politics

Israel seeks Trump administration approval for wider air strikes in Beirut

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Movement of Israeli military vehicles and tanks is observed around the village of al-Aadaissah near the Lebanon-Israel border in May 13, 2026. [Tsafrir Abayov – Anadolu Agency]

Israel has asked the United States to allow it to expand its military operations in Lebanon to include large-scale air strikes on Beirut, rather than limiting its actions to targeted assassinations, according to Israeli Channel 12.

The broadcaster reported on Sunday evening that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a second security meeting on the same day to discuss the possibility of shifting from occupying and seizing territory in Lebanon to launching an air campaign in Beirut.

According to the report, any decision on the matter depends on discussions with the US administration, adding that the issue has gained momentum in recent days.

Two days earlier, Netanyahu spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and sought to persuade senior US administration officials, as well as President Donald Trump, that “Israel cannot grant Hezbollah immunity in Beirut, even if targeted assassinations can be carried out there”.

Israeli sources cited by the report said that “the decision on the nature of the operation in Beirut is being made in coordination with Washington”.

An Israeli source described by the report as familiar with the matter said that the Americans “are showing greater openness, but there is no final approval, at least for now”.

READ: Israeli airstrike wounds 13 healthcare workers in southern Lebanon

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Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ... unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone … unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Genocide denying former UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy says that UK is suspending 30 of 350 arms licences to Israel. He also confirms the UK government's support for Israel's Gaza genocide and the UK government and military's active participation in genocide.
Genocide denying UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy says that UK is suspending 30 of 350 arms licences to Israel. He also confirms the UK government’s support for Israel’s Gaza genocide and the UK government and military’s active participation in genocide.

Continue ReadingIsrael seeks Trump administration approval for wider air strikes in Beirut

Israeli occupiers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque amid Palestinian warning of ‘Judaisation’

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Israeli settlers, under the protection of Israeli police, storm the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in East Jerusalem on May 21, 2026. Hundreds of settlers entered the holy site using the Shavuot holiday as a pretext. [Gazi Samad – Anadolu Agency]

Israeli occupiers on Sunday stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied East Jerusalem under police protection, amid Palestinian warnings of “Judaisation” plans, Anadolu reports.

Omar Rajoub, director of the Media Department at the Jerusalem Governorate, told Anadolu that “raising the Israeli flag inside the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque, along with performing provocative rituals, is part of a systematic and deliberate official Israeli policy led by the extremist occupation government.”

“These practices aim to impose new realities by force in occupied East Jerusalem and undermine the historical and legal status quo at the Al-Aqsa Mosque,” he added.

He warned that “occupiers’ actions inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque are part of an ongoing colonial plan targeting the spatial and temporal division of the mosque, the Judaization of the city to obliterate its religious and historical identity, and the alteration of its legal, cultural, and demographic character.”

READ: 33 Palestinians killed by Israeli fire in Gaza during Eid holiday, Health Ministry says

Rajoub said the storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque by occupiers under police protection is “a clear violation of international law” and hurts the feelings of Palestinians and millions of believers around the world.”

He warned of the repercussions of these violations, describing them as “serious, repeated, and unacceptable,” and held “the Israeli government fully responsible for this dangerous escalation.”

He also called on “the international community and all countries to assume their legal and moral responsibilities and take immediate action to stop these ongoing violations against the Palestinian people and the holy sites in occupied Jerusalem.”

He emphasized that “the entire 144-dunam area of ​​the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque is a place of worship exclusively for Muslims.”

Since 2003, Israeli police have unilaterally allowed the occupiers to enter the mosque daily during two periods—morning and afternoon prayers—except on Fridays and Saturdays.

Palestinians say Israel is intensifying efforts to Judaize East Jerusalem, including Al-Aqsa Mosque, and erase its Arab and Islamic identity.

The Palestinians regard East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state, based on international resolutions that do not recognize Israel’s occupation of the city in 1967 or its annexation in 1980.

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. 

Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ... unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone … unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Genocide denying former UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy says that UK is suspending 30 of 350 arms licences to Israel. He also confirms the UK government's support for Israel's Gaza genocide and the UK government and military's active participation in genocide.
Genocide denying UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy says that UK is suspending 30 of 350 arms licences to Israel. He also confirms the UK government’s support for Israel’s Gaza genocide and the UK government and military’s active participation in genocide.

Continue ReadingIsraeli occupiers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque amid Palestinian warning of ‘Judaisation’

33 Palestinians killed by Israeli fire in Gaza during Eid holiday, Health Ministry says

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Funeral procession takes place for seven Palestinians killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting a residential apartment on the first day of Eid al-Adha in Gaza City, on 28 May 2026 [Mohammmed Asad/Middle East Monitor]

One Palestinian was killed and eight others were injured by Israeli army fire in the Gaza Strip in the last 24 hours, taking the death toll during the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha to 33 people, Gaza’s Health Ministry said Sunday, Anadolu reports.

The ministry added in a statement that more than 130 people were injured in Israeli attacks since Wednesday, the first day of the four-day occasion.

The attacks came despite a US-mediated ceasefire that has been in place in Gaza since Oct. 10, 2025.

A medical source earlier told Anadolu that a Palestinian man breathed his last early Sunday from severe injuries he sustained in an Israeli strike in Gaza City on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the director of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza said the hospital’s operating rooms have been forced to shut down due to the failure of electric generators caused by the months-long Israeli blockade.

Riad Hussein warned of an “imminent total shutdown of the hospital if this situation continues,” saying that other critical departments such as intensive care, dialysis, and neonatal care are also expected to stop functioning soon.

Israeli attacks have killed over 925 Palestinians and injured more than 2,810 since the ceasefire, according to the Gaza Media Office.

The ceasefire halted Tel Aviv’s two-year genocidal war on Gaza since October 2023, killing nearly 73,000 Palestinians and injuring more than 172,000, most of them women and children, according to Palestinian figures.

READ: Palestinian killed, 3 injured in Israeli strike in central Gaza Strip despite ceasefire

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. 

Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ... unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone … unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Genocide denying former UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy says that UK is suspending 30 of 350 arms licences to Israel. He also confirms the UK government's support for Israel's Gaza genocide and the UK government and military's active participation in genocide.
Genocide denying UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy says that UK is suspending 30 of 350 arms licences to Israel. He also confirms the UK government’s support for Israel’s Gaza genocide and the UK government and military’s active participation in genocide.

Continue Reading33 Palestinians killed by Israeli fire in Gaza during Eid holiday, Health Ministry says

Israeli airstrike wounds 13 healthcare workers in southern Lebanon

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A general view of the heavy destruction following an Israeli airstrike on a health center belonging to the Islamic Health Authority (Hayaa) in the Al-Mashouk area near the southern city of Tyre, Lebanon, on May 20, 2026. [Houssam Shbaro – Anadolu Agency]

Thirteen healthcare workers were injured on Sunday in an Israeli airstrike targeting the vicinity of Hiram Hospital in Lebanon’s southern city of Tyre, the Lebanese Health Ministry said, Anadolu reports.

The bombardment also caused “severe damage after the hospital sustained damage in earlier Israeli attacks,” the ministry said in a statement.

It called on the international community to “put an end to the escalating Israeli attacks, which are expanding without regard for international humanitarian law, UN resolutions, and international norms.”

The attacks came as the Israeli army escalated its assaults across Lebanon amid daily violations of a fragile ceasefire agreement in place since mid-April.

Since March 2, the Israeli attacks have killed at least 3,371 people, injured 10,129 others, and displaced over 1.6 million others, according to the Lebanese officials.

READ: Israeli army announces ‘large-scale’ offensive in southern Lebanon

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. 

Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ... unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone … unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Genocide denying former UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy says that UK is suspending 30 of 350 arms licences to Israel. He also confirms the UK government's support for Israel's Gaza genocide and the UK government and military's active participation in genocide.
Genocide denying UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy says that UK is suspending 30 of 350 arms licences to Israel. He also confirms the UK government’s support for Israel’s Gaza genocide and the UK government and military’s active participation in genocide.

Continue ReadingIsraeli airstrike wounds 13 healthcare workers in southern Lebanon