It has now been 927 days since Israel began its 2023 genocide on the Palestinian people. Below is a roundup of news from Monday, April 20, 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.”
US officials in Islamabad for negotiations, but Iran has not yet RSVP’d: “We have not made a decision yet about the next round of negotiations,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said on Monday, adding: “We have no plans for the next round.” Monday’s statement coincided with the arrival of US officials to the Pakistani capital, Islamabad.
Trump’s Iran rhetoric runs hot and cold: US President Donald Trump said Monday that negotiations with Iran will be finalized soon: “We’ve done a great job, and we’ll get it closed out, and everybody’s going to be happy,” Trump said during a phone interview with a conservative radio host.
On social media Monday, he wrote, “We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran. NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!”
Iran chief negotiator: no talks under threat, warns of “new cards” if war resumes: Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran;s parliament speaker and chief negotiator, said on X: “We do not accept negotiating under threat. Over the past two weeks, we have been preparing to reveal new cards on the battlefield,” adding that Trump “is seeking to turn the negotiating table into a table of surrender.”
US Estimates Iran Has 70% of Pre-War Missile Stockpile, 60% of Launchers: Multiple US officials told The New York Times that Iran has used the ceasefire to dig out its underground military sites that were blocked by rubble, and now has access to 70% of its missiles, 60% of its launchers, and 40% of its drones.. Earlier this month, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth claimed that Tehran’s missile program had been “functionally destroyed.” Meanwhile, the US has strained its supplies. At current production rates, it will take years to refill the American arms stockpiles.
US turned back 27 vessels since start of naval blockade of Iran: CENTCOM
415 US service members wounded in Iran war
Rafi Nia Synagogue damaged in US-Israeli attacks – in photos: According to the Times of Israel, the Israel military admitted that it was behind a strike that damaged the Rafi Nia synagogue in Tehran, saying it was targeting a senior Iranian commander and that it regretted the “collateral damage” to the Jewish house of worship nearby.
Iran is home to about 15,000 Jews, called Kalimi Jews. Mondoweiss reports that the Kalimi community of Iran are Iranian Jews who refused to join the Zionist project of colonizing Palestine. Despite sustained efforts by Israel to encourage their emigration, this remaining community has insisted that Iran — not Israel — is their home.
This presents an profoundly uncomfortable contradiction for Zionism. On the one hand, it insists that Iranian Jews are oppressed by what it describes as “the most antisemitic regime on the plant.” On the other, it is confronted by a community that has forsaken Zionism and, by refusing to leave Iran, directly undermines narratives of Iranian antisemitism.
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON IRAN (tentative):
- United States: 13 (this number is believed by some to be an undercount)
- Iran: at least 3,636 (1,701 civilians, 254 children)
- Israel: 30 (including 16 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 – and killing at least 397. (Read about UNIFIL, the UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, here.)
6 injured in Israeli strike in southern Lebanon despite ceasefire: Lebanese media reported that the strike targeted the town of Qaqqaiyat al-Jisr in the Nabatieh district, despite a US-sponsored ceasefire.
A history of Israel’s invasions of Lebanon: As Israeli forces remain inside Lebanon and military operations continue, Middle East Eye examines Israel’s history of invasions since its founding, alongside Beirut’s attempts to resolve the conflict through negotiations.
Jerusalem Latin cleric condemns destruction of Jesus statue by Israeli soldier
Israeli soldier’s destruction of Jesus statue ‘violates freedom of belief’: Lebanese priest: ‘What happened is a condemned act because it violates freedom of belief and the sanctity of what others believe in.’
US to host 2nd round of Israel-Lebanon talks Thursday
Spain says Israel applying ‘Gaza strategy’ in Lebanon
Israel has declared a large swath of the southern Lebanese border area a “Forward Defense Zone,” similar to the ‘Yellow Line’ perimeter used to seize additional territory in the Gaza Strip. Israel’s military published a map of the zone, which includes the Qana offshore gas field – an area that belongs to Lebanon according to the maritime border agreement reached indirectly between Beirut and Tel Aviv in 2022.
