LiveLive Updates August 14, 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 14, 2026UpdatesU.S. to hit Iran hard economically, Trump saysU.S. President Donald ‌Trump told Fox News ⁠on Friday that ⁠the United States will hit Iran hard economically as Washington ‌and Tehran struggle ‌to reach a deal to end a nearly six month conflict.His comments came a day after ⁠U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the ‌U.S. ⁠was going ‌to apply measures that have "never been ⁠seen" on Tehran as soon as next ‌week.8 hours agoIDF says it killed Hamas militant in Thursday strike on south Gaza StripThe Israeli military said the man it killed in a Thursday strike on Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip was Hudhaifa Khaled Suleiman Qawari, whom it identified as a Hamas company commander.Hudhaifa Khaled Suleiman Qawari, killed by the IDF in Khan Yunis on Thursday. Credit: IDF Spokesperson's UnitHudhaifa Khaled Suleiman Qawari, killed by the IDF in Khan Yunis on Thursday.Credit: IDF Spokesperson's UnitThe strike was the IDF's first assassination strike in the Gaza Strip since Israel's political leadership instructed the military last week not to carry out such strikes in Gaza without the IDF chief of staff's approval. The report came several days after Haaretz reported that U.S. officials told Israel to curb its strikes in Gaza.The IDF said it took steps "to mitigate harm to civilians" ahead of the Thursday strike, which killed Qawari and wounded seven others, but didn't provide details on civilian casualties. Another Israeli strike on Thursday killed at least one person and wounded others in Gaza City.8 hours agoIsraeli settlers shoot two Palestinians during raid on West Bank town, medics sayIsraeli settlers shot two Palestinians during a raid on the Palestinian town of Bani Naim, east of Hebron in the southern West Bank, the Red Crescent said.According to medics, one person sustained gunshot wounds to the head and back, while the other was shot in the back. Both were taken to hospital in stable condition, and their lives are not in danger.Houthis say they targeted Saudi oil and gas facility with drone⁠Yemen's pro-Iran Houthis ‌said they ‌targeted an Aramco oil and gas facility in ⁠the Saudi city ⁠of Najran with a drone, the group-run SABA news agency reported on ‌Friday, citing a ‌military source.The source said the attack was in response to what it described as Saudi military aircraft violating Yemen's sovereignty by entering ⁠airspace over the northeastern part of Saada ‌governorate.There was ⁠no immediate ‌confirmation from Saudi authorities or Aramco. It was ⁠not immediately clear from the report whether the facility was ‌hit.Hezbollah chief slams Beirut for yielding to Israel, calls to prepare for warLebanon's Hezbollah Chief Naim Qassem gives a televised speech from an unknown location, in 2025. Credit: Al-Manar TV/ReutersLebanon's Hezbollah Chief Naim Qassem gives a televised speech from an unknown location, in 2025. Credit: Al-Manar TV/ReutersHezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem criticized the Lebanese government's negotiations with Israel, in which he said Beirut "is signing Israeli-imposed terms with Israeli ink."According to Qassem, the Lebanese government is focusing on disarming Hezbollah instead of demanding that Israel fulfill its commitments under the cease-fire agreement. He also criticized the seven rounds of negotiations, demanding that the Beirut government "show us a single achievement they have produced."Qassem also criticized what he described as harm to the Lebanese army and the "continued humiliation" it has been forced to endure. He stressed that Hezbollah would not accept violations of Lebanese sovereignty, Israel's continued occupation of the country's south or "American patronage" over Lebanon.Addressing Hezbollah supporters, Qassem said the group "will die for you and fight to the last drop of blood," adding that it "will not abandon you." He urged the group's supporters to "store the anger in your hearts" and be prepared to use it "when the time comes."The Hezbollah leader said the group's anger could erupt against those who act against Hezbollah and its supporters, without specifying whether he was referring to Israel, the United States or the Lebanese government.Read the full articleRECAP: Iran says it downed U.S. drone; Israeli settler fires at activists, PalestiniansHere are Friday's latest updates:■ Iranian air defenses intercepted a U.S.-manufactured MQ-9 Reaper drone over Hormozgan Province, the semi-official Fars News Agency reported Friday.■ An Israeli settler was filmed opening fire near Israeli activists and Palestinian locals in the West Bank's Beit Sahour, near Bethlehem.■ A senior Lebanese security official said Israel is preparing an operation to seize the Ali al-Taher Ridge in southern Lebanon and is awaiting a signal from the United States, according to Lebanese newspaper Al-Joumhouria.■ U.S. and Israeli officials said Washington is pressuring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to publicly condemn the settlers who have besieged Palestinians in their homes in the West Bank village of Qusra, near Nablus.■ U.S. officials told Reuters that U.S. intelligence could not verify Israel's warnings over the past year that Iran intended to assassinate U.S. President Donald Trump, including before a secret Air Force One ruse in Turkey.■ President Donald Trump's son-in-law and negotiator Jared Kushner will travel to the Middle East next week to try to advance plans for an end to the Gaza war after a deal recently announced by the Trump administration ran into Israeli opposition.■ Israel's main Ben-Gurion Airport is experiencing flight delays, the Israel Airports Authority said, adding that high traffic and U.S. military tanker flights have caused a backlog of 90 flights.■ Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met the commander of U.S. Central Command, Brad Cooper, and discussed defense cooperation between the kingdom and the United States as well as efforts to reduce regional tensions, the Saudi state news agency said late on Thursday.U.S. wants Netanyahu to condemn settler siege in Palestinian village, officials sayThe United States wants Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to publicly condemn militant settlers who have besieged Palestinians in their homes in the occupied West Bank, U.S. and Israeli officials said on Friday, as settlers pressured residents by pitching a new tent before Israeli soldiers arrived and it ‌was taken down.Settlers have been encircling homes in Qusra for almost a week after cutting off water and electricity, trapping Palestinians in an area where rights groups say settlers are mounting a concerted effort to seize more land, further eating into territory where Palestinians aim to establish a state.A U.S. official and an Israeli official said White House officials are pressing Netanyahu to publicly condemn the settlers' actions. Washington began to protest after learning that the home of a Palestinian-American was among those targeted, said the two officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe sensitive discussions of which they ⁠had knowledge.On Thursday, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee called Israeli settlers who have been besieging two Palestinian families in the West Bank village of Qusra "Israeli terrorists," saying the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem had asked Israeli security forces to remove them.France urges Israel to arrest, charge settlers after West Bank raidsIsraeli settlers and Israel Border Police forces in Qusra, near Nablus in the northern West Bank, Wednesday. Credit: Itai RonIsraeli settlers and Israel Border Police forces in Qusra, near Nablus in the northern West Bank, Wednesday. Credit: Itai RonFrance urged the Israeli government to take legal action against settlers who raided and took over Palestinian houses in the West Bank.In a statement posted in Hebrew online, the French Embassy in Israel said authorities must "take all necessary measures to protect the Palestinian civilian population, as required of them under international law" and condemned Israel's settlement policy.The embassy added that France "strongly condemns" settler attacks and their takeover of several houses in the Palestinian village of Qusra, near Nablus in the northern West Bank. France "calls on the Israeli authorities to arrest the perpetrators of these acts and bring them to justice," the embassy said.In the NewsIran Defiant as Trump Tells Americans to Accept High Gas PricesCongregant and Security Assaulted at NY Synagogue Shabbat ServicesIsrael's Economy Looks Healthy, but Is It Really?Israel Called It a Terror Attack. 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