestic issues.

Milei was awarded the prize, sometimes referred to as “the Jewish Nobel Prize,” for reversing Argentina’s historic anti-Israel positions at the UN, designating Hamas and Hezbollah as terrorist groups, and reopening investigations into past anti-Jewish attacks, the Genesis Prize Foundation has said. The Genesis Prize committee also cited his success in stabilizing Argentina’s economy and achieving a fiscal surplus.

As all other Genesis Prize laureates have done, Milei declined the $1 million prize money. In his honor, the Genesis Prize Foundation will launch a new initiative to improve Israel’s ties with Latin American nations and promote shared values like democracy, economic reform and opposition to antisemitism.

IDF says it struck Hezbollah member trying to restore previously hit site in southern Lebanon

The IDF says it struck a Hezbollah operative near the Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon a short while ago.

According to the military, the operative was attempting to restore a major Hezbollah site in the area that had been struck several times in recent weeks.

More than 180 Hezbollah operatives have been killed in Israeli strikes since the start of the November 2024 ceasefire in Lebanon.

Netanyahu to discuss latest US ceasefire proposal with ministers at 5 p.m.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, second from left, leads a special cabinet meeting on Jerusalem Day in the City of David, outside Jerusalem's Old City, May 26, 2025. (Flash90)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will hold a security consultation at 5 p.m. with his informal small circle of ministers, an adviser to one of the ministers tells The Times of Israel.

The forum will discuss the latest Gaza hostage release proposal from the White House.

Footage allegedly shows American security guards throwing stun grenades at Gazans outside aid site

Footage circulated by Palestinian media purportedly shows members of an American security company throwing stun grenades at Gazans outside an aid distribution site in the Netzarim Corridor area.

The aid distribution site south of Gaza City is the third compound that is being operated by the Israel- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

GHF has no immediate comment on the stun grenades apparently thrown by its American security subcontractors.

جيش الاحتلال يطلق قنابل غاز على المواطنين خلال توجههم لاستلام مساعدات الشركة الأمريكية في نيتساريم وسط قطاع غزة pic.twitter.com/6uYDOm9x9n

— شبكة فلسطين للحوار (@paldf) May 29, 2025

US envoy says Syria-Israel peace achievable, should start with non-aggression pact

US envoy for Syria Thomas Barrack says the United States believes peace between Syria and Israel is achievable, suggesting it should commence with a non-aggression agreement and a definition of borders and boundaries.

Barrack says US President Donald Trump will declare that Syria is not a state sponsor of terrorism.

16 protesters arrested last night for breaking into Likud HQ set to be charged — lawyers

Police work to remove protesters from the road in front of the Likud party headquarters in Tel Aviv, May 28, 2025. (Yael Gadot/Pro-Democracy Protest Movement)

Some 16 protesters arrested last night after breaking into the Likud party headquarters are on their way to be charged in the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court, an anti-government protester support organization says, after they were held overnight at the Salame police station in the city’s south.

They will be split into two groups and brought before two judges, the Protest Detainee Legal Support Front says.

Almost three dozen more detainees remain in police custody after dozens of anti-government protesters broke into the ruling party’s headquarters building, Metzudat Zeev, in Tel Aviv last night.

According to attorney Gaby Lasky, a former MK who is representing the detainees, one of those arrested was held in handcuffs all night.

According to the Protest Detainee Legal Support Front, 60 protesters were arrested during the demonstrations. Before some activists broke into the Likud HQ, a Qatari flag with the caption “Embassy of Qatar” in Hebrew and Arabic was projected onto the building, in reference to investigations into the alleged connections of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s close aides with Doha, referred to as Qatargate.

The detainees’ support organization accuses the police of deliberately dragging out the decision-making process regarding who to charge with criminal violations and who to release as a way to “punish and break” those involved in legitimate protest.

Lapid resists Golan’s call for merger, arguing it would only assist Netanyahu

(L) Yesh Atid leader MK Yair Lapid leads a faction meeting at the Knesset on May 12, 2025 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90) and (R) The Democrats party leader Yair Golan holds a press conference in Tel Aviv, May 20, 2025 (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid is pushing back against The Democrats party leader Yair Golan’s call for a center-left merger ahead of the next election, saying that this would only serve to benefit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Hebrew media outlets report, citing a statement attributed to officials close to Lapid.

“It’s time for Yair Golan to stop helping Netanyahu with harmful announcements,” the statement says. “He knows he’s harming the chances of winning the election. He has been presented with the polls that prove such a union only makes the bloc smaller and returns voters to Netanyahu. It isn’t clear why he is insisting on making himself the right’s biggest asset just for headlines.”

