The United States is preparing to authorize the transfer of B-2 stealth bombers and 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs to Israel if Iran renews its nuclear weapons program, under a bipartisan bill introduced this week. The legislation, called the Bunker Buster Act, would give President Trump authority to “take actions to ensure Israel is prepared for all contingencies if Iran seeks to develop a nuclear weapon,” according to sponsors Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Mike Lawler (R-NY). “Iran, the leading state sponsor of terror, and one of America’s top enemies, can never have a nuclear weapon,” Gottheimer said. “They have killed scores of Americans and repeatedly attacked Israel, our key democratic ally.

Iran’s nuclear program has been pushed back by at least one year, and potentially closer to two, after U.S. airstrikes last month devastated three key nuclear facilities, according to the Department of Defense. Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell told reporters Wednesday that intelligence assessments show significant damage at Iran’s Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan sites. “We believe, and certainly all of the intelligence that we’ve seen have led us to believe that those facilities especially have been completely obliterated,” Parnell said. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reiterated that assessment, rejecting early leaked estimates suggesting only months of delay.

Israel is ramping up efforts to seal a sweeping ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza ahead of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s high-stakes trip to Washington next week, multiple Israeli news outlets reported. For the first time since the war erupted, Israel is prepared to enter negotiations on a comprehensive framework that could secure the release of all 50 remaining hostages held by Hamas, Channel 12 reported, citing sources close to the talks. Even if Hamas signals willingness to move forward — a decision that could come within 24 hours — the path to a deal remains long.

Senior Hamas political leaders based in Qatar have been instructed to relinquish their personal weapons, according to a report by the UK’s The Times on Wednesday. The move reportedly comes in response to increased U.S. pressure aimed at securing a ceasefire agreement in Gaza. Those affected include Khalil al-Hayya, who heads the Hamas delegation conducting ceasefire talks; Zaher Jabarin, responsible for the group’s financial operations; and Muhammad Ismail Darwish, head of the Hamas religious council and a key representative in diplomatic visits to countries such as Turkey and Iran. According to sources cited by Ynet, Defense Minister Yisrael Katz recently named al-Hayya as next on Israel’s list of targets for elimination.

The families of the hostages Maxim Herkin, 37, and Bar Kupershtein, 23, gave permission for a clip of a Hamas propaganda video to be published on Thursday. The clip is from a longer video which is intended to voice the families’ cry against the possibility of a partial hostage release deal that would include “cruel selections” and “separation between blood and blood.” The clip was taken from a video published by Hamas in April, but at that time, the Herkin and Kupershtein families did not approve its publication. Maxim Herkin, the father of a three-year-old girl, was kidnapped from the Nova music festival. His mother has Russian citizenship. Bar Kupershtein’s abduction was the second major blow in the family in recent years.

New details were published on Wednesday evening on Kan News regarding the Puma APC disaster in Khan Younis, in which seven soldiers were killed by the explosion of a bomb thrown by a terrorist into the IDF vehicle. According to chilling details revealed in the IDF’s internal investigation, the APC’s exit hatch was broken. The soldiers tied it with a rope, leaving it open, and the terrorist threw the bomb into the vehicle through the opening. In addition, the cameras on the APC had not been working for a long period. Soldiers testified that the commanders knew about the malfunctions, but no action was taken to improve the situation. A father of a soldier in the battalion said last week that the soldiers were using outdated equipment without perimeter cameras due to budgetary concerns.

The State Attorney’s Office has filed an indictment in the Nazareth District Court against Yoni Segal, 18, and Nehorai Mizrahi, 20, both from Tiveria, on charges including contact with a foreign agent, providing information to the enemy, and obstruction of justice. According to the indictment, the defendants initiated contact with Iranian operatives via Telegram in mid-May. Initially, the Iranian contacts posed as “Kaplanist leftists” and tasked the pair with symbolic acts such as writing “Bibi Dictator” on a note and burning it, offering cryptocurrency in return. As contact progressed, the Iranians instructed the defendants to purchase secure “operational phones” to conceal their identities and engage in more advanced espionage tasks.

Hope is rising on Thursday morning in Israel regarding the chances of reaching a hostage release/ceasefire deal in the Gaza Strip. If Hamas responds positively to the deal, an Israeli team will leave for negotiations in Qatar as early as the end of next week. According to Israeli media reports on Wednesday evening, Israel is making major efforts to reach a deal ahead of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s visit to the White House next week. Israeli sources say that Hamas is showing “flexibility” to a revised US-brokered proposal. According to the proposal on the table, Israel will halt the war for two months but will agree to extend the ceasefire even after the two months to try and reach an agreement that will end the war.

Israel’s governing coalition is exploring the possibility of bringing Benny Gantz’s centrist Blue and White party into the government if far-right factions abandon ship over a deal to end the Gaza war, Army Radio reported Sunday. The potential pivot comes as Otzma Yehudit leader Itamar Ben Gvir and Religious Zionism chief Betzalel Smotrich rage against a U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal that would secure the release of Israeli hostages but effectively end the fighting in Gaza. According to reports, Ben Gvir is actively seeking Smotrich’s cooperation to block the deal, although Smotrich’s office denies agreeing to any such meeting. Fearing a far-right walkout, Shas party chairman Aryeh Deri is reportedly leading quiet contacts with Gantz to shore up coalition stability.

Ali Shamkhani, a top adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and one of the regime’s most influential security officials, has emerged alive after weeks of reports claiming he had been killed in an Israeli airstrike. The New York Times confirmed Shamkhani’s appearance over the weekend at a funeral procession in Tehran, contradicting Iranian state media accounts that declared him dead last month. Frailer and leaning on a cane, Shamkhani was seen paying tribute to senior Iranian military officers slain in Israel’s recent barrage — a 12-day offensive that targeted Iran’s nuclear and military command structure.