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

Israel cover image

Israel

November 12, 2026

Tel Aviv 6:51 am

16°C

Marco Longari / AFP via Getty Images

France denies entry for Israeli settler leader: What to know

The head of Israel's Samaria Regional Council settler organization claims that France turned him back at the Paris airport.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) casts his ballot, next to his wife Sara

Explainer

From Oct. 7 inquiry to blocking Netanyahu: Eisenkot's bloc maps out Knesset agenda

Israel's opposition to advance anti-Netanyahu government measures as soon as Knesset convenes Tuesday, without waiting for a new cabinet to take shape.

Amir Levy/Getty Images

Analysis

Trump officials look past Netanyahu, push Eisenkot to form government quickly

Associates of President Donald Trump are urging opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form a government, but one of his partners, Yisrael Beitenu leader Avigdor Lieberman, is blocking the path to resolving the political deadlock.

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

Former Israeli army chief of staff and Yashar Party leader, Gadi Eisenkot, greets supporters

Explainer

Uphill battle: Gadi Eisenkot's 3 paths to forming Israel's next government

When President Isaac Herzog tasks Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot with forming a government, he will have three options for building a coalition, each fraught with obstacles.

Latest News

Explainer

Arab parties' backing gives Eisenkot edge over Netanyahu for PM: What to know

Tomer Neuberg / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

Democrats’ midterm sweep tests US-Israel ties as Eisenkot vows reset

An aerial view shows a campaign billboard depicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud party and President Donald Trump in Tel Aviv, on Oct. 26, 2026, on the eve of Israel's legislative elections.

From Tehran to Tel Aviv, Democrats’ midterm triumph sparks Middle East reactions

The sun sets on the US Capitol on Election Day evening on Nov. 3, 2026 in Washington.

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

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

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man walks near Israeli army tanks near the border with Gaza July 30, 2014. Israeli fire killed at least 43 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip early on Wednesday as the Jewish state said it targeted Islamist militants at dozens of sites across the coastal enclave, while Egyptian mediators prepared a revised ceasefire proposal. REUTERS/Siegfried Modola (ISRAEL - Tags: CIVIL UNREST MILITARY CONFLICT RELIGION POLITICS) - RTR40LLQ

Ultra-Orthodox oppose conscription, not the IDF

Despite the wide ultra-Orthodox objection to their conscription into military service, attitudes vary within the sector, ranging from total rejection to support and appreciation for the IDF.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) sits next to President Reuven Rivlin (R) during a Memorial Day ceremony at Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem April 22, 2015. Israel on Wednesday marks Memorial Day to commemorate its fallen soldiers. REUTERS/Ammar Awad - RTX19SR0

How Bibi uses settlements to block Palestinian state

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu believes that Israel is under a constant existential threat and thus perceives those who believe in peace as naive and unrealistic.

An Israeli soldier cast his ballot on an army base near the southern city of Ofakim March 15, 2015. Israeli soldiers started voting on Sunday in Israel's parliamentary election. Polling stations for the rest of Israel open on Tuesday. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR4TEUW

Israel's Gaza-war soul-searching

Those in the Arab world who claim that Israel lost many wars mistakenly perceive the democratic process of auto-criticizing and evaluating misjudgments during the war as admission of defeat.

Bedouin Arab Israeli Defense Force soldiers take part in a tracking drill near Tze'elim in southern Israel June 9, 2014. In addition to hi-tech surveillance and intelligence capabilities, Israel relies on the Bedouin volunteers to secure its border regions against "terrorists, illegal immigrants and smugglers," according to the IDF spokesperson. Traditionally nomadic desert people, the Bedouin, who are Muslim, have passed down tracking skills across generations. Picture taken June 9, 2014. REUTERS/Finbarr O

Bedouin honor IDF service, mourn fallen soldiers

Bedouin youths continue to demonstrate their commitment to Israel by enlisting, despite growing tensions with Jewish society as the demolition of Bedouin homes continues.

