News roundup for Saturday, May 16, 2026, Day 953 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 warplanes killed 3 Palestinians in Gaza on Saturday and injured many others.
DEATH TOLL – GAZA GENOCIDE (tentative):
- At least 857 since ceasefire began Oct. 11, 2025
- 72,744 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 occupation forces shot and killed a Palestinian teacher, Noureddin Kamal Hassan Fayyad, 34, early Saturday during an invasion of the Jenin refugee camp, the Ministry of Health confirmed. The army prevented residents and medics from approaching Fayyad. His family accuses forces of using excessive force on an unarmed civilian.
Palestinians forced to demolish own homes to make way for Israeli theme park: Told their homes were built illegally, families must choose – pay Israel to do the demolition, or demolish them themselves. To make room for a theme park.
White House weighs diverting frozen Palestinian funds* to bankroll floundering ‘Board of Peace’: Report: The frozen tax revenue funds PA salaries, public services, and welfare for prisoners and families of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces
*NOTE: Under the terms of the Oslo Accords, Israel collects import/export taxes on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, which is supposed to be handed over for the PA’s operating budget. Israel regularly keeps back some of this revenue (an amount now totaling over $4 billion), claiming it is being used illegally for the so-called Pay-For-Slay program (Palestinians often call it the Martyr’s Fund) – a social safety net for the Palestinian families that have lost their breadwinner due to the conflict with Israel.
Many Palestinian “martyrs” were not killers or attackers, but were themselves killed while walking to school, participating in a peaceful demonstration, or sleeping in their beds – but Israel does not differentiate, claiming the program encourages Palestinians to volunteer for suicide missions.
Notably, Israel has its own compensation program for families of IDF soldiers killed or injured in the line of duty, as does the US. For a deep dive into the topic, read this.
Settlers, under Israeli military protection, attack Palestinians in Christian Quarter: Witnesses reported that colonizers stormed the area, attacked Palestinian shopkeepers in the Christian Quater of the Old City, and vandalized property while Israeli forces provided protection and later detained the victims instead of the attackers.
‘He Attacked a Tied-up Dog’: Israeli Settler Filmed Abusing Palestinian-owned Dog in West Bank: The owner said Lucy the dog, which suffered severe injuries and was later taken for treatment, was tied up and did not attack the settler. “I constantly receive reports about animals being beaten by settlers,” said the owner of the pet taxi service that got Lucy to a vet. “Not everything is documented, and even when it is documented, unfortunately not much always happens.”
Israeli Colonizer Shoots a Palestinian Near Hebron
Occupied West Bank Sees Surge in Coordinated Colonizer Attacks
Israeli Invasions and Abductions on Saturday
Army Injures A Palestinian In Tulkarem
Jerusalem Man Forced to Demolish His Home In Occupied Jerusalem
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: Welcome to the Most Shameful Day in the Jewish Calendar: Jerusalem Day marks Israel’s victory in the 1967 Six-Day War, but it led to more than half a century of brutal occupation. Marking Jerusalem’s still-mythical ‘unification’ with an annual pogrom against Palestinians compounds the original crime.
ISRAELI MEDIA: Netanyahu May Be Crumbling, but His Regime Is Alive and Well: A single appearance by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on “60 Minutes” instilled hope in those who are fed up with the regime of evil and destruction of a supreme leader who is leading Israel with an outstretched arm into the abyss. The image on the screen was a tired, old man, his face caked in layers of cracked makeup. His speech was incoherent and his true state of health may yet be revealed.
ISRAEL-US WAR/CEASEFIRE ON IRAN – 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.
The American people have made clear that they do not want the US embroiled in a 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 administration officials allegedly urged the UAE to seize Iran’s Lavan Island, according to anonymous sources. This follows Israeli reports of a secret meeting between Israel and UAE leadership. Israel’s i24 News said Friday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “confirmed secret visit to the UAE” included the Mossad chief, the director of the Shin Bet, and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir. The UAE denies that the visit occurred.
The UAE reportedly tried to persuade neighboring states to attack Iran. The countries, including Saudi Arabia and Qatar, refused to take part in such a coordinated military attack on Iran.
