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Israel says it’s killed a Hamas commander involved in Oct. 7 attacks. Who else is Israel targeting in Gaza?

Israel’s military said Tuesday that it had killed another Hamas commander with its airstrikes on the Palestinian Gaza Strip. The Israel Defense Forces and the country’s ISA security agency said in a joint statement that fighter jets carried out an intelligence-based strike that killed Nasim Abu Ajina, whom they identified as the commander of a Hamas combat battalion in northern Gaza.

The IDF confirmed Tuesday that it had suffered two more military casualties as it ramps up ground operations in Gaza. It said in a statement that two soldiers were “killed during combat in north Gaza,” where there have been intense clashes over the last 24 hours.

The IDF and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have flatly rejected mounting calls for a cease-fire or even a humanitarian pause in their war against Hamas, insisting that any letup would merely give the group — long designated a terrorist organization by Israel, the U.S. and most of Europe — time to reorganize. Hamas triggered the ongoing war with its unprecedented Oct. 7 terror attack on southern Israel, during which Israel says 1,400 people were killed and about 240 taken hostage.

The United Nations Secretary-General and a multitude of aid and humanitarian agencies, along with most of Israel’s neighboring nations, have issued increasingly desperate calls for a cease-fire as the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza says Israel’s bombardment has killed over 8,500 people, including 3,500 children.

Israel insists the IDF is taking every possible precaution to preserve civilian lives, but it has refused to stop its assault, which it says is only targeting Hamas and allied groups.



Israel targets Hamas’ tunnel network under Gaza as next phase in war begins

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A U.S. official told CBS News national security correspondent David Martin on Tuesday that the Israeli military’s immediate objective was to isolate Gaza City, which has been the seat of Hamas’ power in the 25-mile-long strip of land for almost 20 years. 

But as part of Israel’s overall vow to “destroy Hamas,” it has also been carrying out targeted strikes aimed at killing virtually all of Hamas’ senior leadership. Israeli officials have named the members they’re targeting — and published a  list of the growing number already killed.

The IDF and ISA said Tuesday that Abu Ajina had “directed the massacre on October 7” in two Israeli communities near the Gaza border, Kibbutz Erez and Moshav Netiv HaAsara.

It said Abu Ajina had previously “commanded Hamas’ Aerial Array,” a reference to the Palestinian faction’s drones and paragliders, the latter of which featured prominently in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

“His elimination significantly harms the efforts of the Hamas terrorist organization to disrupt the IDF’s ground activities,” the authorities said in their statement, which included a grainy video of the airstrike said to have killed the Hamas commander.

Among the other Hamas figures already killed by Israel — and that list includes more than 55 named members — are accused military commanders, intelligence officials and politicians.

The overall political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, hasn’t been in Gaza in years and spends most of his time in Qatar, where Hamas has its primary political office outside of Gaza. But some of Hamas’ most senior leaders are still believed to be in Gaza, and they remain on Israel’s wanted list.

At the top of that list is Yahya Sinwar, Hamas’ top leader in the Gaza Strip and one of the founders of the group’s military wing of the terrorist organization, the Al-Qassam Brigades.

The current leaders of the Al-Qassam Brigades, Mohammed Deif and his deputy, Marwan Issa, are also at the top of the list.

Israel says it is also targeting Tawfik Abu Naim, a head of internal security for Hamas in Gaza; Ahmed Randour, who commands Hamas’ forces in the northern part of Gaza; the group’s spokesman Abu Obeidah, and Muhammad Sinwar, commander of the southern area and a brother of the group’s overall leader in Gaza.

Tucker Reals

Tucker Reals is CBSNews.com’s foreign editor, based in the CBS News London bureau. He has worked for CBS News since 2006, prior to which he worked for The Associated Press in Washington, D.C., and London.



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Germany and Ukraine to jointly develop new long-range weapons as U.N. experts accuse Russia of war crimes

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Wednesday during a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Berlin will help Kyiv develop new long-range weapons that can hit targets in Russian territory. He said both countries’ defense ministers would sign a memorandum of understanding for the production of long-range weapons systems, declining to provide technical details or name the manufacturers involved.

“There will be no range restrictions, allowing Ukraine to fully defend itself, even against military targets outside its own territory,” he told a joint news conference.

Zelenskyy’s Berlin visit comes days after Russia launched some of its heaviest missile and drone attacks of the conflict on Ukraine, and as President Trump voices growing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Ukrainian president accused Russia of stalling peace talks and said Moscow did not want to halt its three-year invasion, adding that “they will constantly look for reasons not to end the war.”