Israelis use social media to show solidarity with bereaved families

Social networks have enhanced within Israeli society's expressions of solidarity with bereaved families, but could also create space for those who wish to undermine the hegemony of national bereavement and national remembrance.

Israeli soldiers fire a gun salute during a Memorial Day ceremony at Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem April 22, 2015. Israel on Wednesday marks Memorial Day to commemorate its fallen soldiers. REUTERS/Ammar Awad - RTX19SDU

Do Israeli national symbols sideline Arab citizens?

Arab Israeli TV host Lucy Aharish will light Israel's Independence Day beacon, a move some see as honoring the spirit of Israel's founding but others consider a fiction or an affront.

Tourists and Israelis walk past Lepejian ceramics shop, which specializes in making traditional hand painted Armenian pottery, on April 17, 2015 at the Armenian Quarter in Jerusalem's Old City. Armenians around the world will mark on April 24, 2015 the centenary of the World War I-era mass killings of their kin by Ottoman Turks in what they insist was a genocide -- a term fiercely rejected by Turkey. AFP PHOTO / GALI TIBBON (Photo credit should read GALI TIBBON/AFP/Getty Images)

Why is Israel still silent on Armenian genocide?

Israel has not joined the EU Parliament and the pope in officially recognizing the Armenian genocide, partly because of its strategic alliance with Azerbaijan against Iran.

Palestinian women present their identity cards to an Israeli border police officer as they wait to make their way to Jerusalem to attend the first Friday prayer of Ramadan in al-Aqsa mosque, at Qalandia checkpoint near the West Bank city of Ramallah July 4, 2014. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS SOCIETY) - RTR3X1SO

Facebook group shares checkpoint wait in real time

Thousands of Palestinians are using Facebook to share traffic updates to help each other avoid spending hours every day waiting to drive through Israeli checkpoints.

Bar-Lev: Israel needs diplomatic creativity

Ahead of Israel's Memorial Day, Knesset member Omer Bar-Lev explains in an interview with Al-Monitor that the 1973 Yom Kippur War instilled in him the understanding that only a diplomatic solution can bring Israel security and peace.

An Israeli soldier places flags on graves of fallen soldiers during a ceremony at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem, ahead of Memorial Day April 19, 2015. Israel commemorates its fallen soldiers on Memorial Day, which begins Tuesday night. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTR4XX69

Israelis devastated by each soldier's death

Israelis have accepted to a certain degree the fact that they are in constant war, with civilians often paying the price, but find it difficult to come to terms with soldiers being killed.

RAMALLAH, WEST BANK - MAY 15: Palestinians gather to demonstrate on May 15, 2012 in central Ramallah, West Bank. Palestinians mark Israel's establishment in 1948 with "Nakba" or "catastrophe" day on May 15, to remember the thousands of Palestinians who fled or were expelled during the creation of the Jewish state and the subsequent war. (Photo by Uriel Sinai/Getty Images)

Israelis mark Independence, Nakba Day

While the initiative to jointly mark both Israeli Independence Day and Nakba Day has been maintained for several years now, it remains confined to a small segment of the public, with the Arab sector feeling increasingly alienated by the Jewish population.

Moshe Kahlon (C), head of the new centrist party Kulanu (All of Us), addresses supporters at party headquarters in Tel Aviv March 18, 2015. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed victory in Israel's election on Tuesday after exit polls showed he had erased his center-left rivals' lead with a hard rightward shift that saw him disavow a commitment to negotiate a Palestinian state. A new centrist party led by former communications minister Kahlon could be the kingmaker in coalition talks. REUTERS/Stringer

Kahlon to focus on socio-economics, not diplomacy

Having won 10 Knesset seats, Kulanu head Moshe Kahlon plans to focus on social justice issues and will not push the Netanyahu government toward renewing negotiations with the Palestinians.