INTERNACIONAL
As Iran’s leadership shifts amid war, Hezbollah moves to reset the balance: expert
Lebanese PM calls on Hezbollah to stop attacks on Israel
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam declared all Hezbollah actions ‘illegal’ and ordered the group to disarm after an overnight rocket barrage targeted Haifa. An Iranian ballistic missile strike in Be’er Sheva left at least 10 people wounded.
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Hezbollah escalated its involvement in the widening conflict between Iran and the U.S. and Israel Tuesday, launching long-range missiles from Lebanon within 48 hours of coordinated strikes on Iran amid Operation Epic Fury.
The militant group also declared it was ready for an «open war,» The Associated Press reported.
The Iranian-backed militant group fired rockets into northern Israel, prompting Israeli retaliation, according to The Times of Israel. Two were intercepted by air defenses, the military said.
«Hezbollah is putting everything they have into the fight to add to the challenges Israel will face in this war,» Ross Harrison, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, told Fox News Digital.
Rockets launched from Lebanon towards Israel as seen from the Israeli side of the border with Lebanon after an escalation between Hezbollah and Israel. (Reuters/Gil Eliyahu)
«But Hezbollah also knows that if the Iranian regime falls, they could be degraded,» he said before highlighting that «Israel could not totally disarm Hezbollah.»
Hezbollah was formed in the early 1980s with Iranian backing during Lebanon’s civil war and has grown into Tehran’s most powerful proxy.
For decades, Iran has funded, armed and trained the group as part of its broader strategy to confront Israel and expand its regional influence.
«Iran believes that it has to reestablish deterrence before the end of this war with the U.S. and Israel, so expanding it using Hezbollah and attacking Gulf Arab states and Cyprus is part of this,» Harrison warned.
Israel responded to Hezbollah’s escalation with additional airstrikes on Beirut and expanded its ground operations, with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) taking positions near the border.
The U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon reported seeing Israeli troops enter and exit Lebanese territory, though the IDF insisted its forces continue to operate there, according to The Associated Press.
IRAN FIRES MISSILES AT US BASES ACROSS MIDDLE EAST AFTER AMERICAN STRIKES ON NUCLEAR, IRGC SITES
Hezbollah launches long-range missiles from Lebanon into northern Israel within 48 hours of strikes on Iran, escalating the widening conflict amid Operation Epic Fury. (Hadi Mizban/AP)
The U.S. Embassy in Beirut also announced Tuesday that it would close until further notice in a post on X.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said, «To prevent the possibility of direct fire at Israeli communities, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have authorized the IDF to advance and hold additional dominant terrain in Lebanon and defend the border communities from there.
«The IDF continues to operate forcefully against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. The terrorist organization is paying and will pay a heavy price for the fire toward Israel.»
«Hezbollah, this is an octopus. The head of the octopus is in Iran. The arms are all over the region,» IDF spokesperson Effie Defrin told Fox News Digital.
«Last night, they launched missiles into Haifa, into a city center in Israel. They started it, they knew the consequences of that.»
The IDF also announced that it had killed Daoud Ali Zadeh, commander of the Iranian Quds Force’s Lebanon Corps, in Tehran.
TOP ISRAELI MILITARY OFFICIAL REVEALS OPERATION AGAINST IRAN INVOLVED ‘STRATEGIC AND OPERATIONAL DECEPTION’
Iran rebuilds Hezbollah ties as Trump gives a 10- to 15-day deadline. (Fadel Itani/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The Quds Force acts as a key liaison between Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, and Hezbollah leadership, facilitating the transfer of advanced weaponry and enhancing proxy firepower.
«The Quds Force is the arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, responsible for Iran’s relations with its allied militias, such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Kata’ib Hezbollah in Iraq, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen,» Harrison clarified.
«The Quds Force is the IRGC’s expeditionary force, designed to give Iran strategic depth,» he said.
«They are (or were) significant in managing Iran’s relations with shadowy militia organizations, and it has been challenged over the last couple of years as Hamas and Hezbollah have been degraded.»