Ongoing Russian strikes are war crimes, U.N. experts conclude

Merz said “the massive air strikes, particularly on the city of Kyiv over the weekend, do not speak the language of peace, but rather the language of a war of aggression,” calling it, “a slap in the face of all those who are trying to bring about a ceasefire in Ukraine itself, but also in Europe and the USA.”

Russia’s military has committed “crimes against humanity” and “war crimes” in its drone attacks on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine’s Kherson region in particular, a panel of United Nations experts concludes in a report published Wednesday. The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, established by the U.N. Human Rights Council, said Russian armed forces were “systematically” hitting civilians.

“Russian armed forces have committed the crimes against humanity of murder and the war crimes of attacking civilians, through a months-long pattern of drone attacks targeting civilians on the right bank of the Dnipro River in Kherson Province,” the inquiry said in its atypically blunt assessment. “These acts were committed with the primary purpose to spread terror among the civilian population, in violation of international humanitarian law.”

The U.N. panel added that “the attacks are continuing at the time of the publication of this report.”

Germany calls Ukraine missile deal a “new form of military-industrial cooperation”

Merz, who took power early this month, has vowed to keep strongly backing Ukraine, but without giving details of which weapons Germany is sending, in line with a policy of strategic ambiguity.

The joint production of long-range weapons “can take place both in Ukraine and here in Germany,” he said. “We will not provide any further details until further notice.”

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy with military honors at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, May 28, 2025.

Christian Marquardt/NurPhoto/Getty


Merz hailed the project as “the beginning of a new form of military-industrial cooperation between our countries that has great potential.”

Merz had pointed out in a TV interview this week that already “there are no longer any range restrictions on weapons delivered to Ukraine – neither by the British nor by the French nor by us nor by the Americans.”

“This means that Ukraine can now defend itself, for example, by attacking military positions in Russia… With very few exceptions, it didn’t do that until recently. It can now do that.”

Indeed, Ukraine has stepped up attacks on what it claims are military and military-industrial sites deep inside Russia, including a wave of almost 300 drones that Russia’s military claimed to have intercepted overnight. Ukrainian military bloggers said the drones had targeted drone, missile and explosive manufacturing facilities, including one north of Moscow, and other sites near the capital itself.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was quoted by the state-run Tass news agency on Wednesday as saying the German-Ukrainian partnership would escalate tension between Russia and Europe, adding: “Germany is directly drawn into this war.”

That is a charge Russia has issued for months, however, and Lavrov noted that German tanks were already on the battlefield, “therefore, direct involvement in the war is already obvious.”  

“Germany is sliding down the same inclined plane along which it has already moved a couple of times in the last century – down to its collapse. I hope that responsible politicians in this country will still draw the right conclusion, stop the madness,” Tass quoted Lavrov as saying.

Kremlin suggests Trump being misinformed after he calls Putin “crazy”

Taking over from center-left leader Olaf Scholz, Merz has changed the tone in Berlin and voiced harsh criticism of Putin who, the chancellor charged this week, “obviously sees offers of talks as a sign of weakness.”

Mr. Trump, who had long promised that he would quickly broker an end to the war, issued a rare rebuke of Putin on social media on Sunday.

“I’ve always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!” the president said.

Moscow at first appeared to downplay his remarks, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov suggesting that all parties were speaking under conditions of emotional overload.

Asked about the U.S. president’s remarks on Wednesday, however, longtime Putin aide Yuri Ushakov told Russia’s state-run VGTRK news outlet that Moscow had concluded Mr. Trump, “is not being informed enough, in particular, Trump is not being sufficiently informed about the massive terrorist attacks that Ukraine is carrying out against peaceful cities in the Russian Federation.”

He said the American leader failed to “fully understand that the Russian Federation is striking exclusively at military infrastructure facilities or the military-industrial complex of Ukraine.”

The false claim comes after many months of Russian rocket and drone strikes hitting Ukrainian apartment buildings and other civilian infrastructure, killing hundreds of civilians.

On Tuesday, Mr. Trump warned that Putin was “playing with fire,” amid unconfirmed reports that the U.S. leader is now considering fresh sanctions against Russia, something the United States’ NATO allies have long called for.

