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Footage shows the IDF striking a building in southern Lebanon a short time ago.

Brian Kilmeade: You think Putin is helping them (Iran)? Trump: I think he might be helping them a little bit, yeah, i guess, and he probably thinks we’re helping Ukraine, right?

President Trump on yesterday’s Islamic terrorist attack on Temple Israel in Michigan and Old Dominion University in Virginia: It’s a disgrace. They’re sick, they’re really demented people, and it has been going on for a long time. They come into the country, they sneak in.

CENTCOM announced that four of the six crew members aboard the KC-135 tanker that went down over Western Iraq Thursday have died.

Four American service members were confirmed dead after a U.S. military refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq on Thursday while participating in operations connected to the war with Iran, according to the U.S. military.

U.S. Central Command announced early Friday in a post on X that the KC-135 aircraft went down at around 2 p.m. Eastern Time in western Iraq. Officials confirmed that four crew members were killed in the crash. The command did not specify the condition of the remaining two crew members, noting only that “rescue efforts continue.”

“The circumstances of the incident are under investigation. However, the loss of the aircraft was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire,” CENTCOM said.

Earlier updates from the military indicated that two aircraft had been involved in the incident, with the second plane managing to land safely.

In keeping with standard military procedure, the names of those who died have not yet been released. Officials said their identities will be made public only after their families have been notified and at least 24 hours have passed.

The crash raises the number of U.S. service members killed since the conflict began on Feb. 28 to ten. That was the date when American forces joined Israel in striking Iranian military targets and leadership figures. In addition, one more service member died during the same period from a medical condition.

In a separate incident last week, Kuwaiti forces accidentally shot down three American fighter jets. None of the personnel aboard those aircraft were killed.

The KC-135 Stratotanker involved in Thursday’s crash is a long-serving aerial refueling aircraft used extensively by the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps for more than six decades. Each plane carries a price tag of nearly $40 million.

According to information published on the Air Force website, the KC-135 can also be configured for medical evacuation missions. While the aircraft typically operates with a crew of three, that number can increase to a standard crew of five when it is outfitted for medical transport duties.

{Matzav.com}

Cuba held recent talks with the U.S. government, President Miguel Díaz-Canel said Friday, marking the first time that the Caribbean country confirmed such speculation as it grapples with a severe energy crisis. Díaz-Canel said in a speech that the talks “were aimed at finding solutions through dialogue to the bilateral differences between our two nations. […]

The IDF says the 146th Division is continuing operations in southern Lebanon as part of a forward defense posture to protect the western Galilee, striking about 400 Hezbollah targets including missile launchers, surveillance equipment, weapons storage sites, and additional infrastructure. According to the military, several Hezbollah terrorists were eliminated, including the commander of the anti-tank […]

The IDF carried out dozens of waves of strikes on Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut, the Beqaa Valley, and southern Lebanon, targeting assets of the Al-Quard Al-Hassan financial network and roughly 10 weapons storage facilities, including sites used for launches toward Israeli territory earlier this week.

The IDF carried out waves of strikes on Iranian regime infrastructure in Tehran, Shiraz, and Ahvaz, targeting a missile production and storage facility, air defense bases, weapons production sites, and command centers linked to the IRGC Ground Corps and Iran’s Internal Security Forces.

The IDF says that over the past day, Israeli Air Force fighter jets carried out around 20 large-scale strikes across western and central Iran, hitting more than 200 targets including ballistic missile launchers, air defense systems, and weapons production sites.

Authorities announced new restrictions on access to the Kosel ahead of the upcoming Shabbos, with several key routes leading to the plaza expected to be temporarily closed beginning Friday afternoon.

The Western Wall Heritage Foundation informed the public that, due to the current security situation and directives from the Home Front Command, new limitations have been imposed on entry to the Kosel plaza in Yerushalayim. The measures are intended to ensure that the number of people present does not exceed the available protected areas in case of an emergency.

Under the updated guidelines, the number of people allowed to remain in the Kosel plaza at any given time will be limited to no more than 50 individuals. Officials said the decision was made in accordance with Home Front Command safety instructions aimed at minimizing potential risks.

At the same time, Israel Police announced that on Friday the pedestrian routes leading to the Kosel plaza will be closed between 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. The closure is expected to affect visitors and mispallelim planning to arrive ahead of Shabbos.

{Matzav.com}

Israel has confirmed that its air force carried out strikes against Basij checkpoints and personnel in several locations across Tehran. Footage released from the skies over the Iranian capital showed the attacks targeting positions recently established by members of the Basij militia.

