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Elite Israel Soldier Killed in Gaza Laid to Rest in Moving Ceremony
Israeli soldiers gathered in a field near the border with Gaza listen to a speech by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Photo: Reuters/Ronen Zvulun
Friends, families, and strangers gathered in the Israel city of Modi’in on Sunday for an emotional funeral for Sgt. Maj. Alon Kudriashov, who fell in battle last week fighting the Hamas terror group in the Gaza Strip.
“Alon, my stunning boy, I can’t believe that now I am saying goodbye to you,” said Kudriashov’s mother, Kira. “You are my heart, my soul. Alon, you are every mother’s dream. A smart, stunning boy, always tidy. You were the best friend; you gave me the right to be a happy mother for 21 years. I love you endlessly; you will always be everywhere.”
A member of the elite Egoz commando unit in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Kudriashov, 21, was hit by rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) fire on Friday, killing him and injuring 16 other member of his unit.
The incident took place in the Al-Amal neighborhood in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis, where there has been extensive fighting. Terrorists shot the RPG at the top floor of the building where the troops were stationed. The IDF on Sunday announced the death of Sgt. First Class Sivan Wail, 20, from Raanana, who succumbed to his injuries from the attack.
Kudriashov’s father, Sergey, also spoke about his son during the funeral.
“You are my son and friend, the best, perfect and reliable,” he said. “We have always been a team. You learned from me, and I learned from you. We always had fun together in everything we did. You completed your task. I am proud of you and salute you.”
Kudriashov’s family said that the fallen soldier was home the weekend before, enjoying Shabbat with his parents and sister, and had plans to travel the world after he finished his service. His sister Keren said at the funeral, “We think of you every second of the day. Love of my life, love of my pure truth, I will continue to live here for you. Every step I take will be for you. You are always here with me, never leaving me. I feel you in my whole heart, in my whole body, in my whole soul.”
Kudriashov was the 254th Israeli soldier to die since the IDF entered Gaza on Oct. 27, about three weeks after Hamas terrorists invaded Israel from the neighboring Palestinian enclave, murdering 1,200 people and kidnapping 253 others as hostages. The total number of Israeli security forces — IDF, Police, Shin Bet, and Maglan — who have perished since Oct. 7 now stands at 600.
The post Elite Israel Soldier Killed in Gaza Laid to Rest in Moving Ceremony first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Says Trump Is Lying When He Speaks of Peace

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting with government officials in Tehran, Iran, April 15, 2025. Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Donald Trump on Saturday of lying when the US president said during his Gulf tour this week that he wanted peace in the region.
On the contrary, said Khamenei, the United States uses its power to give “10-ton bombs to the Zionist (Israeli) regime to drop on the heads of Gaza’s children.”
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One after departing the United Arab Emirates on Friday that Iran had to move quickly on a US proposal for its nuclear program or “something bad’s going to happen.”
His remarks, said Khamenei, “aren’t even worth responding to.” They are an “embarrassment to the speaker and the American people,” Khamenei added.
“Undoubtedly, the source of corruption, war, and conflict in this region is the Zionist regime — a dangerous, deadly cancerous tumor that must be uprooted; it will be uprooted,” he said at an event at a religious center in Tehran, according to state media.
Earlier on Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Trump speaks about peace while simultaneously making threats.
“Which should we believe?” Pezeshkian said at a naval event in Tehran. “On the one hand, he speaks of peace and on the other, he threatens with the most advanced tools of mass killing.”
Tehran would continue Iran-US nuclear talks but is not afraid of threats. “We are not seeking war,” Pezeshkian said.
While Trump said on Friday that Iran had a US proposal about its nuclear program, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in a post on X said Tehran had not received any such proposal. “There is no scenario in which Iran abandons its hard-earned right to (uranium) enrichment for peaceful purposes…” he said.
Araqchi warned on Saturday that Washington’s constant change of stance prolongs nuclear talks, state TV reported.
“It is absolutely unacceptable that America repeatedly defines a new framework for negotiations that prolongs the process,” the broadcast quoted Araqchi as saying.
Pezeshkian said Iran would not “back down from our legitimate rights”.
“Because we refuse to bow to bullying, they say we are source of instability in the region,” he said.
A fourth round of Iran-U.S. talks ended in Oman last Sunday. A new round has not been scheduled yet.
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Hamas Confirms New Gaza Ceasefire Talks with Israel in Qatar on Saturday

Doha, Qatar. Photo: StellarD via Wikimedia Commons.
A new round of Gaza ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel is underway in Qatar’s Doha, Hamas official Taher al-Nono told Reuters on Saturday.
He said the two sides were discussing all issues without “pre-conditions.”
Nono said Hamas was “keen to exert all the effort needed” to help mediators make the negotiations a success, adding there was “no certain offer on the table.”
The negotiations come despite Israel preparing to expand operations in the Gaza Strip as they seek “operational control” in some areas of the war-torn enclave.
The return to negotiations also comes after US President Donald Trump ended a Middle East tour on Friday with no apparent progress towards a new ceasefire, although he acknowledged Gaza’s growing hunger crisis and the need for aid deliveries.
The post Hamas Confirms New Gaza Ceasefire Talks with Israel in Qatar on Saturday first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Report: ICC’s Khan Goes on Administrative Leave Amid Sexual Misconduct Probe

International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan speaks during an interview with Reuters in The Hague, Netherlands, Feb. 12, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
i24 News – Chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Karim Khan has stepped down temporarily as an investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct by United Nations investigators is nearing its final phase, Reuters reported on Friday citing sources from the international court.
Khan allegedly forced sexual intercourse upon a member of staff on multiple occasions, the Wall Street Journal reported last week, linking the allegations to Khan’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-defense minister Yoav Gallant.
A statement is expected later today announcing that Khan is going on administrative leave, according to a source in the prosecutor’s office.
The post Report: ICC’s Khan Goes on Administrative Leave Amid Sexual Misconduct Probe first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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