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5/5: The Takeout: David Sanger



5/5: The Takeout: David Sanger – CBS News










































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Journalist and author David Sanger joins Major Garrett to discuss his new book “New Cold Wars: China’s Rise, Russia’s Invasion, and America’s Struggle to Defend the West,” which details the myriad of challenges the U.S. faces in positioning itself as the leader of the free world amid conflicts around the globe.

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Controversial new U.S. and Israel-backed Gaza aid effort gets off to a slow, tumultuous start

A controversial new U.S. and Israel-backed aid group says it began operating in the war-torn Gaza Strip on Monday, despite objections from the United Nations, other humanitarian groups, and the recent, sudden resignation of its American executive director, who said it couldn’t operate independently. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GFH) said it opened its first aid distribution hubs in the enclave on Monday and that truckloads of food had been delivered.

The GFH said in a statement that about 8,000 food boxes had been distributed by Tuesday afternoon, each one containing enough to feed “5.5 people for 3.5 days, totaling 462,000 meals.”

“More trucks with aid will be delivered tomorrow, with the flow of aid increasing each day,” GHF said in a statement.

There were unconfirmed reports by Israeli and Palestinian media outlets that one of the aid hubs was abandoned by the security personnel in charge of securing the operation after thousands of people clambering for food overran the location. The Israel Hayom newspaper said the security forces withdrew to helicopters amid gunfire.

In a statement, the GFH said there was a “moment in the late afternoon” at one of its Secure Distribution Sites when the number of people seeking aid “was such that the GHF team fell back to allow a small number of Gazans to take aid safely and dissipate. This was done in accordance with GHF protocol to avoid casualties. Normal operations have resumed.”

The group said some Palestinians endured “several hour delays in accessing the site due to blockades imposed by Hamas.”

In a separate statement, the Israeli military said troops had “fired warning shots in the area outside the compound. Control over the situation was established, food distribution operations are expected to continue as planned, and the safety of IDF troops was not compromised.” 

The GFH — the leadership and funding of which have remained unclear — was created as Israel and its closest ally, the U.S., faced a growing outcry over Palestinians in Gaza starving amid Israel’s nearly three-month blockade of the territory. Under intense pressure from the international community, Israel began letting some food into Gaza last week, but aid organizations have called it a “drop in the bucket” given the level of need.

A displaced Palestinian receives a food package from a U.S.-backed foundation pledging to distribute humanitarian aid in Gaza, in western Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, May 27, 2025.

AFP via Getty


“As part of the gradual opening of the distribution centers, two of the centers, located in Tel al-Sultan and the Morag Corridor in the Rafah area, began operating today (Tuesday) and are distributing food packages to thousands of families in the Gaza Strip,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement. “The establishment of the distribution centers took place over the last few months, facilitated by the Israeli political echelon and in coordination with the US government. This process coincided with an ongoing dialogue and cooperation with the IDF.”

The IDF said the new aid system was “operated by International Aid Organizations, and Secured by an American Civilian Security Company,” but neither the military nor the GHF itself has named any global non-profit organizations involved in the effort, and it was unclear what security firm from the U.S. was helping secure the hubs.

U.N. calls new aid operation a “distraction”

On Tuesday, a spokesperson for the United Nations humanitarian office called the work of GHF a “distraction from what is actually needed,” which the spokesperson said was the reopening of crossings into Gaza and the end of Israeli restrictions on the kind of aid entering the territory.

The GFH has been tasked by Israel with taking over the handling of aid in Gaza despite objections from the U.N., which, along with other aid groups, has pushed back against the new system. They assert that Israel is trying to use food as a weapon and say a new system won’t be effective.

Israel has pushed for an alternative aid delivery plan because it says it must stop Hamas from seizing aid. The U.N. has denied that Hamas has diverted large amounts of aid. Hamas, long designated a terrorist organization by Israel, the U.S. and the European Union, also denies the allegations.

The GFH began operations just a day after its executive director, American Jake Wood, announced his resignation and said it had become clear the foundation would not be allowed to operate independently. GFH said it had appointed an interim leader, John Acree, to replace Wood.

The organization, said to be made up of former humanitarian, government and military officials, has said its distribution points will provide aid for a million Palestinians – around half of Gaza’s population – by the end of the week.

Under pressure from allies, Israel began allowing a trickle of humanitarian aid into Gaza last week after blocking all food, medicine, fuel or other goods from entering since early March. Aid groups had issued multiple warnings of a looming famine in Gaza.

Hamas tells Palestinians not to use new aid system

Hamas warned Palestinians on Monday not to cooperate with the new aid system, saying it is part of Israel’s plans to transfer much of Gaza’s population to other countries or to force people out of the north into the southern part of Gaza.