On Saturday, the U.S.-Israeli airstrike campaign had also targeted Iranian leadership in Tehran, killing Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, dramatically escalating tensions across the Middle East and triggering regional retaliation.
KEANE WARNS IRAN STRIKE BECOMING ‘REGIONAL WAR,’ SAYS THREE GULF STATES PREPARING FOR COMBAT
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, was killed in an Israeli airstrike Saturday. (Getty Images)
An interim Leadership Council made up of President Masoud Pezeshkian, Chief Justice Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i and Ayatollah Alireza Arafi is temporarily in charge of Iran, acting as the de facto head of state.
«If Iran ends the war prematurely, then they believe the U.S. and Israel can come back later,» Harrison said.
«If they escalate, then they have a shot at recreating deterrence. It is a high risk, as it could bring them down. But the danger is they feel they have little choice, and Hezbollah is part of this for Iran.
«If the Iranian regime can hang on, they win. That said, Iran cannot win militarily, but if they can deny the U.S. a victory, they win.
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«Fundamentally, the Iranian regime is trying to increase the pain of both Israel and the Gulf Arab states to be able to reestablish deterrence lost since the June 2025 war,» Harrison added.
«Attacking civilian areas and economic pain points alongside Hezbollah is also part of this strategy.»
Fox News’ Efrat Lachter contributed to this report.
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INTERNACIONAL
Iran continues firing missiles, drones at neighboring states, with multiple interceptions reported
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Iran launched a new wave of attacks on Thursday, with explosions reported in the region and Tehran threatening that the U.S. would «bitterly regret» sinking an Iranian warship.
Iran’s strikes on Thursday targeted Israel, American bases and countries in the region. Israel announced multiple incoming missile attacks as air raid sirens blared in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Defense on Thursday said Iran used unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in an attack on Nakhchivan International Airport and other civilian infrastructure. The ministry said the details of the attack and the capabilities of the UAVs were being investigated.
«The Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan strongly condemns the attacks carried out by the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran against civilian infrastructure on the territory of Azerbaijan in the absence of any military necessity. The Islamic Republic of Iran bears the entire responsibility for the incident,» the ministry’s statement read.
Explosions seen and heard in Azerbaijan as Iran launches retaliatory attacks across the Middle East. (East2West)
Iran has not acknowledged targeting Azerbaijan, despite the country’s ministry of defense pointing the finger at Tehran.
Qatar evacuated residents near the U.S. Embassy in Doha on Thursday, with its Ministry of Defense confirming that the country was «subjected to a missile attack» and that its air defense systems were able to intercept it. The ministry urged the public to remain calm and avoid unofficial information.
Abu Dhabi announced that its authorities were responding to an incident involving falling debris in ICAD 2, which is part of the Industrial City of Abu Dhabi. Six people, identified by Abu Dhabi as Pakistani and Nepali nationals, suffered minor to moderate injuries.
A plume of smoke rises over buildings in Doha, Qatar, on March 5, 2026. (Mahmud Hams/AFP via Getty Images)
FORMER TOPGUN PILOT DECLARES IRAN MILITARY ‘OVER WITH’ AMID US AIR SUPERIORITY, BUT WARNS OF ANOTHER DANGER
Iran has carried out retaliatory strikes since the launch of Operation Epic Fury, with the latest wave coming one day after the U.S. sunk an Iranian warship, killing at least 87 Iranian sailors. Sri Lankan navy spokesman Cmdr. Buddhika Sampath said 32 people were rescued from the wreck and were admitted to a hospital.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth defended the move during a news briefing at the Pentagon.
«An American submarine sunk an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters. Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo — Quiet Death. The first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War II. Like in that war, back when we were still the War Department, we are fighting to win,» Hegseth said.
