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

Israel cover image

Israel

August 26, 2026

Tel Aviv 5:36 am

24°C

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (C) watches as US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack prepares to sign an agreement in Damascus on September 16, 2025. Shaibani announced on September 16 a plan backed by Jordan and the United States to restore calm to Druze-majority Sweida province, which witnessed deadly violence in July. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP) (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA/AFP via Getty Images)

Exclusive

Israel recalibrates Syria policy, explores path to security deal

Israel is rethinking its hard-line Syria policy and seeking to repair ties with US envoy and Donald Trump's confidant Tom Barrack amid a push for a security agreement with Damascus.

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

Palestinian militant group Hamas police officers stand guard as people attend the opening of the Fatah party's eighth general conference at Al-Azhar University in Gaza City on May 14, 2026.

Ex-defense minister: Israel in ‘worst possible’ Gaza situation as Hamas gains strength

Former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant criticized the Israeli government for allowing Hamas to retain control over half of the Gaza Strip.

A merchant ship "Jabotinsky" (former "Altalena"), chartered by Jewish military group Irgun Zvaei Leumi to carry weapons for Israeli fighters, burns near Tel Aviv beach, after being shelled by the Haganah, Israel, June 27, 1948.

Wreck of ship sunk by Israeli military in Irgun clash found after 78 years

The wreck of the Irgun underground's Altalena ship, bombed by the Israeli military in 1948 and deliberately sunk in 1949, was located off Israel's coast at a depth of 1,650 feet.

Latest News

Israel tightens election safeguards as public distrust surges: What to know

ilia YEFIMOVICH / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Why Turkey sees Israeli strikes in Syria as warning over its military role, Mecca Pact

A Turkish soldier from the 1st Border Regiment Command looks out over the border wall to Syria during alert drills at a military outpost on the Turkey/Syria border on March 2, 2017 in Kilis, Turkey.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Analysis

Turkey bets on US deconfliction as Israel widens Syria red lines

Turkey/Syria border

Ezgi Akin

Rina Bassist

By Ezgi Akin , Rina Bassist

Analysis

Israel fears Turkey’s Syria ambitions and doubts Trump will stop them

ANKARA, TURKEY - JULY 7: U.S. President Donald Trump (L)shakes hands with with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) during a formal arrival at the Bestepe Presidential Palace during the NATO summit on July 7, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey. Leaders from NATO's 32 countries, plus NATO allies like Ukraine, gathered in the Turkish capital to discuss a range of issues involving spending targets, defense industrial production, and support for Ukraine, among other topics. (Photo by Emrah Gurel - Pool/Getty Images)

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

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

Gaza blockade responsible for $16B in economic damage, UN agency says

UN trade and development agency says Gaza economy "near collapse."

A picture taken on October 12, 2020, shows maritime border markers near the Rosh Hanikra Crossing, also known as the Ras Al Naqoura Crossing, between Israel and Lebanon. - On October 1, Lebanon and Israel, which are still technically at war, said they had agreed to begin UN-brokered negotiations over the shared frontier, in what Washington hailed a "historic" agreement, with a tentative date set for the discussions for October 14, which would be confirmed, according to a US envoy. (Photo by JALAA MAREY / AF

Israel-Lebanon sea border talks postponed

Israel and Lebanon have paused direct discussions over their maritime dispute in a gas-rich part of the Mediterranean in October under US supervision.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, mask-clad due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, attends the opening ceremony for Sha'ar Hagay national site, near Jerusalem on November 29, 2020. (Photo by Alex KOLOMIENSKY / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ALEX KOLOMIENSKY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel's Netanyahu plans official visit to Egypt

The reported visit follows a string of normalization deals with Arab countries.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, mask-clad due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, attends the opening ceremony for Sha'ar Hagay national site, near Jerusalem on November 29, 2020. (Photo by Alex KOLOMIENSKY / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ALEX KOLOMIENSKY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Netanyahu prepares his Iran cards before Biden takes office

Israel did not take responsibility for the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakharizadeh, yet Western sources estimate it was a Mossad operation.

Israeli politicians warn about 'Pollard festival' in celebration of Israeli spy

Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and former Mossad chief Danny Yatom warn that public expressions of joy over the expected immigration to Israel of ex-spy Jonathan Pollard could damage bilateral ties with the United States.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu waves to supporters upon arrival at his Likud party's electoral campaign headquarters to give an address early on September 18, 2019. - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was waiting for results in the country's general election, but that he was prepared for negotiations to form a "strong Zionist government." He spoke as exit polls showed a tight race between his right-wing Likud and ex-military chief Benny Gantz's centrist Blue and White alliance. (P

Netanyahu ignores IDF generals, runs his own show

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu considers the Israel Defense Forces chief of staff as an associate of his rival Defense Minister Benny Gantz.

Egyptian star under fire for fraternizing with Israelis

Egyptian actor and singer Mohamed Ramadan has come under attack after photos of him with Israeli celebrities surfaced to a storm of condemnation from critics opposed to ties with Egypt's former foe.

A picture taken early on January 21, 2019 shows Syrian air defence batteries responding to what the Syrian state media said were Israeli missiles targeting Damascus. - Israel struck what it said were Iranian targets in Syria today in response to rocket fire it blamed on Iran, sparking concerns of an escalation after a monitor reported 11 fighters killed. Israel openly claimed responsibility for the strikes against facilities it said belonged to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, continuing its re

Israel again strikes targets in southern Syria

Syria's state news media reported material damage from an Israeli strike on Syrian air defenses and Iranian militias in the country yesterday.

Will Biden save the two-state solution?

President-elect Joe Biden must know that opting for confidence-building measures, instead of pushing the sides into negotiating a permanent settlement, would only perpetuate the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

A picture taken on September 25, 2019 shows a view of the Cityscape Global exhibition 2019 at the Dubai World Trade Centre in the Gulf emirate. - Dubai, a city defined by its glittering towers and man-made islands, is stuck in a five-year property downturn with no end in sight, drawing warnings of an industry reckoning that will see weaker players fail. (Photo by Karim SAHIB / AFP) (Photo credit should read KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

In a changing Middle East, Abraham Accords will usher in new era for technology

Collaboration in the form of partnerships and joint ventures around technology between Israel and the United Arab Emirates could be indicative of the wider shift expected in a post-Abraham Accords Middle East.

United Arab Emirates

Rep. Tlaib accused of anti-Semitism for comments on Biden pick

The Michigan congresswoman said she hopes Joe Biden's nominee for secretary of state will not go after boycotts of Israel.

(L to R) US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani give a press conference after their trilateral meeting in Jerusalem on November 18, 2020. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / POOL / AFP) (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel's Netanyahu planning to visit Bahrain 'soon'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's announcement followed his phone call with Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa on Tuesday.