Wednesday

June 17, 2026

Armed conflicts and attacks

Gaza war

The Israel Defense Forces says that they have killed two Hamas militants who allegedly took part in the October 7 attacks on Israel over the weekend in a airstrike in the central Gaza Strip. (The Times of Israel)

Gaza peace plan

The Gaza Health Ministry says that over 1,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza Strip since the ceasefire was announced last year. (AP)

Hamas reports progress in the second phase of ceasefire talks. (Shafaq)

2026 Iran war

2025–2026 Iran–United States negotiations

Islamabad Memorandum

Iran foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei tells Iranian state media that President Masoud Pezeshkian and U.S. president Donald Trump remotely sign the deal to end the war with Iran, extend the ceasefire by 60-days, and reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Trump reportedly signed the agreement while at the G7 Summit during a dinner with French president Emmanuel Macron. (Axios) (Arab Times Kuwait) (The Hill)

American officials from the Trump administration officially release the memorandum of understanding agreement reached with Iran. (CNN)

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir are expected to attend the ceremony in Switzerland on Friday and host the signing ceremony. (Arab News PK)

Operation Epic Fury

Pentagon AI chief Cameron Stanley says that Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot was used to launch 2,000 missiles and mutations at Iran during Operation Epic Fury. (The Hill) (Middle East Eye)

Disasters and accidents

2026 Atlantic hurricane season

Tropical Storm Arthur forms, becoming the first tropical cyclone of the season after creating significant rainfall across Mexico and Texas, United States. (The New York Times)

Health and environment

2026 Ebola epidemic

52nd G7 summit

The European Union and G7 nations at the summit in Évian-les-Bains pledge funding for the Democratic Republic of the Congo amidst the Ebola epidemic in the country, including the Itiru province. (DW)

Sudanese cholera epidemic

The TASIS-aligned Peace Government officially declares a cholera outbreak in the Kordofan region, with laboratory tests in South Sudan confirming the disease, after weeks of acute watery diarrhoea cases in West Kordofan. (The Sudan Times)

Politics and elections

2027–2028 United States redistricting

June 2026 President of the Senate of the Philippines election

The Philippine Senate elects Sherwin Gatchalian as Senate president, formally removing Alan Peter Cayetano and ending a leadership dispute that began on June 3. Gatchalian receives the support of all 13 senators present during a special session. (Philippine Daily Inquirer) (Reuters)

Sports

Sudan's women's national under-17 football team makes its first appearance on international stage in Morocco in an effort to qualify for the upcoming 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles amidst the ongoing civil war in the country that erupted three years ago. (The Independent)

2026 FIFA World Cup, DR Congo at the FIFA World Cup

In association football, Yoane Wissa scores the DR Congo's first goal at a FIFA World Cup during a 1–1 draw against Portugal in their opening match. (AFP via Jamaica Observer)

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