World
Israel begins retaliatory strikes against Iran following missile barrage targeting Israelis
Israel on Friday launched a wave of retaliatory airstrikes against Iran after the Islamic Republic fired a barrage of missiles toward Israelis earlier this month.
Explosions were heard near Iran’s capital of Tehran and nearby Karaj, Reuters reported, citing local media.
“In response to months of continuous attacks from the regime in Iran against the State of Israel – right now the Israel Defense Forces is conducting precise strikes on military targets in Iran,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement. “The regime in Iran and its proxies in the region have been relentlessly attacking Israel since October 7th – on seven fronts – including direct attacks from Iranian soil. Like every other sovereign country in the world, the State of Israel has the right and the duty to respond. Our defensive and offensive capabilities are fully mobilized. We will do whatever necessary to defend the State of Israel and the people of Israel.”
A U.S. official told Fox News that President Biden has been briefed on the strikes and is closely following the developments.
Israeli DM Gallant and military echelon in the Kirya HQ in Tel Aviv during the strike (Ariel Hermoni (IMoD))
Two U.S. defense officials told Fox News Friday night that the U.S. was notified in advance of Israel’s plan to strike Iran early Saturday morning local time in retaliation to Iran’s Oct. 1attack.
Two defense officials also told Fox News that the U.S. had no involvement in Israel’s operation.
ISRAEL’S UN AMBASSADOR: RESPONSE TO IRAN WILL BE ‘VERY PAINFUL’
National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett further confirmed in a statement that Israel had launched the retaliatory strikes.
“We understand that Israel is conducting targeted strikes against military targets in Iran as an exercise of self-defense and in response to Iran’s ballistic missile attack against Israel on October 1st,” he said. “We would refer you to the Israeli government for more information on their operation.”
Israeli PM and DN Gallant in the Kirya HQ during the Strike in Iran (Avi Ohayon/ GPO)
ISRAEL’S UN AMBASSADOR: RESPONSE TO IRAN WILL BE ‘VERY PAINFUL’
The Israeli military action comes after Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowed a “precise and deadly” response to the more than 180 missiles Iran targeted Israel with on Oct. 1, some of which were intercepted with the help of the U.S.
Israeli DM Gallant and military echelon in the Kirya HQ in Tel Aviv during the strike (Ariel Hermoni (IMoD))
Last week, during the leadup to the Israeli attack, reports emerged that the Israeli Defense Forces presented a list of potential targets to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Gallant as officials conducted “sensitive coordination” with other countries in the Middle East.
“The regime is vulnerable, and it’s up to us to decide which message we want to send to them,” Israeli ambassador to the U.N. Danny Danon also told Fox News Digital. “It will be very painful for the Iranian regime, and they will think twice in the future whether to attack Israel or not.”
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the barrage of missiles it fired at Israel on Oct. 1 was in retaliation for the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, Lebanon, in an Israeli airstrike and the killing of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July. Israel later eliminated Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in a military operation in the Gaza Strip on Oct. 16.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has previously called Nasrallah “the flag-bearer of resistance” in the region.
“The blood of the martyr shall not go unavenged,” Khamenei said following Nasrallah’s death, according to Reuters.
ISRAEL DECIDES ON POSSIBLE IRAN TARGETS: ‘PRECISE AND DEADLY’
Residents of Jerusalem took shelter during an Iranian missile barrage on Oct. 1, 2024. (Credit Yoav Dudkevitch/TPS-IL)
During the Oct. 1 attack by Iran, no casualties were reported in Israel, though one Palestinian was killed in the West Bank.
The U.S. Navy later released video showing the USS Cole and USS Bulkeley firing about a dozen ballistic missile interceptors to help thwart Iranian aggression.
Iran also attacked Israel in April of this year, during which it levied some 300 missiles and drones. Jerusalem then responded to Western calls for restraint by hitting Iran’s air defenses and destroying part of an S-300 long-range air defense system.
