Iran\u2019s vice-president said on Tuesday that the government has taken the first steps to restore the internet after a near-total blackout since war with the United States and Israel<\/a> broke out in late February. \u201cThe first step toward free and regulated access to cyberspace has been taken,\u201d vice-president Mohammad Reza Aref said in a post on X, adding that the demands of Iranians \u201cwill be fulfilled.\u201d<\/p>\n Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey would continue providing support for peace talks during a phone call with Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian, the Turkish presidency said on Tuesday. Erdogan said the conflicts in the region had cast a shadow over the Muslim Eid holiday period, adding that he believed the Iranian people would overcome the challenges.<\/p>\n Brent crude oil rose 3% on Tuesday after the news of the US strikes on Iran. The strikes added to uncertainty about whether a deal will be imminently reached to end the war and open up shipping flows through the Strait of Hormuz<\/a>.<\/p>\n An Israeli airstrike on a village in eastern Lebanon\u2019s Bekaa Valley killed 12 people, AP reports, citing the country\u2019s state-run National News Agency. Rescue workers said a dozen bodies were pulled out of the rubble following an intense wave of overnight strikes targeting swaths of southern and eastern Lebanon.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s military has warned residents of the southern Lebanese town of Nabatieh to leave ahead of possible airstrikes, Reuters reports. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that Israel would escalate strikes against Hezbollah<\/a> in Lebanon, as a US official said the militia had ignored warnings to halt firing at Israel.<\/p>\n Israel has issued an expropriation order for land in the occupied West Bank near the site of a Biblical prophet\u2019s grave north of Jerusalem, an Israeli NGO reported on Tuesday. The site, known as Nabi Samuel, is believed in Christian, Jewish, and Muslim tradition to include the grave of the Biblical figure of prophet Samuel, and includes a mosque owned by Palestinian religious authorities, the Waqf.<\/p>\n United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said that a tanker had reported an external explosion on the vessel\u2019s port side, 60 nautical miles off Oman\u2019s capital Muscat. In a post on X<\/a>, UKMTO said the vessel and its crew were safe, although the tanker reported that some bunker fuel was discharged into the sea. UKMTO urged vessels to transit with caution and report suspicious activity.<\/p>\n Israeli forces killed a Palestinian man inside the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said on Tuesday. \u201cA citizen… was killed by Israeli fire in the Jenin camp, and ambulance crews transported his body to Jenin Government Hospital,\u201d the Ramallah-based ministry said in a statement, without specifying when he was killed.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n Show key events only<\/p>\n Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature<\/p>\n The day so far<\/p>\n Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel is \u201cintensifying\u201d its military operations in Lebanon, with the \u200bIDF operating with \u201clarge forces on \u200bthe \u200cground\u201d in order to take control of \u201cstrategic areas\u201d.Earlier, a military official confirmed to AFP that Israeli forces had begun operating beyond its so-called \u201cyellow line\u201d, which marks the 10km (six miles) area deep inside southern Lebanon<\/a> which Israel is already occupying. A reminder that these expanded ground operations are all despite a ceasefire that has been in place since 17 April. Israel has continued to intensify its strikes on Lebanon, killing thousands of people while claiming it is acting to remove threats from Hezbollah.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the proposed peace agreement between Iran<\/a> and the US seemed to remain on the table on Tuesday despite US bombings of Iranian targets \u2013 the first military action by Washington since the 8 April ceasefire. The Iranian foreign ministry denounced the US attack \u2013 aimed at missile launchers and efforts to lay fresh mines in the strait of Hormuz \u2013 as \u201can act of bad faith\u201d and \u201ca definitive violation of the ceasefire\u201d and said it would not leave aggression unanswered. But it did not pull out of the talks that were continuing under the joint mediation of Pakistan and Qatar. Here\u2019s our report<\/a>.<\/p>\n US Central Command denied reports that that US navy has \u201cquietly\u201d resumed so-called \u2018Project Freedom\u2019 in the strait of Hormuz. \u201cUS forces are not currently escorting commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz,\u201d Centcom said in a statement shared on X.It comes after The Wall Street Journal (paywall) reported<\/a>, citing US military officials, that the US navy \u201chad quietly guided a Greek supertanker laden with two million barrels of crude oil as it crossed the waterway off the Omani coast\u201d.<\/p>\n Oil rose back above $100 a barrel on Tuesday, after the fresh US strikes on Iran<\/a> dashed hopes of a breakthrough, with experts saying that whatever the outcome of peace talks, the global energy market may now be past the \u201cpoint of no return\u201d. Here\u2019s our story<\/a>.