In turn, a statement attributed to officials close to Golan retorts that “it’s high time for us to stop running after polls and start forming a moral and ideological backbone,” adding that previous elections saw center-left politicians act in accordance with strategists’ analyses and opinion surveys, only to end up losing the vote.

French bill moves forward to posthumously promote Alfred Dreyfus

Captain Alfred Dreyfus (2nd R) speaks with General Gillain (C) after being awarded the Legion of honor award during a ceremony marking Dreyfus' rehabilitation, at Ecole Militaire in Paris, on July 21, 1906 (Photo by AFP)

France’s National Defence and Armed Forces Committee of the National Assembly has voted unanimously to posthumously promote Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish French army captain wrongly convicted of treason in 1894, to the rank of brigadier general, the French Embassy in Israel announces.

This clears the way for the bill’s adoption by the full Assembly in a plenary session on June 2.

“The French Nation is just and does not forget,” the embassy says in a statement. “This rights an injustice, honors a warrior, and clarifies that antisemitism, from history to today, will never have a place in the Republic.”

The trial of Alfred Dreyfus was a pivotal event in French and Zionist history, revealing deep underlying antisemitism that brought Theodor Herzl, the father of modern Zionism, to the conclusion that Jews would only be safe in a nation of their own.

After Dreyfus, a Jewish French army officer, was wrongfully convicted of treason for allegedly passing military secrets to Germany, he was sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil’s Island based on flimsy and forged evidence. When new evidence later emerged that another officer, Ferdinand Walsin Esterhazy, was the real culprit, the affair ignited public outrage, especially after Émile Zola’s famous open letter “J’accuse!” accused the government of a cover-up.

Dreyfus was exonerated in 1906 and reinstated with the rank of major. He served during World War I and died in 1935, aged 76.

Hamas-run Gaza authorities claim 44 killed today in Israeli attacks

Gaza’s Hamas-run civil defense agency says Israeli attacks have killed 44 people today, including 23 in an attack on a home in the Strip’s center.

“Forty-four people have been killed in Israeli raids on the Gaza Strip,” civil defense official Mohammad Al-Mughayyir tells AFP. “Twenty-three people were killed, others injured and several [are] missing following an Israeli strike on the Qreinawi family’s home east of Al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza.”

Hamas-given death tolls cannot be verified and routinely do not differentiate between civilians and fighters. Israel says it has killed some 20,000 combatants in battle as of January and another 1,600 terrorists inside Israel on and immediately after Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attak on Israel. Israel has said it seeks to minimize civilian fatalities and stresses that Hamas uses Gaza’s civilians as human shields, fighting from civilian areas including homes, hospitals, schools and mosques.

IDF tells central Gaza residents to stay away from Hamas sites, says operatives ‘hiding among you’

The IDF issues an unusual warning to Palestinians in the Nuseirat area of central Gaza, telling them to stay away from several locations where the military claims Hamas operatives are.

The IDF names six prominent Hamas operatives in its announcement.

“Stay away from Hamas operatives hiding among you and expel them before it’s too late!” says Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman.

#عاجل ‼️ تحذير إلى سكان قطاع غزة في منطقة النصيرات – ابتعدوا عن عناصر حماس المختبئون بينكم واطردوهم قبل فوات الأوان!
⭕️الصورة المرفقة تُظهر طريقة عمل عناصر حماس الإرهابية في منطقتكم حيث يستخدمون البنى التحتية المدنية لديكم ويتموضعون في محيطكم.
⭕️تستغل حماس البنى التحتية المدنية… pic.twitter.com/LMFyEs5Lr3

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) May 29, 2025

Shin Bet says it foiled 85 Iranian cyberattacks, including phishing attempts posing as Israeli official

Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs at the Knesset, in Jerusalem on July 31, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

The Shin Bet announces that it has thwarted 85 Iranian cyberattacks since the beginning of 2025, aimed at high-profile Israeli civilians, including security officials, politicians, academics and journalists.

The cyber campaigns, largely phishing attempts, sought to gain access to victims’ digital devices and accounts to collect sensitive personal information.

According to the Shin Bet, Iran’s goal is to use this intelligence to carry out targeted attacks within Israel, possibly through locally recruited operatives. The phishing attempts often came via email, WhatsApp or Telegram, using fake Google Meet links or disguised apps to steal credentials and install spyware.

A security official says that while these attacks are sophisticated, they are preventable.