According to Israeli military officials, the strikes followed intelligence assessments indicating that Basij fighters had begun setting up checkpoints throughout parts of Tehran in recent days. After identifying the deployment, the Israeli Air Force carried out attacks over the past 24 hours, guided by intelligence from the IDF Intelligence Directorate.

The Basij forces are part of Iran’s internal security apparatus and operate under the regime’s broader security structure. For years, these armed units have been responsible for implementing terror operations as well as enforcing the regime’s internal control.

In addition to their security role, the Basij have been heavily involved in suppressing domestic protests inside Iran. In recent months, they have been central to the regime’s crackdown on demonstrations, using violence, conducting large-scale arrests, and deploying force against civilian protesters.

Iran’s Fars news agency claimed that the incidents were connected to sabotage operations carried out inside the country by forces linked to Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency together with groups loyal to Iran’s former royalist movement.

The Israeli military said the strikes are part of a broader effort targeting the Iranian regime’s core security infrastructure. An IDF spokesperson said the operations will continue wherever Iranian regime forces operate.

“The IDF will continue to strike the systems and operatives of the Iranian terror regime wherever they operate. The strikes that were completed are part of the phase of deepening the damage to the core systems of the Iranian terror regime and its foundations,” the spokesperson said.

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump addressed growing questions on Thursday about the condition of Iran’s newly installed Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, as uncertainty continues to swirl regarding his health.

In an interview with Fox News Radio scheduled to air in full Friday morning, Trump said he believes the Iranian leader is still alive but suggested he may have been seriously wounded.

Asked whether Khamenei is alive after assuming leadership following the killing of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a joint US-Israel airstrike, Trump responded, “I think he probably is.”

He continued, “I think he is damaged, but I think he’s probably alive in some form, you know.”

Mojtaba Khamenei was formally installed as Iran’s Supreme Leader on Sunday after the death of his father.

Since taking the position, he has yet to appear publicly. Earlier this week, The New York Times reported that he was injured during the opening day of the conflict.

The report said that Mojtaba Khamenei suffered a leg injury and is currently staying in a location where communications are limited.

Iranian state media released a statement Thursday attributed to Khamenei, the first message issued under his name since assuming leadership following his father’s death.

The statement pledged retaliation against the United States and Israel, instructed Iranian forces to maintain the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and warned that additional battlefronts could be opened in the conflict. However, the message was released without any accompanying video or audio, which has intensified speculation about the Iranian leader’s true condition.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu said that while Israel and the United States are taking steps intended to weaken Iran’s ruling regime and create conditions for change, it remains uncertain whether the Iranian public will ultimately overthrow the Islamic Republic. “You can lead someone to water; you cannot make him drink,” Netanyahu said during a press conference, his first since Israel and the United States launched strikes on Iran on February 28, triggering an expanding regional war.

Addressing mounting anger in Israel’s northern communities after renewed attacks from Hezbollah, Netanyahu also delivered a warning to Lebanon’s leadership. He said the Lebanese government must “take your fate into your own hands” and dismantle the Iranian-backed terror organization itself, or Israel may be forced to act.

The prime minister also turned to the issue of his ongoing corruption trial, urging President Isaac Herzog to intervene. Netanyahu said US President Donald Trump “speaks from the heart” when criticizing Herzog for not granting him a pardon.

Speaking about the possibility that Iran’s regime could collapse, Netanyahu told reporters during the televised briefing that Israel and the United States are working to weaken Tehran’s leadership and give the Iranian population the opportunity to challenge it. “We will create optimal conditions to do this, including airstrikes as we did yesterday, as we are doing these days, to try to give [the Iranian people] the space needed to take to the streets.

“We are delivering crushing blows to the Revolutionary Guards and the Basij, their street forces, their checkpoints – and more is yet to come,” he went on.

Even so, Netanyahu acknowledged that outside forces cannot guarantee such an outcome. “I do not deny it: I cannot say for certain that the Iranian people will bring down the regime.”

Directly addressing citizens of Iran, he added: “We told you, ‘Help is on the way,’” he said, addressing the Iranian public. “Well, the help has come and more will follow.”

Netanyahu said many people hope the regime will ultimately collapse but emphasized that such a development must come from within Iran itself. “We all are hoping for the result of this regime falling,” said Netanyahu, but “ultimately, a regime is ousted from within.”

Regardless of how the war concludes, Netanyahu argued that Iran has already suffered significant damage. “It’s simply a different Iran — it no longer threatens as it did before,” he said. “It is not the same power. It’s not the giant bully that nothing can be done against and that no one can unite against.”

Because of security concerns surrounding the ongoing conflict, Netanyahu addressed reporters over Zoom. During the call, he repeated his assertion that the military campaign became necessary after Iran resumed work on nuclear weapons and ballistic missile capabilities following the 12-day Israel-Iran war last June.

