News roundup for Sunday, June 28, 2026, Day 996 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.
Israeli attacks killed at least four Palestinians, including a 13-year-old girl, and wounded several others in the Gaza Strip, as Israel continued its assault on the enclave and expanded raids across the occupied West Bank.
ISRAELI MEDIA: Israel is seeking to rebrand its plan for voluntary migration of Gazans out of the Strip: In an effort to soften the widespread international opposition to its ethnic cleansing plans, Israeli agencies are abandoning the term “voluntary migration” in favor of “plan for free movement.” Officials are reportedly optimistic that the terminology change will persuade countries to drop their current refusal to cooperate with the plan.
‘The Doctor Said: I Came to Torture You’: Gaza Detainees Describe Israeli Prison Abuse
Thousands in Gaza suffer hearing damage from Israeli attacks: Doctors say there has been a ‘dramatic increase’ in the number of people suffering hearing damage due to constant Israeli bombing.
DEATH TOLL – GAZA GENOCIDE (tentative):
- At least 1,041 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.
- 73,054 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 Informs Family of Palestinian Detainee’s Death After 18 Months: Israel informed the family of Majdi Nour Abu ‘Arra on Sunday that their son had died, a year and a half after Israeli forces bombed his vehicle as he was traveling, in the occupied West Bank. The notification came after eighteen months during which the family was without any information regarding whether he was alive, injured, detained, or disappeared.
Paradise lost: How Israel is making war on West Bank farmers: Israeli soldiers “prevented us from even passing near [our own land], then they bulldozed it all… They left us with nothing to live on.”
West Bank: Soldiers Shoot a Palestinian, Abduct 19 Others
West Bank: Widespread Colonizer (i.e. Settler) Attacks Reported in 24 Hours
Israel strips the Hebron* municipality of its planning powers, threatening to further erode the city’s Palestinian identity: Hebron’s Palestinian municipality held planning authority over the city for nearly 30 years. Israel revoked it this month, then swiftly approved a yeshiva in the Old City — redrawing who controls the city’s land and future.
*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 this video.
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.’
Israel’s gov’t on Sunday approved a national plan to expand pro-Israel Jewish education* in Diaspora communities: The initiative aims to increase access to formal Jewish education, strengthen Jewish identity and deepen ties to Israel among younger generations – and will focus on North America.
Investment in the initiative is expected to reach 200 million shekels (roughly $67 million).
*NOTE: Israel’s self-positioning as the global expert in Judaism, with its teachings centered on Israel, is another example of the intentional conflation of Israel with all Jews. This framing makes it easy to insist that criticism of Israel is antisemitic (i.e. that anti-Zionism is antisemitism) – with the ultimate outcome that Israel enjoys impunity for its actions.
The Israeli military reportedly believes that Hamas’s military wing is preparing for renewed war with Israel. The IDF believes that it must restart its offensive* against Hamas, but the US prefers instead to advance Trump’s Board of Peace** initiative.
*NOTE: The IDF’s claim that Hamas is getting ready for more war 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 aggressive actions against its neighbors.
**NOTE: The so-called “Board of Peace” for Gaza is stacked with wealthy and powerful Israel supporters, dictators, and authoritarians, as well as Israeli prime minister and war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu and two other Israelis – both real estate tycoons – but no Palestinians. In fact, the organization’s charter makes no reference to Gaza. The lower-tier technocratic committee, made up of Palestinians, will do the grunt work in Gaza – if and when Israel allows the group to enter the Strip.
BoP is problematic in multiple ways, not the least of which is its tendency to view the world through a real estate lens, rather than human rights, justice, or humanitarianism.
RELATED: Internal Documents Show Trump’s “Board of Peace“ Moving to Crush Palestinian Self-Determination
Israel’s Ben-Gvir faces US complaint over alleged war crimes: The Hind Rajab Foundation* has filed a complaint with the US Justice Department, accusing Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir of committing war crimes by implementing policies of “systematic torture, murder, abuse and forced displacement.” He also prioritized making worsening prison conditions for Palestinian detainees a priority.
*NOTE: Read about the Hind Rajab Foundation and its effort to hold Israeli soldiers accountable here; find out who Hind Rajab was here.
