News roundup for Sunday, July 12, 2026, Day 1,010 since Israel began its 2023 genocide on the Palestinian people.
Compilation of news reports – IAK staff
FALLOUT FROM RO KHANNA’S WEST BANK ENCOUNTER:
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.)
Netanyahu* reacts to Ro Khanna’s reported experience with settlers** in West Bank:
*NOTE: Netanyahu’s lies are a matter of record; he is prime minister of a country whose leaders have perpetrated countless lies to cover for war crimes and aggression (and consistently pass along to Western mainstream media).
**NOTE: Israeli settlers – many fueled by extremism – have carried out a number of mass attacks or “pogroms.” These well-organized groups aim to destroy the West Bank economy and/or drive out the indigenous Palestinians (including Palestinian Christians). Settlers enjoy impunity – even support and assistance from the Israeli government and military – as they attack Palestinians on a daily basis. Meanwhile Palestinians are not allowed to own weapons.
Ro Khanna says ‘IDF is lying’ about his detention by settlers and soldiers, before interviewer abruptly changes subject:
*NOTE Israel has been fighting a war against the truth for decades, especially since October 7th. What Netanyahu calls a “concerted effort to spread vilification and demonization against Israel” is simply the truth (and lies) about Israel’s genocide finally beginning to see the light of day.
Israeli ambassador to US: Ro Khanna should have let Israel set his itinerary*:
*NOTE: Israel’s foreign ministry and pro-Israel orgs regularly sponsor trips to Israel for influencers and the influence-able – trips that invariably provide a whitewashed view of Israel and no exposure to the Palestinian narrative, and by withholding the truth, “buy” new Israel partisans.
ISRAELI MEDIA: I Joined Rep. Ro Khanna on His West Bank Visit. Here’s What I Saw: We were driving between Palestinian communities, when suddenly our convoy was stopped by men armed with M4 military-grade rifles. There was nothing special about the incident, and that’s what makes it so disturbing. In the region we visited together with Rep. Khanna, there is not even a pretense of separation between the settlers and the army.
RELATED: Ro Khanna Got the VIP Version of What West Bank Palestinians Face Every Day
Israeli settler groups have a track record of attacking not just Palestinians, but Americans with impunity: Israeli settlers – often under the protection of the Israeli military – regularly attack Palestinian communities in the West Bank, ransacking farms and property and assaulting people who come in their way. That includes Americans.
One year ago, for instance, Israeli settlers beat 20-year-old US citizen Sayfollah Musallet to death. Three weeks later, another American citizen, a father of five from Chicago named Khamis Ayyad, was also killed in a settler attack. No suspects have been charged with crimes after the two attacks.
The Israeli government is lying to cover up for 4 IDF soldiers who aided violent settlers brandishing M4 guns and threatening American lives. I am calling for their arrest and prosecution.
I have met with Israeli hostages and condemned the brutal, terrorist attacks of Oct 7.… https://t.co/d0POw0J57F
— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) July 12, 2026
ON THE DEATH OF LINDSEY GRAHAM:
It was revealing that one of the first tributes to Lindsey Graham, a US senator who died on Saturday aged 71, came from Israel’s national security minister and far-right provocateur Itamar Ben-Gvir. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, was not far behind, calling Graham a “great friend of Israel and a cherished friend of mine.” President Isaac Herzog described him as “a beacon of moral clarity and a true leader of the US-Israel partnership.”
Lindsey Graham, like no other U.S. lawmaker or adviser, served as both a private middleman between Trump and Netanyahu, and a megaphone for pushing Netanyahu’s party line in public forums. Graham’s hits on Fox News and posts on X were often messages effectively lifted from Netanyahu’s mind and aimed at an audience of one.
William Daroff, CEO of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, said, “Over the years, I frequently crossed paths with him in Israel. Time and again, I would be on my way to meet with the prime minister or other senior Israeli leaders, and Sen. Graham would be coming out of those very meetings. It became a testament to his tireless engagement and his unwavering commitment to strengthening the U.S.-Israel relationship.”
In July 2024, Graham described Palestinians in Gaza as “the most radicalized population on the planet who are taught to hate Jews from birth” in a social media post that sparked widespread condemnation. The Council on American-Islamic Relations responded by saying that he was promoting racist stereotypes about Palestinians, calling his comments “hateful and absurd”.
Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, said earlier this year that Senator Graham was among US officials who threatened him over the court’s pursuit of arrest warrants for Israeli leaders. Graham said to Khan on a call in May 2024 that the ICC “is for Africa and thugs like Putin”, and not for Israel.
RELATED: ‘Nauseating’: Critics Hammer Democratic Senators’ Tributes to ‘Bloodthirsty’ Lindsey Graham
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.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The number of Palestinians being killed in Gaza is lower since the October 2025 “ceasefire” began, about 270 days ago – about 4 per day, vs. over 100 per day during the 733 days of the “war.” But Israel is actively working (with Trump’s “Board of Peace“) to ethnically cleanse Gaza of its Palestinian population, even as the low-level killing continues. Genocide experts, along organizations like the United Nations and Amnesty International, maintain that the genocide is ongoing.
The Israeli army killed seven Palestinians, including a child, in continuing violations of the “ceasefire agreement” across several parts of the devastated Gaza Strip on Sunday. 9-year-old Tala Juma Abu Matar was killed by live Israeli fire.
Power cuts plunge Gaza hospitals into darkness as Israel’s attacks persist: The ongoing blockade on Gaza has resulted in severe shortages of fuel needed for hospital generators, which power essential life-saving medical equipment at such as ventilators, incubators and monitoring devices. The routine power cuts have rendered hospitals semi-dysfunctional and affected thousands of patients and medical staff in Gaza, where the flow of patients caused by new waves of bombings and disease continues.
