News roundup for Saturday, June 27, 2026, Day 995 since Israel began its 2023 genocide on the Palestinian people.
Compilation of news reports – IAK staff
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.
Israel killed, injured women and children in attack on Gaza ‘safe zone’: An Israeli drone attack reportedly killed two siblings on Saturday, 15-year-old Islam Moussa and her 30-year-old brother, Abdullah Moussa. A 10-year-old Palestinian child also died after being wounded days earlier in an Israeli strike on al-Mawasi. The Israeli military also struck a tent sheltering displaced Palestinians in western Gaza City, wounding at least 12 people, according to al-Shifa Hospital. Most of the wounded were reportedly women, and two people were critically wounded.
Gaza: Second phase of operation to recover bodies from under rubble starts, amid widespread challenges: Rescue teams in Gaza plan on concluding the operation in three months, as families continue to search for their loved ones.
Trump’s Board of Peace plans to grant itself sweeping immunity, documents show: “By unilaterally declaring the power to seize Palestinian land, property, and buildings for their own use without consent, compensation or readdress, the Board of Peace is taking a page out of Israel’s repressive playbook, said one analyst. The prospective immunity resolution titled “RESOLUTION NO 2026/3” has not been shared with the Palestinian cohort, an official said
EATH TOLL – GAZA GENOCIDE (tentative):
- At least 1,038 since ceasefire began Oct. 11, 2025 (247 children, 191 women)
- 5 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire began – one by friendly fire, and four others incidents during the first three weeks of the ceasefire.
- 73,043 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 MEDIA: Settlers, IDF Raid West Bank Mosque, Hang Israeli Flags, Palestinians Report: Palestinian officials said Hebrew music was played in the courtyard. Waqf officials said the muezzin call at the Cave of the Patriarchs was blocked for five days over ‘maintenance’, and mosque director Mu’taz Abu Sanina was removed for 12 days, the third such removal.
Israel bans call to prayer at Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque for fifth day
Widespread Israeli Military Invasions, Abductions In West Bank
Israeli Colonizer (Settler) Attacks Escalate Across West Bank
Israeli Colonizer Expansion Plans Reshape Northern West Bank
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: Israel Admits State-religious Schools Are Far Better Subsidized Than Secular Ones: Petitioners against the funding disparity, which stems from state-religious schools’ legal requirement of Torah studies, called for the admission to lead ‘to real change and full equality, and that our children receive proper, advanced and truly equal education.’
IRAN, LEBANON, & SYRIA – NEWS & HEADLINES:
It can not be overemphasized that Israel is the impetus behind US policies and actions vis-a-vis Iran. 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.
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 is not at war with Syria, the Israeli army has reportedly carried out over 1,600 violations inside Syrian territory since August 2025, and demanded the demilitarization of southern Syria – but also vowed to permanently occupy some areas.
IRAN
IRGC says it targeted US military positions in region after strikes in south
US strikes Iran following attack on ship in Strait of Hormuz: CENTCOM
Trump threatens Iran with additional military action after new US strikes: “United States aircraft just struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations, and coastal radar sites, for violating the Cease Fire Agreement, AGAIN!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “It is very possible that they will never learn!” he said. Trump said Washington may be “forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!”
Iran Says U.S. Bases in Gulf to Experience ‘Hell’ in Coming Days in Response to Strikes
LEBANON
One person was killed and two others were injured in an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon on Saturday, marking the first reported casualties since Beirut and Tel Aviv signed a framework agreement on Friday, less than 24 hours after Beirut and Israel signed a framework agreement to facilitate a phased Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory (next story).
Israeli army to begin pilot withdrawal from southern Lebanon: The Israeli army reportedly intends to begin withdrawing Sunday morning from two pilot areas in the Nabatieh region in southern Lebanon, “in full coordination with the Lebanese army.” An Israeli security official reportedly said, “The military retains the right to strike any elements deemed a threat* to its forces even after the agreement was signed.”
*NOTE: The security official’s claim that Israel has the right to strike “any elements deemed a threat” is yet another iteration of Israel’s self-portrayal as a perpetual victim – or potential victim – enabling it to claim “self-defense” as an excuse for taking aggressive actions against its neighbors.
