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

Israel cover image

Israel

June 29, 2026

Tel Aviv 9:59 pm

26°C

AFP via Getty Images

Traffic plummets through Strait of Hormuz after Iran, US trade fire

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz had recovered somewhat before renewed fighting between Iran and the United States saw traffic drop sharply over the weekend.

A car drives past an United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) outpost in the village of Khan Arnabah, Quneitra, southern Syria, April 29, 2026.

Syria slams Israeli 'violations' in south as ground clashes intensify: What to know

In a rare incident, the Israeli military said it fired at armed men in southern Syria, without identifying the attackers.

Members of the Jerusalem Armenian community hold placards as they march during commemorations for the 94th anniversary of mass killings of their kin under the Ottoman Empire, Jerusalem's Old City, April 24, 2009.

Explainer

Israel's Armenian genocide recognition marks new front against Turkey

Analysts say the expected vote for recognition is not morally motivated, but intended to spite the Turkish leader.

Latest News

US brokers deal for limited Israeli withdrawal in south Lebanon

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (C, back) looks on as (L/R, front row) Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter, State Department Chief of Staff Daniel Holler, and Lebanese Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh sign a framework agreement at the US Department of State in Washington, DC, on June 26, 2026. Lebanon, Israel and the United States on Friday signed a trilateral framework agreement aimed at paving the way for a peace deal between the two long-time Middle East adversaries. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP

Iran vows to respond to Israeli military using neighboring airspace: What to know

Jalaa MAREY / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Vance turning us into 'punching bag': Israel fumes over alleged IRGC-CENTCOM channel in Doha

Vance

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

Israel, Turkey, Iran offer aid as Venezuela’s 2 quakes kill at least 188

Responders arrive to a demolished building at San Bernardino after a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck Venezuela and other regions in the Caribbean on June 24, 2026 in Caracas, Venezuela.

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 Jewish settler, dressed in costume, stands near Israeli soldiers as they guard a parade for the holiday of Purim in the West Bank city of Hebron February 24, 2013. Purim is a celebration of the Jews' salvation from genocide in ancient Persia, as recounted in the Book of Esther. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (WEST BANK - Tags: SOCIETY RELIGION MILITARY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3E7ED

Attack on Purim Highlights Trend in Israeli Racism

The attack on an Israeli-Arab sanitation worker in Tel Aviv last week has underlined racism inherent in parts of Israeli society and brought to light those who are fighting it, reports Shlomi Eldar.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel (2nd L) holds his first meeting with the Joint Chiefs of Staff U.S. Marine Corps Commandant General John M. Paxton, Jr. (L), U.S. Army General Martin Dempsey (4th R), General of the Army Ray Odierno (3rd R), U.S. Navy Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Jon Greenert (2nd R) and U.S. Army General Frank Grass (R) in a briefing room called "The Tank" at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, March 1, 2013. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) -

Hagel, Syria, the P5+1 and Iran

The Senate confirmed Chuck Hagel as secretary of defense as the United States announced $60 million in non-lethal aid to the Syrian Opposition Council; Israel, Iraq and Lebanon continue to be concerned about the regionalization of the war in Syria; and Iran puts Syria in play after the P5+1 meetings.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem March 3, 2013. More than a month after Israel's election, Netanyahu is still without a new coalition, his hopes of enlisting traditionally loyal cabinet partners - ultra-Orthodox factions - challenged by a pact between an odd political couple. REUTERS/Gali Tibbon/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3EII7

Will Netanyahu Surrender To Lapid and Bennett?

Prime Minister Netanyahu blames Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid and HaBayit HaYehudi leader Naftali Bennett for his failed attempts to form a coalition, but he will soon have to accept the fact that he is unable to form a government without them, writes Mazal Mualem.

