The Times of Israel is liveblogging Saturday’s events as they happen.
US defense secretary fires general whose agency contradicted Trump on effectiveness of US strikes on Iran
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has fired a general whose agency’s initial intelligence assessment of damage to Iranian nuclear sites from US strikes angered US President Donald Trump, according to two people familiar with the decision and a White House official.
Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse will no longer serve as head of the US Defense Intelligence Agency, according to the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly.
The firing, first reported by The Washington Post, is the latest upheaval in military leadership and in the country’s intelligence agencies, and comes a few months after details of the preliminary assessment leaked to the media.
The assessment found that Iran’s nuclear program has been set back only a few months by the bombings, contradicting assertions from Trump and from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Israel had on June 13 launched a bombing campaign against Iran’s nuclear program, missile production and military leadership, saying the operation was necessary to prevent the Islamic Republic from realizing its avowed plan to destroy the Jewish state. During the ensuing 12-day war, the US struck three key Iranian nuclear sites.
In a news conference following the US strikes, Hegseth slammed media reports indicating that the strikes were not as successful as Trump had said, and lambasted the press for what the defense secretary described as an anti-military bias. However, Hegseth did not offer any direct evidence of the destruction of Iranian nuclear production facilities.
Earlier this week, the Pentagon announced that the US Air Force’s top uniformed officer, Gen. David Allvin, planned to retire two years early. And the Office of the Director of National Intelligence — which is responsible for coordinating the work of 18 intelligence agencies, including DIA — announced that it would slash its staff and budget.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
Houthis take responsibility for missile and drone attacks, claim they hit Ben Gurion Airport
The Houthis in Yemen take responsibility for carrying out today’s ballistic missile and drone attacks on Israel.
In a statement, the Iran-backed terror group claims to have successfully hit Ben Gurion Airport, near Tel Aviv, with a ballistic missile.
According to the IDF, the missile broke up in the air during its descent, and some of the fragments fell in central Israel, without causing significant damage.
The Houthis also claim to have launched two drones at Israel, targeting “Israeli enemy targets” in the Tel Aviv area and in Ashkelon.
The IDF reported intercepting one drone over southern Israel. The second likely fell short before reaching the country, as many Houthi drones have in recent months.
Hostages point man reassures families that 20 captives still alive after Trump suggests otherwise
Government hostages point man Gal Hirsch tells the families of captives in Gaza that there is no change in Israel’s information about the status of the hostages, after US President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House that “probably” fewer than 20 hostages were still alive.
“According to Israel’s information, there is no change in the information you have received from us: 20 of the hostages are alive, there are grave concerns for the lives of two and 28 are no longer alive and are considered slain hostages,” Hirsch says in a statement and to the families.
The statement comes after hostage families expressed dismay at Trump’s comments, both for suggesting there were fewer than 20 living hostages and for appearing to disregard the 30 other hostages.
“Mr. President, there are 50 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. For us, each and every one of them represents an entire world,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in an English-language statement.
The Forum also accused Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, Israel’s lead hostage negotiator, of failing to talk with the families, and called on him to share any new information he might have.
“If Minister Dermer, who doesn’t bother to speak with or meet the hostage families, knows something different [from the official Israeli figures], he should have updated the families first,” the Forum said.
In Hebrew, the Forum also said the American-born Dermer “speaks only with the Americans.” The accusation was absent from the English statement.
Hezbollah weapons depot in south Lebanon targeted in Israeli strike, IDF says
A Hezbollah weapon depot in southern Lebanon’s Deir Kifa was targeted in an Israeli strike a short while ago, the IDF says. The military says the site was a violation of the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.
The strike comes several hours after the Israel Defense Forces said it killed a Hezbollah operative in a drone strike on Ayta ash-Shab.