RELATED READING: ‘Don’t Be Bothered by Their Screams’ Ben-Gvir Posts Video of Police Dragging Detained Gaza Flotilla Activists
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
On Sunday, Tehran launched drone and missile attacks against US military installations in Bahrain and Kuwait after new US strikes on sites in southern Iran, and threatened a “complete halt” to negotiations to end the war. Trump said that a moment might come soon when he abandoned talks and the US would “militarily finish the job.” He added, “If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!”
The U.S. “should live up to its responsibility and force” Israel to stop bombing Lebanon and withdraw troops from the country, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday, noting that “this was the first clause of the MOU.”
Fresh hostilities in Gulf suggest US-Iran memorandum was too broadly worded: It appears the deliberately opaque wording in the memorandum has been unable to withstand the pressure of conflicting interpretations . The wording of the 14-point document was deliberately broad on two of the most vexing issues, the Lebanon ceasefire and the strait, in the hope that as trust developed between the two sides, a workable solution would emerge.
US, Iran agree to cease hostilities and meet Tuesday in Qatar
LEBANON
Israeli warplanes reportedly carried out airstrikes, detonated explosives and set fire to homes on Sunday in southern Lebanon, in a new violation of an ongoing ceasefire. The escalation comes just two days after Beirut and Tel Aviv signed a US-brokered framework agreement that provides for a phased Israeli withdrawal from all Lebanese territory.
Iran urges US to set timeline for ‘unconditional’ Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon: Iran’s chief negotiator says ending war in Lebanon, and Israeli pullout remain key goals under Islamabad memorandum
SYRIA
Israeli army kills 2 people in southern Syria: Israeli forces reportedly spotted the two individuals moving “unusually” within the so-called “security zone” established by Israel in Syrian territory.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates said in a statement that the attacks “terrorized civilians” and constituted a breach of international law, the UN Charter and the 1974 Disengagement Agreement.
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:
Rep. Ro Khanna Says Trump’s Strikes on Iran Are a Violation of Recently Passed War Powers Resolution: Both the House and the Senate passed a concurrent resolution, which means Trump is required by the 1973 War Powers Act to end the war.
Don’t Let JD Vance and MAGA Falsely Claim the Mantle of the ‘Tough on Israel’ Party: Unprecedented tough talk is not the same as unprecedented pressure on Israel to end its genocide and constant attacks on its neighbors.
ISRAELI MEDIA: Top Israeli Diplomats Accuse Mamdani of Antisemitism After He Declines to Support Israel ‘As Jewish State’: The Israeli envoys’ accusations came after the New York mayor said he supports Israel ‘as a state with equal rights,’ but not as one that privileges one religion over another.
*NOTE: Israeli leaders and pro-Israel organizations have a long history of conflating Jews with the state of Israel – the so-called “Jewish State” – hence the antisemitism accusation against Mayor Mamdani. In reality, calling Israel “the Jewish State” erases the existence of 21% of its residents.
This indoctrination and unfair labeling has been a major factor in Israel’s achievement of almost total impunity in the global community. Palestinians and supporters of Palestinian rights have been exposing this folly for years.
US young Republicans increasingly souring on Israel amid Gaza, Iran wars: Report
Ms Rachel says world has failed Palestinian children at briefing on Gaza, West Bank: “We are watching children, children who are just like our own, try to survive a genocide, and yet there’s been no action, no accountability, no one demanding and ensuring that this nightmare is put to a stop,” she said.
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
Trump’s Board of Peace plans to grant itself sweeping immunity, documents show
Settlers, IDF Raid West Bank Mosque, Hang Israeli Flags, Palestinians Report
Israel Admits State-religious Schools Are Far Better Subsidized Than Secular Ones
Lebanon-Israel deal may stop war crime victims seeking justice, experts say
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – June 28, 2026*:
- At least 74,231 Palestinians killed, 186,146 injured – including:
- Gaza: at least 73,054 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls), 173,480 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 28, 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)
- The Executioner’s Noose, Not the Scales of Justice: Crime and Punishment in Israel and Palestine
- Foreign Agent Brad Parscale Turning World Cup Fans Into Psyop Guinea Pigs
- 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
