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

Israel cover image

Israel

May 29, 2026

Tel Aviv 6:02 pm

25°C

PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 29: (EDITOR'S NOTE: Alternate crop) U.S. President Donald Trump welcomes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to his Mar-a-Lago club on December 29, 2025 in Palm Beach, Florida. The two leaders are scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting to discuss regional security in the Middle East as well as the U.S.-Israel partnership. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Exclusive

Trump 'hit the brakes': Netanyahu's circle faults US president for failed Iran regime change, looming deal

With regime in Iran still standing and a possible US-Iran agreement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stands to pay the ultimate political price as elections near in Israel.

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

Ibrahim AMRO / AFP via Getty Images

Israel strikes Lebanon's capital Beirut for first time in 3 weeks: What to know

According to Israeli media, Ali al-Husseini, the commander of the missile unit in the Imam Hussein Division, a brigade affiliated with Iran’s Quds Force that operates alongside Hezbollah, was the target of the attack.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, (R) shakes hands with Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister, during a news conference on April 3, 2025 in Budapest, Hungary.

With Hungary’s ICC U-turn, Israel loses a key European ally

Hungary’s parliament voted to remain in the International Criminal Court, reversing a planned withdrawal and marking a shift in Budapest’s approach to Israel and the EU.

Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP via Getty Images

Who was Mohammed Odeh, Hamas military commander killed by Israel in Gaza?

Odeh was killed in a Tuesday strike in the Palestinian enclave just days after he assumed his leadership position.

Latest News

Analysis

'Very bad news’: Israel alarmed as Trump pushes ahead toward Iran deal

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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

Israel strikes near Lebanon’s Qaraoun dam as war intensifies: What to know

A partial view shows a drainage vacuum hole on the lake of Qaraoun in Lebanon's southern Beqaa Valley on April 5, 2019.

US gave Israel 'tacit agreement' to target senior Hezbollah figures

A view shows a Lebanese flag positioned among shattered concrete and twisted rebar, remnants of a destroyed building, in Sidon, Lebanon, on May 3, 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

Israel's Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon (C) reviews an honour guard during a farewell ceremony at the Defence Ministry in Tel Aviv, Israel May 22, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTSFDWN

Will US funders shell out for new political party in Israel?

Former Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon has begun laying the groundwork for his own party to offer a more moderate alternative to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) meets Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry in Jerusalem July 10, 2016 REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTSH5M1

Netanyahu distracts public, buys time with Egypt talks

Facing another police probe, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is directing the public's attention to a possible summit in Cairo with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas prays for Maysara Abu Hamdeya, a Palestinian inmate who died from cancer in an Israeli hospital on Tuesday, during a Fatah Central Committee meeting in the West Bank city of Ramallah April 2, 2013. Hamdeya's death threatened to raise tensions in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where Palestinians, who view jailed brethren as heroes in a fight for statehood, have held several protests in recent weeks in support of prisoners. REUTERS/Mohamed Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: POLIT

Have Arab leaders forgotten about Palestine?

Palestinian senior officials feel that not only are Arab countries preoccupied by the Islamic State threat, but that the countries are also tired of the Palestinian issue and are sidelining the urgency of establishing a Palestinian state.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) speaks with Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon during the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem January 31, 2016. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RTX24S18

Why Israel's left can't depend on Finance Minister Kahlon

Reading into statements by Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon should clarify to the Israeli center-left that he has never deserted the right-wing.

Palestinians pass through an opening in the Israeli barrier fence as they attempt to make their way to attend the third Friday prayer of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Jerusalem's al-Aqsa mosque, near the West bank city of Bethlehem June 24, 2016. REUTERS/Mussa Qawasma TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTX2HXNV

Is Israel doomed to live with terror?

Former Mossad Deputy Chief Ram Ben Barak disagrees with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's position that Israel is doomed to live with terror, claiming that it is up to Israel to decide if it wants to pay the price of occupation.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) and French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault (L) arrive for a meeting on May 15, 2016 during a meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem. Ayrault met Netanyahu before meeting Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas ahead of a French-sponsored Middle East peace process summit in Paris on May 30. Israel has rejected the initiative, the Palestinians support it and the United States has been cold. REUTERS/ MENAHEM KAHANA/Pool - RTSECIO

EU to push forward with two-state conference, with or without Washington

EU senior officials are planning a two-state conference to be held before the end of the year, with both a bilateral and a multilateral track.

Supporters hold posters of Bahrain's leading Shi'ite cleric Isa Qassim during a sit-in outside his home in the village of Diraz west of Manama, Bahrain June 21, 2016. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTX2HIPR

Khamenei says Iran has not intervened in Bahrain

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Iran has not intervened in Bahrain and encouraged the island state's leaders to act wisely in order to not turn a political conflict into a civil war.

Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid attends a women's committee convention in Tel Aviv March 1, 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, a leading election candidate 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

Will one slip of the tongue cost this Israeli opposition figure the premiership?

Opposition party Yesh Atid head Yair Lapid has been carefully managing his campaign — aiming at the prime minister's seat — until making a first strategic mistake that might cost him dearly.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he speaks at the Cybertech 2016 conference in Tel Aviv, Israel January 26, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner - RTX242M5

Israel amps up cyberwar on Palestinian Facebook posts

To fight the Palestinian attacker 2.0, the IDF and Shin Bet are increasing cyber efforts to detect internet posts by potential assailants.

FILE PHOTO - Nochi Dankner, the chairman of indebted Israeli conglomerate IDB Holding Corp, arrives ahead of a court hearing at the district court in Tel Aviv December 17, 2013. REUTERS/Amir Cohen/File Photo - RTX2JMOT

The downfall of Israel's top tycoon

Nochi Dankner's financial empire has been revealed as a house of cards, and now the Israeli tycoon may be on his way to prison.

Hamas leader Yehia Sinwar attends a rally in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip January 7, 2016. The rally, organized by Hamas movement, was held to honor the families of dead Hamas militants, who Hamas's armed wing said participated in imprisoning Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, organizers said. Shalt was abducted by militants in a cross-border raid in 2006, and was released in exchange for more than 1,000 Palestinians held in Israeli jails. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem - RTX21FPI

Why Hamas refused to return IDF remains

Hamas' release of two Israeli civilians and the remains of two soldiers was never on the table as a condition of the Israeli-Turkish reconciliation agreement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) walks with Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni (R) after arriving to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Operation Entebbe at the Entebbe airport in Uganda, July 4, 2016. With them is Ugandan First Lady Janet Museveni (R). REUTERS/Presidential Press Unit/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - RTX2JNYB

Why Netanyahu's Africa visit is worth the cost

Those criticizing the cost of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Africa are missing the point; it could open doors to African markets and strengthen Israel both economically and diplomatically.