News roundup for Tuesday, May 12, 2026, Day 949 since Israel began its 2023 genocide on the Palestinian people.
Compilation of news reports – IAK staff
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.
Why we can’t forget the Nakba: The Nakba has deeply scarred Palestinian society, affecting not only those who were directly displaced, but also their descendants who grew up in refugee camps or the diaspora. It has disrupted families and communities, resulting for many in the loss of culture and a sense of belonging.
A Palestinian man was killed and several others were injured on Tuesday evening when an Israeli military drone fired a missile at a group of civilians in the Nuseirat refugee camp, in central Gaza.
43,000 people in Gaza suffered life-changing injuries since October 2023: WHO: Life-changing injuries include around 10,000 children, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Tuesday. More than 50,000 injuries now require long-term rehabilitation, with over 2,000 spinal cord injuries, and more than 1,300 traumatic brain injuries.
Gaza’s Students Face a Near Impossible Test to Study Abroad: Gaza students must study without a steady internet connection; pass exams and apply for scholarships while testing facilities are in ruins, ID documents disappeared in bombings, and visa application offices are closed. The challenges are nonstop.
‘Slow suffocation’: Oxygen crisis threatens patients at Gaza hospitals: Shutdown of oxygen stations would mean ‘a real catastrophe and a death sentence for hundreds of patients’
DEATH TOLL – GAZA GENOCIDE (tentative):
- At least 856 since ceasefire began Oct. 11, 2025
- 72,736 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.)
1 Palestinian child killed every week in West Bank since January 2025: UNICEF: At least 70 Palestinian children have been killed in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since the beginning of 2025, averaging roughly one child per week, UNICEF said Tuesday. 65 of the 70 were killed by Israeli forces.
Soldiers Kill a Palestinian Worker, Injure Another, Near Jerusalem: The Palestinian Health Ministry announced that occupation forces killed 44-year-old Zakaria Ali Mohammad Qadis, in Ar-Ram town; he is a resident of Deir Qadis village in the Ramallah governorate. Qadis was shot in the head with live ammunition as he crossed the Apartheid Wall*.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reported that its ambulance crews received the body of a citizen who was shot in the head with live ammunition to the hospital in Ramallah.
*NOTE: The “apartheid wall” has become, in the words of Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, “a major political instrument for furthering Israeli annexationist goals. It serves for Israeli takeover of almost 10% of the West Bank… About 85% of the barrier’s meandering route winds through the West Bank. In other words, it runs through the occupied territory, and is not located along the Green Line or in Israel proper. In 2004, the International Court of Justice found that the wall violates international law and must be torn down. That has not happened.
RELATED: ‘I lost both legs’: Palestinians scale separation wall for chance to work
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.
4 Gaza doctors face starvation, dire conditions in Israeli jails, rights group says: Doctors described conditions as ‘catastrophic,’ saying they are suffering from hunger and untreated disease, according to Israeli human rights organization.
Jerusalem Church Leaders Urge Israel to Address ‘Hate Crimes’ Against Christians at Knesset Committee: At a Knesset hearing on harassment of Christian clergy in Jerusalem’s Old City amid growing scrutiny of violent incidents, church leaders described spitting, kicking, stone-throwing and intimidation, which opposition MK Gilad Kariv called a ‘moral disgrace.’
RELATED: The Shattered Figure of Jesus Is Not an Exception. It’s a Pattern
Israel’s Netanyahu appears in court for 86th time in corruption trial: Netanyahu faces charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust in 3 major corruption cases.
ISRAEL-US WAR/CEASEFIRE ON IRAN – NEWS & HEADLINES:
It can not be overemphasized that Israel is the impetus behind US policies and actions vis-a-vis Iran. 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 the US embroiled in a 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.“
Pentagon considering renaming Iran war ‘Sledgehammer’ if ceasefire collapses: Any new military combat operations against Iran would reportedly be conducted under a new name and operation, and would effectively restart the clock with Congress. Operation Sledgehammer is not the only name under consideration, according to the U.S. officials. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters last week that Operation Epic Fury “is over.”
