It has now been 928 days since Israel began its 2023 genocide on the Palestinian people. Below is a roundup of news from Tuesday, April 21, 2026.
Compilation of news reports – IAK staff
ISRAEL-US WAR/CEASEFIRE ON IRAN – NEWS & HEADLINES:
It can not be overemphasized that Israel has been the impetus behind US policies and actions vis-a-vis Iran for years. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has been pushing the US to attack Iran for decades, using lies and deception. Under President Trump, he got his wish.
The American people have made clear that they do not want to go to war with Iran, but Israel partisans and the Israel lobby use their massive political clout to bring about whatever is beneficial to Israel – including putting the US military in harm’s way. For more background on Israel’s role in American wars, watch IAK’s short film, “The Israeli Hit List.”
Trump announces extension of Iran ceasefire until ‘discussion concluded’: “Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal,” he wrote on Truth Social. “I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other.”
US navy seizes ‘Iran-linked’ commercial vessel: “Overnight, US forces conducted a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding of the stateless sanctioned M/T Tifani without incident in the INDOPACOM area of responsibility,” the department announced. It added that “International waters are not a refuge for sanctioned vessels.” The Iranian Foreign Ministry responded, calling the US seizure an act of “piracy” and “terrorism.”
Dozens of Iranian ‘shadow fleet’ tankers breach US blockade: Report: Maritime traffic data indicates ongoing shuttle tanker movements across the blockade line, calling into question the effectiveness of US enforcement.
‘He talks too much’: how Trump’s erratic commentary is the real block to an Iran deal: US president’s contradictory statements only make Tehran more wary of anything but the most watertight deal.
As Iran crisis drags on, fears of global food catastrophe grow: While global food prices have risen modestly so far, the full impact of the conflict has yet to be felt, analysts say.
Houthi chief vows ‘escalation for escalation’ if US-Israeli war on Iran reignites
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON IRAN (tentative):
- United States: 13 (this number is believed by some to be an undercount)
- Iran: at least 3,636 (1,701 civilians, 254 children)
- Israel: 30 (including 16 Israeli soldiers, and 1 friendly fire – including both Iran and Lebanon-related deaths; another count shows 20 Israeli civilian deaths)
- Arab states (including Palestine, excluding Lebanon), at least 154
ISRAEL’S WAR/CEASEFIRE ON LEBANON – NEWS & HEADLINES:
Israel has invaded Lebanon seven times in the last half century. Between 1978 and 2000, Israel maintained an 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon — Hezbollah was formed to fight that occupation.
Although Israel signed a ceasefire agreement with Lebanon in November 2024, Israel has attacked Lebanon almost every day since, committing over 10,000 air and ground violations – the most violated ceasefire deal in recorded history – and killing at least 397. (Read about UNIFIL, the UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, here.)
Israeli army blows up public school in southern Lebanon despite ceasefire: The state-run National News Agency said Israeli forces rigged the school with explosives and detonated it overnight, completely leveling the structure.
Hezbollah says it attacked northern Israel in response to ceasefire violations: The group said that its fighters struck an Israeli artillery position in the settlement of Kfar Giladi in northern Israel with rockets and attack drones, in response to “blatant and documented Israeli violations that have exceeded 200 breaches” – including attacks on civilians and the destruction of homes and villages – since the ceasefire came into effect on Friday.
ISRAELI MEDIA: IDF Replaces Smashed Jesus Statue in Lebanon as Involved Soldier Removed From Combat: Netanyahu said the IDF had ‘promptly completed the inquiry” into what he described as an ‘unacceptable incident involving a soldier vandalizing a Christian statue in a Lebanese village,’ adding that Israel ‘deeply regrets the incident.’
*NOTE: The irony here is rich: the Israeli military plans to investigate a single soldier for defacing a statue, while Israeli soldiers commit war crimes on a daily basis. The Israeli military self-describes as “The Most Moral Army in the World,” boasting of its code of ethics. But even a cursory glance at If Americans Knew headlines exposes the folly of the term “moral army” to describe the IDF.
Just a few examples: “Most moral army in the world” added to UN Hall of Shame for child endangerment; ‘Not a normal war’: doctors say children have been targeted by Israeli snipers in Gaza; Israel Is the Global Rape, Torture Capital; Israeli soldiers tell story of savage cruelty in Gaza – one given blessing by the West; This is how Israeli settlers, backed by the military, erased a Palestinian village from existence last week; In Israel, raping Palestinian prisoners is justified. Leaking the footage is betrayal; In Gaza, Almost Every IDF Platoon Keeps a Human Shield, a Sub-army of Palestinian Slaves. The list goes on.
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON LEBANON (tentative):
NEWS & HEADLINES FROM GAZA:
For some basic info on the Palestine-Israel conflict, go here. For more critical context, skim this, this, and this. To read about a remarkable but underreported, 20-month-long peaceful protest in Gaza against Israel, go here.