‘Mega-Bloodbath’: Trump Officials Hate His Plan to Seize Iran’s Uranium: ‘We might actually be stupid enough to try it,’ one Trump administration official tells Zeteo.
Trump: Iran can’t have nuclear weapons because ‘they’re crazy’
REMINDER: Iran’s current stated conditions to end the conflict include an immediate end to hostilities, non-aggression guarantees, the lifting of U.S. sanctions, Iranian management of the Strait of Hormuz, an end to the ongoing U.S. naval blockade, and an end to the war “on all fronts” including in Lebanon, where Israel has waged a deadly military campaign.
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON IRAN (tentative):
- United States: 13 (or more)
- Iran: at least 3,636 (1,701 civilians, 254 children)
- Israel: about 40 (19 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. (Read about UNIFIL, the UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, here.)
Israeli strikes killed 18 people and wounded 124 people in Lebanon in the past day, the country’s Health Ministry said Saturday. The Israeli military said in a statement it killed Hezbollah militants who were preparing to fire rockets at Israeli troops in southern Lebanon. The incident came after the U.S.-brokered cease-fire between Israel and Lebanon was extended by 45 days on Friday evening.
At least five villages in the south were also bombed on Saturday, while the Israeli army issued new forced displacement orders for nine villages in southern Lebanon.
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON LEBANON (tentative):
- At least 380 killed since “ceasefire” began on April 17, 2026 (22 children, 39 women)
- At least 2,969 people have been killed since war began on March 2, 2026
MORE NEWS & HEADLINES:
ISRAELI MEDIA: NYC Mayor Mamdani Shares Nakba Day Video, Sparks Backlash for One-sided Narrative*: The video, posted shortly before Shabbat, features a testimony by a survivor and a statement that the displacement of Palestinians ‘continues to this day.’ Jewish Community Relations head: Not mentioning the U.N. partition plan ‘does nothing to advance understanding.’
*NOTE: The UN partition plan allocated roughly 55% of the land to a Jewish state and 42% to the Palestinian state, with the remaining area (the Jerusalem-Bethlehem region) designated as an international zone. At the time, the Arab population accounted for about two-thirds of the total population, while Jews made up about one-third. The plan was ratified without input from the Palestinians, and never came into effect. Read more about the UN partition plan here and here.
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Amnesty chief calls Finland-Israel arms industry meeting ‘utterly shameful’
Quarter of a million join Nakba Day rally
6 detained after Palestinian flag unfurled on Eiffel Tower during Nakba anniversary protest
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
Full list of Israel’s ceasefire violations in Gaza, seven months on
Gaza sisters awarded environmental prize for turning rubble into bricks
The Israeli army has arrested more than 23,000 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank
Shaky truce* between Israel and Lebanon extended for 45 days, US says
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – MAY 16, 2026*:
- At least 73,927 Palestinians killed, 184,288 injured – including:
- Gaza: at least 72,761 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls), 172,588 injured
- West Bank/East Jerusalem: at least 1,166 killed (~244 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 – May 16, 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)
- Medicine shortages amid siege leave people in peril
- Gaza’s students face a near impossible test to study abroad
- We Can’t Curb Nuclear Proliferation If We Don’t Acknowledge Israel’s Nukes
- 43,000 people in Gaza suffered life-changing injuries since October 2023: WHO
- Israel’s 7 October narrative under fresh scrutiny after army accused of deleting footage
- Ex-CENTCOM chief headlines lavish Israeli-American Council gala
- Israel’s 7 October rape hoax gets a 300-page reboot
- Chants of ‘death to Arabs,’ calls for destruction of Al-Aqsa Mosque in racist Jerusalem Day march
- What Fuels My Revolutionary Optimism This Nakba Day
- Gaza elders who survived the Nakba reflect on being displaced by Israel again, 78 years later
- Microsoft fires head of Israeli subsidiary and other managers over surveillance of Palestinians
- Gaza: ‘Doctors Under Attack’ Wins Top Award After Being Shelved by the BBC
- The Nakba at 78: A statistical snapshot of Palestine
- Israel Expels Father Louis Salman from Palestine
