LiveLive Updates May 26, 2026Share to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeMay 26, 2026UpdatesRECAP: IDF strike targets Hamas military chief, reports of three killed in Gaza City strikeHere are Tuesday's latest updates:■ An IDF strike in Gaza targeted Mohammed Odeh, head of Hamas' armed wing and one of the "architects" of the October 7 massacre, a joint statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday.■ The Palestine Red Crescent Society said that three people were killed and six others wounded in an Israeli strike in a residential building in the al-Rimal neighborhood in the western part of Gaza City.■ Prime ‌Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ‌said he had instructed the IDF to expand its operations in Lebanon, with "large forces on the ground," and take control of new areas north of the Israeli-held buffer zone, citing a wide-scale effort against Hezbollah explosive drones.■ The IDF said it killed Hezbollah militants who had been involved in attacks against troops in southern Lebanon. The army added that it also struck the infrastructure used to launch rockets.■ U.S. President Donald Trump will convene his cabinet at the Camp David presidential estate on Wednesday, Fox News reported, as talks on a potential U.S.-Iran deal enter what the outlet said was a "critical phase."■ Saudi Arabia and Qatar are skeptical about U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to bring the countries into the Abraham Accords without the establishment of a Palestinian state, a Gulf source told Haaretz.■ The U.S. Navy is again guiding vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, after a similar initiative was backtracked earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing U.S. military officials.■ Iran has partially lifted the internet blackout that has been in place for more than two months, live data from internet watchdogs showed on Tuesday.■ The U.S. Justice Department has sued the University of California for it said was a "deliberate indifference to race and national origin discrimination against Jewish and Israeli students at its University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) campus" in violation of the Civil Rights Act.■ Israeli forces apprehended a man involved in a 2007 terrorist attack that killed an Israeli civilian in the West Bank, the IDF and Shin Bet security agency said.■ Syria's transitional leadership has located remnants of former Syrian ‌president Bashar al-Assad's clandestine chemical weapons program, including raw materials and munitions similar to those used ⁠to carry out deadly gas attacks during the country's long-running civil war, a Syrian official told Reuters.Trump administration sues University of California for "discrimination against Jewish and Israeli students" at UCLARoyce Hall on the University of California, Los Angeles, campus, 2024. Credit: Damian Dovarganes,AP Royce Hall on the University of California, Los Angeles, campus, 2024. Credit: Damian Dovarganes,AP The U.S. Justice Department has sued the University of California for it said was a "deliberate indifference to race and national origin discrimination against Jewish and Israeli students at its University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) campus" in violation of the Civil Rights Act.Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said a previous lawsuit filed against UCLA earlier this year alleged that the campus had failed to protect Jewish and Israeli employees from "an antisemitic hostile work environment." The new lawsuit centers on discrimination against students, as opposed to employees."Now, the Department of Justice calls UCLA to account for its toleration of the equally appalling hostile educational environment against its Jewish and Israeli students," Dhillon said. Iran permitted 25 ships to sail through Strait of Hormuz in past day, Tasnim reportsVessels anchored at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, Monday. Credit: Stringer/ REUTERSVessels anchored at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, Monday. Credit: Stringer/ REUTERSIran has permitted 25 ships to sail through the Strait of Hormuz in the past 24 hours, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps navy said, according to a report by the semi-official news agency Tasnim.'Requires Palestinian state': Saudi Arabia, Qatar hesitant to join Abraham Accords, Gulf source saysSaudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman receives The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, April. Credit: BANDAR ALGALOUD/Courtesy of Saudi Royal Court/REUTERSSaudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman receives The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, April. Credit: BANDAR ALGALOUD/Courtesy of Saudi Royal Court/REUTERSSaudi Arabia and Qatar are skeptical about U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to bring the countries into the Abraham Accords without the establishment of a Palestinian state, a Gulf source told Haaretz.A source close to the royal court in Riyadh emphasized that the Saudi position is "clear and stable," adding that there is no intention to give Israel "free gifts" without a concrete political path leading to the creation of a Palestinian state."If Trump wants normalization, let him return to the Arab Peace Initiative and adopt it," the Saudi source said.On Monday, Trump said that he has asked all countries mediating the Iran deal to join the Abraham Accords to normalize relations with Israel. He has singled out Saudi Arabia and Qatar as central to such a move, saying they should be the first to join.China says it hopes the sides in the Iran war can meet each other halfwayChina's Foreign Minister Wang ‌Yi said on Tuesday he hoped parties in ⁠the Iran conflict can stay committed to pursuing a ⁠cease-fire and continue to meet each other halfway.Iran said on Tuesday the United States had violated the cease-fire after the United States conducted what ‌it called defensive strikes in southern Iran, while U.S. ‌Secretary of State Marco Rubio said negotiating a deal to halt the conflict could "take a few days"."We hope that the parties concerned can stay committed to pursuing a cease-fire and continue to meet each other halfway, so that peace can return to the Middle East as ⁠early as possible," Wang told reporters at the United Nations in New York after chairing a ‌meeting of the ⁠15-member Security Council."As we have ‌been saying, it takes more than one cold day to freeze three feet of ice, and ⁠long-standing issues cannot be resolved overnight," Wang added. "However, every step forward in the negotiation brings more hope to peace, and one day ‌earlier the conflict is ended means less civilian casualties."IDF issues evacuation warning to several south Lebanon villagesThe IDF's Arabic-language spokesman, Avichay Adraee, issued an evacuation order to residents of several towns and villages in southern Lebanon.#عاجل ‼️انذار عاجل الى سكان لبنان المتواجدين في البلدات والقرى التالية: بافليه, دردغيا, شحور, حلوسية, باريش, حلوسية الفوقا, طير فلسيه, بستیات, ارزون, جبل الزعرور, ظهر برية جابر, معروب, دبعال, الحميري