LiveLive Updates August 13, 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 formatSubscribeAugust 13, 2026UpdatesIsraeli settlers move back to northern West Bank settlement evacuated in 2005Israeli settlers have begun moving into homes in the newly reestablished settlement of Ganim in the northern West Bank, Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party said in a statement.Newly populated homes in the Israeli settlement of Ganim in the northern West Bank. Credit: Religious ZionismNewly populated homes in the Israeli settlement of Ganim in the northern West Bank. Credit: Religious ZionismGanim is one of four Israeli settlements in the northern West Bank that were evacuated in 2005, alongside Israel's disengagement from the Gaza Strip. In February 2023, the Knesset amended the Disengagement Law, allowing Israelis to return to the evacuated settlements.Read the full articleU.S. ambassador says 'Israeli terrorists' besieging Palestinian family in West Bank's QusraU.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said the Israeli settlers who have laid siege to a Palestinian family in the West Bank village of Qusra are "terrorists."This is another lie. @usembassyjlm has been VERY involved & the IDF & Israel Police have gone at our request to remove the Israeli terrorists doing this. The actions of those doing this to this family’s home is criminal. The WH hasn’t “intervened” because we have kept DCShow more🚨 UPDATE: The White House has intervened and is now seeking clarification from Israel over why Israeli settlers have been allowed to maintain a five-day siege of a Palestinian home belonging to an American citizen in the village of Qusra, in the occupied West Bank.In a post on social media, Huckabee said that the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem "has been very involved" in seeking a resolution to the incident, adding that the IDF and the police arrived at the scene at the U.S. embassy's request to remove what he referred to as "the Israeli terrorists doing this." "Actions by those who carried out this horrific act of terror meant to intimidate and harass this family are disgusting. No excuse for such thuggish behavior," he wrote. Huckabee added that the White House did not intervene because the embassy had already kept Washington apprised of the situation.Read the full articleReport: U.S. intelligence doubted Israeli warning of Iranian plot to assassinate Trump in TurkeyTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomes U.S. President Donald Trump upon his arrival on the Qatar-gifted Boeing 747-8 Air Force One at Etimesgut Air Base near Ankara, July. Credit: AFP/SAUL LOEBTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomes U.S. President Donald Trump upon his arrival on the Qatar-gifted Boeing 747-8 Air Force One at Etimesgut Air Base near Ankara, July. Credit: AFP/SAUL LOEBU.S. intelligence officials were skeptical of an Iranian assassination threat against President Donald Trump that was relayed by Israel during his visit to Turkey, The Washington Post reported late Wednesday.According to the report, CIA analysts did not view the intelligence as compelling and a U.S. official said it was "viewed as low confidence." Following the threat, Trump was secretly shuttled in an airport catering truck to an alternate military aircraft that flew him from Ankara to Britain. According to the report, some U.S. intelligence sources believed that Israel also relayed the threat in an attempt to influence Trump's policy in the region.One official said this fit into a broader pattern of Israeli intelligence reports, which some officials believe were also intended to influence the president's decision-making. According to an American official, Israel is concerned about warming relations between Washington and Ankara and the connection between Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.Iran rejects Trump's claim that U.S. has 'total control' over the Strait of Hormuzادعاها و توییت‌های پیاپی مسئولان آمریکایی درباره رفع انسداد تنگه هرمز، واقعیت را تغییر نمی‌دهد؛ تنگه هرمز همچنان مسدود است و تا پذیرش شروط ایران بازگشایی نخواهد شد.Claims and repeated posts by U.S. officials that the Strait of Hormuz is no longer blocked do not change the reality: the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked and will not be reopened until Iran’s conditions are accepted.Iran on Wednesday rejected U.S. President Donald Trump's statement that the United States controls the Strait of Hormuz, insisting that the crucial shipping route remains blocked.Repeated statements and social media posts by US officials about lifting the blockade did not change the situation on the ground, Iran's new authority for the strait, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), said on X."The Strait of Hormuz remains blocked and will not be reopened until Iran's conditions are accepted," the authority said.Trump has repeatedly said that the US has "total control" of the waterway."We totally control the Strait of Hormuz. We have control over it; nobody else, only us," he told reporters on Tuesday evening.Israel: No agreement yet on which nations will send troops to oversee Hezbollah disarmament UNIFIL armored vehicles driving