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

Israel cover image

Israel

July 28, 2026

Tel Aviv 2:58 pm

32°C

Trump Netanyahu

On eighth visit, Israel’s Netanyahu seeks to repair ties with Trump

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to focus on Iran in his Tuesday meeting with President Donald Trump, while the US leader is more likely to want to discuss Lebanon and Syria.

JEWEL SAMAD/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Why US carriers unlikely to rush back to Beirut as Trump lifts Lebanon flight ban

The White House is set to allow US airlines to fly to Beirut for the first time in decades, but experts say the move is more about politics than planes as Washington creates new openings for Lebanon's battered economy.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

GIL COHEN-MAGEN / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Ahead of Trump meeting, Netanyahu lays groundwork for Israel to rejoin Iran war

Reports of an Iranian espionage ring and nuclear centrifuges movement could help Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu make the case to the Israeli public and Donald Trump to rejoin the war, ahead of a critical election in October.

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

Latest News

Explainer

As Turkey rivalry heats up, Greece to acquire $4B Israeli air defense system

David's Sling.

Trump says Saudi nuclear deal 'totally subject' to Israel normalization

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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

An Israeli prison guard escorts jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti (C) to a deliberation at Jerusalem Magistrate's court January 25, 2012. Convicted of murder for his role in attacks on Israelis, Barghouti was jailed for life by Israel in 2004.
REUTERS/Baz Ratner (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS CRIME LAW) - RTR2WTIC

Fatah’s Barghouti pushes hunger strike for 3,500 prisoners

Imprisoned Fatah senior leader Marwan Barghouti calls for the group’s prisoners in Israel to start a hunger strike over imprisonment conditions.

A man breathes through an oxygen mask, after what rescue workers described as a suspected gas attack in the town of Khan Sheikhoun in rebel-held Idlib, Syria April 4, 2017. REUTERS/Ammar Abdullah - RTX33ZG2

Following gas attack, Israel reassesses Syrian threat

Israeli intelligence branches are reassessing the Syrian threat of weapons of mass destruction following the gas attack in Idlib on April 4.

How Palestine is working to stop antiquities theft

Thousands of artifacts that were smuggled outside the Palestinian territories have been seized in the past years as part of the Palestinian government’s efforts to put a stop to illegal excavations and antiquities trade.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) arrives at a Likud party meeting at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem January 16, 2017. Picture taken January 16, 2017. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTSW82I

Rift between right, left in Israel reaches new heights

A new study shows that 22.5% of Israeli Jews consider the political left to be "dangerous."

Buildings under construction are seen in this general view picture of the Israeli settlement of Efrat, in the occupied West Bank March 26, 2017. Picture taken March 26, 2017. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTX33V8P

Does BDS ban hurt Israel?

Jewish organizations in the United States are criticizing the Knesset for banning the entry of those who express support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.

U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTX33W8K

Trump welcomes Egypt’s Sisi 'as is'

US President Donald Trump and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi seem to hit it off at the White House, but will Trump come through on the funding Sisi wants?

TOPSHOT - Yahya Sinwar (2nd R), the new leader of the Hamas Islamist movement in the Gaza Strip and senior political leader Ismail Haniyeh (L) sit next to the son of Mazen Faqha, a Hamas leader who was shot dead by unknown gunmen in the Gaza Strip, during a memorial on March 27, 2017 in Gaza City.
Hamas officials have said the killing bears the hallmarks of Israel's intelligence service Mossad, but Israel has not commented on the shooting. / AFP PHOTO / MAHMUD HAMS (Photo credit should read MAHMUD

Hamas factions quarrel over vengeance for commander's death

Outgoing Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal has vowed to avenge the killing of military leader Mazen Faqha; this may provoke Hamas into another round of violent conflict with Israel.

How these Syrians went from opposition fighters to pro-regime militiamen

Some former members of the Free Syrian Army in southern Syria formed their own group that fights alongside the Syrian regime.

Can Netanyahu outmaneuver Trump?

The decision by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to limit settlement construction is an attempt to make President Donald Trump think that any failure to reach a peace deal is the Palestinians' fault.

Netanyahu gains victory in battle over public broadcasting

Israeli Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon found himself isolated this week when he misjudged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's control over his coalition in the fight over launching Israel's Public Broadcasting Corporation.

Torah scrolls are exhibited at the Babylonian Jewry Heritage Center in Or Yehuda, near Tel Aviv, in this October 19, 2006 picture. World Jewish groups began a global campaign on Sunday calling for recognition of Jews from Arab countries as refugees in the Middle East conflict. REUTERS/Gil Cohen Magen (ISRAEL) - RTR1IKQX

One man's quest to save the Jewish Iraqi language

Oded Amit, who was born in Baghdad and eventually fled to Israel, has taken it upon himself to teach Israelis of Iraqi immigrants the language of their ancestors in order to preserve it.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas shake hands after a statement in Berlin, Germany, March 24, 2017. REUTERS/Pawel Kopczynski - RTX32ITH

Will EU take the lead on two-state solution?

The European Union is developing a new Middle East policy, which will not depend on the Trump administration.