Israel says it plans to facilitate what it describes as the voluntary migration of much of Gaza’s population of 2 million, a plan rejected by Palestinians and much of the international community.

Israel’s military campaign has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and internally displaced some 90% of its population, many people multiple times.

Deadly Israeli strikes in Gaza continue

The desperately needed supplies started flowing into Gaza, according to the GHF, on Monday as Israeli strikes kill at least 52 people in the Palestinian territory.

The airstrikes killed at least 36 people in a school-turned-shelter that was hit as people slept, setting their belongings ablaze, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health. The Israeli military said it targeted militants operating from the school, but CBS News met a young girl who said her mother and all of her sisters were killed in the strike as they slept in the building in the dead of the night.

Palestinians comb the area following an Israeli airstrike at dawn on a school in the al-Daraj neighborhood of Gaza City that killed at least 31 people on May 26, 2025.

Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu/Getty


Israel renewed its offensive in March after ending a ceasefire with Hamas. It has vowed to seize control of Gaza and keep fighting until Hamas is destroyed or disarmed, and until it returns the remaining 58 hostages, a third of them believed to be alive, from the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack that ignited the war.

Hamas and allied militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people in the 2023 attack. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed around 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health. It says more than half the dead are women and children, but it does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count.

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Trump blasts Putin as

Kyiv, Ukraine — Russia launched its biggest drone attack on Ukraine overnight since the more than three-year war began, a Ukrainian official said Monday. President Trump said Russian leader Vladimir Putin had gone “absolutely crazy” in stepping up his country’s bombing of Ukraine just as the U.S. tries to broker a peace agreement.

Russia’s Sunday night attack included the launch of 355 drones, Yuriy Ihnat, head of the Ukrainian air force’s communications department, told The Associated Press. The previous night, Russia fired 298 drones and 69 missiles of various types in what Ukrainian authorities said was the largest combined aerial assault during the conflict. Overall, from Friday to Sunday, Russia launched around 900 drones at Ukraine, officials said.

The escalation appeared to thwart hopes that Mr. Trump’s peace efforts might lead to a breakthrough in the near term, as Putin looks determined to capture more Ukrainian territory and inflict more damage.

Rescuers help local residents retrieve personal belongings from destroyed apartments, May 25, 2025, in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, after a Russian attack using exploding drones.

Serhii Ovcharyshyn/NikVesti.com/Global Images Ukraine/Getty


Russia has this month broken its record for aerial bombardments of Ukraine three times. The expansion of its air campaign came after Kyiv in March accepted an unconditional 30-day ceasefire proposed by the U.S., but Moscow effectively rejected it. Russia is also still pushing along the roughly 620-mile front line, where it has made slow and costly progress, and is assembling its forces for a summer offensive, Ukraine and military analysts say.

Mr. Trump made it clear he is losing patience with Putin.

“I’ve always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!” the U.S. president wrote Sunday night in a post on his Truth Social platform.

Putin is “needlessly killing a lot of people,” Mr. Trump said, pointing out that “missiles and drones are being shot into Cities in Ukraine, for no reason whatsoever.”

He warned that if Putin wants to conquer all of Ukraine, it will “lead to the downfall of Russia!” 

President Trump has expressed increasing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid Russia’s ongoing full-scale war in Ukraine.

But Mr. Trump again expressed frustration with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, too, saying that he’s, “doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does.”

Zelenskyy reacted to the overnight Russian strikes in his own social media post on Monday, saying: “Only a sense of complete impunity can allow Russia to carry out such attacks and continually escalate their scale… There is no significant military logic to this, but there is considerable political meaning.”

He repeated his call for tighter international economic sanctions on Russia as a way of ending the war, because Russia’s “desire to fight must be deprived of resources.”

Russia and Europe react to Trump’s remarks on Putin

The Russian government appeared to downplay Mr. Trump’s remarks about Putin as an emotional outburst, however some European leaders, who have been frustrated for months by the U.S. president repeating Kremlin talking points about the war and ridiculing Zelenskyy’s government, seemed to take some hope by the change in tack.

At the Kremlin, Putin’s chief spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday that, “the start of the negotiation process [with Ukraine], for which the American side has done a lot, is a very important achievement. We are very thankful to the Americans and to President Trump personally for assistance in organizing and launching this negotiation process. This is a very important achievement … Of course, at the same time this is a very crucial moment, which is associated, of course, with the emotional overload of everyone, absolutely, and with emotional reactions. We follow this very closely.”