“The public is urged to remain vigilant and cautious, as these cyberattacks can be prevented before they occur through awareness, caution, skepticism and responsible online behavior,” the official says, emphasizing the importance of avoiding unfamiliar links.

In one case, an Iranian operative posed as Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs in an attempt to lure an Israeli citizen. However, the individual’s vigilance and quick report to security authorities thwarted the attack before any damage was done, the Shin Bet says.

2 indicted over January murder of Arab crime boss

State prosecutors have charged two young men with the murder of Tira crime boss Marwan Nasser earlier this year.

The two defendants — Tira resident Hamze Haskiya, 20, and Taybeh resident Saber Masarwa, 24 — are charged with aggravated murder and arson.

According to the indictment, the defendants and their accomplices plotted to kill Nasser as part of a dispute between rival gangs. They were responsible for driving the assailants away from the crime scene in two separate getaway cars.

Equipped with a pistol and an AK-47, the defendants and their accomplices waited outside Nasser’s home overnight, January 8-9. When he arrived home in his car, two of the other accomplices ran towards him and shot him 36 times at close range. The assailants then fled the scene on foot, reached the defendants in the two getaway cars, and drove off.

The defendants are said to have later set fire to one of the cars in an attempt to cover their tracks.

The pair fled to a hotel in Tel Aviv, then to the West Bank. Prosecutors say there are additional suspects still at large.

Nasser’s murder in early January marked this year’s first homicide in Arab society. Some 94 other Arab Israelis have been killed in violent criminal incidents since then, according to the Abraham Initiatives watchdog.

The 51-year-old crime boss had spent over a decade in prison on counts of extortion, money laundering and discharge of a firearm, Haaretz reported at the time of his murder. After his release from jail in 2019, Nasser tried to regain control over businesses in Tira, reigniting a bloody gang war in the city.

Prosecutors are requesting that the two defendants be kept in detention until the end of proceedings against them.

Report: Saudi, Qatari, UAE leaders told Trump they oppose strike on Iran

The leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates told US President Donald Trump during his Middle East visit earlier this month that they oppose a military strike on Iran’s nuclear program, the Walla news site reports, citing three officials familiar with the details.

They also told Trump that he should keep working for a nuclear deal with Iran, according to the outlet.

Qatari Emir Tamim Al Thani, Emirati President Mohammed Bin Zayed and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman said that their countries would be targeted by Iran in case of an attack.

US officials are worried that Israel could decide to carry out strikes on Iran’s nuclear program without much warning, The New York Times reported yesterday.

IDF says dozens of Gaza terror targets struck in past day

The Israeli Air Force struck dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip over the past day, the military says.

According to the IDF, the targets included terror operatives, buildings used by terror groups, observation and sniper posts, tunnels and other infrastructure.

The airstrikes come as five IDF divisions operate in Gaza.

The IDF says ground forces killed several operatives and destroyed weapons and other terror infrastructure, including tunnels, in the past day.

Official: Witkoff-Dermer meeting ‘uneasy,’ US envoy growing impatient with Israel

White House special envoy Steve Witkoff speaks with journalists after a signing ceremony between President Donald Trump and Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani at the Amiri Diwan in Doha, Qatar, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Washington meeting between Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and US special envoy Steve Witkoff on Iran and Hamas hostages earlier this week was “uneasy,” an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel.

Witkoff is getting impatient with Israel, especially around the “drama,” says the official.

The official points to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s video on Monday in which he said he hoped to make an announcement regarding hostages held in Gaza “today or tomorrow.”

IDF chief halts mobility unit pilot program for female combat troops

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir has ordered a halt to a pilot program for female soldiers to serve in combat mobility units in the Ground Forces, citing their limited combat and physical fitness.

The primary mission of the mobility units is to deliver equipment and supplies to infantry forces operating in enemy territory. Other tasks include evacuating wounded soldiers, including under fire.

The decision was made after Zamir was presented with findings from the pilot program’s six months of training.

According to the IDF, the findings showed that female troops had “very high” abilities in “professional areas,” similar to those of men. However, in combat and physical fitness, the trainees were not expected to successfully complete the requirements for the profession.

The IDF states that medical data also indicates a possible health risk resulting from continued training, partly due to the expected increase in physical difficulty.

Therefore, the IDF says Zamir ordered a halt to the pilot program, and instead open a new pilot next year for female troops to serve in other infantry roles.

The female troops who began the mobility training in November 2024 will be dispersed among other units and serve in combat or noncombat roles, according to their choice.

