News Digest — 6/8/26
Israel Strikes Targets In Western, Central Iran, IDF Claims
The IAF struck military targets in western and central Iran on Monday (8th) following an Iranian missile attack on Israel, the IDF confirmed.
The strikes come after sources told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday (7th) that Israeli officials were still deciding when and how hard to hit Iran, noting that a significant Israeli response to Tehran’s ceasefire breach was expected.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed that the strikes were carried out using air-launched ballistic missiles, according to Iranian IRNA state media.
Iran had threatened to attack Israel following an earlier IDF strike on Beirut, which itself was retaliation for continued Hezbollah ceasefire breaches.
Later on Monday (8th), a United States official told Axios that he did not expect an imminent Israeli retaliation against Iran.
“I don’t think anything is imminent in terms of an Israeli strike,” he said.
On Sunday (7th), US President Donald Trump asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to avoid striking Iran, N12 News reported.
“Israel has responded enough, no need for more,” Trump additionally told KAN News.
Trump told Axios later on Sunday (7th) that the US is very close to a final deal with Iran.
“I don’t want it to blow up because of what is happening now,” he said.
“If Netanyahu strikes them back, it’s just gonna keep going like the last 17 years, or last 3,000 years,” added Trump, noting that the Iranian attack on Israel “didn’t hurt anybody.”
On Monday morning (8th), sirens again sounded across central and southern Israel as Iran launched a second wave of attacks , following an earlier missile launched by Yemen’s Houthis.
A neighborhood in central Israel was hit. Three homes were damaged, though no injuries have yet been reported.
The military announced later on Monday (8th) that IDF Chief of the General Staff LTG Eyal Zamir and senior military officers are orchestrating and commanding strikes from the IAF bunker.
Iran Fires Ten Barrages Of Missiles At Israel After Threatening Retaliation For Beirut Strikes
Ten missile barrages were launched from Iran toward Israel on Sunday night (7th), prompting interception efforts by the Israel Defense Forces and triggering emergency restrictions across the country after a day of mounting tensions linked to Israeli strikes in Beirut.
The military said it detected the launches and was operating to intercept the incoming missiles.
Home Front Command distributed warning messages to residents and instructed people in affected areas to move into protected spaces when alerted.
The launches came after Iranian officials publicly warned that Israel would face retaliation following airstrikes against Hezbollah facilities in Beirut’s Dahiyeh district.
The statement posted on X, by Ebrahim Rezael, spokesman for the Iranian parliament’s foreign policy and national security committee, declared “We will give a decisive and painful response to the Zionist regime’s attack on the suburbs – Watch the sky of the occupied territories tonight.”
Another senior Iranian official, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who serves as speaker of parliament and Iran’s lead negotiator, said American assets in the region should now be considered “legitimate targets.”
Addressing negotiations, Ghalibaf wrote on X: “They are neither committed to a ceasefire nor believe in dialogue , and through the naval blockade and violation of agreements regarding Lebanon they showed that they only understand the language of power.”
According to Channel 12 News, Israel’s Defense officials had anticipated the possibility of an Iranian response.
The report said intelligence assessments pointed to prior Iranian warnings that any Israeli attack on Hezbollah’s stronghold in southern Beirut would be met with missile fire from Tehran.
Earlier Sunday (7th), the IDF announced strikes on Hezbollah infrastructure in the Lebanese capital’s southern suburbs. The military said the operation followed Hezbollah fire directed toward northern Israel.
Reuters reported that Israel had largely refrained from attacking Beirut’s southern suburbs after a ceasefire announced by the United States on April 16, except for two strikes carried out last month. Fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon has continued despite the truce.
Separately, Haim Bibas, chairman of the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel, said all municipalities should shift to limited operations. Schools and other educational activities were canceled, outdoor gatherings were restricted to 200 people and indoor events were capped at 500 participants if a standard protected shelter could be reached within the required protection time.