French President Emmanuel Macron, however, told reporters during a visit to Vietnam that it seemed Mr. Trump appeared to be realizing that Putin had “lied” to him about wanting to find a diplomatic resolution to the war. The French leader said his hope was that Mr. Trump’s anger at Moscow “translates into action,” and he called for Ukraine’s international partners to set a firm deadline for Moscow to agree to a ceasefire, with the threat of “massive sanctions” should Putin continue to refuse.

Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz, meanwhile, told his country’s broadcaster WDR that “Putin obviously sees offers of talks as a sign of weakness,” stressing the Kremlin’s rejection of proposed direct talks with Ukraine at the Vatican as evidence that “we must be prepared for this war to last longer than we all wish or can imagine.”

Merz said several of Ukraine’s partners had already dropped restrictions on allowing their military aid to be used for strikes deep inside Russia.

“There are no longer any range restrictions on the weapons delivered to Ukraine. Not from the British, nor the French, nor from us… and not from the Americans either,” Merz said Monday. “This means Ukraine can now also defend itself by attacking military targets in Russia. For a long time, it couldn’t do that, and with a few exceptions, it didn’t. We call this long-range fire, meaning equipping Ukraine in such a way that it can also strike military targets in the hinterland — and that is the decisive, qualitative difference in Ukraine’s warfare: Russia is attacking civilian cities without any regard, bombing cities, hospitals, and nursing homes. Ukraine does not do that.” 

The European Union’s top diplomat, foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, earlier described the latest attacks on Kyiv as “totally appalling” and said the bloc intended to impose more sanctions on Russia.

Mr. Trump has threatened massive sanctions on Moscow, too, but so far hasn’t taken action.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin makes decisions that are necessary to ensure Russia’s security and that the attacks were Moscow’s response to deep strikes by Ukraine.

Prisoner swap provides a solitary sign of progress

Russia and Ukraine swapped hundreds more prisoners Sunday in the third and last part of a major exchange that was a rare moment of cooperation between the warring nations.

A screen capture from a video shows Russian soldiers after Russia and Ukraine on Sunday confirmed the third and final round of a large-scale prisoner swap carried out between Moscow and Kyiv under the terms of an agreement reached in Istanbul earlier this month, in Russia, May 25, 2025.

Russian Defense Ministry/Handout/Anadolu/Getty


Russia’s Defense Ministry said each side exchanged 303 soldiers, following the release of 307 combatants and civilians each on Saturday, and 390 on Friday — the biggest total swap of the war.

In their talks held in Istanbul earlier this month, Kyiv and Moscow agreed to swap 1,000 prisoners of war and civilian detainees each. The exchange has been the only tangible outcome of those direct talks to date.

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Israeli strikes kill dozens in Gaza as controversy and concern grow over humanitarian aid

Israeli strikes killed at least 52 people in the Gaza Strip on Monday, including some 36 in a school-turned-shelter that was struck as people slept, igniting their belongings, according to local health officials. The military said it targeted militants operating from the school.

Israel renewed its offensive in March after ending a ceasefire with Hamas. It has vowed to seize control of Gaza and keep fighting until Hamas is destroyed or disarmed, and until it returns the remaining 58 hostages, a third of them believed to be alive, from the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that ignited the war.

The strike on the school in the Daraj neighborhood of Gaza City also wounded more than 55 people, said Fahmy Awad, head of the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry’s emergency service. He said a father and his five children were among the dead. He said the school was hit three times while people slept, setting their belongings ablaze.  

Palestinians comb the area following an Israeli airstrike at dawn on a school in the al-Daraj neighborhood of Gaza City that killed at least 31 people on May 26, 2025.

Dawoud Abo Alkas / Anadolu via Getty Images


The Israeli military said it had targeted a militant command and control center inside the school that Hamas and Islamic Jihad used to gather intelligence for attacks. Israel blames civilian deaths on Hamas because it operates in residential areas, adding that “numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians,” according to French news agency AFP.

Israel says it plans to seize full control of Gaza and facilitate what it describes as the voluntary migration of its over 2 million inhabitants, a plan that has been rejected by Palestinians and much of the international community.

Israel’s military campaign has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and internally displaced some 90% of its population. Many have fled multiple times.

Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people in the 2023 terrorist attack. More than half the hostages have been returned in ceasefire agreements or other deals, eight have been rescued, and Israeli forces have recovered the remains of dozens more.