Lebanon-Israel deal may stop war crime victims seeking justice, experts say: Lebanon and Israel signed a 14-point framework agreement in Washington on Friday designed to work towards an end to fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Article 13 of the deal says Israel and Lebanon will “cease all hostile or negative actions in international political or legal forums” to establish good faith between the two sides. The text could prevent victims of Israeli war crimes allegedly committed during fighting since 8 October 2023 from seeking justice through international or national courts.
Full text of Israel-Lebanon ‘framework’ deal that includes slight IDF pullback
SYRIA
Israeli army raids village in southern Syria, search civilians, home
DEATH TOLL – WARS ON IRAN & LEBANON (tentative):
- United States: 13 (or more) since Feb. 28, 2026
- Iran: at least 3,636 (1,701 civilians) since Feb. 28, 2026 (another source puts the number at 3,499)
- Lebanon: at least 4,057 people since March 2, 2026
- Arab states: at least 154 (including Palestine, excluding Lebanon)
- Israel: at least 60 people (Iran killed 20 civilians; Hezbollah killed 36 soldiers, 4 civilians)
DEATH TOLL – WARS ON IRAN & LEBANON (tentative):
- United States: 13 (or more) since Feb. 28, 2026
- Iran: at least 3,636 (1,701 civilians) since Feb. 28, 2026 (another source puts the number at 3,499)
- Lebanon: at least 4,057 people since March 2, 2026
- Arab states: at least 154 (including Palestine, excluding Lebanon)
- Israel: at least 60 people (Iran killed 20 civilians; Hezbollah killed 36 soldiers, 4 civilians)
MORE NEWS & HEADLINES:
‘It’s become a litmus test’: wins for Israel critics shine light on key issue for Democrats: Regardless of which party wins control of Congress in November, New York City voters have all but ensured that next year a vocal bloc of new House Democrats will arrive on Capitol Hill, elected, in large part, because they believe Israel has committed a genocide in Gaza.
Hind Rajab Foundation* demands US Justice Department prosecute Ben-Gvir
*NOTE: Read about the Hind Rajab Foundation and its effort to hold Israeli soldiers accountable here; find out who Hind Rajab was here.
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
UNICEF: More than 260 Palestinian children killed in Gaza since ceasefire began
Studying for high school finals in Gaza without electricity, adequate food, or a home
Israeli prosecutors charge six settlers after West Bank mosque attack
The CEOs of Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Honeywell visited the White House
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – June 27, 2026*:
- At least 74,208 Palestinians killed, 186,083 injured – including:
- Gaza: at least 73,031 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls), 173,417 injured
- West Bank/East Jerusalem: at least 1,177 killed (~244 children), 12,666 injured
*NOTE: Thousands of remains in Gaza have yet to be identified, and thousands more are still buried under rubble; others are reportedly missing.
Reported Israeli death toll from October 7, 2023 – June 27, 2026: ~1,663 – 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).
**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)
- Four Reasons the Netanyahu-Backed Plan to ‘End’ U.S. Military Aid to Israel Is a Scam
- Archbishop of Canterbury vows to help Palestinians achieve ‘freedom you deserve,’ calls for end to Israeli occupation
- The scars left behind by Israel’s white phosphorus in Lebanon
- Drones and decomposing babies: What’s in UN report on Israel’s genocide of Palestinian children
- Crimson Thread: The new Israeli separation wall that cuts through the ‘breadbasket of Palestine’
- The NDAA Proposed Merger of the U.S. and Israeli Military is Strategically Unwise and Inherently Unconstitutional
- Victories by Pro-Palestinian Democrats Show the Party’s Shift on Israel
- Massie moves to strike $3.3B in Israel military aid from the budget
- How Jeffrey Epstein’s Israeli Network Shaped Congo’s Deadly Mineral Trade
- Gaza officials warn of ‘silent famine’ as aid deliveries fall far below planned levels
- Wheat harvest becomes act of defiance as West Bank farmers race to outrun Israeli settler attacks
- The ICC must investigate Israel’s genocidal use of sexual violence
- The Myth of Israeli Self-Sufficiency
- Internal Documents Show Trump’s “Board of Peace“ Moving to Crush Palestinian Self-Determination