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Donald Trump has found time to attack the US media again, suggesting that the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and CNN have been biased in their coverage of his deeply unpopular war on Iran.<\/p>\n In a post on his Truth Social platform the US president said:<\/p>\n double quotation markIf Iran surrenders, admits their Navy is gone and resting at the bottom of the sea, and their Air Force is no longer with us, and if their entire Military walks out of Tehran, weapons dropped and hands held high, each shouting \u201cI surrender, I surrender\u201d while wildly waving the representative White Flag, and if their entire remaining Leadership signs all necessary \u201cDocuments of Surrender,\u201d and admit their defeat to the great power and force of the magnificent U.S.A., The Failing New York Times, The China Street Journal (WSJ!), Corrupt and now Irrelevant CNN, and all other members of the Fake News Media, will headline that Iran had a Masterful and Brilliant Victory over The United States of America, it wasn\u2019t even close. The Dumacrats and Media have totally lost their way. They have gone absolutely CRAZY!!! President DJT<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Israel says it targeted new Hamas armed wing chief in Gaza strike<\/p>\n \u201cUnder the direction of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel<\/a> Katz, the IDF has just carried out a strike in Gaza targeting Mohammed Odeh \u2013 the new commander of the military wing of the Hamas terrorist organisation and one of the architects of the October 7 massacre,\u201d said a joint statement issued by Netanyahu and Katz.<\/p>\n Odeh was appointed as chief of the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades after his predecessor Ezzedine Al-Haddad was killed in a strike in Gaza earlier in May.<\/p>\n \u201cOdeh served as head of Hamas intelligence during the October 7 massacre and was appointed approximately one week ago as successor to Ezzedine Al-Haddad,\u201d the statement from Netanyahu and Katz said.<\/p>\n \u201cOdeh was responsible for the murder, abduction, and injury of numerous Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers,\u201d it continued.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.14 EDT<\/p>\n Centcom denies report that it has ‘quietly’ resumed ‘Project Freedom’ in strait of Hormuz<\/p>\n US Central Command has denied reports that that United States navy has \u201cquietly\u201d resumed so-called \u2018Project Freedom\u2019 in the strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n \u201cUS forces are not currently escorting commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz,\u201d Centcom said in a statement shared on X.<\/p>\n It comes after The Wall Street Journal (paywall) reported<\/a>, citing US military officials, that the US navy \u201chad quietly guided a Greek supertanker laden with two million barrels of crude oil as it crossed the waterway off the Omani coast\u201d.<\/p>\n Donald Trump announced earlier this month that the US would help guide oil tankers through the strait, but Washington shelved the operation after only 36 hours following a backlash from Gulf allies<\/a> and Iranian attacks on vessels.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a016.14 EDT<\/p>\n Here are some images that came out of southern Lebanon, where Israel has intensified and expanded its attacks, on Tuesday.<\/p>\n People inspect damage following an Israeli airstrike in the southern port city of Tyre. Photograph: EPAIsraeli attacks across the country have killed more than 3,100 people and injured thousands more since 2 March, according to Lebanon\u2019s health ministry. Photograph: EPAA man looks through the window of his destroyed house that was hit in an Israeli airstrike in Burj al-Shemali village near Tyre. Photograph: Mohammed Zaatari\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.42 EDT<\/p>\n Several strikes hit the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh on Tuesday after an Israeli evacuation warning, an AFP correspondent reported.<\/p>\n Per my last post<\/a>, this follows Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirming that Israel was \u201cintensifying\u201d its operations in Lebanon, a day after at least 11 people were killed in a strike in eastern Lebanon.<\/p>\n An AFP correspondent in Nabatieh reported airstrikes following the warning and saw plumes of smoke rising from various locations within the city.<\/p>\n Lebanon\u2019s state-run National News Agency said one of the strikes hit the vicinity of a public hospital, causing \u201csignificant damage to the hospital\u2019s departments\u201d.<\/p>\n Largely deserted since the start of the war on 2 March, Nabatieh has faced relentless strikes despite a 17 April truce.<\/p>\n Avichay Adraee, the Israeli military\u2019s Arabic-language spokesman said on X on Tuesday that residents of the entire city \u201cmust evacuate your homes immediately and move north of the Zahrani River\u201d.<\/p>\n In eastern Lebanon, the health ministry said \u201cyesterday\u2019s Israeli enemy airstrike on the town of Mashghara in West Bekaa resulted in a preliminary toll of 11 martyrs, including two girls and a woman, and 15 wounded, including a child\u201d.<\/p>\n Rescuers were still clearing the rubble in the eastern town, the ministry added.<\/p>\n The Israeli military in a statement said it launched \u201cseveral strikes … in the area of Mashghara\u201d on \u201cHezbollah infrastructure sites where terrorists\u2019 activity was identified\u201d.