The offensive has destroyed vast areas of Gaza, rendering entire neighborhoods uninhabitable. Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to shelter in schools and squalid tent camps for well over a year.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed around 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health. It says more than half the dead are women and children but does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count.

Growing concern over food shortages in Gaza

Israel began allowing some humanitarian aid into Gaza last week after blocking all food, medicine, fuel or other goods from entering for 2-1/2 months. But aid groups say the supplies that have come in are nowhere near enough to meet the mounting needs of the enclave’s residents.

U.N. World Food Program Executive Director Cindy McCain said Sunday on the CBS News’ “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that the number of aid trucks allowed to enter Gaza last week was only a “drop in the bucket” compared to what’s needed to stave off potential famine in the Palestinian territory.

A new aid system, supported by Israel and the United States but rejected by U.N. agencies and other aid groups, is expected to begin operations as soon as Monday, despite the resignation of the American who was supposed to lead the effort, who said it would not be able to operate independently.

Israel plans to roll out the new aid distribution system, run by a group known as the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and made up of former humanitarian, government and military officials, to set up distribution points guarded by private security firms. Israel has long accused Hamas of siphoning off aid supplies brought into Gaza, without providing evidence.

Palestinians, struggling with hunger due to an Israeli blockade, wait in line to receive hot meals distributed by charity organizations in Jabalia Refugee Camp, in Gaza City, Gaza, May 17, 2025.

Mahmoud ssa/Anadolu/Getty


The foundation said in a statement that it would begin delivering aid Monday and would reach a million Palestinians — around half of Gaza’s population — by the end of the week.

U.N. agencies and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the planned U.S.-backed system, saying it would force even more displacement, fail to meet local needs and violate humanitarian principles that prohibit a warring party from controlling humanitarian assistance. They also say there is no evidence of systematic diversion of aid by Hamas or other armed groups.

Jake Wood, the American heading the foundation, unexpectedly resigned Sunday, saying it had become clear that the foundation would not be allowed to operate independently. It’s not clear who is funding the group. The foundation said in a statement Monday that it would “not be deterred” by Wood’s resignation and would begin its delivery as planned.

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Trump says large Russia-Ukraine prisoner swap

Washington — President Trump said Friday that Russia and Ukraine had carried out a large exchange of prisoners from their more than three-year war, while a Ukrainian official said the swap was ongoing but not yet complete. Moscow did not immediately confirm the exchange was underway but it appeared to be one of the few signs of any progress in international efforts to halt the fighting.

“A major prisoners swap was just completed between Russia and Ukraine,” Mr. Trump said on his Truth Social platform. He said it would “go into effect shortly,” although it was not clear what that meant.

A senior Ukrainian official familiar with the details of the swap told The Associated Press that the exchange was ongoing Friday morning but had not finished. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

Both Russian and Ukrainian media outlets reported in recent days that a swap was agreed for about 1,000 prisoners to be handed over by each side but no specifics were confirmed by either government on Friday.

Shamsail Saraliev, a senior Russian lawmaker and representative of the parliamentary coordination group on military operations, told the country’s RBC news agency on Thursday that it would be difficult to conduct a prisoner exchange with Ukraine involving as many as 2,000 prisoners in total in just one day, saying the process would likely be carried out over several days.    

“This could lead to something big???” Mr. Trump said in his post on Friday, apparently referring to international diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting. White House and National Security Council officials did not immediately respond to requests for further details.

A woman reacts as she visits the grave of her relative, a Ukrainian soldier, as Ukrainians mark the national Day of Heroes, amid Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, at the Lychakiv cemetery in Lviv, Ukraine, May 23, 2025.

Pavlo Palamarchuk/REUTERS


Speaking Friday at the Kremlin, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there had been “no decisions or agreements yet on the next venue for negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.”

The ongoing exchange was agreed last week in the first direct Russia-Ukraine peace talks since the early weeks of Moscow’s 2022 invasion of its neighbor. That meeting in Turkey lasted just two hours and brought no breakthrough in international diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting.

Still, the fact that the two sides had even sat down face-to-face on May 15 was a significant development in itself, even though Russian President Vladimir Putin declined to accept his Ukrainian counterpart, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s, challenge to show up for the negotiations in person. 

Several days later, Mr. Trump held a two-hour phone call with Putin, the tone and spirit of which he described as “excellent.” He said Russia and Ukraine would “immediately start negotiations toward a ceasefire,” and he then held a separate call with Zelenskyy.

