Israeli-Gulf relations

A police speed boat patrols the port as oil tankers and high speed crafts sit anchored at Muscat Anchorage near the Strait of Hormuz on March 30, 2026 in Muscat, Oman.

Analysis

Hostage to Hormuz, can Gulf rewire future energy flows to bypass Iran’s chokepoint?

As the US-Israel-Iran war disrupts around 20% of global oil supply, experts point to opportunities and challenges facing a renewed push to develop alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the eastern outskirts of the southern Lebanese coastal city of Tyre on March 24, 2026. Lebanon was pulled into the Middle East war when Iran-backed Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel on March 2 to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Israel has since launched strikes across Lebanon, killing at least 1,039 people and displacing more than a million others, and sent ground troops into the country's south. (Ph

Analysis

Israel hedges, intensifies Iran and Lebanon strikes ahead of Trump talks

Israel believes that US President Trump might soon opt to end the war, leading to a surge in Israeli strikes ahead of a potential ceasefire.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

An undated image of Eran Etzion.

Interview

Ex-Israeli security official: Netanyahu pushed US, Israel into Iran war without imminent threat

Eran Etzion, a former Israeli deputy national security adviser and opposition politician, says Netanyahu might decide to prolong the war against Hezbollah and Iran even if the United States opts out.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, US President Donald Trump's nominee to be ambassador to Israel, testifies during his Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, March 25, 2025.

Interview

Huckabee confirms US-Israel alignment on Iran, says Hamas will disarm 'sooner or later'

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Al-Monitor in an interview that the 2025 strike on Iranian nuclear sites was only a preview of what the US military is capable of.

Latest News

Saudi-UAE rift complicates Israel's counter-Iran efforts, normalization

This photograph taken on Jan. 20, 2026, organized by the Saudi-backed Yemeni government, shows Saudi-backed Yemeni forces in the city of Mukalla in Yemen's coastal southern Hadhramaut province.

Analysis

As US-Iran talks set to begin, Israel struggles to shape Trump's options

The commander of CENTCOM, Admiral Brad Cooper, visited Israel as the official guest of Chief of the General Staff Eyal Zamir.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

On eve of talks, UAE's Gargash throws weight behind Iran-US deal

Diplomatic advisor to the United Arab Emirates President Anwar Gargash (C) react on stage with Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (L) and Atlantic Council President and CEO Frederick Kempe (R) during the World Governments Summit in Dubai on February 3, 2026. Spain will seek to ban social media for under-16s to protect them from harmful content such as pornography and violence, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on February 3, in the latest such move by governments. Australia established a world first i

United Arab Emirates

Interview

Gaza calm could revive East Med Forum, Israel-Jordan projects: Cohen

Israel's Foreign Minister Eli Cohen gives a press conference in Larnaca on December 20, 2023 talking about a humanitarian aid corridor from the Mediterranean island to war-torn Gaza. (Photo by Elisa AMOURET / AFP) (Photo by ELISA AMOURET/AFP via Getty Images)

Eli Cohen

Eli Cohen

Israeli Energy Minister

STEFANI REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images

Biden says he won't ask Saudi Arabia to pump more oil during trip

President Joe Biden also downplayed his expected meetings with Saudi leaders, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Herzog

In preparation for Biden’s visit, Israeli president meets with Jordanian king

Ahead of President Biden's mid-July visit to the region, Israeli President Isaac Herzog met in Amman with Jordanian King Abdullah II.

Israeli Foreign Ministry

Negev Summit steering committee hatches plans in Bahrain

After Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid brought together counterparts from Israel, the United States, the Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Egypt last March, senior officials meet in Bahrain to lay more concrete plans.

Shaked

Israeli minister backs Moroccan claims to Western Sahara sovereignty

On a first official visit to Morocco, Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked said Israel recognized Morocco’s sovereignty over the Western Sahara, and stated Israel’s intention to enable Moroccans to work in Israel in the construction and nursing sectors.

US President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in the Oval Office of the White House, Washington, Aug. 27, 2021.

Israel’s coalition chaos won’t impact Biden visit

Israeli-American billionaire Haim Saban tried to prepare Biden for his first visit to Israel as president, saying Netanyahu's return as prime minister could be problematic.

African Union Chief and President of Senegal Macky Sall (2-R) participates at the OECD Africa Forum in France, on June 10, 2022.

African Union chief says Israel has role to play in Africa

Participating at the OECD Africa Forum, African Union Chief and President of Senegal Macky Sall acknowledged Israel’s engagement in Africa, especially on the backdrop of the crisis generated by the Ukraine war.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett arrives for a Cabinet meeting at the prime minister's office, Jerusalem, March 27, 2022.

Israel’s Bennett advances 'regional architecture' in Abu Dhabi

The quick visit of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett June 9 to Abu Dhabi clearly demonstrates the Israeli-American strategy of creating a large regional alliance that would face the Iranian threat.

Kobi Gideon/GPO

After IAEA criticizes Iran, Israeli prime minister meets with Emirati leader

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett made a quick visit to the Emirates, where he met privately with Emirati President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed.

Soldiers carry the coffin of an Israeli who was killed in an Istanbul suicide bombing the previous day, upon its arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv, March 20, 2016.

Israel warns nationals against possible Iranian attacks in Turkey, Thailand

Jerusalem tries distancing itself publicly from a series of strange deaths in Iran, while warning Israeli tourists in Turkey and in Thailand that Tehran could be targeting them.

Biden Bennett

Ahead of Biden visit, Israel redoubles efforts to isolate Iran

While continuing its creative campaign to isolate Iran, Israel’s leadership also puts efforts into constructing relations with Saudi Arabia and advancing an aerial-intelligence alliance in the region.

Israel's Foreign Minister Yair Lapid (2nd L) and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (2nd R) chat with Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid al-Zayani (R) and Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan (L), in Sde Boker, Israel, March 28, 2022.

With free trade agreement, Israel hopes to triple trade with Emirates

Israel and the United Arab Emirates already established a large scope of bilateral trade, but officials and businesspeople on both sides are persuaded that this is only the beginning.

A general view shows office buildings at al-Raidah Digital City of the Saudi capital Riaydh on Feb. 28, 2022.

Israelis begin doing deals in Saudi Arabia

Following a change in Saudi Arabia’s entry requirements, dozens of Israeli businesspeople arrived recently to Riyadh and even closed deals there.