LiveLive Updates July 17, 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 formatSubscribeJuly 17, 2026UpdatesIsrael says it assassinated Hamas commander over alleged role in holding Israeli hostages Israeli forces on Thursday assasinated a Hamas commander for his alleged involvement in holding Israeli hostages, including Abera Mengistu, who crossed into Gaza in 2014 and was released as part of a hostage exchange in 2025, the Israeli military and the Shin Bet security agency said Friday. In a joint statement, the IDF and Shin Bet identified the commander as Anas Mahmoud Ahmed Hamdan, saying he "was directly involved in holding Israeli hostages in Hamas captivity and was responsible for documenting the hostages during the release ceremonies."The statement said Hamdan also led propaganda activities for Hamas' Khan Younis Brigade and served as a senior aide to Mohammed Deif, the leader of the group's military wing, who was assassinated in 2024.In June, Israel assassinated an operative from Hamas' elite Nukhba force for his alleged involvement in holding Omer Shem Tov hostage. Shem Tov was kidnapped from the Nova music festival and taken to Gaza during the October 7, 2023, attack.Nine Kurdish opposition members killed in suspected Iranian strike, sources sayNine members of an Iranian Kurdish opposition group were killed on Friday in a suspected Iranian missile strike on the group's headquarters in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region, Kurdish sources said.A member of the Iranian Kurdish opposition group Komala told DPA that the headquarters, near the city of Sulaimaniyah, was hit by six ballistic missiles.The missiles struck the compound, killing nine members of the dissident group and igniting several fires, the source said, adding that the death toll could rise as rescue operations continued. There was no immediate comment from Iranian authorities.Separately, the Counter-Terrorism Service in Iraq's Kurdistan Region said air defences intercepted and shot down eight drones over the regional capital of Erbil on Friday. The service said no injuries or damage were reported.RECAP: At least 38 killed, 400 wounded in U.S. strikes on Iran this month, Iran Health Ministry saysHere are Friday's latest updates:■ At least 38 people have been killed in U.S. strikes on Iran so far this month, Iran's Health Ministry spokesman Hossein Kermanpour said on X, with more than 400 others wounded.■ China's Foreign ‌Minister Wang Yi and his ⁠Pakistani counterpart ⁠Ishaq Dar called for a cease-fire and the resumption of dialogue ‌between the ‌United States and Iran, the Chinese foreign ministry said, citing talks between the ministers in Shanghai ⁠on Thursday.■ The United States struck an area in Iran's western Lorestan province, according to Iran's ISNA news agency, citing a provincial official. Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guards said no oil or gas would be exported through the Strait of Hormuz as long as U.S. attacks continue, according to Tasnim News Agency.■ Iran's ‌Revolutionary Guards said ‌they attacked a U.S. ⁠special operations command ⁠centre at al-Tanf in Syria in retaliation for the killing of ‌Iranian soldiers ‌in Iranshahr, Tasnim news agency reported.■ United States airstrikes targeting infrastructure in southern Iran have killed seven people, Iranian state media reported Friday, as Washington expanded its air campaign following threats by U.S. President Donald Trump to pressure Tehran into easing its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.■ Qatar's defense ministry said its armed forces thwarted an Iranian missile attack early on Friday, while the interior ministry said a child has been injured by shrapnel resulting from interception operations.■ The U.S. military said late on Thursday it completed its latest wave of strikes on Iran that were carried out at President Donald Trump's direction and marked a sixth consecutive night of American strikes.Kuwait says Iranian attack damages power generation, water desalination stationOne of ‌Kuwait's power generation and water desalination ⁠stations was hit in an ⁠Iranian attack, causing damage to facilities, a fire and the disruption of a large number of electricity generation ‌units, Kuwaiti authorities said on Friday.Firefighters ‌brought the blaze under control, while technical teams began assessing the damage, securing the station and working to restore the affected electricity generation units to service as soon as possible, the Ministry of ⁠Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy said.Iran said it launched fresh strikes ‌on U.S. ⁠facilities in the Middle ‌East on Friday, including the first direct attack in Syria, after a ⁠sixth straight night of U.S. attacks on Iranian military facilities.Early on Friday, Iran's military said ‌it had attacked U.S. facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait.Netanyahu Hopes His Political Harakiri Will Keep His Bloc – and His Grip on Power – Alive | AnalysisThe 25th Knesset concluded the final week of its existence in a manner fully appropriate to its long tenure: by passing a clutch of laws that together constitute a mosaic of national betrayal. That betrayal began on January 4, 2023, with the launch of a judicial coup, followed by the slaughter in the Gaza border communities on October 7, and then the government's evasion of culpability, abandonment of the hostages and a cursed forever war.The Basic Law on Torah Study and the law suspending the arrest of Haredi draft evaders (which has been frozen by the High Court of Justice and will end up in the dustbin of Knesset history) are unadulterated examples of this hard-right government's view of the 70 percent to 75 percent of the population that serves in the army.The last six days of the Knesset session could have been Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's last chance to win back a shred of legitimacy, to don the appearance of a genuine statesman who serves the country's majority.Instead, the Prime Minister's Office shelved dozens of bills that were part of a consensus, that, as Menachem Begin put it, "benefit the people" (including a bill designed to ease traffic). Instead, it favored bills that crush democracy, support draft evasion, subordinate the media to politicians and promote gender segregation in academia.Read the full articleAt least 38 killed, 400 wounded in U.S. strikes on Iran this month, Iran Health Ministry saysAt least 38 people have been killed in U.S. strikes on Iran so far this month, Iran's Health Ministry spokesman Hossein Kermanpour said on X, with more than 400 others wounded.The figures are presumed to refer to civilians as Iranian authorities typically report military casualties separately.The spokesman's death toll, which was given on Friday morning, also appears to exclude casualties from the latest wave of U.S. strikes overnight. Iranian media initially reported eight people killed in those attacks.In the NewsBumps at Funerals, Lines in Shelters: Israel's Wars Drive Israelis to DrugsDespite IDF Demands, Knesset Keeps Mandatory Military Service at 32 MonthsAndy Burnham Declared Head of Labour, Clearing Final Hurdle to Become U.K. PMHaredi Party Leader Says Courts 'Have No Authority,' IDF Chief 'Has Lost It'Israel's Knesset Approves Its Dissolution, Netanyahu Votes in FavorRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIInside the Mossad Plot to Install Ahmadinejad as Iran's LeaderNetanyahu's Biggest Challenger: Who Is Gadi Eisenkot and What Does He Stand For?103 House Democrats Vote to Cut U.S. Aid to Israel in Landmark Symbolic VoteEisenkot Is Quietly Gaining Ground in Likud Territory. Enough to Beat Netanyahu?Ro Khanna, U.S. Lawmaker & Israel Critic, Says West Bank Settlers 'Detained' HimI Joined Rep. Ro Khanna on His West Bank Visit. Here's What I Saw