Missile interceptions are seen in the sky on March 5, 2026, in Central Israel. (Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
ISRAEL’S MILITARY RELEASES VIDEO SHOWING OBLITERATION OF IRAN’S MISSILE LAUNCHERS, DEFENSE SYSTEMS
Iranian leaders condemned the attack, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accusing the U.S. Navy of committing «an atrocity at sea.» Meanwhile, Ayatollah Abdollah Javadi Amoli appeared on state television and called for the shedding of Israeli and «Trump’s blood.»
«Fight the oppressive America, his blood is on my shoulders,» he said in a rare call for violence from an ayatollah, one of the highest ranks within the clergy of Shiite Islam.
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The U.S. and Israel launched the war on Saturday with strikes targeting Iran’s leadership, including the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed. Iran’s missile arsenal and nuclear facilities were also hit.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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INTERNACIONAL
‘Outsider’ TV veteran jumps into swing state House race aiming to flip longtime red seat back to GOP
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FIRST ON FOX: Longtime West Michigan meteorologist Terri DeBoer is launching a run for Congress as a Republican, hoping to represent the state’s 3rd Congressional District in a campaign centered on border security, economic issues and what she called restoring «fiscal sanity» in Washington.
«I’m an outsider,» DeBoer told Fox News Digital in her first interview since becoming a candidate for Congress as a Republican running to unseat Rep. Hillary Scholten, D-Mich., who has held the seat since 2023.
«I am a West Michigan resident, and as an outsider, I believe that West Michigan is not blue, West Michigan is not red. West Michigan is all about solving the problems that we face, no matter who has those ideas, no matter what side of the aisle they happen to sit on.»
DeBoer has spent more than 30 years on West Michigan television, working at stations including WWMT-TV, WOOD-TV and most recently FOX-17 (WXMI-TV), where she returned in 2024 after a brief break.
Meteorologist Terri DeBoer has launched a congressional bid in Michigan. (Fox News Digital/Getty Images)
She began her career in broadcast journalism as a news reporter before transitioning to meteorology in the early 1990s. Known to many viewers as «everyone’s mom,» DeBoer has been a steady on-air presence during major weather events, including the 1998 derecho and the 2022 Christmas blizzard.
DeBoer says she sees similarities between her previous position, where she was affectionately referred to by many as «everyone’s mom,» and helping people navigate and prepare for tough weather ahead.
DEMOCRATS NAME CANDIDATES TO ‘RED TO BLUE’ INITIATIVE, AIMING TO FLIP GOP MAJORITY DURING MIDTERMS
The US Capitol in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
«I am asking the people of Michigan’s 3rd District to send me to Capitol Hill so that I can make a difference helping prepare people for the storms that we’re facing and help steer us away from the impact of those storms,» DeBoer said.
DeBoer, a wife, mother and grandmother, says her interest in politics was inspired by hearing former President Ronald Reagan speak in person during her senior year of high school. She said she thought to herself that if she ever had the opportunity to «serve my country,» she would «step forward and do it.»
DeBoer is the first major Republican candidate to enter the race in a district the Cook Political Report ranks as «Solid D,» in a state that President Donald Trump carried in 2024 and that is known for narrow margins of victory.
Additionally, when Scholten won her election, she became the first Democrat to win that seat since the 1970s.
National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Zach Bannon called Scholten a «rubber stamp» for the «radical far left» in a statement to Fox News Digital and said Republicans are «on the offense.»
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U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-MI) speaks at a press conference following a House Democratic Caucus meeting. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Other priorities from DeBoer, according to a press release and her newly launched campaign website, include pushing back against the «political elite» and «open-border policies» and advocating for affordability.
«For me, I am someone who is willing to listen to all great ideas, because I know that the problems that we have to solve, we are going to face, are going to need to be tackled by everyone, and so we need to come together and the best way to come together is to send an outsider to Washington,» DeBoer said. «I have loyalty to West Michigan. I don’t have loyalty to a party.»
Republicans currently control the House by a 218-214 majority, with two right-tilting districts and one left-leaning seat vacant. Democrats need a net gain of three seats in the midterms to win back the majority for the first time in four years.
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