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed by Israeli military forces on Oct. 16. (Photo by Mohammed Talatene/picture alliance via Getty Images)
To bolster Israel’s defenses against potential future attacks from Iran, a U.S. missile defense system is being sent to the Middle East.
Fox News’ Morgan Phillips, Stephen Sorace and Jacqui Heinrich contributed to this report.
new video loaded: Train Crashes Into Bangkok Traffic, Killing at Least 8 People
By Jorge Mitssunaga
May 16, 2026
World
WHO declares Ebola outbreak in Central Africa a public health emergency after 80 suspected deaths
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The World Health Organization declared an Ebola outbreak in Central Africa an international public health emergency on Sunday after dozens of suspected deaths were reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring Uganda.
The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, does not meet the criteria for a pandemic emergency, the WHO said.
The declaration follows reports of 80 suspected deaths, eight laboratory-confirmed cases and 246 suspected cases as of Saturday across at least three health zones in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including Bunia, Rwampara and Mongbwalu.
The development comes as global health officials continue monitoring a rare hantavirus outbreak tied to the MV Hondius cruise ship, which left multiple passengers and crew members sick, and caused three deaths.
NEW EBOLA OUTBREAK LEAVES 65 DEAD AS OFFICIALS WARN OF CROSS-BORDER SPREAD
A health worker sprays disinfectant on a colleague after working at an Ebola treatment center in Beni, eastern Congo, on Sept. 9, 2018. (Al-hadji Kudra Maliro/AP)
As of May 13, the WHO said 11 hantavirus cases had been identified in connection with the cruise outbreak, including eight confirmed cases, two probable cases and one inconclusive case.
In neighboring Uganda’s capital, Kampala, the WHO said two apparently unrelated laboratory-confirmed Ebola cases — including one death — were reported Friday and Saturday involving people who had traveled from the DRC.
Another laboratory-confirmed case was reported in the DRC capital of Kinshasa involving a person returning from Ituri province.
Initial tests suggested the outbreak does not involve the Ebola Zaire strain, which caused Congo’s devastating 2018–2020 epidemic that killed more than 1,000 people.
EBOLA OUTBREAK REPORTED IN AFRICAN COUNTRY — HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Health workers wearing protective suits tend to an Ebola victim in an isolation tent in Beni, Congo, on July 13, 2019. (Jerome Delay/AP)
However, unlike Ebola-Zaire strains, there are currently no approved vaccines or therapeutics for the Bundibugyo strain, which the WHO described as making the outbreak “extraordinary.”
The WHO warned the outbreak could be larger than currently reported due to the high positivity rate among initial samples and the growing number of suspected cases.
The outbreak also poses a public health risk to other countries, the WHO said, urging nations to activate emergency-management systems and implement cross-border screening measures.
‘DISEASE X’ HAS KILLED DOZENS IN THE CONGO — HERE’S WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE MYSTERY ILLNESS
Ambulances parked at Bunia General Referral Hospital following confirmation of an Ebola outbreak involving the Bundibugyo strain in Bunia, Ituri province, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 16, 2026. (REUTERS/Victoire Mukenge)
Ebola is a highly contagious and often fatal disease spread through bodily fluids, including blood, vomit and semen. Symptoms can include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle pain and internal bleeding.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus recently said Congo has a “strong track record” responding to Ebola outbreaks while announcing the release of $500,000 in emergency funding to support containment efforts.
The WHO said it will convene an emergency committee to review recommendations for how affected countries should respond.
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Health workers dressed in protective gear begin their shift at an Ebola treatment center in Beni, Congo, on July 16, 2019. (Jerome Delay/AP)
The organization did not recommend border closures or travel restrictions.
Congo has now recorded 17 Ebola outbreaks since the virus was first identified in the country in 1976.
Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr and Brittany Miller, along with Reuters, contributed to this report.
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