In all, 34 female soldiers began the combat mobility training, although only 23 remained after six months.

The IDF has been increasingly opening up units for female conscripts, and the military says more than 90% of roles are currently open to women. Women comprise some 20% of combat troops, according to the IDF.

‘No words can console’: Netanyahu, Sa’ar mourn death of pregnant terror victim’s infant son

Hananel Gez, widower of terror victim Tzeela Gez, with their baby Ravid Haim who was delivered in an emergency C-section following the Palestinian shooting attack that killed his mother. The baby died on May 29, 2025. (Courtesy of the Gez Family)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expresses “deep sorrow” over the death today of Ravid Haim Gez, the infant son of Tzeela Gez who was killed earlier this month by a Palestinian terrorist in a shooting attack in the northern West Bank.

“With deep sorrow and pain, we received the news this morning of the death of the infant Ravid Haim,” writes the premier in a statement.

Gez was attacked while driving to the hospital with her husband, Hananel Gez, to deliver her baby on May 14. Tzeela was fatally shot, while her baby died this morning after two weeks of intensive care, the Samaria Regional Council announced.

“There are no words that can console over the murder of a newborn baby together with his mother,” says Netanyahu.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar writes on X, “Tragically, he did not survive.”

Tzeela Gez was brutally murdered while on her way to the hospital to give birth.
Doctors fought for the life of Ravid Chaim, her newborn baby, for two weeks. Tragically, he did not survive.
He passed away today.
Jews living in Judea and Samaria are the most attacked population… pic.twitter.com/hWiVx0FreS

— Gideon Sa'ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) May 29, 2025

Both leaders take the opportunity to praise the Israeli settler population and condemn acts of terrorism against them.

“The heroism of the pioneering settlers in Judea and Samaria, and their self-sacrifice — that is what will defeat all our enemies,” says Netanyahu, using the biblical term for the West Bank.

Sa’ar writes that “‎Jews living in Judea and Samaria are the population most attacked by terrorism in the world. ‎Despite this, too many in the international community prefer to speak about ‘settler violence,’ instead of the terror against settlers.”

Footage from central Gaza shows hundreds gather at newly opened aid distribution center

Displaced Palestinians carrying relief supplies from the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a private US-backed aid group, return from aid distribution centers in Rafah to their tents in the southern Gaza Strip on May 29, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

Footage circulating on social media shows hundreds of Gazans arriving in the past few hours at a newly opened aid distribution center in the central part of the Strip, near Netzarim Corridor.

The center is part of the new aid mechanism initiated by the United States and Israel and operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

The footage shows people gathering inside a fenced area, with some seen leaving carrying food packages.

עזתים מגיעים – וחוזרים עם חבילות – ממרכז חלוקת הסיוע במרכז הרצועה סמוך לציר נצרים שנפתח היום pic.twitter.com/27TgpN7ze3

— Nurit Yohanan (@nurityohanan) May 29, 2025

مشاهد تظهر حشودا من النازحين بعد حصول عدد منهم على المساعدات من مركز للتوزيع بمنطقة محور نتساريم pic.twitter.com/WmuA6V285s

— التلفزيون العربي (@AlarabyTV) May 29, 2025

Baby of pregnant terror victim dies in hospital after 2-week fight for his life

Hananel Gez, widower of terror victim Tzeela Gez, with their baby Ravid Haim who was delivered in an emergency C-section following the Palestinian shooting attack that killed his mother. The baby died on May 29, 2025. (Courtesy of the Gez Family)

The baby of Tzeela Gez, who was shot and killed in a Palestinian terror attack in the northern West Bank earlier this month, died this morning in the hospital, the Samaria Regional Council announces.

Gez was shot and fatally wounded as she was driving to the hospital with her husband to give birth on the night of May 14. She was rushed to Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva after the terror attack and her baby was delivered by emergency C-section.

The baby, who was named Ravid Haim last week by his father in accordance with his wife’s wishes, had been in serious condition since his birth, and he died this morning in hospital despite the efforts of the medical team treating him.

Meital Ben Yosef, head of the Bruchin settlement where the Gez family lives, says the community is “in pain and mourning” for the passing of Ravid Haim.

“A baby who was supposed to be born and enter the world with great joy and great expectations took his last breath this morning after teetering between life and death since the day he was born exactly two weeks ago,” says Ben Yosef.

“A wretched and vile terrorist murdered a mother and her son together in an attempt to erase and destroy the Jewish people,” she continues, adding that Bruchin will “increase construction and settlement and expand the boundaries of life and holiness,” and “make it clear to all our enemies that we are here in the inheritance of our ancestors and will remain here forever!”

