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Israel

May 15, 2026

Tel Aviv 3:00 pm

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Israel's Netanyahu suing New York Times over column on Palestinian rape

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar rejected New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof's accusations of systematic sexual abuse and rape of Palestinian prisoners, calling the claims a "blood libel."

Artillery units are positioned near the Lebanese border in northern Israel, May 4, 2026.

Analysis

Israel’s drone dilemma: Hezbollah’s low-cost threat reshapes Lebanon front

While Israeli and Lebanese delegations are set to meet in Washington for the third time, the Israeli military faces a growing threat from Hezbollah’s cheap yet highly lethal drones.

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

Latest News

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

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.

Netanyahu fears being left out as Trump pursues Iran diplomacy

Ronen Zvulun / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

CIA report on Iran missiles undercuts Netanyahu as war euphoria dissipates

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.

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

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

Israel's top court recognizes non-Orthodox converts for immigration

The issue of conversion in Reform and Conservative communities has divided Israel for decades. Rabbinical authorities in Israel slammed the decision.

This picture taken on February 28, 2021 shows a view of the Israeli-owned Bahamian-flagged MV Helios Ray cargo ship docked in Dubai's Mina Rashid (Port Rashid) cruise terminal. - The MV Helios Ray, a vehicle carrier, was travelling from the Saudi port of Dammam to Singapore when a blast occurred on February 25, according to the London-based Dryad Global maritime security group. (Photo by Giuseppe CACACE / AFP) (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images)

Netanyahu says Iran behind explosion that hit Israeli-owned ship

For Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, it is clear that Iran is behind the explosion that hit an Israeli-owned cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman last week.

Mtanes Shehadeh (R), an Arab-Israeli politician from the Joint List political alliance, greets a family at a polling station in the Arab city of Tamra in northern Israel on March 2, 2020. - Israelis were voting for a third time in 12 months today, with embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seeking to end the country's political crisis and save his career. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP) (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Desperate right parties court Israeli-Arab electorate

With so many parties splitting ahead of the March elections, even right-wing politicians are visiting Arab towns and villages in the hope of getting some votes there.

A car drives past a road signal indicating the Allenby crossing point to Jordan (background), in the city of Jericho in the occupied West Bank, on January 28, 2021. - The Allenby (King Hussein) bridge crossing is due to be closed in the evening as part of restrictions to stem the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP) (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel, Jordan relations warm up, but not thanks to Netanyahu

Israeli press reveals that Defense Minister Benny Gantz had met in secret recently in Jordan with Jordanian King Abdullah II.

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Israeli-owned cargo ship rocked by explosion in Gulf of Oman

The blast came just hours after US airstrikes hit an Iran-linked militia in Syria

Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz, the leader of the Blue and White (Kahol Lavan) party, speaks during a visit to the Druze village of Julis in northern Israel, on February 23, 2021. - Israel will hold its fourth general election in less than two years, on March 23. (Photo by JALAA MAREY / AFP) (Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images)

Benny Gantz fighting for his political life

Although officers who served with Benny Gantz — currently Israel's defense minister — when he was the Israel Defense Forces chief of staff are urging him to drop out of the upcoming March elections, the head of the Blue and White party is not about to surrender.

Benny Gantz (C), A former IDF Chief and the head of Israeli Resilience party speaks to supporters during an election campaign event in Tel Aviv. Israelis will vote in a parliamentary election on April 9, choosing among party lists of candidates to serve in the 121-seat Knesset

Massive oil spill blackens Israeli coast

Though a gag order has been relaxed, little is known about the extent of the damage caused by a major oil spill to Israel's marine ecosystems and beaches.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu attends a ceremony marking the 4,000,000th person to be vaccinated at Leumit Health Care Services vaccination facility in Jerusalem on February 16, 2021. - Israel's largest healthcare provider said a study of more than half a million fully vaccinated Israelis indicated the Pfizer/BioNTech jab gave 94 percent protection against Covid-19. (Photo by Alex KOLOMIENSKY / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ALEX KOLOMIENSKY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Bahraini crown prince, Israel’s Netanyahu discuss Iran nuclear deal

The call between the Israeli and Bahraini leaders came as the Biden administration seeks to re-enter the Iranian nuclear agreement.

Bernie Sanders criticizes Israel over vaccine situation in Palestinian territories

The Israeli prime minister's son responded to Sanders on Twitter, saying Israel is not responsible for vaccinating Palestinians. The spat followed reports Israel is giving surplus vaccines to allies abroad.

(FILES) A picture dated on September 8, 2002 shows a partial view of the Dimona nuclear power plant in the southern Israeli Negev desert. The plant was built with help from the French in the 1950's, when Paris was the main arms supplier to the Jewish state. The complex was described by Israel as various types of non-nuclear facilities until then Prime Minister David Ben Gurion said in December 1960 that it was a nuclear research center built for "peacful purposes." Israel is reconsidering its plans of nucle

Israel expanding decades-old secret nuclear site in Negev Desert: report

The Dimona facility appears to be undergoing its largest construction in decades, but it's not clear why.

This picture taken from the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights on February 4, 2021, shows the border fence with the Syrian governorate of Quneitra. (Photo by JALAA MAREY / AFP) (Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images)

The Israel-Russia-Syria deal: Cost, beneficiaries and future deals

As Israel and Syria conclude a deal on the return of an Israeli woman from Syria, questions arise regarding the cost and what the future of such transactions with Russian mediation should be.

Palestinians to lose only airport in Jerusalem to Israeli settlements

Israel advances its measures to annex Jerusalem by implementing several settlement projects, including one on the site of Palestine’s old airport.