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Israel

June 22, 2026

Tel Aviv 6:08 pm

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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

A Palestinian protester holding a Palestinian flag heads a soccer ball next to Israeli border police during a demonstration in solidarity with hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, outside Israel's Ofer military prison near Ramallah June 11, 2014. Israel's parliament has given initial approval to a law to enable the force-feeding of Palestinian prisoners on a hunger strike, drawing defiance from activists who said on Tuesday it would not deter the inmates. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BAN

FIFA to monitor Israeli violations against Palestinian soccer

The international soccer federation has not sanctioned Israel for its violations against Palestinian soccer, instead giving a committee until December to monitor developments.

A Palestinian protester returns a tear gas canister fired by Israeli troops, during a protest in solidarity with hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, in the West Bank village of Bilin near Ramallah June 13, 2014. Some 120 Palestinians held by Israel began refusing food on April 24 in protest at their detention without trial. Since then the number has risen closer to 300. Israel's Prisons Service says 70 have been hospitalised. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNRES

Netanyahu wrong to blame Abbas for kidnapping

Israel should rethink its Palestinian prisoner detention policy.

Israel's director-general of the Water Authority and Minister of National Infrastructure Binyamin Ben-Eliezer speaks on a mobile phone after the opening session of The Ministerial Conference on Water at the King Hussein Convention Centre at the Dead Sea Shore near Amman December 22, 2008. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN) - RTR22SCR

Israel's old-guard party bosses in decline

Israeli politics is undergoing a cleanup process, in which veteran Likud and Labor seniors find themselves out of the game, while new players, such as former minister Moshe Kahlon and ministers Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett form the new political map.

An Israeli soldier looks at Palestinians inside a vehicle near the West Bank city of Hebron June 14, 2014. Israel sent more troops to the occupied West Bank on Saturday to step up searches for three Israeli teenagers believed to have been abducted by Palestinians, with a military source saying it was not known if they were dead or alive. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) - RTR3TRKI

Fatah leader on kidnappings: 'Everyone is in big trouble now'

In an interview with Al-Monitor, senior Fatah official Fares Qadura warns of escalation, saying that everyone knows that Israel will not negotiate a prisoners exchange for the three kidnapped youths.

Palestinians sit outside their house as Israeli soldiers patrol near the West Bank City of Hebron June 15, 2014. Israel said on Sunday Hamas militants had abducted three Israeli teenagers in the occupied West Bank, warning of "serious consequences" as it pressed on with a search and detained dozens of Palestinians. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) - RTR3TVBR

Hamas denies role in kidnapping

The group's leaders, however, anticipate a severe confrontation with Israel.

Netanyahu's kidnapping nightmare leads to refocus on Hamas

For Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers may vindicate his tough stance on Hamas.

PM Netanyahu meets with Christian spiritual leader Father Gabriel Nadaf

Christian Arabs wrestle with Israeli identity

Israel's Christian citizens have found a safe haven in Israel, compared with other states in the region.

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks about the situation in Iraq from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington June 13, 2014. Obama said on Friday he will take several days to review options for how the United States can help Iraq deal with a militant insurgency, saying any action would need significant involvement by Iraq itself. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque (UNTIED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3TNFS

Israelis ask whether Obama has given up on Iraq

The crisis in Iraq has only sharpened the perception by Israelis that Barack Obama is now willing to act with resolve in the Middle East.

Israeli minister estimates new opposition grouping in fall

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Israeli Environmental Protection Minister Amir Peretz foresees possible changes in the makeup of the government in October or November, and emphasizes the important role of Hatnua Chairwoman Tzipi Livni in preventing a premature collapse of the diplomatic negotiations.

Wine-grower Gershon Ferency harvests Chardonnay grapes in his vineyard near the West Bank Jewish settlement of Bat Ayin, south of Bethlehem August 20, 2012. Established in 1993, Ferency's winery produces some 6,500 bottles of kosher wine a year using organically grown grapes. REUTERS/Nir Elias (WEST BANK - Tags: FOOD AGRICULTURE) - RTR36ZI0

Israel's settlement tourism

Following a vast campaign designed to rebrand the West Bank settlements as tourist attractions with guided tours to biblical sites, and to open it up to the Israeli mainstream, the region has become popular with tourists from Israel and overseas.

Ultra-orthodox Jewish bride Esther Rokeach waits for the start of the "mitzva tantz", the custom in which relatives dance in front of the bride after her wedding ceremony, in Jerusalem early June 11, 2014. Thousands gathered on Tuesday to celebrate the wedding of Rokeach, the granddaughter of the spiritual leader of the Belz Hasidim, which is one of the largest Hasidic movements in the world. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (JERUSALEM - Tags: RELIGION SOCIETY) - RTR3T7BC

Israel's big fat ultra-Orthodox wedding

While the Knesset was electing a president, tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews were gathered nearby to celebrate the wedding of the Belzer rebbe’s granddaughter, two events so close physically, yet socially and ideologically miles apart.

(From L to R) Palestinian legislator Mustafa Barghouti, Palestinian Fatah delegation chief Azzam al-Ahmed, Hamas prime minister in the Gaza Strip Ismail Haniya, Hamas deputy leader Musa Abu Marzuk, and secretary-general of the Palestinian Arab Front (PAF) Jameel Shehadeh, pose for a picture in Gaza on April 23, 2014. Rival Palestinian leaders from the West Bank and Gaza Strip agreed to form a unity government within five weeks as peace talks with Israel face collapse. AFP PHOTO / SAID KHATIB (Photo c

Barghouti says Israel must end 'profitable occupation'

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, veteran Palestinian politician Mustafa Barghouti, who played a key role in negotiating the latest reconciliation deal, provides new details on the unity negotiations and what comes next.