Mr. Trump said repeatedly before taking office for his second term that he could bring the Russia-Ukraine war to an end within 24 hours.

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World leaders condemn shooting of Israeli embassy staff in D.C. as Israel blames antisemitic incitement

World leaders reacted Thursday morning to the killing of two Israeli embassy staffers outside the Jewish Museum in Washington D.C., as the Israeli government blamed the attack on “antisemitic incitement” by other countries, “especially from Europe.”

Washington’s chief of police said the suspect in the attack, identified as a Chicago man, shouted “free, free Palestine,” as he was taken into custody.

“These horrible D.C. killings, based obviously on antisemitism, must end, NOW! Hatred and Radicalism have no place in the USA,” President Trump said in a statement on his Truth Social platform. “Condolences to the families of the victims. So sad that such things as this can happen! God Bless You ALL!”

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said she was, “shocked by the shooting of two Israeli embassy staff in Washington DC.”

“There is and should be no place in our societies for hatred, extremism, or antisemitism. I extend my condolences to the families of the victims and the people of Israel,” Kallas said in a statement posted on social media.

The Israeli Embassy posted a photo of the two victims of the shooting outside the Jewish Capital Museum in Washington, D.C. on the night of May 21, 2025. Sarah Lynn Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky were employees at the embassy.

IsraelinUSA/X/Anadolu/Getty


Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on social media that: “Nothing can justify antisemitic violence.” He said his thoughts were with the Israeli embassy and the families of those killed in “the insidious murder.”

France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on social media that, “the murder of two members of the Israeli embassy near the Jewish Museum in Washington is an abhorrent act of antisemitic barbarity. Nothing can justify such violence.”

Barrot said his “thoughts go to their loved ones, their colleagues, and the State of Israel.”

U.K. Foreign Minister David Lammy said on social media that he was “horrified by the killing of two Israeli Embassy staff in DC. We condemn this appalling, antisemitic crime.”

In a televised statement, Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar blamed the attack on “toxic, antisemitic incitement against Israel and Jews around the world that has been going on since October 7th.”

A bystander prays near the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington D.C., May 21, 2025, after two Israeli Embassy staff members were fatally shot after attending an event at the museum earlier in the evening.

Tom Brenner for The Washington Post/Getty


Sa’ar said this “incitement,” which he called “modern blood libel,” had been coming from “leaders and officials of many countries and organizations, especially from Europe.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on social media: “We are witnessing the horrible price of antisemitism and wild incitement against the State of Israel. The blood libels against the Jewish state cost in blood — and must be fought to the bitter end.”

European leaders have been increasingly outspoken in condemning Israel’s months-long blockade of humanitarian food and medical aid entering Gaza — which international groups said put the entire population of the Palestinian territory at risk of starvation. Israel did allow a limited number of trucks carrying food and other supplies to enter Gaza this week following intense international pressure, including from the United States.

The war in Gaza began after Hamas, a U.S. and Israeli-designated terrorist group, attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 as hostages. 

The Hamas-run ministry of health in Gaza says more than 53,600 Palestinians, mainly women and children, have been killed by Israel in Gaza since.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that security would be increased at Israeli embassies around the world in response to the shooting.

Haley Ott

Haley Ott is the CBS News Digital international reporter, based in the CBS News London bureau.

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Israel condemned over troops in occupied West Bank firing

Jenin, West Bank — Several nations that have backed Israel during its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip voiced outrage Wednesday after Israeli troops fired what they called “warning shots” as foreign diplomats visited the occupied West Bank.

The Palestinian Authority, which partially administers the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territory, accused Israeli troops of “deliberately” shooting at the delegation near the flashpoint city of Jenin. The Israeli military, already under pressure over its tactics in the Gaza war, said it regretted the “inconvenience.”

AFP video from Jenin — a frequent target of Israeli military raids — showed the delegation and accompanying journalists running for cover as shots were heard on Wednesday.

A frame grab from AFPTV video shows members of a diplomatic delegation from the European Union and elsewhere reacting after shots were fired as they gathered at the eastern entrance of the Jenin camp, during a visit to the city of Jenin, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, May 21, 2025, amid an ongoing Israeli military offensive.

MOHAMMAD ATEEQ/AFPTV/AFP/Getty


A European diplomat said the envoys went to the area to see the destruction caused in the West Bank by Israeli military raids during the Gaza war, which was sparked by the Hamas-led, Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attack.

