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‘Fauda’ Actor Idan Amedi Recovering From Wounds After Seriously Injured Fighting in Gaza
Idan Amedi. Photo: Screenshot
Israeli actor Idan Amedi, who is best known for his role in the hit series Fauda on Netflix, was seriously wounded while fighting in Gaza as a reservist in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
Amedi, who is also one of Israel’s most popular singers, suffered shrapnel wounds while fighting terrorists on Monday before he was evacuated to the Sheba Medical Center by Tel Aviv.
Amedi’s father confirmed the injury to Hebrew-language media, saying his son would live but asked the public to pray for his recovery. The actor is reportedly in stable condition after being sedated and intubated at the hospital.
After Hamas terrorists attacked southern Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking 240 others as hostages, Amedi jumped into action, joining the IDF as a reservist. He has been actively fighting in the Hamas-ruled Palestinian enclave.
“I am ready not to perform or sing a song for a year,” he told his fans in a social media post after a month of fighting. “We must not abandon the citizens of the south and the north. We will not stop fighting [until] the elimination of Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.”
As Israel fights Hamas to its south in Gaza, the Jewish state has been clashing with Hezbollah forces to the north with increasing intensity. The Iran-backed terror group based in Lebanon has been targeting northern Israel since Oct. 7.
In November, Amedi shared a video on Instagram of him directing a strike on a building in Gaza, dedicating the military action to the victims of the Oct. 7 onslaught.
The actor previously paid tribute to victims of the terror attacks when he visited a beach in Gaza with fellow Israelis and raised the flag of the Supernova music festival, where Hamas killed hundreds of young people.
Lior Raz, the main star of Fauda, issued a statement with his co-creator Avi Issacharoff on the news of Amedi’s injury.
“Our dear brother Idan is a true hero. From the first day of the war he decided to put everything aside and go out to fight, first in the north and then in the south,” they said. “We pray for his speedy recovery and are sure that he will be fine. The Fauda family sends our condolences to the families of the victims, and to the families of the injured a full recovery.”
Amedi’s wife on the show, Rona Lee Shimon, wrote: “You are the most noble man I have ever known. There are no other people like you. There are no partners like you. Your pure and generous heart always beats strong. Your human love always goes a moment. Before your shy smile. I’ve been holding a prayer tight for hours … From Oct. 7, you fight like a lion. With all our best children. You are a hero of an era. I love you … Idan get well soon. We are waiting for you.”
Well wishes also came from the United States, where Israeli professional basketball player Deni Avdija, who plays forward for the NBA’s Washington Wizards, wore shoes that he signed with the words: “Recovery for Idan ben Tova Amedia,” in reference to his Hebrew name, which is typically used in prayers for recovery.
Fauda crew member Matan Meir, 38, was killed in action in November while fighting in Gaza as an IDF reservist.
The post ‘Fauda’ Actor Idan Amedi Recovering From Wounds After Seriously Injured Fighting in Gaza first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran Says It Has Replaced Air Defenses Damaged in Israel War

The S-300 missile system is seen during the National Army Day parade ceremony in Tehran, Iran, April 17, 2024. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Iran has replaced air defenses damaged during last month’s conflict with Israel, Iran’s Defah Press news agency reported on Sunday quoting Mahmoud Mousavi, the regular army’s deputy for operations.
During the conflict in June, Israel’s air force dominated Iran’s airspace and dealt a heavy blow to the country’s air defenses while Iranian armed forces launched successive barrages of missiles and drones on Israeli territory.
“Some of our air defenses were damaged, this is not something we can hide, but our colleagues have used domestic resources and replaced them with pre-arranged systems that were stored in suitable locations in order to keep the airspace secure,” Mousavi said.
Prior to the war, Iran had its own domestically-made long-range air defense system Bavar-373 in addition to the Russian-made S-300 system. The report by Defah Press did not mention any import of foreign-made air defense systems to Iran in past weeks.
Following limited Israeli strikes against Iranian missile factories last October, Iran later displayed Russian-made air defenses in a military exercise to show it recovered from the attack.
The post Iran Says It Has Replaced Air Defenses Damaged in Israel War first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Calm Reported in Syria’s Sweida, Damascus Says Truce Holding

