Iran's Revolutionary Guard Urges US Protests Ahead of Midterms; Settler Riot in West Bank

Iran's Revolutionary Guard has called on Americans to take to the streets and demonstrate against President Donald Trump, asserting that his military campaign in the Middle East has failed. The appeal was made at a news conference in Tehran titled "A letter to the American people," led by Gen. Hossein Mohebbi, a spokesman for the Guard.

Mohebbi said the conflict can only end if Washington acknowledges defeat and withdraws its forces. In later remarks, he urged the American public to protest Trump's policies, describing them as warmongering, and said Americans should reconsider their choice of leaders. The message appeared timed to reach the U.S. public just weeks before the November 3 midterm elections for the Senate and Congress.

He further accused the United States of using Iran's nuclear program as a pretext to exploit the country's wealth and reduce it to a colony, arguing that military action and economic sanctions would not force Tehran to submit.

On the economic front, Iran's currency dropped to a fresh record low on Tuesday, with traders in Tehran exchanging more than 2.5 million rials for a single U.S. dollar — a further sign of the strain the conflict has placed on the country's economy.

In the occupied West Bank, more than a hundred Israeli settlers rioted overnight, throwing rocks, blocking roads and setting Palestinian property on fire to stop a Palestinian man from returning to his home in the village of Jalud. The man, Mahmoud Tubasi, said Israeli soldiers initially escorted him to his house, but rioting settlers forced him and his family to leave in a military vehicle. He said he still cannot access the home, which settlers have besieged for two months.

Israel's military acknowledged that the mission to return the family "was not completed" and that three officers were injured by settlers who threw rocks, blocked roads and set Palestinian property ablaze. Israeli police said they arrested three settlers suspected of taking part in the riot, which drew condemnation from Israeli officials including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Gidon Saar and President Isaac Herzog.

The military has struggled to contain the latest wave of settler violence, and rights groups have accused it of colluding with the settlers.

In Gaza, an Israeli strike on an apartment west of Gaza City killed two people, including a Hamas commander whom the Israeli military said was involved in planning attacks and recruiting new members. Shifa Hospital officials said the strike also wounded five others. Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said the overnight operation targeted Izz al-Din Bik, a commander in Hamas's northern Gaza brigade. Hamas did not immediately confirm his death.

More than 1,400 Palestinians have been killed since a ceasefire took effect nearly a year ago, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which keeps detailed records generally regarded as reliable. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and militants but says women and children account for about half of the fatalities.