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Israel

September 3, 2026

Tel Aviv 9:38 pm

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Anwar AMRO / AFP via Getty Images

Israel to release 5 Lebanese prisoners ahead of next talks: What to know

Israel said the detainees are "civilians who are not members of a terrorist organization" and "were not involved in terrorism," concluding, "There is no reason to continue holding them in Israel."

missile

Analysis

Israel favors status quo as tensions in Iran's leadership fuel escalation risk

Israel would prefer to preserve the current balance of pressure — with US naval blockades and economic measures continuing without a return to active fighting — per a senior Israeli security source.

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

Mecca Alliance

Israel, Greece sign $3.5 billion air-defense deal: What to know

Against the backdrop of growing tensions with Turkey, Israel signed one of its largest-ever defense industry deals to supply Greece with advanced air defense systems.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrive for a joint press conference following their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Feb. 4, 2025.

Analysis

Why Turkey welcomes Israel-Syria talks despite mounting red lines

Turkey supports US-backed Israel-Syria talks but sees little prospect of a lasting accommodation until the Israeli elections.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Latest News

Analysis

Israel’s Lebanon dilemma: Confront Hezbollah without angering Trump, triggering Iran

Ammar Ammar / AFP via Getty Images

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

Israel, Hamas bide their time as Gaza peace plan stalls

A boy walks carrying a table on his back past salvage workers scrapping the rubble of a building that was destroyed during Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza City on Aug. 16, 2026. — Photo by Omar Al-Qattaa / AFP via Getty Images

Netanyahu trails Eisenkot in new poll as Israel's right-wing bloc weakens

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds a press conference with US President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago club on Dec. 29, 2025, in Palm Beach, Florida. — Joe Raedle/Getty Images

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

Palestinians ponder reasons for punishing US measures

Washington keeps heaping injuries and insults onto Palestinians, who have various theories about the motivation behind the measures.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C), Minister of Jerusalem and Environmental Protection Zeev Elkin (L) and Cabinet Secretary Tzachi Braverman (R) attend a special cabinet meeting marking Jerusalem Day, at the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Amir Cohen/Pool - RC1396C81E50

Jerusalem mayoral race heating up

After Elkin missed out on the ultra-Orthodox deal, it’s not clear that Netanyahu would go out of his way to support him – he’ll certainly prefer his personal interests with the ultra-Orthodox. If residents of East Jerusalem would vote, they would decide who the next mayor would be.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia July 11, 2018. Yuri Kadobnov/Pool via REUTERS - UP1EE7B1DI9W0

Friction heats up between Russia, Israel over downed aircraft

Jerusalem is worried that the conflict with Moscow caused by the downing of a Russian jet in Syria will paralyze IDF activities and enable Iran to transfer arms to Hezbollah.

Israeli culture scene target of domestic censorship, international boycotts

Major Israeli film festivals are operating under an impossible Catch-22: on one front, Culture Minister Miri Regev threatens to slash funds of works that contradict her right-wing worldview, and on another front, Israeli cultural institutions are viewed as part and parcel of an occupying government uninterested in peace.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas attends the meeting of the Palestinian Central Council, in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank August 15, 2018. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman - RC1137856820

For Abbas, it’s not too late to negotiate

Israel’s next prime minister should not give up on meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and reaching a peace agreement, even if it means a limited one to be implemented only in the West Bank.

Meet the woman who could lead Israel’s right-wing camp

Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, seen as the person who would replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the leader of Israel's right wing, comes under major fire from the center-left.

Jewish worshippers take part in Slichot, a prayer in which Jews offer repentance and ask God to forgive their sins, ahead of Yom Kippur, at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City September 16, 2018. Picture taken September 16, 2018. REUTERS/Ammar Awad - RC14F980CC00

How Israeli right lays claim to religion

The recently adopted nationality law is only the latest example of a long string of efforts to exploit and pressure Israelis by linking political views to religious beliefs.

A Russian Il-20 reconnaissance aircraft takes off from Central military airport in Rostov-on-Don, Russia March 6, 2014. Picture taken March 6, 2014. REUTERS/Sergey Pivovarov - UP1EE9I1LVW24

Plane shot down over Syria puts Russia-Israel relations to the test

A Russian plane downed by Syrian missiles responding to an Israeli strike has strained relations between Moscow and Tel Aviv and sent both sides into crisis-management mode.

Israel's Netta arrives for the news conference after winning the Grand Final of Eurovision Song Contest 2018 at the Altice Arena hall in Lisbon, Portugal, May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Pedro Nunes - RC1562380820

Palestine steps up efforts against Eurovision 2019 in Israel

Following an open letter of international artists to The Guardian against the holding of the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 in Israel, Palestine steps up rhetoric against the song contest.

The Dome of the Rock is seen during sunset on the compound known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif and to Jews as Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City, May 17, 2017. REUTERS/Ammar Awad SEARCH "AWAD AQSA" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES. - RC1AC3023760

Jordan takes steps to support Jerusalem’s Palestinians

Palestinian Jerusalemites hope that Jordan's announcement of a reduction in passport fees for them, and an easier application process, signal an effort by Amman to become more involved in defending their rights.

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman visits the southern Kibbutz of Or HaNer, on the Israeli side of the Israel-Gaza border, July 27, 2018. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RC17D7A3DDA0

Israel’s two judicial systems

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman suspended the appointment of an IDF advisory committee for examining parole requests by Palestinian convicted assailants.

Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort arrives for arraignment on a third superseding indictment against him by Special Counsel Robert Mueller on charges of witness tampering, at U.S. District Court in Washington, U.S. June 15, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC17B93AD850

The Paul Manafort affair: the Israeli connection

Israeli politicians are demanding investigations into which 'senior Israeli official' appears to have close ties to the Kremlin and was apparently involved in an effort by the former American lobbyist Paul Manafort to smear a Ukrainian politician as anti-Semitic.