Netanyahu said Iran’s previous supreme leader, Ali Khamenei — killed during the opening stage of the joint US-Israeli offensive nearly two weeks earlier — had been warned not to rebuild what he described as Iran’s dangerous weapons infrastructure. Instead, Netanyahu said Khamenei pushed ahead with those efforts and moved them deeper underground, ultimately prompting the strike that killed him.

“If we had not acted immediately, within a few months Iran’s industries of death would have become immune to any strike. Therefore, we went out together to battle — the United States and Israel — to continue what we began and to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. To prevent Iran from developing ballistic missiles that threaten Israel, the United States, and the entire world. That is our objective,” he said.

Netanyahu said that since the start of the current war, Israeli forces have struck Iran’s nuclear facilities and eliminated what he described as a key nuclear scientist. He also said the campaign has additional elements yet to be revealed.

Israel and the United States, he said, are acting together to prevent a regime that openly seeks Israel’s destruction from achieving that goal. “Our enemies are not disappearing in an instant, but look at our amazing successes.”

When asked whether Israel might target Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of Ali Khamenei who has been named the new supreme leader, Netanyahu responded: “I wouldn’t take out a life insurance policy on any of the leaders of the terror organizations.”

He dismissed Mojtaba Khamenei as a “puppet” controlled by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps who “cannot show his face in public.”

The newly installed leader has not appeared publicly since the war began and is believed to have been injured in an airstrike. Iranian state media broadcast a defiant statement attributed to him on Thursday — believed to be his first message since becoming supreme leader on Sunday — but he has not been seen or heard directly since the fighting started.

Netanyahu also said that Israel is receiving support from a number of countries in its confrontation with Iran, though some of that cooperation remains undisclosed.

“In these days, my team and I are weaving additional alliances with countries in the region – alliances that only a few weeks ago would have seemed unimaginable,” said Netanyahu, without elaborating.

The prime minister argued that Israel has emerged stronger despite the devastating Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023. According to Netanyahu, the country is now at least a regional power and has eliminated a dangerous adversary in Ali Khamenei. He described the Iranian leader as “a kind of Hitler” who had pursued Israel’s destruction for decades.

“We are crushing the terror regime in Iran. We are striking and defeating its proxies – Hezbollah in Lebanon,” he said. “Hezbollah is feeling our force, and it will feel it even more so. It will pay a very heavy price for its aggression.”

Earlier this month Hezbollah resumed firing rockets toward Israel, marking its first such attacks since a November 2024 ceasefire agreement between Israel and the group. That agreement required Lebanon’s government to dismantle Hezbollah’s military infrastructure in southern Lebanon.

On Wednesday night, Hezbollah fired roughly 200 rockets toward northern Israel, renewing concerns about how much of its arsenal remains intact and whether its supply networks are still functioning.

Israel has responded by sending troops deeper into Lebanese territory and carrying out large-scale airstrikes targeting Hezbollah-controlled areas. Those attacks have killed hundreds of people and forced large numbers of residents to flee neighborhoods in southern Beirut as well as parts of southern and eastern Lebanon.

While Netanyahu did not rule out a major ground operation in Lebanon, he indicated that Israel might avoid such a move if Beirut acts against Hezbollah. However, he warned that a significant offensive could become unavoidable if Lebanon’s government “continues to let Hezbollah act in violation of your commitment to disarm it.”

The November 2024 ceasefire ended more than a year of fighting that began when Hezbollah started attacking Israel on October 8, 2023 — one day after the Hamas invasion of southern Israel that ignited the war in Gaza.

Those attacks forced roughly 60,000 residents of northern Israel to evacuate their homes. In an effort to enable their return, Israel escalated its military operations against Hezbollah in September 2024, severely damaging the group’s leadership structure.

When asked whether he had overstated Hezbollah’s weakness at the time, Netanyahu acknowledged that the organization still retains some capabilities but maintained that it has suffered heavy losses.

“They have certain remaining capacities,” he said, but insisted the group had been greatly diminished.

“We’ll deal with it,” he said, promising not to “abandon the residents of the north.”

Netanyahu added that before Israel’s intensified operations in Lebanon in 2024, Hezbollah possessed around 150,000 rockets and missiles and had the potential to inflict catastrophic damage across Israel.

He said the arsenal could have been capable of destroying buildings in Tel Aviv and causing mass casualties. “bring down the skyscrapers of Tel Aviv and cause devastation in central Israel and beyond, with 15,000-20,000 fatalities.”

“That did not happen, because we hit them with a massive blow,” he said.

{Matzav.com}