Members of Internal Security Forces stand guard at an Internal Security Forces’ checkpoint working to prevent Bedouin fighters from advancing towards Sweida, following renewed fighting between Bedouin fighters and Druze gunmen, despite an announced truce, in Walgha, Sweida province, Syria, July 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
Residents reported calm in Syria’s Sweida on Sunday after the Islamist-led government announced that Bedouin fighters had withdrawn from the predominantly Druze city and a US envoy signaled that a deal to end days of fighting was being implemented.
With hundreds reported killed, the Sweida bloodshed is a major test for interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, prompting Israel to launch airstrikes against government forces last week as it declared support for the Druze. Fighting continued on Saturday despite a ceasefire call.
Interior Minister Anas Khattab said on Sunday that internal security forces had managed to calm the situation and enforce the ceasefire, “paving the way for a prisoner exchange and the gradual return of stability throughout the governorate.”
Reuters images showed interior ministry forces near the city, blocking the road in front of members of tribes congregated there. The Interior Ministry said late on Saturday that Bedouin fighters had left the city.
US envoy Tom Barrack said the sides had “navigated to a pause and cessation of hostilities”. “The next foundation stone on a path to inclusion, and lasting de-escalation, is a complete exchange of hostages and detainees, the logistics of which are in process,” he wrote on X.
Kenan Azzam, a dentist, said there was an uneasy calm but the city’s residents were struggling with a lack of water and electricity. “The hospitals are a disaster and out of service, and there are still so many dead and wounded,” he said by phone.
Another resident, Raed Khazaal, said aid was urgently needed. “Houses are destroyed … The smell of corpses is spread throughout the national hospital,” he said in a voice message to Reuters from Sweida.
The Syrian state news agency said an aid convoy sent to the city by the government was refused entry while aid organized by the Syrian Red Crescent was let in. A source familiar with the situation said local factions in Sweida had turned back the government convoy.
Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported on Sunday that Israel sent urgent medical aid to the Druze in Sweida and the step was coordinated with Washington and Syria. Spokespeople for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Foreign Ministry and the military did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Druze are a small but influential minority in Syria, Israel and Lebanon who follow a religion that is an offshoot of a branch of Shi’ite Islam. Some hardline Sunnis deem their beliefs heretical.
The fighting began a week ago with clashes between Bedouin and Druze fighters. Damascus sent troops to quell the fighting, but they were drawn into the violence and accused of widespread violations against the Druze.
Residents of the predominantly Druze city said friends and neighbours were shot at close range in their homes or in the streets by Syrian troops, identified by their fatigues and insignia.
Sharaa on Thursday promised to protect the rights of Druze and to hold to account those who committed violations against “our Druze people.”
He has blamed the violence on “outlaw groups.”
While Sharaa has won US backing since meeting President Donald Trump in May, the violence has underscored the challenge he faces stitching back together a country shattered by 14 years of conflict, and added to pressures on its mosaic of sectarian and ethnic groups.
COASTAL VIOLENCE
After Israel bombed Syrian government forces in Sweida and hit the defense ministry in Damascus last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had established a policy demanding the demilitarization of territory near the border, stretching from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights to the Druze Mountain, east of Sweida.
He also said Israel would protect the Druze.
The United States however said it did not support the Israeli strikes. On Friday, an Israeli official said Israel agreed to allow Syrian forces limited access to the Sweida area for two days.
A Syrian security source told Reuters that internal security forces had taken up positions near Sweida, establishing checkpoints in western and eastern parts of the province where retreating tribal fighters had gathered.
On Sunday, Sharaa received the report of an inquiry into violence in Syria’s coastal region in March, where Reuters reported in June that Syrian forces killed 1,500 members of the Alawite minority following attacks on security forces.
The presidency said it would review the inquiry’s conclusions and ensure steps to “bring about justice” and prevent the recurrence of “such violations.” It called on the inquiry to hold a news conference on its findings – if appropriate – as soon as possible.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights said on July 18 it had documented the deaths of at least 321 people in Sweida province since July 13. The preliminary toll included civilians, women, children, Bedouin fighters, members of local groups and members of the security forces, it said, and the dead included people killed in field executions by both sides.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, another monitoring group, has reported a death toll of at least 940 people.
Reuters could not independently verify the tolls.
The post Calm Reported in Syria’s Sweida, Damascus Says Truce Holding first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Pope Leo Calls for End to ‘Barbarity of War’ After Strike on Gaza Church

Pope Leo XIV leads the Angelus prayer in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, July 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Yara Nardi TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Pope Leo called for an end to the “barbarity of war” on Sunday as he spoke of his profound pain over an Israeli strike on the sole Catholic church in Gaza.
Three people died and several were injured, including the parish priest, in the strike on the Holy Family Church compound in Gaza City on Thursday. Photos show its roof has been hit close to the main cross, scorching the stone facade, and shattering windows.
Speaking after his Angelus prayer, Leo read out the names of those killed in the incident.
“I appeal to the international community to observe humanitarian law and respect the obligation to protect civilians as well as the prohibition of collective punishment, of indiscriminate use of force and forced displacement of the population,” he said.
The post Pope Leo Calls for End to ‘Barbarity of War’ After Strike on Gaza Church first appeared on Algemeiner.com.