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Israel

June 21, 2026

Tel Aviv 2:44 am

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Former Israeli Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot gives a press conference in Tel Aviv, on December 4, 2018.

Can political novice Eisenkot defeat Netanyahu in upcoming elections?

The former military chief of staff is emerging as the prime minister's strongest rival in upcoming elections, overtaking former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in recent polls.

US President Donald Trump holds a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Palm Beach, Florida, Dec. 29, 2025.

Analysis

How Netanyahu used Lebanon strikes to push back on Trump’s Iran deal

The latest ceasefire in Lebanon leaves Netanyahu squeezed between Washington and domestic pressure.

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

Latest News

'Let Syria take care of Hezbollah': Trump criticizes Israel, leans on Sharaa to help in Lebanon

EVIAN-LES-BAINS, FRANCE - JUNE 16: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a bilateral meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on the sidelines of the G7 summit, on June 16, 2026 in Evian-les-Bains, France. Leaders from the Group of 7 (G7) countries convened in Evian, France, near the Swiss border, for their annual summit to discuss challenges to peace and security for Ukraine and Europe, the situation in the Middle East, and other geopolitical issues. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Get

Explainer

Ben-Gvir's move to run separately in Israel elections revives debate over party alliances

Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir takes part in the Jerusalem Day celebrations on May 14, 2026, in the Old City of Jerusalem.

Analysis

'He knew it was over': Inside Netanyahu’s response to Trump’s Iran deal as Israel recalibrates

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

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

Analysis

Erdogan-Netanyahu war of words signals deeper rivalry for regional influence

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Turkish House in New York on Sept. 19, 2023.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi smiles upon arrival at Khartoum International Airport in Khartoum June 27, 2014. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah (SUDAN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3W4IZ

Egypt-Israel future ties could depend on Palestinian issue

Israel should note that though policy changes may take time in Egypt, sources confirm that the Abdel Fattah al-Sisi administration is inclined to embrace a regional strategic policy to advance the Arab Peace Initiative.

Harsh winter awaits Gaza's displaced

As winter draws closer, displaced families in the Gaza Strip are still waiting for reconstruction to begin on their homes.

Residents watch Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on a screen during his televised speech at a festival celebrating Resistance and Liberation Day, in Bint Jbeil May 25, 2014. The event commemorates the 14th anniversary of Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS ANNIVERSARY) - RTR3QT8E

Hezbollah squeezed out of Golan by Jabhat al-Nusra, Israel

The infiltration of Syrian militants into Lebanon threatens Hezbollah’s presence in the strategic Golan Heights.

A Palestinian flag and a Hamas flag (R) flutter atop the wreckage of a house, which witnesses said was destroyed during the seven-week Israeli offensive, in the east of Gaza City September 3, 2014. Fifty days of war in one of the most densely populated parts of the world have left swathes of Gaza in ruins. With the economy reeling under an Israeli-Egyptian blockade, the enclave now faces an almost impossible task of rebuilding. Picture taken September 3, 2014. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: CIVIL UNRES

Desperate Gazans frustrated by Hamas-Fatah squabbles

The disputes between Hamas and Fatah over the reconstruction process in Gaza have infuriated Gazans who desperately need assistance.

Jewish worshippers walk between images of rabbis offered for sale during an annual pilgrimage to the gravesite of Rabbi Yisrael Abuhatzeira, a Moroccan-born sage and kabbalist also known as the Baba Sali, on the anniversary of his death in the southern town of Netivot, January 5, 2014. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: ANNIVERSARY RELIGION TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX1735D

Israelis feel betrayed by celebrity rabbi’s corruption

Rabbi Yoshiyahu Pinto's plea bargain has exposed the extent of abuse by Israel's popular rabbis, some of whom have made hundreds of millions of shekels in donations from their followers.

An elderly couple walk on a path leading to Jerusalem's Old City February 4, 2012. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (JERUSALEM - Tags: SOCIETY RELIGION) - RTR2XB7F

Israel unprepared for its aging population

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Minister of Senior Citizen Affairs Uri Orbach says that Israel is unprepared for the global phenomenon of prolonged lifespans, with too many poor elderly, and must act rapidly to assure pension resources before it's too late.

An Egyptian soldier stands behind a barbed wire fence on the border between Israel and Egypt some 50 km (30 miles) north of Eilat in this November 28, 2010 file photo, after work begun to construct a barrier to seal off part of the border with Egypt's Sinai desert. Arms smuggling by Bedouin tribal networks, mainly by land along Egypt's southern border with Sudan, across the Sinai peninsula and into the Hamas-run Gaza Strip is on the uptick, according to an Egyptian official, who asked not to be named. Sudan

How Israel spies on Sinai

Israel recruits Egyptian smugglers in the Sinai Peninsula to perform various missions for Israeli intelligence.

Members of the Iranian army pray at a university as they attend for Tehran's Friday prayers, April 10, 2009. Reform minded youth see America as the land of opportunity and would like to see ties with the U.S. restored but conservative minded youth see the U.S. as the enemy and feel that the Islamic Revolution?s goals must be kept alive. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN) - RTXDXUQ

Iranian conservative says the US needs Iran

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Iranian conservative Amir Mohebian discussed why he believes Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is pessimistic about the nuclear negotiations, how US policy in the Middle East has benefited Iran and how the United States is now in a position where it needs Iran to deal with regional issues.

Palestinians hold posters depicting President Mahmoud Abbas during a rally in the West Bank town of Bethlehem March 17, 2014. Thousands of Palestinians took to the streets on Monday to show their support for Abbas, who is under heavy pressure as he prepares to meet U.S. President Barack Obama. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST RELIGION) - RTR3HFCL

Will Abbas walk the walk on his threats to Israel?

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will present his plan to end the Israeli occupation at the UN General Assembly, with PA officials warning they will launch a political campaign against Israel should the plan be rebuffed.

Yair Lapid, leader of the Yesh Atid (There is a Future) party, addresses supporters at his party's headquarters in Tel Aviv January 23, 2013. The surprise star of Israel's election on Tuesday is Lapid, a former television news anchor whose centrist party, exit polls showed, soared to second place in the balloting only months after he joined politics. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3CTCL

The new politics of Israel's 'Minister of Facebook Affairs'

Over the last 12 months, social networks have taken over Israeli politics with Finance Minister Yair Lapid and Knesset member Stav Shaffir especially making effective use of communicating with the public in this way.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a conference on counter-terrorism at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya, near Tel Aviv September 11, 2014. Netanyahu said on Thursday he would increase the defence budget to meet growing threats but not let the country's credit rating drop one notch through any excessive spending. REUTERS/Nir Elias (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY BUSINESS) - RTR45VNS

Israel prepares for cyberwars

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu established a new espionage organization devoted entirely to cyberwarfare, to prepare Israel for future conflicts.

Senior Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya (C) speaks to the media upon his return to Gaza City from truce talks in Cairo August 14, 2014. A renewed truce between Israel and Hamas appeared to be holding on Thursday despite a shaky start, after both sides agreed to give Egyptian-brokered talks more time to try to end the Gaza war. REUTERS/Ahmed Zakot (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR42EMW

If talks fail, Hamas says it will not return to war

There is little hope a breakthrough will be achieved in the upcoming talks in Cairo between Hamas and Israel, but Hamas officials say they are unlikely to resume armed conflict at this stage.