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

Israel cover image

Israel

May 12, 2026

Tel Aviv 1:15 pm

34°C

Two men stand next to the burned remains of a Palestinian vehicle in the Wadi al-Rakhim area of Susya village in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on May 1, 2026.

EU ministers agree to sanction violent West Bank settlers: What to know

European foreign ministers have agreed to sanction extremist West Bank settlers, but are still discussing the list of names.

Ronen Zvulun / AFP via Getty Images

Netanyahu fears being left out as Trump pursues Iran diplomacy

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was not surprised by President Donald Trump’s suspension of Project Freedom and move toward talks with Iran, but analysts say Washington may not be fully weighing Israel's concerns in negotiations with Tehran.

Traffic passes a billboard depicting Iranian ballistic missiles in service, with text in Arabic reading "the honest [person's] promise" and in Persian "Israel is weaker than a spider's web," Valiasr Square, Tehran, April 15, 2024. ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images.

Analysis

CIA report on Iran missiles undercuts Netanyahu as war euphoria dissipates

The findings cast doubt on Israel’s wartime gains and put pressure on Netanyahu’s campaign strategy ahead of elections.

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

Latest News

Israel strikes Beirut in breach of Lebanon ceasefire

People gather at the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted Beirut's southern suburbs neighborhood of Haret Hreik on May 6, 2026.

Analysis

Israel fears Trump seeking Hormuz win while sidestepping Iran nuclear issue

Amirhossein KHORGOOEI / ISNA / AFP via Getty Images

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

Culture

Lebanon's churches, mosques and archaeological sites damaged in Israeli strikes

A man sits watching as Lebanese first responders search for human remains among the rubble the day after a house was targeted in an Israeli airstrike in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh, on May 1, 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

TOPSHOT - Israeli Arabs take part in a demonstration against violence, organised crime and recent killings among their communities, outside the prime minister's office in Jerusalem on October 10, 2019. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP) (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Palestinian hands tied as crime rises in East Jerusalem

Palestinians living in East Jerusalem are concerned by rising crime among the Arab population and complain that Israeli security forces are turning a blind eye while blocking Palestinian security forces from establishing control.

Should Netanyahu worry over violent protests against him?

As political and public energy that has welled up against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the last few years is about to burst the floodgates, some worry he could be the target of an assassination attempt.

A picture taken from the northern Israeli town of Metula shows the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila behind the concrete barrier wall along the border between the two countries, on July 28, 2020. - Israel said it had repelled an attempt by Hezbollah fighters to penetrate its northern border on July 27, but the Lebanese group denied any involvement in the incident.
The border clash, which Israel said included an exchange of fire between its troops and gunmen, followed days of reported heightened tensi

Israel, Hezbollah playing war game, but avoid real conflagration

Attempting to avoid further escalation with Hezbollah, the Israel Defense Forces are careful to showcase lots of fire and brimstone, but no casualties on either side.

Israeli settlers firebomb mosque in West Bank

Attacks by ultranationalist Jewish settlers in the West Bank have occurred this year amid Israel's planned — but so far unsuccessful — attempts to annex parts of the Palestinian territory.

Fighting breaks out on Israel-Lebanon border

Tensions keep escalating on the Israel-Lebanon border, with IDF and Hezbollah exchanging heavy fire.

An Israeli girl picks Ranunculus flowers in a cultivated field in the southern Israeli Kibbutz of Nir Yitzhak, located along the Israeli-Gaza Strip border, on April 20, 2015. The flower bulbs will be mostly exported to Europe. AFP PHOTO / MENAHEM KAHANA (Photo credit should read MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images)

Winning Israeli idea helps urban agriculture take root

The Forest City initiative is taking advantage of the coronavirus crisis by encouraging urban agriculture while Israelis stay home and garden.

TOPSHOT - This picture taken on January 19, 2020, near the northern Israeli kibbutz of Misgav Am, shows a general view of the Israel-Lebanon border as Israeli army forces begin deployment of infrastructure for a ground "defensive system" along the fence. - Israel's army said it would start drilling to install ground sensors along its border with Lebanon on January 19, a year after a weeks-long operation to destroy tunnels dug across the frontier that it had accused Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah of buildin

Israel upping alert on tensions with Hezbollah

According to the latest reports, Israel has decided to up the level of alert on its borders with Lebanon and Syria; several roads near the borders will be closed for civilian vehicles as of this evening.

Settlement sprawl forces Hebron's Palestinian families to live in caves

Dozens of Palestinians are living in caves in Hebron as the Israeli authorities repeatedly demolish their homes built without impossible-to-obtain permits.

NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 21: Sameh Shoukry, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt, listens during a UN Security Council meeting concerning nuclear non-proliferation, during the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters, September 21, 2017 in New York City. The most pressing issues facing the assembly this year include North KoreaÕs nuclear ambitions, violence against the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar, and the debate over climate change. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Egypt heads to Amman, Ramallah to revive peace efforts

The Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs visited Jordan and the Palestinian city of Ramallah to declare Egypt’s rejection of the Israeli intentions to annex parts of the Palestinian lands in the West Bank.

TOPSHOT - This picture taken early on April 10, 2019 shows Israeli Likud Party campaign material and posters of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strown on the floor following election night at the party headquarters in the coastal city of Tel Aviv. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP) (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Netanyahu sees last, best chance in fourth round of elections

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu clearly feels that new elections are his best option, but don't expect him to make his move until the Aug. 25 budget deadline.

Progressives push Democrats to acknowledge West Bank occupation in party platform

Democrats made a series of compromises between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel camps in the 2020 party platform, but progressives want to amend it with a reference to the occupation of the West Bank.

Why Israeli Bedouins reject tree planting in their villages

Plans to plant trees near Bedouin villages are opposed by local residents and environmental groups.