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Israel

September 20, 2026

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and French President Emmanuel Macron arrive to hold a joint press conference in Jerusalem, Oct. 24, 2023.

Analysis

After France's settlement ban, Israel sees no warming of ties with Macron government

Israeli diplomats say France’s decision to ban imports from West Bank settlements has brought bilateral relations to an unprecedented low point.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman looks on as he attends a trade agreement signature ceremony at the Elysee Palace in Paris on August 24, 2026. (Photo by LOU BENOIST / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

How Netanyahu is leveraging Houthi threat in secret Saudi normalization push

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to capitalize on Riyadh's need for intelligence assistance to make normalization headway ahead of the October elections.

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

OLIVER BUNIC/AFP via Getty Images

Serbia opens factory to assemble Israeli-made drones: What to know

Serbian President Vucic said the factory will put together “state-of-the-art” Israeli-designed drones and employ around 100 workers.

Royal Air Maroc Boeing 787-9 'Dreamliner' aircraft

Israel, Morocco agree to exchange ambassadors, open embassies

The move will mark the first time Morocco and Israel have exchanged ambassadors.

Latest News

Culture

Israeli show ‘Fauda’ tops Netflix in Lebanon, hits top 10 across Arab states

ISRAEL-ENTERTAINMENT-TELEVISION-POLITICS-GOVERNMENT-MASS-MEDIA-D (L to R) Lior Raz and Avi Issacharoff, co-creators of the hit Israeli TV show "Fauda", attend a demonstration against the Israeli government's plans to shut-down public broadcaster KAN, in Israel's Mediterranean coastal city of Tel Aviv on January 25, 2023. (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP) (Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Explainer

Why France is pushing to keep UNIFIL in Lebanon beyond 2026

UN peacekeepers stand next to an armored vehicle during a patrol in southern Lebanon, Feb. 22, 2026.

Exclusive

Lacking deterrence, Israel’s security establishment opposes attacks on Houthis

Fighters loyal to the Houthi authorities, brandish their weapons during a rally to recruit more fighters, in Sanaa on September 10, 2026. The country relapsed into war in July after years of calm, drawn into the regional conflict triggered by the US-Israeli offensive against Iran that began at the end of February. (Photo by Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP via Getty Images)

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

Analysis

Europe’s West Bank trade ban fires warning shot at Israel’s economy

Jewish settlement of Kedumim, in the West Bank

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

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

PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat (R) shake hands with Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (L), as U.S. President Bill Clinton stands between them, after the signing of the Israeli-PLO peace accord, at the White House in Washington September 13, 1993. REUTERS/Gary Hershorn (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX13K52

Arafat Destroyed the Dream of Oslo For Palestinians

In 1993, Gaza and the West Bank wanted to establish a democratic state through the Oslo Accords, while Tunis PLO officials imposed the old Arab regimes' model.

A Palestinian demonstrator hurls a stone as an Israeli truck fires a water cannon containing a foul smelling substance during clashes at a protest in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh, near Ramallah September 14, 2012. The demonstrators were calling for an end to the Oslo accords, which were meant to pave the way to permanent peace with Israel. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR37YUV

15 Ways Oslo Accords Serve Israel

The Oslo Accords are seen by many Palestinians as serving the Israeli occupation.

THIS PICTURE IS ONE OF 30 TO ACCOMPANY PICTURE PACKAGE: THE PROTESTERS OF TEL AVIV'S TENT CITY. SEARCH IN YOUR PICTURE SYSTEM FOR KEYWORD "PROTEST" TO SEE ALL IMAGES (PXP01 - 30)

Kassa Yasso, a 22-year-old from Tel Aviv, is pictured at a tent camp on Rothschild Boulevard in south Tel Aviv, part of an ongoing protest against the high cost of living in Israel, August 15, 2011. When interviewed by Reuters, Yasso said, "I immigrated to Israel with my family from Ethiopia when I was two years old, since then I

Why Are Israelis so Happy?

The poverty rate in Israel is the highest among developed nations, and the Netanyahu government continues to slash budgets, so why are Israelis ranked so high in the World Happiness Report?