Hezbollah’s Underground Terror City Minutes Away From Israel Border
The IDF on Sunday (7th) revealedHezbollah’s underground terror Tunnel network beneath the Beaufort Ridge which was planned and funded by the Iranian terror regime.
Troops from the Golani Brigade, the Maglan Unit and theYahalom Unit, operating under the command of the 35th Division and acting on IDF intelligence and the Northern Command, are leading efforts to uncover the tunnel network to establish operational control over the Beaufort Ridge area.
According to the IDF, the tunnel network was constructed within a civilian area at a location that provides operational control over the Galilee Panhandle region, only six kilometers from Metula, and served as a central hub for the Hezbollah terrorist organization in the area.
The military reported that the network consists of several tunnels built to accommodate hundreds of terrorists simultaneously in multiple rooms prepared for extended stay and terrorist activity., including living quarters, water and electrical infrastructure, as well as extensive anti-tank and aerial defense capabilities intended to target IDF troops and Israeli civilians.
In one tunnel, approximately one kilometer in length, troops located six underground shafts, a storage room used for weapons, an anti-tank missile launcher, anti-tank missiles, grenades, combat equipment, advanced medical equipment, , and several living quarters, including shower facilities, restrooms, an operating room, and kitchens.
UAVs, shoulder-fired missiles, and anti-tanks missiles were launched from the site toward IDF troops operating in the area and against the State of Israel.
The IDF also noted that the project was built in proximity to Lebanese Armed Forces activity. As part of efforts to enforce the agreement between Israel and Lebanon, a request was submitted to the Lebanese Armed Forces to address the site: however, Hezbollah clearly prevented them from doing so.
The IDF stated that it launched operations in the Beaufort area in order to establish operational control over terrain that poses a threat to Israeli civilians and to enable the dismantling of the tunnel network.
1 Dead, 5 Wounded In Terror Shooting Spree In Central Israel
One person was killed and five were wounded Sunday morning (7th) in a terrorist shooting spree at multiple locations in central Israel.
The shootings took place at three different locations in and around the towns of the Kochav Yair and Tzur Yitzhak area in central Israel, and outside Sal’it in Samaria.
The first shooting was reported at a gas station near Kochav Yair, where two men were wounded. Magen David Adom teams treated one man in serious condition and the other in moderate condition.
A short time later, emergency services received another report of gunfire inTzur Yitzhak where a man around 30 years old was wounded. He was evacuated in moderate condition to Beilinsson Hospital in Petah Tikva.
Another shooting scene was later reported on Route 5533 between Tzur Natan and Sal’it. MDA said paramedics treated one man in critical condition and another who was being evacuated in serious condition.
First responders later said that the critically wounded victim had been declared dead at the scene, while the condition of the second man on Route 5533 had not stabilized.
The paramedics “evacuated a man roughly 40 years old to Meir Hospital in serious and unstable condition with penetrating wounds.
MDA paramedic Lior Zilberberg said emergency teams were dispatched after multiple calls came in to the 101 hotline.
“We received reports at MDA’s dispatch center that several people were wounded by gunfire,” Zilberberg said.
At the various scenes of the shootings we provided medical treatment to at least five persons, he said,
An army spokesman announced Sunday morning (7th) that the terrorist responsible for the shootings had been fatally wounded.
While searches were conducted for possible accomplices, authorities later said the terrorist acted alone.
The terrorist was identified as Omar Yassin, a resident of the Israeli Arab town of Taibe.
Yassin was shot and killed during a confrontation with police after he fled to a quarry in his hometown.
Turkish Minister: ‘Jerusalem Will Be Ours’
A diplomatic storm has erupted following provocative remarks by Turkish Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci. Who declared that Turkey will one day reclaim control over Jerusalem.
Speaking at a ruling party convention in the Corum province, Ciftci stated that just as Turkey witnessed the “liberation” of Damascus, Aleppo, and Karavakh, it will witness the “freedom of Jerusalem” in the future.