<\/p>\n Later on Tuesday, it issued an evacuation warning for the town as well as Sohmor near it. It then issued other warnings for several southern towns and villages in the south.<\/p>\n The NNA also reported several Israeli strikes across the south and east.<\/p>\n A strike on Srifa in the south killed a rescuer and wounded two others from the Risala Scouts association, linked to the Hezbollah-allied Amal movement, according to the health ministry, raising the rescuer death toll in the war to 120.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a014.07 EDT<\/p>\n Netanyahu says Israel \u2018intensifying\u2019 military operations to take control of ‘strategic areas’ in Lebanon<\/p>\n Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Israel is \u201cintensifying\u201d its military operations in Lebanon, with the \u200bIDF operating with \u201clarge forces on \u200bthe \u200cground\u201d in order to take control of \u201cstrategic areas\u201d.<\/p>\n Earlier, we reported that a military official confirmed that Israeli forces had begun operating beyond its so-called \u2018yellow line\u2019, which marks the 10km (six miles) area deep inside southern Lebanon<\/a> which Israel is already occupying.<\/p>\n A reminder that these expanded ground operations are all despite a ceasefire that has been in place since 17 April. Israel has continued to intensify its strikes on Lebanon, killing thousands of people while claiming it is acting to remove threats from Hezbollah.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.35 EDT<\/p>\n The day so far<\/p>\n Iranian supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on his Telegram channel that Gulf powers will no longer be a shield for US bases and the US will no longer have a safe haven in the region. The post followe overnight attacks on Iran by the US, testing the ceasefire agreed in April.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guard Corps said it reserved the \u201clegitimate and definite\u201d right to retaliate against any ceasefire violations by the US. It added that its air defence units had shot down a US MQ-9 drone and fired at a fighter jet that had entered Iranian airspace.<\/p>\n Israeli forces have begun operating beyond its so-called \u2018Yellow Line\u2019 in south Lebanon<\/a>, which runs around 10km (six miles) deep inside Lebanese territory, a military official confirmed to AFP. \u201cThe IDF is operating in a targeted manner beyond the Forward Defence Line in order to remove direct threats to the citizens of the State of Israel<\/a> and IDF troops, in accordance with the directives of the political echelon,\u201d the military official said when asked about reports that the military had begun ground operations beyond its demarcation line.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s vice-president said on Tuesday that the government has taken the first steps to restore the internet after a near-total blackout since war with the United States and Israel<\/a> broke out in late February. \u201cThe first step toward free and regulated access to cyberspace has been taken,\u201d vice-president Mohammad Reza Aref said in a post on X, adding that the demands of Iranians \u201cwill be fulfilled.\u201d<\/p>\n Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey would continue providing support for peace talks during a phone call with Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian, the Turkish presidency said on Tuesday. Erdogan said the conflicts in the region had cast a shadow over the Muslim Eid holiday period, adding that he believed the Iranian people would overcome the challenges.<\/p>\n Brent crude oil rose 3% on Tuesday after the news of the US strikes on Iran. The strikes added to uncertainty about whether a deal will be imminently reached to end the war and open up shipping flows through the Strait of Hormuz<\/a>.<\/p>\n An Israeli airstrike on a village in eastern Lebanon\u2019s Bekaa Valley killed 12 people, AP reports, citing the country\u2019s state-run National News Agency. Rescue workers said a dozen bodies were pulled out of the rubble following an intense wave of overnight strikes targeting swaths of southern and eastern Lebanon.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s military has warned residents of the southern Lebanese town of Nabatieh to leave ahead of possible airstrikes, Reuters reports. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that Israel would escalate strikes against Hezbollah<\/a> in Lebanon, as a US official said the militia had ignored warnings to halt firing at Israel.<\/p>\n Israel has issued an expropriation order for land in the occupied West Bank near the site of a Biblical prophet\u2019s grave north of Jerusalem, an Israeli NGO reported on Tuesday. The site, known as Nabi Samuel, is believed in Christian, Jewish, and Muslim tradition to include the grave of the Biblical figure of prophet Samuel, and includes a mosque owned by Palestinian religious authorities, the Waqf.<\/p>\n United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said that a tanker had reported an external explosion on the vessel\u2019s port side, 60 nautical miles off Oman\u2019s capital Muscat. In a post on X<\/a>, UKMTO said the vessel and its crew were safe, although the tanker reported that some bunker fuel was discharged into the sea. UKMTO urged vessels to transit with caution and report suspicious activity.