A labourer works at the construction site of Dorad, a private power plant in the southern city of Ashkelon May 17, 2012. Israel Electric Corp (IEC), which is responsible for nearly every aspect of electricity from running power plants to connecting households, simply cannot keep up with growing demand.The state-owned utility just lost natural gas supplies from neighbouring Egypt and fuel costs are soaring. Reserves are low and capacity insufficient and the government, under pressure from massive cost-of-liv

Israel's Miscalculation On Egyptian Natural Gas

Police protocols published this week shed light on the decision of former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to solely rely on Egyptian natural gas, against partnering also with the Palestinians.

Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon speaks during a briefing to reporters in Jerusalem October 1, 2009. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday the United Nations would deal a "fatal blow" to prospects for Israeli-Palestinian peace if it endorsed a report critical of Israel's January war in Gaza. Ayalon said Netanyahu's government was discussing the possibility of setting up an independent commission to look into the military's conduct of the Gaza war. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (JERUSA

Danny Ayalon on the US, Russia, Syria and Iran

Former Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon says Israel can count on the United States in dealing with Iran.

Israeli soldiers walk next to an Iron Dome missile interceptor battery as it is being positioned on the outskirts of Jerusalem, September 8, 2013 REUTERS/ Ammar Awad (JERUSALEM - Tags: CONFLICT POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) - RTX13D0G

Israel Escapes Retaliation Threat from Syria

Russia and Syria have offered the US a respectable way out, without damaging its deterrence, and relieving the region from an immediate retaliatory threat.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and U.S. President Barack Obama are pictured on a video screen installed in the press centre of the G20 Summit in Strelna near St. Petersburg, September 5, 2013. REUTERS/Grigory Dukor (RUSSIA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX138DW

Putin, Obama Should Team Up For WMD-Free Mideast

The channel opened between the United States and Russia to resolve the Syrian chemical-weapons crisis could provide leverage for ridding the Middle East of all non-conventional weaponry.

File photograph of Palestinian President Arafat, Israel's Perez and Israeli Prime Minister Rabin showing their Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo. Palestinian President Yasser Arafat was in a coma and in critical condition in the intensive care unit at a French military hospital after his health suddenly deteriorated, aides said November 4, 2004. Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, (L) Israel's Shimon Perez (C) and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin show their Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo in this December 10, 1994

Oslo Accords, A Milestone In Rabin's Legacy

Despite criticisms of the Oslo Accords, and the victims who have fallen on both sides since their signing 20 years ago, the agreement nonetheless opened the way for today's negotiations.

U.S. President Barack Obama hugs Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as President Shimon Peres (L) watches on, before Obama's departure from Tel Aviv International Airport, March 22, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3FBUO

Israel Will Pay for Obama’s Hesitancy On Syria

Israel should expect little in return for its support of US President Obama's policies on Syria.

An activist wearing a gas mask is seen in Zamalka area, where activists say chemical weapons have been used by forces loyal to President Bashar Al-Assad in the eastern suburbs of Damascus August 22, 2013. REUTERS/Bassam Khabieh (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTX12TQ6

Israelis Question Obama Response To 'Smoking Gun' in Syria

Senior Israelis wonder what it means for US policy toward Iran that US President Barack Obama did not act on a "smoking gun" in Syria.

Russian President Vladimir Putin holds out his arms as he walks past U.S. President Barack Obama (L) during a group photo at the G20 Summit in St. Petersburg September 6, 2013. Above Obama is British Prime Minister David Cameron. At right is Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque (RUSSIA - Tags: BUSINESS POLITICS) - RTX139JC

Putin Wins Big in Syria, With Assist From Obama

President Barack Obama's threat to use force against the Syrian chemical arsenal paved the way for the initiative by Russian President Vladimir Putin and maybe a solution.

A woman with a price tag on her hand is displayed in the window of a store called Woman To Go in a shopping mall in Tel Aviv October 19, 2010, The store was opened for one day to raise awareness and protest against the trafficking of women. REUTERS/Nir Elias (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS SOCIETY) - RTXTLHD

How Israel Stopped Trafficking in Women

Chairman of the Knesset Subcommittee on Trafficking in Women David Tsur explains that Israeli determination and American pressure have led to the virtual eradication of human trafficking in Israel.