Here’s what’s upcoming and what you may have missed at CMEP and in the news.
Middle East News
1. US launches new strikes on Iran, which fires back at Gulf states and Jordan
AP News
"The United States launched a second round of airstrikes on Iran into Thursday morning after President Donald Trump warned that Tehran would 'pay the price' for stalled negotiations, and Iran responded with strikes targeting Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan. The new U.S. assault across multiple Iranian cities came as efforts to negotiate an end the war again appeared stuck, with Iran insisting it would maintain its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, which has disrupted global energy supplies and sent oil prices higher."
2. Photos suggest US bombs damaged drinking water tanks in Iran
CNN
"US-made precision bombs appear to have struck two drinking water facilities in southern Iran, according to images posted by Iran’s semi-official news agency and an independent outlet, and analyzed by CNN. The photos of the damaged water tanks, which lie adjacent to each other, were first geolocated to the Bamani area by an independent researcher who posts under the name acceladealer on X, then subsequently confirmed by CNN. Water facilities are protected under the Geneva Convention."
3. Gaza records highest death toll in six months as Israel intensifies bombing
Middle East Eye
"Israeli forces killed at least 119 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip in May, the highest monthly death toll recorded this year, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. The rising toll comes as Israel intensifies its bombardment of the enclave, seven months into the US-mediated ceasefire intended to end the genocide since October 2023. At least 19 children and 10 women were among those killed in May, the ministry said on Tuesday. During the past 24 hours alone, 11 new Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement were recorded, resulting in Palestinian deaths and injuries, according to local media."
4. Militants and police executed and maimed dozens of Palestinians in Gaza, UN report says
AP News
"Hamas militants and police units in Gaza beat, maimed and publicly executed dozens of Palestinians during its war with Israel in acts amounting to war crimes, according to a United Nations report released Tuesday. The U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights’ report documented hundreds of cases of extrajudicial punishment in the war-ravaged territory, which it said were often publicized during and afterward to instill fear in the populace. 'These cases involved executions, kneecapping, bone-breaking with metal pipes or cement bricks and beatings and were framed by the perpetrators as punishments for alleged collaboration with Israel, looting humanitarian aid, theft, drug-related offenses or affiliations with internal rivals,' it said. The commission found that Hamas-affiliated militants and police forces were involved in nearly one-fourth of the 249 documented cases — including 108 deaths — from August 2024 to January 2026."
5. West Bank ethnic cleansing, settler attacks Israel’s state policy: Amnesty
Al Jazeera
"The displacement of Palestinians from the occupied West Bank forms part of a deliberate Israeli government strategy of ethnic cleansing rather than the actions of a few 'rogue' settlers or far-right government ministers, according to global rights group Amnesty International. The release of Amnesty’s new report comes on Wednesday as the Israeli government has approved record levels of illegal settlement expansion and annexation of large parts of the West Bank in recent months."
6. Israel kills 17 in Lebanon as Trump says US-Iran in ‘final throes’ of deal
Al Jazeera
"Israeli attacks across southern Lebanon have killed at least 17 people and forced thousands to flee, just hours after United States President Donald Trump insisted a peace deal with Iran was imminent. The Israeli military also issued yet another forced displacement order for Tyre on Tuesday, telling the entire city – including, for the first time, the Christian quarter where many displaced people are sheltering – to leave immediately, before launching its deadly attack."
7. 'A Nakba of 2026': An IDF reservist recounts his time in Lebanon
Responsible Statecraft
"The Israeli military’s demolition of an entire village in Lebanon is 'a Nakba of 2026,' the presence of hunting rifles and a Hezbollah flag is enough to have a Lebanese home designated 'terrorist infrastructure,' and Israeli soldiers have operated there and in Gaza out of a 'sense of revenge.' Those are some of the observations of a recently returned Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reservist, whose testimony further calls into question continuing U.S. support for Israel’s war efforts in the region and starkly underlines the risks of a proposal currently on track to become law that would yet more deeply fuse the U.S. and Israeli militaries together."
8. Pentagon raised threat of Israeli spying on U.S. to highest level, sources say
NBC News
"The Pentagon is increasingly concerned about Israel ramping up its spying on the U.S., recently raising the counterintelligence threat level from America’s top ally in the Middle East to the highest level, according to two U.S. officials and one former U.S. official. The Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency in recent weeks issued the new counterintelligence threat assessment amid rising tensions between Israel and the U.S. over the way forward in the war with Iran, the officials said. They said the DIA posted an internal message, viewed by one of the current officials, that raised the level for Israel to 'critical.'"