Israeli forces killed six Palestinians, including a woman, in the Gaza Strip early Tuesday through airstrikes and gunfire, marking another violation of a fragile ceasefire in place since last October
Gaza’s unseen casualties: A surge in stillbirths and birth defects: In a neonatal unit at Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza, newborn babies are fighting for their lives against severe congenital anomalies linked to the harsh conditions of Israel’s genocidal war.
According to the Ministry of Health, cases of congenital anomalies doubled in 2025 compared with 2022. The rate of stillbirths also surged by 140 percent during the same period. Last year alone, there were 457 neonatal deaths, marking a 50 percent increase from before the war.
UN says attacks in Gaza surge 46% in weekly spike since ceasefire: The UN said Tuesday that violence in the Gaza Strip surged to its highest since a ceasefire on Oct. 10, 2025: “Between 12 and 18 April, incidents such as gunfire, shelling and strikes increased by 46 percent compared with the previous week, marking the highest weekly total since the October ceasefire agreement went into effect.”
UN Issues Final Gaza Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment: The EU and UN have released the final Gaza Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA), assessing the damages, economic losses, and recovery and reconstruction needs in Gaza following 24 months of conflict. The report highlights catastrophic impact on human development across Gaza, which is estimated to have been set back by 77 years. Recovery and reconstruction needs in Gaza are estimated at $ 71.4 billion over the next decade.
Given the immense scale of need, recovery efforts must run in parallel with humanitarian action, ensuring an effective and well-sequenced transition from emergency relief toward reconstruction at scale — one that encompasses both the Gaza Strip and West Bank. (Read the full report here.)
DEATH TOLL – GAZA GENOCIDE (tentative):
- At least 784 since ceasefire began Oct. 11, 2025
- 72,560 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls) since October 2023
- More statistics below
NEWS & HEADLINES FROM THE OCCUPIED WEST BANK/EAST JERUSALEM:
Every day, Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem endure dozens of incidents like the ones below, at the hands of Israeli soldiers and/or settlers. For background on the West Bank, read this and this. For information on the significance of Israeli settlers in the West Bank, read this and this.)
Israeli occupiers’ fire turns morning at Palestinian school into panic and bloodshed: In the Palestinian village of Al-Mughayyir, northeast of Ramallah, Israeli occupiers, backed by Israeli soldiers, stormed the area around the local school and opened fire on Tuesday morning. “The school asked parents to come and get their children,” said an eyewitness, “but when people came, the army also opened fire.” Two Palestinians were killed, including a 14-year-old boy, and several others were wounded.
Child Killed by Settler Vehicle in Hebron, Woman Died of Previous Wounds in Jenin: Mohammad Majdi Ahmad Al-Ja’bari, 15, died Tuesday morning after a settler vehicle ran over him, while he was riding his bicycle to school at the Beit Einun junction near Hebron. Israeli Army Radio reported that the vehicle belongs to the security detail of an Israeli minister residing in an illegal colony in the Hebron governorate. Raja Fadel Owais, 47, succumbed to a severe head injury she suffered when she was struck in the head with shrapnel.
Israeli occupiers raise Israel’s flag as they storm Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque: Occupiers performed Talmudic rituals during police-escorted incursion.
*NOTE: Anyone can visit the Al Aqsa Mosque grounds, but only Muslims are allowed to pray there, according to an understanding known as the ‘status quo agreement,’ under which, since 1967, Israel has formally pledged to allow Muslims to pray at the site, while Jews pray at the Western Wall below.
In practice, however, restrictions have steadily eroded, particularly since 2023 (after extremist Itamar Ben Gvir became Minister of National Security). Many Palestinians fear this erosion will lead to open conflict.
Israeli soldiers using sexual assault to force Palestinians out of West Bank, report says: Experts say attacks, also carried out by settlers, are leading girls to quit school and enter early marriages.
Israeli occupiers burn home, vehicles, cut down olive trees in northern West Bank
Settlers Demolish a School in the Northern Jordan Valley, Destroy Property Near Nablus
Israeli forces carry out invasions, assaults, abductions across the occupied West Bank
Displaying ‘Star of David’ atop Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque* ‘dangerous precedent’: Director: Mutaz Abu Sneineh, the director of the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, said Israeli authorities illuminated the Jewish symbol on the roof of the mosque, calling it part of accelerated steps to impose a new reality at the site. He said the mosque has seen “repeated and systematic violations at an increasing pace,” including raising Israeli flags and placing Jewish religious symbols, such as the Star of David, which is lit at night.
*NOTE: Around 35,000 Palestinians live in the West Bank city of Hebron, where the Ibrahimi Mosque is located, along with about 800 Jewish settlers, who are protected and supported by 1,500 Israeli soldiers. To read more about Israeli settler violence (backed by Israeli military) in the West Bank city of Hebron, go here, and see the video below.
DEATH TOLL – WEST BANK/EAST JERUSALEM (tentative):
NEWS & HEADLINES FROM ISRAEL:
Israel is a tiny country, about the size of New Jersey, with a population smaller than the US state of Georgia – about 10 million (of which about 20 percent are Palestinians), yet it is in the news constantly. As has been demonstrated again and again, however, mainstream media rarely covers Israel news accurately. IAK gets the facts – sometimes from Israeli media sites, where we can get a glimpse inside this country that is rife with turmoil and contradictions, and that receives $63 million a day from America.
