Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2026-05-09 at 00:01

HEADLINES
- Seafarers stranded; 11 killed in Gulf
- Nazareth shooting suspect indicted after chase
- Judge rules DOGE grant cuts unlawful

The time is now 12:01 AM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

In Regional Impacts, isolated and traumatised by drones and missiles, seafarers in the Gulf face grave mental suffering after more than two months stuck on board in the Middle East war, maritime charities warn. From captains to cooks and engineers, the workers who keep global freight flowing have found themselves not just stranded but in the firing line of the US-Israeli war with Iran. Trade vessels have been struck by projectiles and fired on by Iranian Revolutionary Guards in dozens of incidents, according to UKMTO. At least 11 seafarers have been killed, according to the International Maritime Organization. "They see drones flying, they see missiles flying, and then we see instances where the ships get hit," said Gavin Lim, head of the Crisis Response Network for the Sailors' Society, who spoke with one crew whose vessel was hit. "They thought: 'We were going to die'." The warnings and fear described by Lim reflect the distress reported by crews living in proximity to ongoing hostilities as the conflict unfolds.

In Israeli Domestic Politics, Border Guard officers and Northern District detectives, carrying out a search for illegal weapons in Nazareth, arrested a suspect moments after he committed a shooting in April, Israel police announced on Friday. On April 10, detectives and officers were conducting operations to thwart criminal activity and locate illegal weapons when they heard the sound of gunshots coming from a nearby street. The officers moved to locate the source of the gunshots and spotted a suspicious person running away from the area of the shooting. The suspect, dressed in all black, engaged the officers in a foot chase, during which the officers fired warning shots before catching up to and arresting the 28-year-old suspect. A gun cartridge was found in the suspect’s coat pocket during the arrest. During a search of the area, the gun suspected to have been used in the shooting was also located. Medical teams located the victim of the shooting and provided first aid before transporting him to the hospital in moderate condition. An indictment was filed in the Nazareth District Court by the Northern District Attorney's Office following an intensive investigation by the Northern District police into the incident.

In Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, the Department of Government Efficiency’s cancellation last year of the majority of federal humanities grants, including to several Jewish projects, was unlawful and unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled Thursday. In her 143-page ruling, US District Judge Colleen McMahon called out the agency created by US President Donald Trump specifically for its targeting of Jewish projects, including Holocaust research. “At a time when the specter of antisemitism has reemerged from the shadows, for our Government to deem a project about Jewish women subjected to slave labor during the Holocaust disfavored because it centered on ‘Jewish cultures’ and ‘female’ voices is deeply troubling,” wrote McMahon, who was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1998. She was referring specifically to a canceled “project on Jewish women subjected to slave labor during the Holocaust.” Appointees to DOGE, originally overseen by Elon Musk, swiftly overhauled multiple federal agencies in early 2025. That included the National Endowment for the Humanities, where DOGE personnel canceled a wide swath of grants by using the artificial-intelligence software ChatGPT to identify projects they deemed “DEI” – shorthand for diversity, equity, and inclusion.

In Uplifting News, After years abroad, they came back to Israel: ‘I regret not doing it sooner’ After 16 years in Australia and 20 years in the United States, two Israeli women returned home to war, soaring prices and constant questions about why they chose to come back now.

Thank you for tuning in to this Israel Today: Ongoing War Report update.
I'm Noa Levi. Stay safe and informed.
Keep in mind that this AI-generated report may contain occasional inaccuracies, so consult multiple sources for a comprehensive view. Find the code and more details in the podcast description.

SOURCES
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2026/05/trapped-seafarers-traumatised-gulf-fighting-charities
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/crime-in-israel/article-895603
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-895596
https://www.ynetnews.com/magazine/article/h1pcjx2rwx