June 4, 2026: CMEP Call to Prayer: Natalie Abu Dayyeh
CMEP calls its supporters to pray for Natalie Abu Dayyeh, a 20-year-old Christian-Palestinian university student who was arrested by Israeli forces on June 1st 2026. The family and lawyer have not been allowed direct access to Natalie, nor have they been informed about why she has been arrested. Natalie is being held under administrative detention, which allows Israel to hold Palestinians indefinitely without charge or trial. We ask that you keep Natalie in your prayers as we hope and pray for her release. Join us every Wednesday at 12:30 EST to join the CMEP community as we pray for Natalie and peace in the Holy Land.
CMEP calls on our supporters to take action by contacting their members of Congress and urging them to advocate for the release of Natalie and other Palestinians held without charge or trial. Call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to your representatives and senators. After making your call, please email [email protected] to let us know that you took action and to help us track advocacy efforts.
Please join us on Zoom for a weekly briefing on current news regarding the Hamas and Israel War. Hear from CMEP Staff and other experts and ask questions at the end. Every Thursday from 10:30-11:15 am Eastern.
We are not giving up on pursuing peace! And CMEP's executive director persists in pursuit of completing a 140.6 IronMan triathlon on behalf of Gaza. "Persistence is an essential quality for peace. I have learned that lesson again and again in life, and never more so than in my pursuit of a deeply personal and transformative journey — one that challenges me both physically and emotionally. Through my training for, and eventual completion of, an Ironman Triathlon, I aim to raise $140,600 to support a cause that is close to my heart: bringing freedom, justice, and peace to the Middle East."- Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon, Executive Director of CMEP
June 15, 2026: Session 2: APARTHEID: Faith, Resistance, and the Politics of Solidarity
Time: 11:00 AM–12:15 PM ET
This webinar is facilitated by CMEP's executive director, Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon, and features critical voices in the current conversation about the U.S., South Africa, and Palestine, including South African anti-apartheid activists Rev. Dr. Frank Chikane and Rev. René August, and Palestinian Christian Father Fadi El Diab. The session examines apartheid as a political, legal, and theological system. Drawing on South Africa’s history of racial segregation and liberation, speakers will explore how apartheid is defined, how systems of domination and exclusion are sustained, and why the language of apartheid remains central to debates about justice in Palestine and Israel today. The conversation will consider the role of churches and faith leaders in resisting oppression and advancing movements for dignity, equality, and liberation.
Session 3: The Belhar Confession and the Moral Imperative of Justice in Palestine
Date: June 22 Time: 11:00 AM–12:15 PM ET
This webinar is facilitated by CMEP's executive director, Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon, and features Rev. Eddy Alemán, General Secretary of the World Communion of Reformed Churches; Rev. Dr. Allan Boesak, South African anti-apartheid leader and one of the authors of the Belhar Confession; and Rev. Dr. Marzouk, a Palestinian theologian and biblical scholar. The session explores the continuing relevance of the Belhar Confession, a Christian statement of faith written during apartheid in South Africa that calls the church to pursue unity, justice, and reconciliation in the face of oppression. Drawing on South Africa's experience of apartheid and Palestinian perspectives on contemporary struggles for justice, speakers will reflect on how the Belhar Confession continues to challenge churches to stand with marginalized communities, confront injustice, and bear witness to God's vision of liberation and peace.
Jun 28 2026: (Chicago) Destiny Magnett Guest Sermon at Missio Dei Uptown
Time: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Destiny Magnett is the Programs and Outreach Manager at Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) where she serves as the primary liaison for church partners, oversees CMEP’s online and in-person educational programming, and co-leads the grassroots regional coordinator network. Grounded in deep commitments to justice, she draws from her own ecumenical Christian identity to help diverse American Christian communities deepen their understandings of the Middle East through storytelling, theological and scriptural investigation, and dialogue. Destiny holds an MTS and Religion & Public Life Certificate from Harvard Divinity School, where her work focused on decoloniality, religious ethics, peacebuilding, and religion in the public sphere. She also holds a B.A. in Religious Studies from Grinnell College.
June 3, 2026: Faith, Resistance, and the Politics of Solidarity Part 1: "White Genocide" and Real Genocide: South Africa, Palestine, and the Politics of Fear
Featuring Rev. Dr. Munther Isaac, Pastor Rudi Swanepoel, Rev. Edwin Arrison, and Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon, the opening session examined the political and theological power of competing narratives around violence, victimhood, and oppression in South Africa and Palestine. As claims of a so-called “white genocide” in South Africa continue to circulate globally despite widespread criticism from scholars and human rights advocates, Palestinians and international observers have increasingly raised urgent alarms about the realities of mass displacement, collective punishment, and genocide in Gaza. Grounded in the lived experiences of South African and Palestinian leaders, the session invited participants to wrestle with questions of justice, solidarity, and the ethical use– and misuse– of the language of genocide.