The minister shared that during his tenure as governor of the Ezurum province, he maintained a constant prayer to serve even a single day as the governor of Jerusalem. He added that he firmly believes this day will come.
He further asserted that territories previously under Ottoman rule would return to Turkish sovereignty, while praising Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as a “global leader,”
Following 24-hours of silence, the Israeli Foreign Ministry issued a sharp rebuke. “Wake up and smell the coffee,” the statement read. “The corrupt Ottoman Empire is gone forever. The capital city of Jerusalem will remain Israel’s eternal capital.”
Defense Minister Israel Katz also summed up the Turkish minister, stating that Jerusalem has been the capital of the Jewish people for 3,000 years and will remain Israel’s capital forever. “The State of Israel is not a crumbling Crusader kingdom, but a strong and resolute nation that has proven its capability to defend itself against any threat,” he stated,
Katz added that the Ottoman Empire revisioned by Ciftci and Erdogan has collapsed and will never return. He went on to criticize the Turkish leadership, arguing that their actions directly contradict the legacy of the Republic of Turkey’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
Turkey and Israel were close to reconciliation just before the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, but since that time, Turkish officials and foremost Erdogan, have repeatedly criticized Israel.
In March last year, Erdogan blasted Israel and described it as a “terror state” after it launched surprise strikes on terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip.
Several months later, the Turkish President claimed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government represented the most significant threat to Middle East security.
In April of 2024, he met then-Hamas political bureau leader Ismail Haniyeh in Istanbul. Haniyeh was then later eliminated by Israel.
Erdogan said after the meeting that Palestinian Arab unity was “vital” and added, “The strongest response to Israel and the path to victory lie in unity and integrity.”
Weeks later Erdogan boasted of the fact that more than 1,000 members of Hamas were being treated in hospitals across Turkey and also took issue with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ reference to Hamas as a terrorist organization.
In April, the Istanbul public prosecutor’s office filed an extensive indictment against 35 senior Israeli officials, including Netanyahu, in connection with the Israel Navy’s seizure of the “Sumud” flotilla bound for Gaza in October last year.
In response, Katz blasted Erdogan and said: “Turkish President Erdogan, who did not respond to missile fire from Iran into Turkish territory and was revealed as a paper tiger, is fleeing to the realms of antisemitism and declaring field trials in Turkey against Israel’s political and military leadership.”
What Happens When Jihadists Smell Weakness – Khaled Abu Toameh
Nearly three years after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre in Israel, Hamas leaders are once again issuing threats, glorifying jihad (holy war), and promising more violence. Their statements should serve as a wake-up call not only for Israel but also for Washington and the wider West. Hamas and Iran believe they are winning,
Last week, Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas’ military wing, the izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, declared that ”the bill will remain open until the [Israeli] enemy pays it.” Israel “has not achieved anything by assassinating Hamas leaders” and insisted that Hamas has produced “a generation of leaders who will continue the path of those who came before them.” These are the words of a group that believes time is on its side.
Hamas leaders see the U.S. conducting endless negotiations with Iran’s regime. They see Iran continuing to arm and finance its terror proxies across the Middle East. They see Hezbollah in Lebanon continuing its attacks on Israel.
Jihadist organizations are constantly searching for signs of weakness among their enemies. They interpret restraint differently from the way Western policymakers do. What many Western leaders describe as diplomacy, patience , or de-escalation is frequently interpreted by Islamists as surrender, fear, or exhaustion. The Oct. 7 massacre was partly the result of Hamas’ belief that Israel had become weak, divided and vulnerable.
Western policymakers, especially Americans,tend to seek quick solutions. Defeating radical Islamist movements requires strategic patience, consistency, and a willingness to sustain pressure. Hamas, Hezbollah, and their patrons in Iran, view conflict in terms of generations. Every appearance of indecision only encourages further aggression, and convinces terrorist leaders that persistence will eventually bring victory. (Gatestone Institute)