Reporting that Iran is “doing well” in the war is “virtual TREASON,” Trump says: “When the Fake News says that the Iranian enemy is doing well, Militarily, against us, it’s virtual TREASON in that it is such a false, and even preposterous, statement. They are aiding and abetting the enemy! All it does is give Iran false hope when none should exist. Only Losers, Ingrates, and Fools are able to make a case against America!”
Hegseth Asks for More Money as Iran War Costs Skyrocket
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON IRAN (tentative):
- United States: 13 (or more)
- Iran: at least 3,636 (1,701 civilians, 254 children)
- Israel: 35 (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. (Read about UNIFIL, the UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, here.)
Ten people were killed and eight others injured Tuesday in Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon. Among the dead were two Lebanese paramedics, killed in an intentional “double tap” strike by Israel. The attack brings the number of first responders killed by Israel since the start of the war on Lebanon up to at least 108.
Israel’s war creating a ‘lost generation’ of Lebanese students*: Israel’s war on Lebanon has displaced hundreds of thousands of students and teachers, and is the latest crisis facing the country’s education system.
*NOTE: Students in Gaza are having a parallel experience. READ: A Generation on Hold: Inside Gaza’s Collapsing Education System
DEATH TOLL – WAR ON LEBANON (tentative):
- At least 380 killed since “ceasefire” began on April 17, 2026 (22 children, 39 women)
- At least 2,846 people have been killed since war began on March 2, 2026
MORE NEWS & HEADLINES:
FBI Quietly Closed a Probe Into Mahmoud Khalil While He Was in ICE Detention: Two days before Khalil’s arrest, an anonymous tip accused him of calling for violence. The FBI found it did not “warrant further investigation” — but the Trump administration kept calling him a threat.
Trump’s ‘Golden Dome’ missile defense system estimated to cost a whopping $1.2T: That is several magnitudes higher than the $175 billion price tag Trump put forward last year shortly after he assumed office. The cost would be spread out over 20 years.
Israel Advances to Eurovision Finals Defying Boos and Intense Boycott Calls: Loud chants of ‘Stop the genocide’ and boos were heard as Noam Bettan opened his performance of the song ‘Michelle;’ the Israeli representative is set to perform at Saturday’s final in Vienna.
ICYMI, A SELECTION OF YESTERDAY’S HEADLINES:
If not stopped, Israel will wipe out Christians from Palestine by 2050: Bethlehem pastor
Israeli troops jailed briefly* for desecration of Virgin Mary statue in Lebanon
Trump rejects ‘unacceptable’ Iranian response after call with Netanyahu
Agriculture sabotage: The Israeli war on food security in Lebanon
Not Just a Moral Crisis, Israel Is Now a Political Liability for the Democratic Party
(Read yesterday’s daily update here.)
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – MAY 12, 2026*:
- At least 73,921 Palestinians killed, 184,235 injured – including:
- Gaza: at least 72,761 killed (~22,000 children, 33,000 women and girls), 172,535 injured
- West Bank/East Jerusalem: at least 1,160 killed (~240 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 – May 12, 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)
- Gaza: ‘Doctors Under Attack’ Wins Top Award After Being Shelved by the BBC
- The Nakba at 78: A statistical snapshot of Palestine
- Israel Expels Father Louis Salman from Palestine
- How Israel Turned Eurovision’s Stage Into a Soft Power Tool
- Palestinians in Jerusalem receive only 7% of housing units
- If not stopped, Israel will wipe out Christians from Palestine by 2050: Bethlehem pastor
- Hidden Deep in an NPR Story About a Man Who Threatened to Kill Jews at Cornell… He Admits He Did It to Make People Love Israel
- Peter Mandelson: the untold Israel connection
- Epstein Advised U.S. Treasury on Crypto During Obama’s Iran Sanctions Push
- Pro-Israel neocon who promoted Iran war describes its disastrous results, By Arnaud Bertrand, reposted from X
- War on Iran: Senior royal says Saudi Arabia avoided Israeli plan to ‘plunge region into ruin’
- The Silence That Meets the Rape of Palestinians
- Motherhood in Gaza Looks Like Caregiving Even When There’s Nothing Left to Give
- Israel used the Nakba to steal not only Palestinians’ land, but their financial wealth too