A woman prepares bread for Palestinian and foreign activists protesting against what they say is Israel's denial of access to their farmland, in the village of Khirbet Zakaria, near the settlement bloc of Gush Etzion, February 4, 2013. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS FOOD CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3DC5V

Food Communities on Facebook Emancipate Israeli-Arab women

When you mix Israeli-Arab cuisine with Facebook and social media, you get the perfect recipe for empowering both young and older women, writes Michal Aharoni.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) meets with Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan at Ankara Palace in Ankara, March 1, 2013. Kerry said on Friday the United States found a comment by Turkey's prime minister, likening Zionism to crimes against humanity, "objectionable", overshadowing their talks on the crisis in neighbouring Syria. REUTERS/Jacquelyn Martin/Pool (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3EG91

Erdogan’s Double Standards

Shlomi Eldar offers a reminder of the Armenian genocide in asserting that accusations against Zionism by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan exhibit hatred and hypocrisy.

Labourers reinforce the fence near Israel's border with Syria in the Golan Heights February 14, 2013. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed the territory in 1981, a move not recognised internationally. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (POLITICS) - RTR3DSEM

Israel Anticipates 'Somalization' Of Syria

Israel’s quietest border in decades may become rife with terrorism were the Assad regime to fall, argues Ben Caspit.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas attends a Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) executive committee meeting in the West Bank city of Ramallah February 26, 2013. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3EAX8

Shin Bet Ex-Deputy: Israel Shouldn't Humiliate Abu Mazen

In an interview with Mazal Mualem, former Shin Bet Deputy Director Israel Hasson accuses Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of treating the Palestinian Authority chairman disgracefully, while acknowledging that Abu Mazen also made mistakes.

The port of Jaffa is seen in the background as Palestinians enjoy themselves at a beach in Tel Aviv during Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan August 20, 2012. A spokesperson for The Israeli Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories' (COGAT) said that improved security had allowed for the entry of over 1 million Palestinians from the occupied West Bank since the beginning of Ramadan. REUTERS/Nir Elias (ISRAEL - Tags: RELIGION SOCIETY) - RTR36ZT5

Rifaat Turk on Jaffa's Decline As a Bi-National City

From a vibrant bi-national city into gated developments for rich Jews, Rifaat Turk tells Shlomi Eldar all about the recent changes in Jaffa.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel pauses during remarks to service members and civilian employees on his first day in his new post at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, February 27, 2013. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR3ECW8

Campaign Against Hagel Was A Loser

Another few unnecessary, unjust and unwise campaigns, such as the one against Chuck Hagel’s nomination for Secretary of Defense, and the myth that the Jews control the United States will become a legend, writes Akiva Eldar.

Israeli youths dance under a huge national flag during a parade marking Jerusalem Day in Jerusalem May 20, 2012. Jerusalem Day marks the anniversary of Israel's capture of the Eastern part of the city during the 1967 Middle East War. Israel annexed East Jerusalem as part of its capital in a move not recognized internationally. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS ANNIVERSARY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR32D2U

Instagram Scandal HighlightsRacism Among Israeli Youth

The image of a Palestinian child in the crosshairs of a gun posted by an Israeli soldier on Instagram may reflect an undercurrent of racism against Palestinians in Israeli society, not just an indictment of an Israeli military culture, writes Lena Odgaard.

A child waves a Hezbollah flag as she holds pictures of martyrs as Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah addresses his supporters during a rally to commemorate Martyrs' Day in Beirut, February 16, 2013. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3DVC2

Hezbollah-Israel Psychological War Continues in Nasrallah Speech

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah’s television appearance on Feb. 27 was a carefully crafted psychological warfare operation, writes Nasser Chararah.

An employee of Japan's biggest security service firm Secom Co Ltd uses
a computer inside the company's "Secom computer protection safe" which
protects computer servers not only from cyberattacks but also from
actual illegal intruders and physical damage occuring from
environmental factors, in Tokyo March 12, 2003. The fire-proof safe
measuring 2.58 metres (8.46 feet) in width, 2.84 metres (9.31 feet) in
height and 3.04 metres (9.97 feet) in depth carries a price tag
starting from 9.8 million yen ($83

Israel Braces for Cyberwarfare With Palestinians

After a series of cyberattacks and incidents of hacking from Palestinians, Israel has amped up efforts to protect its vital computer systems, reports Adnan Abu Amer.