The Israel Defense Forces said the diplomatic convoy had strayed from the approved route and entered a restricted zone, prompting troops to fire “warning shots” to steer the group away. The IDF added that no one was wounded and it expressed regret for the “inconvenience caused.”

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ spokesman called the incident “unacceptable.”

“Diplomats who are doing their work should never be shot at, attacked in any way, shape or form. Their safety, their viability, must be respected at all times,” spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters. “These diplomats, including U.N. personnel, were fired at, warning shots or whatever… which is unacceptable.”

Demands for explanation over Israel’s “unacceptable” actions

Several countries that had representatives in the group voiced outrage and demanded an investigation.

“We call on Israel to investigate this incident and also hold those accountable who are responsible for any threats to diplomats’ lives,” said European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas.

Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Uruguay summoned Israel’s ambassadors or said they would raise the issue directly.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called the incident “totally unacceptable” and pressed for an “immediate explanation.”

Carney added that Canada’s Foreign Minister Anita Anand has summoned Israel’s ambassador to Ottawa.

Members of an international diplomatic delegation gather by a gate at the eastern entrance of the Jenin camp during a visit to the city of Jenin, May 21, 2025, amid an ongoing Israeli military offensive in the occupied West Bank.

MOHAMMAD MANSOUR/AFP/Getty


Egypt denounced the shooting as a breach of “all diplomatic norms,” while Turkey demanded an immediate investigation.

Turkey’s foreign ministry said: “This attack must be investigated without delay and the perpetrators must be held accountable.”

Ahmad al-Deek, political adviser for the Palestinian foreign ministry who accompanied the delegation, condemned what he called a “reckless act by the Israeli army.”

“It has given the diplomatic delegation an impression of the life the Palestinian people are living,” he said.

Palestinian news agency Wafa reported the delegation included diplomats from more than 20 countries including Britain, China, Egypt, France, Japan, Jordan, Turkey and Russia.

Britain’s minister for the Middle East and North Africa, Hamish Falconer, said Wednesday that he’d spoken directly with U.K. diplomats affected by the incident, and he called for an investigation.

“Today’s events in Jenin are unacceptable. I have spoken to our diplomats who were affected,” he said in a social media post. “Civilians must always be protected, and diplomats allowed to do their jobs. There must be a full investigation and those responsible should be held accountable.”

“The Japanese government has protested to the Israeli side and requested an explanation and the prevention of a recurrence,” government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said in Tokyo, confirming that diplomatic staff from the country had taken part in the delegation.

Israel-Europe ties increasingly strained over Gaza, D.C. murders

The incident came as anger mounted over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where Palestinians are scrambling for basic supplies after weeks of near-total isolation. A two-month Israeli aid blockade on Gaza was partially eased this week, but not enough to alleviate the hunger crisis facing the enclave’s roughly 2 million inhabitants, according to the U.N. and humanitarian agencies.

Israel stepped up its military offensive over the weekend, vowing to defeat Gaza’s Hamas rulers, whose October 2023 attack on Israel triggered the war.

Israel has faced massive pressure, including from its allies, to halt its intensified offensive and allow aid into Gaza. European Union foreign ministers on Tuesday ordered a review of the EU cooperation accord with Israel.

Sweden said it would press the EU to impose sanctions on Israeli ministers, while Britain suspended free-trade negotiations with Israel and summoned the Israeli ambassador.

Pope Leo XIV described the situation in Gaza as “worrying and painful” and called for “the entry of sufficient humanitarian aid.”

Palestinians, struggling with hunger due to an Israeli blockade, wait in line to receive hot meals distributed by charity organizations in Jabalia Refugee Camp, in Gaza City, Gaza, May 17, 2025.

Mahmoud ssa/Anadolu/Getty


Israel’s ties with Europe were tested further on Thursday as Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar blamed what he called antisemitic and anti-Israel incitement “by leaders and officials of many countries and international organizations, especially from Europe,” for the murder of two Israel Embassy staff members in Washington D.C. the previous night.

A suspect identified as 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez of Chicago was taken into custody, and heard shouting, “Free, free Palestine” as he was led away, after the attack outside the Jewish Museum in the U.S. capital.

Hamas’s 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Militants also took 251 hostages, 57 of whom remain in Gaza including 34 the military says are dead.

Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said at least 3,509 people have been killed since Israel ended a ceasefire and resumed strikes on March 18, taking the war’s overall toll to 53,655.

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