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

Israel cover image

Israel

July 30, 2026

Tel Aviv 6:07 am

24°C

Win McNamee/Getty Images

Analysis

Katz riles Iran, US as Netanyahu-Trump meeting raises questions

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had to settle for a brief meeting with President Donald Trump, while his defense minister, Israel Katz, appeared intent on provoking Iran by publicly disclosing sensitive intelligence.

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

Israel PM office

Netanyahu lauds 'excellent' Trump meeting as Israel pushes harder Iran line

Hours before the meeting, President Donald Trump signaled impatience with the Israeli leader.

Latest News

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

Trump Netanyahu

Analysis

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

JEWEL SAMAD/AFP via Getty Images

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Analysis

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

GIL COHEN-MAGEN / AFP via Getty Images

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

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

Eli Cohen, (R) and Avihai Weinstein, (L), sit handcuffed at the magistrates court in the Israeli town of Petah Tikva February 2. The court on Wednesday extended the detention of the two Israelis arrested on suspicion of selling large amounts of military equipment to Iran.

HL/FMS - RTRVL3

Ultra-Orthodox arms dealer faces extradition to US

Israel's Supreme Court has rejected Eli Cohen's appeal to stop his extradition to the United States for violating sanctions against Iran after a long history of evading prosecution for such offenses.

Israeli MP and chairperson of center-right Yesh Atid party, Yair Lapid, casts his ballot at a polling station with his wife Lihi (R) on March 17, 2015 in Tel Aviv. Voting polls opened for unpredictable elections to determine whether Israelis still want incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as leader, or will seek change after six years. AFP PHOTO / GIL COHEN MAGEN (Photo credit should read GIL COHEN MAGEN/AFP/Getty Images)

Meet the man who might replace Netanyahu

A recent poll put Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, if elections were held today.

Backdropped by Jerusalem's Old City Ottoman walls, Jerusalem's mayor Nir Barkat speaks during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (unseen) on February 23, 2015, a day after Barkat and his bodyguard apprehended a young Palestinian who stabbed an ultra-Orthodox Jew in Jerusalem. AFP PHOTO / GALI TIBBON (Photo credit should read GALI TIBBON/AFP/Getty Images)

Controversial cable car project in Jerusalem pushed by Israeli mayor

The Israeli mayor of Jerusalem is using an extensive Disney-like cable car project to improve his standing with the Likud Party, while the Palestinians publicly oppose his unilateral action.

Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid (C) walks with supporters as he campaigns in the southern city of Ashdod March 15, 2015. The era of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is ending, with Israeli voters clearly more concerned about economic and social issues than about security or fears over Iran, Lapid said on Monday. Lapid, a telegenic former news anchor and TV host, leads the centrist, secular Yesh Atid party ("There's a Future"), which emerged out of the cost-of-living protests that swept Israel in 2011. Picture

Has Israel's secular majority been abandoned by politicians?

While Israel argues over train maintenance on the Sabbath, Yesh Atid head Yair Lapid is not leading the battle against religious coercion but avoiding clashes with the ultra-Orthodox for his personal political interests.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem, 30 August 2016. REUTERS/Abir Sultan/Pool - RTX2NKHM

Netanyahu unruffled by critical UN envoy report

Neither criticism by UN Middle East envoy Nikolay Mladenov over settlement expansion nor a ruling by Israel's own Supreme Court against the construction of illegal outposts have ruffled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's insistence on portraying Israel as the victim of international persecution.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) gestures as Fatah strongman and lawmaker Mohammed Dahlan looks on (R) after meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the Palestinian Authority headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah December 18, 2006. Abbas told Blair on Monday he would push on with plans for early elections despite bitter opposition from the Hamas government. Blair said it was critical that the international community supported the moderate Abbas in the coming weeks. REUTERS/Eliana A

What it would cost Abbas to reconcile with Dahlan

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is being pressured by a group of Arab states to reconcile with former Fatah member Mohammed Dahlan and by Qatar not to do so.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) is surrounded by bodyguards during his visit to the Tel Nof airforce base in southern Israel August 17, 2016. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RTX2LITQ

Netanyahu continues to tune out voice of retired Israeli brass

A long list of retired Israeli generals is consistently calling to end the occupation, but now that he's gotten what he wanted from them, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is unmoved by their criticism.

Vehicles drive towards the Allenby Bridge Crossing July 9, 2009. Israel said on Wednesday it would allow the crossing between the occupied West Bank and Jordan to remain open 24 hours a day to help the Palestinian economy. The Israeli-controlled terminal leading to the Allenby Bridge across the Jordan River is the West Bank's only land link to the Arab world. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK POLITICS TRANSPORT) - RTR25HIM

Why Is Jordan refusing entry to Gaza Palestinians?

More than 50,000 Gazans living in the West Bank are essentially trapped there, unable to cross into Jordan or go to Gaza.

Israeli American Sruly Cooper(R) signs to vote in the US elections in front of members of the U.S. Republican party's election campaign team in Israel during a campaign aimed at potential American voters living in Israel, near a mall in Modi'in, Israel August 15, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner - RTX2KZVI

Can Trump win over US expats in Israel?

The US Republican Party has launched a campaign to convince US citizens living in Israel to vote for Donald Trump.

U.S. President Barack Obama meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval office of the White House in Washington November 9, 2015. The two leaders meet here today for the first time since the Israeli leader lost his battle against the Iran nuclear deal, with Washington seeking his re-commitment to a two-state solution with the Palestinians. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTS66KY

Can Israel reboot its relations with US?

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's insistence of objecting to the Iran deal risks tainting his relations with the next US president, as it has affected more than the political echelon.

A Turkish flag flutters atop the Turkish embassy as an Israeli flag is seen nearby, in Tel Aviv, Israel June 26, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner/File Photo - RTX2LGJ5

How both Israel and Turkey exploit Gaza's suffering

With the reconciliation agreement now signed between Israel and Turkey, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has practically forgotten his demands to lift the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) welcomes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia June 7, 2016. REUTERS/Maxim Shipenkov/Pool - RTSGEFC

What are Netanyahu and Putin plotting?

A rumored Israeli-Palestinian summit in Moscow may be a maneuver by Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu to try to thwart a new US initiative.