Israeli official confirms details of new US Gaza outline, which doesn’t include Israeli pledge to end war

The new US proposal from special envoy Steve Witkoff would see the release of 10 living hostages held in Gaza and the return of the bodies of 18 deceased hostages, in exchange for a 60-day ceasefire, an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel, confirming reports in Hebrew media.

In the proposal, the United Nations would resume providing humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.

The text of the agreement will not contain an Israeli promise to end the war, says the official.

Artificial heart transplanted in patient at Jerusalem hospital, in Israel first

An artificial heart installed in a patient at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem, in an image released on May 29, 2025. (Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital)

An artificial heart has been successfully transplanted for the first time in Israel, saving the life of a patient, 63, Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital says.

In a seven-hour surgery this week, the patient’s heart was completely removed and replaced with a totally artificial heart made of titanium, combined with biological tissues from animals and advanced sensors.

To date, only 114 such surgeries have been performed worldwide.

The cost of the artificial heart is NIS 1.6 million ($455,472), covered by Clalit Health Services, the patient’s health fund.

“This is a major event in Israel, one that has never happened before,” says Prof. Ofer Amir, senior cardiologist and director of Hadassah’s Heart Institute, who led the operation.

IDF demolishes long Hamas attack tunnel with several booby-trapped exits, kills operatives

The IDF says it recently demolished a Hamas attack tunnel during operations of the Gaza Division and the Yahalom combat engineering unit in the southern Gaza Strip.

The tunnel was hundreds of meters long and had several exits, some of them rigged with explosives, the army says.

During the efforts to uncover and demolish the tunnel, the IDF says troops spotted a cell of operatives emerging from one of the shafts. The troops killed the cell, according to the IDF.

Lapid urges government to ‘publicly and immediately’ accept new US proposal on Gaza

Israel should “publicly and immediately” accept the new American proposal for a ceasefire and hostage deal with Hamas, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid says at a conference titled “Democratic Israel Will Win,” hosted by the Berl Katznelson Foundation.

Lapid reiterates his past promise to give Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “full safety net” to approve such a deal even if far-right coalition parties vote against it.

Yair Golan urges center-left merger with Lapid, Gantz to build a united front against Netanyahu

Leader of The Democrats party Yair Golan leads a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, May 26, 2025. (Noam Revkin Fenton/Flash90)

The Democrats party leader Yair Golan calls for a pre-election merger between his left-wing party, Yair Lapid’s center-left Yesh Atid and Benny Gantz’s centrist National Unity, which will compete with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc for the leadership of Israel.

“We must unite before the elections and form the largest party within the bloc, a party that will be the alternative to lead the next government and set Israel’s course,” Golan says at a conference titled “Democratic Israel Will Win,” hosted by the Berl Katznelson Foundation.

He urges Lapid and Gantz to “get under the stretcher” and work together to offer voters what he refers to as a democratic Zionist alternative.

Golan emphasizes the need to rebuild Israel’s political, security and democratic backbone, sharply criticizing the current right-wing government as “anti-Zionist and anti-democratic.” He says the only viable path forward includes ending the war against Hamas, securing the return of the hostages held in Gaza, and pursuing a clear diplomatic horizon regarding the Palestinians.

Golan also stresses a broader united front, saying: “We — The Democrats, Lapid, Gantz, [Gadi] Eisenkot, [Avigdor] Liberman, and [Naftali] Bennett, once he officially joins [the race] — we are all on the same side. This is our common ground. This is the next unity government.”

‘A lifeline for Hamas’: More ministers slam new US ceasefire proposal

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stresses his opposition to the new US proposal for a phased ceasefire and hostage deal with Hamas.

“I object to giving a lifeline to Hamas,” Smotrich tells Radio 103FM. “Hamas is in distress. The new [Israeli-backed] system for handing out aid cuts off Hamas from the residents.

“We’re not leaving areas we’ve conquered,” he adds in response to reports that the outline would include an IDF pullout from areas recently taken over by the IDF, including the Morag Corridor.

Settlements Minister Orit Strock exhorts Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on X, arguing that Hamas is “on its knees” and that Israel mustn’t “fold” now.

Residents evacuated as sinkhole opens up in apartment building’s parking lot in Ramat Gan

A sinkhole has opened up in the parking lot of an apartment building in the Tel Aviv suburb of Ramat Gan, the Fire and Rescue Service says, adding that no injuries or damage have been caused.