ISRAELI MEDIA: Independence Day 2026: Israel Marks 78th Independence Day as Milei Says Israel Brought ‘Light to Humanity’: Argentina’s President Javier Milei joined the Mount Herzl ceremony, thanking Israeli leaders and praising the country’s ‘freedom and sovereignty,’ while alternative Tel Aviv speakers warned of ‘cover-ups’ and demanded a state inquiry into the October 7 failures and government responsibility
Israeli forces raid Syria*’s Quneitra countryside, open fire: Seven Israeli military vehicles “fired intensively into the air to intimidate residents before withdrawing toward its military positions,” SANA agency said. Earlier Tuesday, SANA reported that Israeli forces detained three people, including two children, during incursions in Quneitra province.
*NOTE: Although Israel is not at war with Syria, the Israeli army has carried out over 1,000 airstrikes and 400 cross-border raids on Syria since December 2024. Israel has demanded the demilitarization of southern Syria, allegedly to prevent any “potential threat” from post-war Syria – but has vowed to stay permanently in what seems to be an informal border expansion.
What Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli right really mean when they invoke ‘Greater Israel’: The concept is about much more than acquiring territory, it is also about Netanyahu’s desire for Israel to become a regional superpower.
EXPLAINER – Trial of a sitting prime minister: The cases threatening Netanyahu’s future: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been on trial for more than 5 years in corruption cases that has deepened political divisions in Israel.
MORE NEWS & HEADLINES:
Locked Up by Israel at 15, Palestine Activist Is Now Jailed by ICE: Doxxed by Canary Mission and jailed by ICE, Salah Sarsour calls on his Wisconsin community to challenge injustice.
Gaza-bound flotilla organizer says activists will block ships carrying supplies for Israel’s military: Activists say they disrupted cargo ship in Mediterranean carrying military-linked supplies to Israel. The Gaza-bound flotilla, which departed Barcelona on April 12, includes more than 70 boats and nearly 1,000 activists, with additional vessels expected to join along the route across the Mediterranean.
FedEx targeted by French lawsuit over ‘complicity’ in Gaza genocide: French Jewish Union for Peace accuses French subsidiary of delivery company of facilitating transfer of military equipment to Israel.
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
US Estimates Iran Has 70% of Pre-War Missile Stockpile, 60% of Launchers
Report finds Gaza needs more than $71bn in next decade for recovery
Israeli Colonizers Steal Over 12,000 Livestock Since Early 2025
‘Swimming Against the Tide, but Swimming’: More Israelis and Palestinians Now Choose to Grieve Together
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – APRIL 21, 2026*:
- At least 73,715 Palestinians killed, 184,017 injured – including:
- Gaza: at least 72,560 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls), 172,317 injured
- West Bank/East Jerusalem: at least 1,155 killed (~240 children), 11,700 injured
*NOTE: Thousands of those killed in Gaza have yet to be identified, and an estimated 8,000 more are still buried under rubble (some sources put the number of missing as high as 14,000); 3,000 more are reportedly missing. Only the dead who are brought to hospitals are included in the official fatality count. Additionally, the numbers of injured are very conservative estimates.
Reported Israeli death toll from October 7, 2023 – April 21, 2026: ~1,661 – including ~1,139** on October 7, 2023 (~36 children), 472 military forces since the ground invasion began in Gaza, about 52 military and civilians (by one count, there have been 59 victims) in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Israel (these numbers do not include deaths from the conflicts with Lebanon or Iran).
By one count, Israeli attacks have killed approximately 282 Palestinian journalists and media workers (most recent March 9, 2026; other groups have tallied between 215 and 356 Palestinian journalists killed – depending on the criteria used). Palestinians have killed 4 Israeli journalists (all on October 7, 2023).
**NOTE: It is unknown at this time how many of the deaths and injuries of Israelis on October 7 were caused by Israeli soldiers.
- Human rights reports on Israel-Palestine (regularly updated)
- Israeli soldiers using sexual assault to force Palestinians out of West Bank, report says
- Top Biden Official Supports Trump Iran Attack, Says Biden May Have Done The Same
- A history of Israel’s invasions of Lebanon
- How the powerful pro-Israel lobby keeps controlling Democrats in the US
- Replay: Israel’s slow ethnic cleansing of Christians from the Holy Land
- Israel is (still) killing aid workers in Gaza
- Catholics finally splitting with Trump over Iran war and Israel
- Israel’s “Black Wednesday” Massacre Leaves Lebanese Families Giving DNA To ID Loved One’s Remains
- ‘I Felt I Was a Monster’: IDF Soldiers Talk About the ‘Moral Injury’ – and the Silence
- ‘I thought I might die’: A Palestinian mother’s account of Israeli detention
- Mom whose daughter was killed by Israeli bulldozer 23 years ago pleaded with Congress to finally stop funding
- Senate again fails to block weapons to Israel
- Think the Iran war is a disaster? Blame these DC think tanks first.
- Number of Palestinian Prisoners Rises By 83% Since October 2023