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON LEBANON (tentative):
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.
Two Palestinians were killed by Israeli army fire in Gaza over the past 24 hours, the Health Ministry said on Monday.
Beacon of hope after long suffering: New camp opens for Gaza’s orphans
Minas Al Jabbour reports from Gaza City.
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— Press TV 🔻 (@PressTV) April 20, 2026
Report finds Gaza needs more than $71bn in next decade for recovery: In their final Gaza Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA), released on Monday, the European Union and United Nations asserted that the conflict has had a “catastrophic impact on human development” and left the enclave desperately in need of huge sums of money in the immediate future.
DEATH TOLL – GAZA GENOCIDE (tentative):
- At least 777 since ceasefire began Oct. 11, 2025
- 72,553 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 government applying ‘annexation*’ in occupied West Bank, energy minister says: Eli Cohen, a member of Israel’s Security Cabinet, says new illegal settlements to be connected to water and electricity networks, which he called “sovereignty in practice,” a term the Israeli government often employs to refer to annexation.
*NOTE: Annexation – acquiring territory by force – is a flagrant violation of international law. As such it can have no effect on the legal status of the territory, which remains de jure occupied. In the context of the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT), “annexation” means extending Israeli law to areas which are recognized as occupied and treating them as part of the territory of Israel.
Israeli Colonizers Steal Over 12,000 Livestock Since Early 2025: Testimonies from residents, video documentation by Palestinians and international activists, and reports from rights organizations all point to a consistent pattern of assault, intimidation, and property seizure.
Colonizers, Army Continue West Bank Attacks: Illegal paramilitary Israeli colonizers carried out multiple coordinated attacks on Palestinian communities across the Nablus, Jenin, and Bethlehem districts on Monday, while Israeli forces uprooted dozens of fruit-bearing trees for the second consecutive day and assaulted the head of a village council during an invasion of Beit Dajan.
Israeli Soldiers Shoot A Palestinian In Nablus
Soldiers Abduct Dozens Of Palestinians Across West Bank
Israeli Army Demolishes A Palestinian Home In Hebron
Army Destroys Water Lines East of Tammun
Soldiers Abduct Young Man, His Sister, in Anabta
As barbed wire blocks kids from class, Palestinians stage ‘Freedom School’: For more than 40 days during the US-Israeli war on Iran, Palestinian schools were closed in the area. But last week when a ceasefire allowed Palestinian schools in the West Bank to reopen, the children in Umm al-Khair arrived to find the fence blocking the path to their school. When they tried to go around the fence, Israeli soldiers launched tear gas and sound grenades at children as young as five years old.
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 forces detain 2 Syrians* in Quneitra raid: Israeli forces detained two Syrian men during an incursion in Quneitra province in southwestern Syria early Monday.
*NOTE: Although Israel is not at war with Syria, the Israeli army has carried out over 1,000 airstrikes and 400 cross-border raids on Syria since December 2024. Israel has demanded the demilitarization of southern Syria, allegedly to prevent any “potential threat” from post-war Syria – but has vowed to stay permanently in what seems to be an informal border expansion.
Hungary’s incoming Prime Minister: Netanyahu would be arrested if he visits
Study: 45 % of Poles say Israel’s actions resemble Nazi practices
Spain to formally call on EU to suspend association agreement with Israel: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced, “A government that violates international law and, therefore, the principles and values of the EU cannot be our partner.”
‘Swimming Against the Tide, but Swimming’: More Israelis and Palestinians Now Choose to Grieve Together: The joint Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day ceremony is now in its 21st year. One of its organizers says that people are now joining faster after the loss of their loved ones, understanding ‘they can’t remain indifferent.’
IDF probes soldier over inciting patches on uniform, amid growing backlash: Recently, a photo circulated online showing an Israeli soldier in the West Bank wearing velcro patches with inciting slogans, prompting the military to announce it was reviewing the soldier’s conduct. The badges read “Stop the hatred, it is time for violence,” and “Hamas hunters.” In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces stressed that wearing non-military symbols on IDF uniforms is strictly prohibited, and said that the patch “does not represent the IDF or its values**.”