Residents have been evacuated from the 7-story building and engineers have been called to the scene, which is next to a construction site.

Israeli, Arab reports say new US proposal would see 10 hostages freed in 1st week, not 9

Hebrew media reports that Israeli officials are now claiming the new American proposal for a truce and hostage deal with Hamas would include the release of 10 live hostages, not nine as previously reported.

Similarly, the pan-Arab channel Al Ghad reports that the outline was submitted overnight to both Hamas and Israel, and that it includes a 60-day ceasefire, during which 10 living hostages and 18 bodies of hostages would be released — half on the first day of the truce, and the other half on the seventh day.

In return, Israel would release 125 Palestinian terror convicts serving life sentences, 1,111 Gazans detained since the start of the war on October 7, 2023, and 180 bodies of Palestinians currently held by Israel.

The agreement also reportedly includes the entry of humanitarian aid during the ceasefire period and a withdrawal of Israeli forces to agreed-upon lines. Additionally, the proposal contains an American guarantee to continue negotiations throughout the ceasefire until a permanent ceasefire is reached, Al Ghad reports, though Hebrew media emphasize that it gives Israel the option of resuming fighting if these talks fail.

Minister, hostage families criticize reported new US-proposed ceasefire-hostage deal

Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli seen after a court hearing in Lod of the Shin Bet official arrested in suspicion of leaking classified information, April 15, 2025. (Jonathan Shaul/Flash90)

Diaspora Minister Amichai Chikli voices objection to the new reported US outline for a ceasefire-hostage deal, citing the fact that it continues the phased framework rather than seeing all the hostages released at once.

“Enough with these salami tactics,” Chikli tweets, advocating for letting the IDF “complete the mission” of taking over Gaza and compelling Hamas to surrender and disarm. He also calls for agreeing on the return of all abductees in return for letting surviving Hamas leaders leave the Strip.

Some relatives of hostages also criticize the reported proposal.

“This is a cruel and immoral deal that doesn’t achieve the goal” of removing Hamas from Gaza,” captive Avinatan Or’s uncle, Shimon Or, tells Ynet, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of clinging on to an outdated idea that “one can make deals with Hamas,” and arguing that even if the war is halted, the terror group won’t release all the hostages.

Yael Adar, mother of abductee Tamir Adar, tells the outlet that she prefers a comprehensive deal that returns all the hostages since “partial deals always pose the question of who’s on the list.”

Shas joins Haredi threat to bolt coalition next week if enlistment law impasse not solved

As tensions grow over the Haredi enlistment law and coalition negotiations continue over the ongoing failure to pass one, senior officials in the ultra-Orthodox Shas party say their spiritual leadership will meet immediately after Monday’s Shavuot holiday to decide whether to remain in the government, joining a similar ultimatum by fellow Haredi party United Torah Judaism.

According to a front-page report in HaDerech, the official Shas newspaper, the party’s Council of Torah Sages is expected to convene following the holiday to discuss the lack of progress on legislation meant to protect yeshiva students’ full-time Torah study and keep them from being conscripted.

Shas officials call on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accelerate negotiations and prevent a political crisis. “We hope the prime minister will take responsibility and expedite the negotiations without delay,” the newspaper reads.

‘Baby killer Gal Greestien’: Gal Gadot’s Hollywood star vandalized

Gal Gadot poses with her new star at a ceremony honoring her on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on March 18, 2025, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

Gal Gadot’s Hollywood star in Los Angeles has been vandalized with anti-Israel messages that emphasize her Jewish roots, with Israelis rushing to remove the messages.

Gal Gadot’s star given the Free Palestine treatment. I’m sure it will have the desired effect… pic.twitter.com/SA1j8OLB2i

— Eve Barlow (@Eve_Barlow) May 28, 2025

The vandalism calls Gadot a “baby killer” and changes her surname to “Greestien.” Gadot’s parents Hebraicized their family name from Greenstein to Gadot before Gal was born.

Gal Gadot's Hollywood star was vandalized last night and hateful libels were scribbled on it.

Brainless antisemitic scum as we know it! pic.twitter.com/ZQyKc8Pfee

— Cc00l Memukad 🌹 الاغتيال المستهدف (@Cc00lM) May 28, 2025

Vandals also attach a sticker saying: “Israeli snipers target children.”

