Israel - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Israel cover image

Israel

May 23, 2026

Tel Aviv 12:40 am

20°C

AAMIR QURESHI/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

As Pakistan military chief holds Iran talks, Israel's Netanyahu fears being left out

US President Donald Trump's comment that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would do "whatever I want” is troubling the premier's inner circle ahead of the elections in October.

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

Burak Kara/Getty Images

Ireland joins EU push to ban trade with Israeli settlements amid flotilla backlash

European frustration with Israel intensified this week after a far-right Israeli minister posted a video of the mistreatment of international activists detained in the country.

Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP via Getty Images

Israel targets Turkey charity amid Gaza flotilla tensions

The request, published in Israeli media, marks a further escalation in tensions with Turkey amid disputes over Gaza aid operations.

Latest News

Interview

Ahmad Tibi says Arab parties in Israel can block Netanyahu without joining next government

Arab-Israeli Knesset member Ahmed Tibi takes part in a demonstration against rising crime rates against Arab-Israelis in Tel Aviv, Israel, Jan. 31, 2026.

Ahmad Tibi

Ahmad Tibi

Israeli Arab lawmaker

Syria's Sharaa renews ban on Israeli imports in customs law: What to know

NICOSIA, CYPRUS - APRIL 24: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrives for an informal meeting of European Union leaders on April 24, 2026 in Nicosia, Cyprus. The EU heads of state and government are meeting over two days to discuss the conflict in Iran and the Middle East, including freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, the effects of high fuel prices, and how Europe may contribute to de-escalation and a peace agreement. (Photo by Byron Smith/Getty Images)

Somaliland's first ambassador to Israel announces embassy in Jerusalem: What to know

Somaliland’s first ambassador to a foreign country formally, Mohamed Hagi, presented his diplomatic credentials in Jerusalem to Israeli President Isaac Herzog, on May 18, 2026.

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Ben Caspit

Israel Columnist

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

Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

Rina Bassist

Associate Editor (Israel)

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

IDF unfazed by challenges of integration

Despite objections from religious quarters and the logistical hurdles they pose, the IDF has no intention to end the integration of women into fighting roles.

What's behind Israeli police chief’s interview frenzy?

The latest interviews granted by Police Commissioner Roni Alsheikh to news outlets identified with the right have raised concerns that his efforts to protect his image could have unintended consequences.

Does Israel need France more than France needs Israel?

Meeting with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian in Jerusalem, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu preferred to focus on common battles rather than preserving the nuclear deal with Iran, the main mission for Le Drian's visit.

Orthodox Israelis dance to tune of tradition

A modern dance troupe composed of religious Jewish men is forcing the ultra-Orthodox community to confront questions of art and self-expression.

Members of the United Nations Security Council vote on an Egyptian-drafted resolution regarding recent decisions concerning the status of Jerusalem, during a meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including Palestine, at U.N. Headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., December 18, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid - RC16CA279060

Congress threatens to cut UN funding for voting against Israel

President Donald Trump and Congress are on the same page with a new law that would cut US funding for UN agencies deemed insufficiently supportive of Israel.

Palestinian women standing on a balcony look at the damaged interior of the home of Bahaa Allyan, a Palestinian who killed three Israelis in a shooting and stabbing attack with an accomplice on a bus in October, after Israeli forces used jackhammers to destroy the walls of the middle floor of a three-story building in the east Jerusalem Palestinian neighbourhood of Jabal Mukaber on January 4, 2016. Allyan, who was shot dead, had on October 13 along with a fellow Palestinian shot and stabbed passengers on a

Israelis, Palestinians both use demography as political tool

The aspirations of the political right to annex West Bank lands have never been more obvious, as reflected in this week’s stormy Knesset committee debate about Jewish-Arab demography.

Israeli mayor finds thorns in 'village of roses'

The head of a Jewish local council of Kfar Vradim in the Galilee halted the marketing of housing lots after half the bid winners were Arabs.

Israeli cartoonists draw on 70 years of history

Israel makes a rich canvas for cartoonists, whose works are displayed at the Israeli Museum of Caricature and Comics on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the country's independence this spring.

Abbas' parting shots

Despite Mahmoud Abbas' peaceful overtures, rhetoric and actions, the second Palestinian president is about to leave the political stage without peace in his lifetime.

Israeli leftist leader digs herself a hole

Instead of offering the dwindling Meretz a new beginning, the leftist party's newly elected chair, Tamar Zandberg, lied to her supporters.

Yahya Sinwar (C), the new leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, arrives for the opening of a new mosque in Rafah town in the southern Gaza Strip on February 24, 2017. / AFP / SAID KHATIB (Photo credit should read SAID KHATIB/AFP/Getty Images)

Will Hamas' Gaza chief resign?

Hamas' leader in the Gaza Strip Yahya Sinwar estimates that without reconciliation with Fatah, Hamas is doomed to lose its grip on the coastal enclave.

Decision to declassify Syria strike sparks 'war of the generals' in Israel

The Mossad, Israeli military intelligence, the IDF and former decision-makers are all fighting for credit over the 2007 Syrian reactor bombing.