<\/p>\n Israeli forces killed a Palestinian man inside the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said on Tuesday. \u201cA citizen… was killed by Israeli fire in the Jenin camp, and ambulance crews transported his body to Jenin Government Hospital,\u201d the Ramallah-based ministry said in a statement, without specifying when he was killed.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Israel on Tuesday accused French-Palestinian lawyer Salah Hamouri of organising and directing a \u201cterrorist cell\u201d from Europe composed of Palestinians from East Jerusalem that was dismantled in late 2025.<\/p>\n In a joint statement, police and the domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet said that \u201cfive residents of East Jerusalem, members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), were arrested and interrogated by the Shin Bet during November and December 2025.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe Shin Bet investigation revealed that during 2024 and 2025, Hamouri met members of the cell \u2013 all residents of East Jerusalem \u2013 in several European countries and recruited them to establish an infrastructure intended to carry out terrorist activities in Israel,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n \u201cTo this end, he allegedly supplied them with phones enabling encrypted communications.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Israeli forces killed a Palestinian man inside the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n \u201cA citizen… was killed by Israeli fire in the Jenin camp, and ambulance crews transported his body to Jenin Government Hospital,\u201d the Ramallah-based ministry said in a statement, without specifying when he was killed.<\/p>\n Contacted by AFP, Israel\u2019s military said it was \u201cchecking\u201d reports of the man\u2019s killing.<\/p>\n The director of Jenin\u2019s Government Hospital, Wissam Baker, identified the victim as Nasser al-Saadi, noting that \u201che arrived dead at the hospital after being shot in the thigh\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cIt appears he bled heavily after being injured before an ambulance was called to transport him to the hospital,\u201d Baker told AFP.<\/p>\n The Palestinian Red Crescent had earlier announced that Israeli forces handed over the body of a 30-year-old from inside the Jenin refugee camp, which is adjacent to the city of Jenin.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The US has launched fresh strikes on Iran<\/a> despite suggestions that a peace deal could be within reach.<\/p>\n Donald Trump faces growing criticism from Republicans over the proposed plan to end the war, which reportedly contained major concessions from Washington. But could an agreement still be imminent?<\/p>\n Lucy Hough speaks to diplomatic editor Patrick Wintour\u2026<\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.21 EDT<\/p>\n Israel has issued an expropriation order for land in the occupied West Bank near the site of a Biblical prophet\u2019s grave north of Jerusalem, an Israeli NGO reported on Tuesday.<\/p>\n The site, known as Nabi Samuel, is believed in Christian, Jewish, and Muslim tradition to include the grave of the Biblical figure of prophet Samuel, and includes a mosque owned by Palestinian religious authorities, the Waqf.<\/p>\n \u201cThis marks the first time that the [Israeli] Civil Administration has expropriated a holy site owned by the Muslim Waqf in the occupied West Bank\u201d, Israeli settlement watchdog Peace Now said in a statement.<\/p>\n According to the Israeli order, dated 9 May but published this week, the area for expropriation will include 109.79 dunams (roughly 11 hectares), including access roads, agricultural land, and a mosque.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.49 EDT<\/p>\n Israeli forces have begun operating beyond its so-called \u2018Yellow Line\u2019 in south Lebanon<\/a>, which runs around 10km (six miles) deep inside Lebanese territory, a military official confirmed to AFP on Tuesday.<\/p>\n \u201cThe IDF is operating in a targeted manner beyond the Forward Defence Line in order to remove direct threats to the citizens of the State of Israel<\/a> and IDF troops, in accordance with the directives of the political echelon,\u201d the military official said when asked about reports that the military had begun ground operations beyond its demarcation line.<\/p>\n \u201cSpecific details regarding soldiers\u2019 locations cannot be provided,\u201d the official added.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey would continue providing support for peace talks during a phone call with Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian, the Turkish presidency said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n Erdogan said the conflicts in the region had cast a shadow over the Muslim Eid holiday period, adding that he believed the Iranian people would overcome the challenges.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Iran\u2019s vice-president said on Tuesday that the government has taken the first steps to restore the internet after a near-total blackout since war with the United States and Israel<\/a> broke out in late February.<\/p>\n \u201cThe first step toward free and regulated access to cyberspace has been taken,\u201d vice-president Mohammad Reza Aref said in a post on X, adding that the demands of Iranians \u201cwill be fulfilled.