DEATH TOLL – GAZA GENOCIDE (tentative):
- At least 1,100 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 in incidents during the first three weeks of the ceasefire.
- 73,223 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls) since October 2023
- More statistics 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.
Israel to Fund Settler Group Sanctioned by U.K., France and Canada, Claiming Grant Will ‘Reduce Youth Violence’: Six countries overall have imposed sanctions on the organization after determining that it was involved in outposts linked to violence against Palestinians. The government funds – $1.3 million – will [allegedly] be used for ‘risk reduction’ among Jewish West Bank youth.
Israel’s Minister of Culture Sends a Dangerous Message to Israeli Artists: Governments don’t fund culture because they agree with it, but because culture is a public good. Societies are stronger when artists are free to ask difficult questions. Public funding exists to make room for a plurality of voices, not to reward ideological conformity. But Miki Zohar, the sitting Minister of Culture, repeatedly signals that some stories are more legitimate than others.
Smotrich says Steve Witkoff called Gaza Palestinians ‘two million Nazis’: Trump’s envoy allegedly used dehumanizing language after Gaza visit during Israel’s campaign of starvation and genocide.
Israel to hold parliamentary election on October 27
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
US, Iran exchange fire (again) after Iran targets a non-compliant vessel in Strait of Hormuz: The US escalation began early on Sunday, reportedly hitting 140 Iranian military targets. US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said on social media mid-attack that “Iran made a poor choice. Now they pay.” Iran launched a large-scale wave of retaliatory military operations targeting Washington’s assets in Jordan, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, and Bahrain.
The US president told NBC’s Meet the Press that Iran had agreed to a deal Saturday before targeting a vessel with a drone. Iran had agreed to “a perfect deal for us”, the president said, asserting that “they gave up everything”. “Within an hour, they launched a drone at a ship,” added Trump, calling Iran’s leadership “sick”. He went to say that the US “bombed the hell out of them last night” and that the Strait of Hormuz is “open”.
Trump says US will control Strait of Hormuz, get paid for it: President Trump noted that Iran is getting its “a** kicked,” emphasizing the effect of US kinetic action on Iranian military hardware and personnel, as well as its leaders.
Inside Israel’s Secret Operation to Cultivate Ahmadinejad: The yearslong effort to groom the former Iranian president as an intelligence asset culminated in a dramatic effort to take him to an Israeli safe house in the early days of the war. But the plan fell apart.
LEBANON
At least one person was reported killed in incidents, and several others wounded.
Strikes on Lebanon Continue as Israeli Defense Minister Says They Are ‘Applying Rafah Model’: Mass demolition in the southernmost parts of Lebanon is an ongoing problem, with Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz quoted as saying the country was “applying the Rafah Model” on Lebanon, and that southern Lebanon would ultimately turn into Gaza, citing the mass level of destruction inflicted on the Gaza Strip in recent years.
Lebanese military rejects cooperation with the Israeli army on pilot zones: “There is no agreement on any ‘pilot’ or ‘model’ zones,” said a Lebanese source. “The proposal previously put forward by the Israelis was categorically rejected by the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF). All discussions held in Washington concerned areas that are not occupied and which the Israeli army had been unable to reach,” the source added.
SYRIA
Israel’s “almost daily” incursions into southern Syria stay under the radar: While the IDF regularly releases statements on Gaza and Lebanon, Israel’s objectives in Syria are largely unknown, shrouded in secrecy.
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 4,321 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:
Mamdani should be ‘Tehran’s mayor,’ Jews who voted for him are ‘idiots,’ says Dershowitz: “My people, the idiot Jews, in New York, who live on the Upper West Side, who live in Park Slope, who voted for Mamdani, remind me of the 7,000 Jews who voted for Hitler,” Dershowitz continued.
Germany moves to criminalize denial of Israel’s existence while refusing to recognize Palestine
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
The Man Who Walked Toward the “Yellow Line” in Gaza—and the Son He Carried With Him
Settlers Blocked Access to a Palestinian Family’s Toilet. Then the IDF Declared It a Closed Military Zone
How dare you ‘Bibi’ Netanyahu speak for us, Lebanese Christians?
The New York Times enabled the Gaza genocide and lost its legitimacy in the process
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – July 12, 2026*:
- At least 74,402 Palestinians killed, 186,573 injured – including:
- Gaza: at least 73,223 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls), 173,654 injured
- West Bank/East Jerusalem: at least 1,179 killed (~244 children), 12,919 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 – July 12, 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)
- How the US law on dual citizens was changed for Israel
- Tucker Carlson Interview with Survivor of Israel’s Lethal Attack on the USS Liberty
- Inside the German pro-Israel Lobby’s Campaign to Defund UNRWA
- Israel Continues to Shoot Children in the Head During the Gaza Ceasefire
- Israel announces theft of Palestinian land in West Bank to expand road for settlers
- What would you do to help end a genocide?
- These Palestinian families in the West Bank have barricaded themselves inside their homes to survive Israeli settler attacks
- How Israel and American Zionists are canceling First Amendment
- Israel is murdering Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya. The U.S. media is covering up the crime: 2 Articles
- Inside the growing religious revolt against Christian Zionism
- Abdul El-Sayed and Rep. Haley Stevens on the debate stage
- Far-Left Dem Says 9/11 Was Blowback. So Did Pat Buchanan
- Congress Aims to Give Israel Leverage Over America
- Annus Mirabilis – Actions by the Israeli Government to Annex the West Bank