past destroyed buildings in southern Lebanon, seen from a position in northern Israel, near the border with Lebanon, in July. Credit: Jalaa Marey/AFPUNIFIL armored vehicles driving past destroyed buildings in southern Lebanon, seen from a position in northern Israel, near the border with Lebanon, in July. Credit: Jalaa Marey/AFPA spokesperson for Israel's Embassy to the United States said in a statement that negotiations over the composition of the body that would oversee and verify Hezbollah's disarmament were ongoing and that no agreement had yet been reached.The comments came after people familiar with the matter said that Israel and Lebanon have agreed on Britain, Italy, Switzerland and Indonesia as potential contributors to the ⁠proposed mechanism that could see foreign troops deployed to Lebanon.The shortlist emerged ⁠from U.S.-mediated talks in Rome last week, the latest round of negotiations between Israel and Lebanon on implementing a June agreement that ties Israel's phased withdrawal from Lebanon to the disarmament of Hezbollah.The countries could help define the mechanism's scope, provide personnel to oversee its implementation or contribute troops to observe or take part in inspections verifying disarmament, three sources said.A Lebanese official told Reuters ‌on Friday that Israel and Lebanon had agreed on a list of potential countries that could send troops to verify disarmament, but declined to ‌identify them, saying the U.S. would decide which of them would take part.IDF punishes soldiers who shared photo of Palestinian detainee tied to bedAn Israeli military investigation found that a Palestinian detainee tied to a bed by soldiers from the ultra-Orthodox Netzah Yehuda battalion had tried to harm himself, the military said Wednesday, adding that the soldiers' treatment of the detainee, photographing him and sharing the image online violated the army's values and expected conduct.The investigation resulted in disciplinary action against several soldiers and commanders, the military said. The company commander was removed from his position and transferred to a staff role, while the deputy battalion commander received a command reprimand. The soldier who restrained the detainee was sentenced to five days in military detention and removed from combat duty. The soldier who photographed the detainee also received a five-day detention sentence, while another soldier was confined to his base for 14 days.The military said disciplinary action against two additional soldiers who do not serve in the Netzah Yehuda Battalion has not yet been determined.Israel's military says it targeted a Hamas commander planning attacks in GazaAn Israeli airstrike critically wounded a Palestinian man in the Gaza Strip, in an attack the Israeli military said targeted a Hamas commander planning attacks against Israeli troops operating in the territory.It was the first such airstrike in over a week, after Israel scaled back major attacks under U.S. pressure to implement the latest iteration of President Donald Trump's plan to end the war in Gaza.Palestinian medics and witnesses said the man who was wounded was riding on a rickshaw in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip.The Israeli military said in a statement that the man targeted was hit in an aerial strike in order to remove the threat to Israeli military troops.It added that its forces would remain deployed in the area under the Southern Command in accordance with the agreement and would continue operations against immediate threats.13 hours agoRECAP: U.S. tells Mideast embassies staff may stay low amid Iran war; Trump says U.S. to 'keep' HormuzHere are Thursday's latest updates:■ Washington asked U.S. embassies in the Middle East to prepare to continue operating with reduced staff, and displaced personnel are allowed to cut their assignments short as the Iran war is expected to continue, CNN reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.■ U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington has "total control" over the Strait of Hormuz, adding, "I THINK WE WILL KEEP IT!"■ The Israeli military said IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir held a meeting on Wednesday, ordering to deploy more soldiers in the northern West Bank after settlers took over a Palestinian family's house.■ The Israeli military said it killed a Hamas militant in the northern Gaza Strip, saying he planned to attack IDF soldiers. The army added that it sought to "mitigate harm to civilians," but didn't provide details on the extent of civilian casualties.■ Israel and Lebanon have agreed on Britain, Italy, Switzerland and Indonesia as potential contributors to a ⁠proposed mechanism that could see foreign troops deployed to Lebanon to verify Hezbollah's disarmament, people familiar with the matter said.■ The Israel Police and ultra-Orthodox demonstrators clashed in central Israel after the protesters blocked a major highway in the area.■ The European Union ‌and 26 countries ⁠condemned Iran's executions ⁠of protesters in a joint statement, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said ‌on Wednesday.In the News'We're Not Nazis. 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