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Israeli media reported on Tuesday that the military had expanded its ground operations in southern Lebanon<\/a> beyond the \u2018Yellow Line\u2019, an Israeli-drawn demarcation line near the border, though the reports gave no further details on the extent of the advance.<\/p>\n Cross-border fighting has been escalating between Israel and Hezbollah<\/a>, despite the declaration of a ceasefire several weeks ago.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n As part of the peace deal with Iran \u2013 which could now be on the rocks \u2013 Donald Trump has made a push for Gulf states to sign up to his Abraham Accords and recognise the state of Israel. AFP has spoken to some analysts that see these demands as unrealistic.<\/p>\n \u201cFor most of the states named, the political cost of signing up under current conditions would be prohibitive,\u201d HA Hellyer, senior fellow at the Royal United Services Institute and Center for American Progress said.<\/p>\n \u201cGaza is ongoing, annexation of the West Bank is accelerating, Israeli forces remain in southern Lebanon, the Golan is occupied.\u201d<\/p>\n Yossi Mekelberg, a Middle East expert at London-based think-tank Chatham House, said it was \u201cno more than a sweetener for Israel<\/a>, and most likely won\u2019t happen\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy would these countries reward (Benjamin) Netanyahu after so much destruction in the region and to their interests?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n In 2023, Saudi Arabia was engaged in tentative talks on normalisation, but it abruptly pulled out as the Israel-Gaza war erupted. It later said it would not recognise Israel without an independent Palestinian state.<\/p>\n \u201cFor Saudia Arabia there is no incentive to join the Abraham Accords, in the current circumstances,\u201d said Hellyer.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they decide about normalisation, they would like to do it on their own accord, not the Abraham Accords.\u201d<\/p>\n Former US diplomat Barbara A. Leaf, assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs under Joe Biden, told AFP: \u201cI do not expect any of the Arab\/Muslim states whose leaders spoke to President Trump on May 23 to move towards normalisation with Israel right now.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The internet monitoring group Netblocks said in a post on X on Tuesday that live data showed partial restoration of internet connectivity in Iran<\/a>.<\/p>\n Iranian state media reported on Monday that Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian had issued an order to reopen international internet access, after a near-90-day blackout in the wake of the US-Israeli war on Iran.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Afternoon summary<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s foreign ministry has accused the US of violating the ceasefire after overnight strikes by the US military on targets in the southern coastal province of Hormozgan, next to the strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a round-up of the other key events so far today:<\/p>\n Iranian supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on his Telegram channel that Gulf powers will no longer be a shield for US bases and the US will no longer have a safe haven in the region. The post followe overnight attacks on Iran by the US, testing the ceasefire agreed in April.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guard Corps said it reserved the \u201clegitimate and definite\u201d right to retaliate against any ceasefire violations by the US. It added that its air defence units had shot down a US MQ-9 drone and fired at a fighter jet that had entered Iranian airspace.<\/p>\n Brent crude oil rose 3% on Tuesday after the news of the US strikes on Iran. The strikes added to uncertainty about whether a deal will be imminently reached to end the war and open up shipping flows through the Strait of Hormuz<\/a>.<\/p>\n An Israeli airstrike on a village in eastern Lebanon\u2019s Bekaa Valley killed 12 people, AP reports, citing the country\u2019s state-run National News Agency. Rescue workers said a dozen bodies were pulled out of the rubble following an intense wave of overnight strikes targeting swaths of southern and eastern Lebanon.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s military has warned residents of the southern Lebanese town of Nabatieh to leave ahead of possible airstrikes, Reuters reports. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that Israel would escalate strikes against Hezbollah<\/a> in Lebanon, as a US official said the militia had ignored warnings to halt firing at Israel.<\/p>\n United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said that a tanker had reported an external explosion on the vessel\u2019s port side, 60 nautical miles off Oman\u2019s capital Muscat. In a post on X<\/a>, UKMTO said the vessel and its crew were safe, although the tanker reported that some bunker fuel was discharged into the sea. UKMTO urged vessels to transit with caution and report suspicious activity.<\/p>\n I\u2019m clocking off, but my colleague Tom Ambrose will continue to bring you the latest updates from the crisis in the Middle East.<\/p>\n![\"US](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779835630_210_1920.jpg\")
US strikes Iran as Trump faces backlash over \u2018disastrous\u2019 peace deal plan – The LatestShare<\/a><\/p>\n