It has now been 919 days since Israel began its 2023 genocide on the Palestinian people. Below is a roundup of news from Sunday, April 12, 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.”
During negotiations, VP Vance checks in with Netanyahu, seems unaware of how negotiation works: Vance spoke to Donald Trump at least a dozen times during the talks, and even once to Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, a conversation [Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas] Araghchi was quick to claim led to a hardening of the US position. Vance said he’d come to Islamabad to see if the Iranians would “accept our terms”. Former Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif commented, “The US must learn: you cannot dictate terms to Iran.”
Iran’s Top Diplomat Says Trump Team Sabotaged Talks With Deal ‘Inches Away’: “Zero lessons earned,” said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. “Good will begets good will. Enmity begets enmity.”
After talks break down, Trump threatens more bombing: In a Fox News interview on Sunday, Trump threatened to restart the bombing of Iran if a deal could not be agreed, and threatened to target the country’s water supply as well as its bridges and power generation. Trump said: “The only thing left, really, is their water, which would be very devastating to hit. I would hate to do it, but it’s their water, their desalinization plans, their electric generating plants, which are very easy to hit.”
Israeli ministers on Sunday hinted at a possible resumption of attacks on Iran, with Energy Minister Eli Cohen saying that Tehran could be hit if no agreement is reached. “The nuclear issue is international, and it’s good that (US President Donald) Trump has set the red lines on the issue,” Cohen said, adding, “If there is no deal, Iran can be hit.”
U.S. Military Says Naval Blockade of Iranian Ports to Begin Monday: Trump added that he ordered the U.S. Navy to detain any vessel in international waters that has paid a toll to Iran to pass in the Strait of Hormuz, warning that any Iranian forces firing on U.S. or civilian vessels would be ‘BLOWN TO HELL’
Trump says other nations will assist US in naval blockade against Iran: US President Donald Trump on Sunday said that other countries will be assisting the US in a naval blockade against Iran after Saturday’s talks with Tehran in the Pakistani capital Islamabad failed to produce a deal. “We think that numerous countries are going to be helping us with this also, but we’re putting on a complete blockade. We’re not going to let Iran make money on selling oil to people that they like and not people that they don’t like,” Trump said.
As US military set to blockade Iranian ports, Tehran says move ‘amounts to piracy’
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON IRAN (tentative):
- United States: 13 (this number is believed by some to be an undercount)
- Iran: at least 3,375 (2,875 men, 496 women, no details on the remaining four people; other sources have higher numbers)
- Israel: 30 (including 11 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 ON LEBANON – NEWS & HEADLINES:
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. Additionally, Israel continues to occupy five Lebanese hilltops seized during the latest war, and other Lebanese areas it has held for decades. (Read about UNIFIL, the UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, here.)
35 people were killed and 152 wounded in Israeli strikes over the past 24 hours, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said Sunday.
Lebanese Infant Slain in Israeli Strike on Her Father’s Funeral in Tyre
‘Everything is gone’: Israel destroys entire villages in Lebanon: The demolitions came after Israel’s minister of defense, Israel Katz, called for the destruction of “all houses” in border villages “in accordance with the model used in Rafah and Beit Hanoun in Gaza” to stop threats to communities in northern Israel. The Israeli military destroyed 90% of homes in Rafah, in south Gaza.
Rights groups have said these mass remote detonations could amount to wanton destruction: a war crime. The laws of war prohibit the deliberate destruction of civilian homes, except when necessary for lawful military reasons. “The possibility that Hezbollah may use some civilian structures in Lebanon’s border villages for military purposes does not justify the wide-scale destruction of entire villages along the border,” said Ramzi Kaiss, the Lebanon researcher for Human Rights Watch.
UN peacemakers in Lebanon say Israeli tank rammed their vehicles, causing significant damage
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON LEBANON (tentative):
- In Lebanon, at least 2,055 people have been killed (165 children, 252 women).
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.
Medical sources confirmed the killing of Ali Husam Abu Taleb, 17, after Israeli forces opened fire in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip. They added that four Palestinians were also shot near the so‑called yellow line north of the Strip, but their fate remains unknown as Israeli fire prevented ambulances and residents from reaching them. Another Palestinian man was shot and killed by Israeli forces on Sunday evening in the city of Khan Younis.
Israel’s restriction of aid into Gaza leads to critical shortages in bread, baby formula, and water: Doctors warn that surging malnutrition cases among children may irreversibly harm an entire generation.
Kidney patients in Gaza demand treatment abroad amid drug shortage, Israeli assault: Kidney patients appeal to world to end their suffering, allow them to travel for treatment, during protest in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza.
WATCH – Israeli Army Documents Human Shield Use in Gaza, Deletes Footage Exposing Crime: Israeli army video appears to show a Palestinian civilian used as a human shield, in footage linked to the October 2024 raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital.
MUST-READ: Israeli use of human shields in Gaza was systematic, soldiers and former detainees tell the AP
DEATH TOLL – GAZA GENOCIDE (tentative):
- At least 749 since ceasefire began Oct. 11, 2025
- 72,328 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.)