Two Israelis arrived last night to clean up Gal Gadot's star after it was vandalized by pro-Palestinian terrorists. 🇮🇱💪 pic.twitter.com/zSQiNPJbui

— Eli Afriat 🇮🇱🎗 (@EliAfriatISR) May 29, 2025

Arab foreign ministers expected to meet PA leader in Ramallah on Sunday

Several Arab foreign ministers are expected to arrive in the West Bank’s Ramallah on Sunday for a meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, two sources in Ramallah familiar with the issue tell The Times of Israel, confirming reporting by Palestinian newspaper Al-Quds.

The foreign ministers expected to attend include those of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman.

This is a rare occurrence, as Arab foreign ministers seldom meet Abbas in Ramallah. Any visit by high-level officials to the West Bank requires Israeli approval.

According to the Palestinian report, the visit is part of preparations for next month’s conference in the United States, sponsored by France and Saudi Arabia, which aims to advance the two-state solution and potential recognition of a Palestinian state by some countries.

IDF razes West Bank home of Hamas terrorist behind botched 2024 Tel Aviv bombing

Overnight, the IDF demolished the home of a Hamas suicide bomber who carried out a botched attack in Tel Aviv last August.

Jaafar Mona, from the West Bank city of Nablus, was killed by the explosive device he was carrying outside a synagogue in Tel Aviv on August 18, 2024, before he managed to carry out the intended attack. One passerby was also wounded by the blast.

Hamas took responsibility for the attack.

IDF troops, including combat engineers of the Yahalom unit, operated in Nablus overnight and demolished Mona’s home, the military says.

As a matter of policy, Israel demolishes the homes of Palestinians accused of carrying out deadly terror attacks.

The demolition of Mona’s home is unusual, as no victims of the attack were killed. Still, it would not be the first time that a home is razed by Israeli authorities for an attack that left only injured victims.

The IDF says the decision to demolish the home was approved by legal officials, and comes part of a policy that the homes of terrorists who carried out “unusual” attacks are razed.

US, Iran may seal interim nuke deal in next round of talks — CNN

The US and Iran are closing in on a broad, interim nuclear agreement that may be signed in the next round of negotiations and that White House officials and others hope will lead to follow-up talks and define specific markers for implementation, CNN reports, citing unnamed sources familiar with the discussions.

The talks could reportedly end up forming an international consortium of Mideast countries and the UN atomic watchdog, which will enrich uranium for the Islamic Republic, though the report cautions that nothing has been agreed yet.

The deal doesn’t include Tehran’s ballistic missile program and isn’t expected to broaden to include more issues, the report says.

Lebanese army said dismantling Hezbollah infrastructure near Israel border at better-than-expected pace

People drive on a street past portraits of slain Lebanese Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and buildings damaged in Israeli strikes in the recent war, amid the first round of municipal elections, in the Ghobeiry neighborhood of Beirut's southern suburb on May 4, 2025. (ANWAR AMRO / AFP)

Lebanon’s army has dismantled most of Hezbollah’s posts and weapons stockpile in the country’s south, with the help of Israeli intelligence passed along by the US, and Israeli and American officials are pleasantly surprised by the progress, according to The Wall Street Journal, which also cites Arab officials in its report.

The army still faces the challenge of completing the job in the south — in accordance with last year’s ceasefire agreement — and implementing its plan to disarm the Iran-backed terror group and assert its control over the entire country.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam says in an interview with the US outlet that his government has achieved 80% of its objectives in disarming militias in the south.

“All over the Lebanese territory, the state should have a monopoly on arms,” Salam says, banging his fists on a table. “We don’t want to put the country onto a civil-war track, but believe me, this is not going to affect our commitment to the need to extend and consolidate the authority of the state.”

An IDF official is quoted as saying: “We do see a lot of areas where the Lebanese army is way more effective than expected. The IDF is generally pleased by this trend and we are expecting it to continue.”

Reports: New US proposal would see 9 live hostages freed, 60-day truce, partial IDF withdrawal, option for war to resume

The new US proposal for a ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas would entail the release of nine live hostages — one less than in a previous offer — and 18 bodies of captives, multiple Hebrew media outlets report. While many outlets don’t cite sources, others cite an unnamed Israeli source as confirming that Jerusalem has received the details from the US.

The reports say those hostages would be freed in two batches within one week — without saying whether or how many Palestinian security prisoners would go free — and that Jerusalem would commit to a 60-day truce during which negotiations would take place for an end to the war.

If there is no agreement at the end of this period, Israel would have the option of resuming fighting or of extending the ceasefire in exchange for more hostages, the reports says. This is a crucial detail since the main disagreement has reportedly been Hamas’s insistence on any deal permanently ending the war, and Israel rejecting this as long as Hamas isn’t dismantled.

