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

Israel cover image

Israel

July 30, 2026

Tel Aviv 9:52 am

30°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

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) and Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong strike a gong during their joint news conference in Jerusalem March 29, 2016. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTSCN29

Why Netanyahu's 'Asian option' is raising eyebrows in Israel

With a difficult relationship between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama as the backdrop, Netanyahu has invested obvious effort in getting closer to China and Russia.

A Palestinian woman reacts after Israeli troops demolished her shed near the West Bank village of Um AlKhair, south of Hebron August 9, 2016. REUTERS/Mussa Qawasma - RTSM063

Why Israeli NGOs are shifting tactics to stop village demolition

The international community is doubling its pressure on Israel to not demolish the Palestinian village of Khirbet Susya and evacuate all of its residents.

Will Gaza photographer ever accept international awards in person?

Palestinian photographer Ashraf Amra has won another international photojournalism prize but may miss the Moscow award ceremony for the second year in a row, unable to leave the Gaza Strip.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he speaks during a ceremony at the Peres Center for Peace in Jaffa, Israel, July 21, 2016. REUTERS/POOL/Dan Balilty - RTSJ1NL

Netanyahu's new worldview

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to have discarded seeking negotiations for a two-state solution with the Palestinians for a backdoor approach of forging alliances with Arab and other states.

Palestinian supporters of Hizb ut-Tahrir take part in a rally calling for Khilafah, or Islamic rule, in Gaza City June 5, 2013. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10CH3

Hizb ut-Tahrir: Palestine is not our main cause

The spokesman for the Islamic Hizb ut-Tahrir insists that his party has nothing to do with the Islamic State, as the latter seeks to establish an Islamic caliphate by using violence, while Hizb ut-Tahrir seeks the same goal but through political means.

A view of the West Bank Jewish settlement of Maale Adumim is seen near Jerusalem July 25, 2013. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo - RTX2JRJ5

Is Israel annexing West Bank Area C?

Israel is actively pursuing a strategy of economic expansionism in Area C, making the Oslo Accord’s plan for a future Palestinian state not feasible.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem. Thursday, Aug 11, 2016. REUTERS/Dan Balilty/Pool - RTSML9B

What Bibi gets wrong about Israeli media

The Israeli public perceives a media landscape dominated by left-wing positions, but reality tells another story.

A Palestinian boy helps his mother remove the sewage water that flooded into their house during a power cut at Shatti (beach) refugee camp in Gaza City September 15, 2015. Power has been provided to different areas in the impoverished coastal territory in six-hour shifts as Gaza's lone power plant shut its generators on Saturday due to a fuel shortage, energy officials said. Electricity is also supplied to the Gaza grid through power lines from Israel and Egypt. Gaza's plant provides electricity to two-thir

How Gaza's electricity crisis is becoming Israel's water catastrophe

The inability to treat wastewater in the Gaza Strip because of a lack of electricity is threatening to contaminate the water supplies of Gaza as well as Israel unless immediately addressed.

A traveller waits for his luggage at 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) - RTR25HFS

PA upset as 'VIP' travelers breeze over Allenby Bridge

The Palestinian Authority is accusing Israel of intentionally stifling the flow of travelers through a border crossing between the West Bank and Jordan to promote a new and expensive VIP service.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden (L) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu look at each other as they deliver joint statements during their meeting in Jerusalem March 9, 2016. REUTERS/Debbie Hill/Pool TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTS9ZRL

Lobbying 2016: Divided Congress upends US-Israel relationship

Palestinian policemen loyal to Hamas guard outside the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) headquarters during a protest demanding to resume financial aid for refugees, in Gaza City April 15, 2013. Robert Turner, UNRWA's director of Gaza operations, said the agency faced a $68 million shortfall in 2013 and that it had decided to cut a $40 annual handout to 106,000 Gaza refugees to save some $5.5 million. To soften the blow, the agency offered job programmes to help the poorest families. REUTERS/M

Israeli centrist leader finds himself alone in battle against UN agency

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Yesh Atid Leader Yair Lapid expressed surprise that his government is cooperating with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, while the rest of the Israeli political establishment is reluctant to disrupt the aid that keeps Gaza afloat.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) and Isaac Herzog, Co-leader of the centre-left Zionist Union, are pictured together as campaign billboards rotate in Tel Aviv, March 9, 2015. Israelis will vote in a parliamentary election on March 17, choosing among party lists of candidates to serve in the 120-seat Knesset. Currently, polls show Netanyahu's Likud party and the centre-left Zionist Union opposition running neck-and-neck, with each predicted to win around 24 seats in the Knesset.
REUTERS/Baz Ra

Can open primaries heal Israeli politics?

Israelis are debating the feasibility of open primaries, which would allow all eligible voters to select the leader of the political bloc they support.