Israel’s Ben Gvir says he feels like the ‘owner’ of Al-Aqsa Mosque: Just days after Israel reopened the complex to Palestinian worshippers following more than a month-long closure, Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir raided the Mosque complex, one of Islam’s most holy sites on Sunday, saying, “Today, I feel like the owner here,” and, “There is still more to do, more to improve. I keep pushing the Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] to do more and more; we must keep rising higher and higher.” The comments come amid ongoing efforts to increase Jewish presence at the site while restricting Palestinian access.
ISRAELI MEDIA: After Expelling 120 Families, Israeli Settlers Turn Stream Into Holiday Attraction: Hundreds of vehicles parked at the entrance to Ein al-Auja during Passover week left no doubt: the nature reserve next to the abandoned homes of residents who fled in terror has become one of the hottest destinations in settler tourism.
RELATED: Israeli settlers turn Passover into celebration of ethnic cleansing
Army Shoots Five Palestinians, Abduct Many, Across West Bank
Army Critically Injure Two Brothers, Abduct Children, In Hebron
Army Shoots Child and Man In Nablus
Continued Israeli West Bank Violations, Sunday
Palestinian Family Forced To Demolish Its Home in Jerusalem
Escalating Colonizer, Army Violations Near Hebron
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.
PHOTOS: How hypermilitarism pervades everyday life in Israel: Contemporary Israeli society is characterized by hypermilitarism. This form of militarism is not merely a political philosophy: it is a state of being that fundamentally structures the self, shaping our imagination, thoughts, desires, relationships, and sense of our collective as Israelis. Almost everything is perceived and understood in military terms, values, and imagery, while a permanent state of emergency and war become the natural order.
This ideology spans the Israeli spectrum from the spiritual and theological militarism of hilltop youth and religious settlers, to the secular, liberal militarism that is prominent among the Israeli bourgeoisie. At almost any point in life, Israelis see themselves and those around them through a military lens: as soldiers-to-be (as pre-service youth, and later as potential reservists), active-duty soldiers, or former soldiers.
MORE NEWS & HEADLINES:
DOGE Cuts Left U.S. Unable to Help Americans Stranded in Iran War Zone: Foreign service officers fired in Elon Musk’s workforce purge warn the State Department is unable to help Americans stranded in the Middle East.
Organizers of the Global Freedom Flotilla held a press conference in Barcelona on Sunday ahead of their departure for Gaza, launching a new international effort to challenge the deadly Israeli blockade. Participants described the mission as a humanitarian and moral response to the ongoing destruction and deprivation facing Gaza’s population. Nearly one thousand volunteers from 70 countries are taking part in the mission aboard 70 vessels.
History of flotilla campaigns to end Israel’s siege of Gaza: The ‘Global Resilience Flotilla’ sets sail from Barcelona, aiming to deliver humanitarian aid amid waning global attention on Gaza.
Trump attacks Pope Leo, posts ‘shocking’ image as Christ: In a post on Truth Social, Trump said: “Pope Leo is weak in dealing with crime and terrible on foreign policy,” adding that “Leo should get his act together as Pope.” Later he said, “I’m not a big fan of Pope Leo. He’s a very liberal person, and he’s a man that doesn’t believe in stopping crime, [and is] toying with a country that wants a nuclear weapon.”
Trump also posted an image on Truth Social depicting himself as Jesus Christ healing the sick, sparking widespread anger on social media.
French lawmakers set to push bill criminalizing speech on Israel: The legislation would carry penalties of up to five years in prison. Nearly 700,000 people have signed a petition calling for the proposed legislation to be blocked.
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
Former US sec’y of state John Kerry says Netanyahu repeatedly pressed US presidents to strike Iran, only Trump agreed
Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip killed seven people
Israeli Colonizers Kill a Palestinian Near Ramallah
“I Want to Occupy”: Inside the Israeli Movement Pushing to Raze and Settle Southern Lebanon
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – APRIL 12, 2026*:
- At least 73,477 Palestinians killed, 183,884 injured – including:
- Gaza: at least 72,328 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls), 172,184 injured
- West Bank/East Jerusalem: at least 1,149 killed (~232 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 12, 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)
- Pro-Israel ‘Thinktanks’ and Individuals who Influence U.S. Foreign Policy
- Mearsheimer reveals how Israel dictates US policies on Iran, Gaza – video
- Military aid to Israel emerges as the latest political litmus test for Democrats
- The only Palestinian children’s rights organization closes following years-long Israeli campaign against it
- ‘I Can’t Forget the Smell’: Lebanese Reel After Israel Kills Over 300 in Single Day
- DNC Shoots Down Resolutions Calling Out AIPAC and Limiting Arms to Israel
- TCN: Is Israel Blackmailing President Trump?
- Amnesty: Urgent – Protect Lebanese civilians from brutal escalation in Israeli attacks
- Is The War Against Iran Over?
- Inside the Israeli army’s propaganda wing
- Hundreds of Gaza Amputees Stranded in Legal Limbo
- The gallows law: Israel moves toward executing Palestinian children
- Tucker Carlson: The Path to Peace requires ending ‘special alliance’ with Israel
- Gazans face a triple crisis: severe shortages of water and bread, healthcare in tatters