According to the reported deal, humanitarian aid responsibilities would return to the UN, and the IDF would withdraw from areas it took over in its latest expanded operation, including the newly established Morag Corridor.

Defense Ministry confirms ministerial approval of 22 new West Bank settlements

Defense Minister Israel Katz confirms that ministers approved the construction of 22 new West Bank settlements, which will include a series of new communities and the legalization of several wildcat outposts.

Katz’s office in a statement describes the cabinet vote “as a historic decision,” asserting the settlements will “strengthen the strategic grip on all parts of Judea and Samaria [West Bank]” and “prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.”

“This is a big day for the settlement movement and an important day for the State of Israel,” says Minister in the Defense Ministry Bezalel Smotrich. “Settling our homeland is the defensive shield of the State of Israel.”

Defense Minister Israel Katz says the move “strengthens our hold [on the territory] and is a decisive response to Palestinian terror.”

Musk announces he is leaving Trump administration after criticizing US president’s ‘big beautiful bill’

Elon Musk, left, shakes hands with US President Donald Trump at the finals for the NCAA wrestling championship, on March 22, 2025, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

WASHINGTON — Elon Musk is leaving his government role as a top adviser to US President Donald Trump after spearheading efforts to reduce and overhaul the federal bureaucracy.

The billionaire entrepreneur posts about his decision on X, his social media website.

“As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending,” he writes. “The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.”

A White House official, who requests anonymity to talk about the change, confirms that Musk was leaving.

Musk’s departure comes one day after he criticized the centerpiece of Trump’s legislative agenda, saying he was “disappointed” by what the president calls his “big beautiful bill.”

The legislation includes a mix of tax cuts and enhanced immigration enforcement. While speaking to CBS, Musk described it as a “massive spending bill” that increases the federal deficit and “undermines the work” of his Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE.

GHF denies reports of deaths and mass injuries, says Hamas and others pushing false claims to harm it

A Palestinian child smiles to the camera as carries a bag of rice delivered by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, after receiving the supplies in Rafah, as he arrive in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on May 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

The Gaza Humanitarian Fund denies reports of deaths, mass injuries and chaos at its aid distribution sites, saying that only two people have been injured at its compounds since it began operating in Gaza three days ago.

“To-date two Gazans have required medical care that was delivered on-site — one relating to dehydration and another who was injured by others seeking aid,” says a GHF statement.

It says Hamas and other parties are bent on GHF failing and spreading false reports in order to harm the US and Israeli backed organization. One of those false reports claimed that GHF halted operations due to gunfire at one of its site earlier Wednesday.

While GHF urges journalists to verify sources before publishing developments pertaining to GHF, the organization yesterday issued a statement claiming that only a “small number” of Palestinians overran one of its aid sites when footage showed that thousands looted their sites.

In reviewing that incident in its latest statement, GHF avoids downplaying the scope of yesterday’s overrun, but says it was anticipated due to “acute hunger and Hamas-imposed blockades.”

Police say 62 arrested for clashing with officers, storming Likud HQ in Tel Aviv

Police say they arrested 62 people for violating public order and clashing with officers outside the ruling Likud party’s headquarters in Tel Aviv, where dozens of anti-government demonstrators stormed the building.

A statement from police says two officers were taken for medical treatment after being wounded in the clashes, including one who broke his arm.

Five arrested in London for trying to disrupt filming of movie starring Gal Gadot

London police have arrested five people for trying to disrupt the filming of a movie starring Israeli actress Gal Gadot, a statement says.

Gadot, star of “Wonder Woman” and in “Fast and Furious,” is in London to film a new thriller, “The Runner.” She has been criticized by pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel groups for expressing her support of Israel since the Gaza war erupted in 2023.

Police say officers were deployed to a “filming location” in Westminster “to identify suspects wanted in connection with offenses at previous film set protests and to deal with any new offenses.”

The arrests are for blocking access to a place of work. Police say in a statement posted on social media that two of the arrests are for previous protests and three for action carried out today.

“While we absolutely acknowledge the importance of peaceful protest, we have a duty to intervene where it crosses the line into serious disruption or criminality,” says Superintendent Neil Holyoak in the statement.

“I hope today’s operation shows we will not tolerate the harassment of or unlawful interference with those trying to go about their legitimate professional work in London,” the officer adds.

Pro-Palestinian protesters also disrupted a Hollywood ceremony in March when Gadot’s star on the Walk of Fame was unveiled.