*NOTE: Israel’s self-investigations – on the rare occasions when they do take place – tend to focus on individuals and individual incidents, ignoring the dangerous, far-reaching policies and assumptions rampant in Israeli thinking: impunity, lethality, and dehumanization.
**NOTE: The irony here is rich: the Israeli military plans to investigate a soldier for wearing unauthorized patches, while Israeli soldiers commit war crimes on a daily basis. The Israeli military self-describes as “The Most Moral Army in the World,” boasting of its code of ethics. But even a cursory glance at If Americans Knew headlines exposes the folly of the term “moral army” to describe the IDF. Just a few examples: “Most moral army in the world” added to UN Hall of Shame for child endangerment; ‘Not a normal war’: doctors say children have been targeted by Israeli snipers in Gaza; Israel Is the Global Rape, Torture Capital; Israeli soldiers tell story of savage cruelty in Gaza – one given blessing by the West; This is how Israeli settlers, backed by the military, erased a Palestinian village from existence last week; In Israel, raping Palestinian prisoners is justified. Leaking the footage is betrayal; In Gaza, Almost Every IDF Platoon Keeps a Human Shield, a Sub-army of Palestinian Slaves. The list goes on.
MORE NEWS & HEADLINES:
‘Predators’: Amnesty slams Netanyahu, Putin, Trump as human rights decline: Global rights group says leaders of three countries behind devastating wars inspire other states to carry out abuses.
Lebanese Americans to sue US administration over destroyed homes in Lebanon: At a press conference on Monday, the Michigan-based Arab American Civil Rights League said it would sue US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and possibly weapons manufacturers, for using American tax money to fund Israel’s war on Lebanon, according to local reports.
Big Tech Is Powering Israel’s AI War Machine: From Gaza to now Iran and Lebanon, Israel is expanding its testing ground for AI-enabled military technology in terrifying ways.
Boos erupt against pro-Israel candidates at Michigan Democratic convention:
Abdul El-Sayed receives a standing ovation and applause from Democrats at the Michigan Democratic Party convention.
El-Sayed is seeking the Democratic nomination for US Senate in Michigan.
Video credit: @LilyCGuiney https://t.co/qnuXUQ3yxa pic.twitter.com/jLTLy82FFw
— Politics & Poll Tracker 📡 (@PollTracker2024) April 19, 2026
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
Iran: Trump is “erratic” and untrustworthy,” pawn of Israel
Israeli soldier photographed smashing Jesus statue in south Lebanon
150 Israeli occupiers storm Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque under heavy police protection
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – APRIL 20, 2026*:
- At least 73,702 Palestinians killed, 183,996 injured – including:
- Gaza: at least 72,553 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls), 172,296 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 20, 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)
- Israel is (still) killing aid workers in Gaza
- Catholics finally splitting with Trump over Iran war and Israel
- Israel’s “Black Wednesday” Massacre Leaves Lebanese Families Giving DNA To ID Loved One’s Remains
- ‘I Felt I Was a Monster’: IDF Soldiers Talk About the ‘Moral Injury’ – and the Silence
- ‘I thought I might die’: A Palestinian mother’s account of Israeli detention
- Mom whose daughter was killed by Israeli bulldozer 23 years ago pleaded with Congress to finally stop funding
- Senate again fails to block weapons to Israel
- Think the Iran war is a disaster? Blame these DC think tanks first.
- Number of Palestinian Prisoners Rises By 83% Since October 2023
- Mearsheimer: Israel Owns Trump
- Mark Levin and Jonathan Pollard Push for Nuking Iran
- TCN: America Enables Israel’s Crimes
- Israel’s Next Leader Will Be Just Like Bibi – but Without the Corruption
- Born into war, raised across borders: The story of Gaza’s premature babies separated from their parents amid Israel’s genocide
