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September 22, 2026

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Gargash

UAE's Gargash expects 'prolonged' war, calls for Iran-Gulf security talks

"We need a new mindset that these sort of discussions ... can happen at an Iranian-American level, it should also take place at an Iranian-Arab level," Gargash told Al-Monitor.

United Arab Emirates

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.

Latest News

Israel, Morocco agree to exchange ambassadors, open embassies

Royal Air Maroc Boeing 787-9 'Dreamliner' aircraft

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

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

A Free Syrian Army fighter sits on sandbags in the refugee camp of Yarmouk, near Damascus, May 5, 2013. REUTERS/Ward Al-Keswani (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTXZBH6

Israel Hits Syria, Sends Message to Iran

Israel believes that its airstrikes on Damascus are being considered with concern in Iran, writes Ben Caspit.

Gaza As Seen Through the Lenses Of Gaza's Cameras

The Palestine Photo-Marathon gives Gaza photographers "a chance to show how they see Palestine,” Lena Odgaard reports.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem April 28, 2013. REUTERS/Sebastian Scheiner/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXZ2HB

Is Netanyahu Losing Control of Likud?

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may be presiding over the Likud party's decline, writes Mazal Mualem.

Soldiers of the U.N. Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), stand on an observation tower overlooking Syria and located on the Israeli side of the 1973 Golan Heights ceasefire line with Syria March 21, 2012. Blue-helmeted United Nations peacekeeping troops patrolling a slice of Syrian territory to maintain a ceasefire with Israel face new risks as violence between Syrian government loyalists and rebels gets closer. Picture taken March 21, 2012. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (POLITICS MILITARY CONFLICT) - RTR2ZRIQ

UN Forces on Israel’s Borders Confront Uncertain Future

Geoffrey Aronson writes from Cairo that while Egypt and Israel appear to be weathering the storm, for now, not so for Israel and Syria, with implications for UN forces tasked with keeping the peace.

A sign post near Kibbutz Merom Golan in the Golan Heights shows the distance from Israel's northern border to other destinations May 2, 2013. Israel's military said on Tuesday it had called up hundreds of reservists for a drill in northern Israel where tensions are high with neighbours Syria and Lebanon, but a military spokesman said there was no change in the overall security situation. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed the territory in 1981, a move not re

Israel’s Strategic Reset

Israel is reconsidering its new strategic approach to the region in the context of US policies toward Iran, Syria, Egypt and Israeli-Palestinian peace, writes Ben Caspit.

Palestinian policemen loyal to Hamas inspect the scene after an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City April 30, 2013. An Israeli airstrike killed a Palestinian and wounded another in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, medics said, in the first targeted attack against militants since a ceasefire ended an eight-day war in November. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTXZ4BM

Hamas Enforces Quiet Border With Israel

Alon Ben David writes: That Hamas hasn’t replenished its supply of rockets lately is further proof of an ideological turnabout underway in the movement.

Muslim, Jewish, Christian Chefs Cook for Peace in Jerusalem

Muslim, Jewish and Christian chefs came together to cook for regional diplomats in a recent multicultural Jerusalem dinner event in the latest project by Chefs for Peace, reports Saideh Jamshidi.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (R) shakes hands with Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani as they meet with members of the Arab League at Blair House in Washington, April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXZ41W

The Two Faces of Qatar

Shlomi Eldar considers Qatar's promoting peace based on compromises between Israel and the Palestinians while promoting a sectarian Islamic agenda by supporting armed groups in Syria.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he speaks during a Likud party meeting at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem April 22, 2013. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXYVXD

Netanyahu Will Ignore Arab League's Land-Swap Proposal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's ideology will prevent him from accepting the pragmatic Arab League peace proposal, writes Akiva Eldar.

Sheldon Adelson (R), Chairman of Las Vegas Sands Corp, and his wife Miriam are pictured after attending U.S. Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney's foreign policy remarks at Mishkenot Sha'ananim in Jerusalem, July 29, 2012. REUTERS/Jason Reed (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTR35LLD

Billionaire Adelson Meets Privately With Israeli Finance Minister Lapid

Mazal Mualem wonders whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should worry about Finance Minister Yair Lapid, his potential heir, who recently met with a top Netanyahu backer.

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man (L) argues with a secular man during a protest against the government's pledge to curb Jewish zealotry in Israel, in the town of Beit Shemesh, near Jerusalem December 26, 2011. Israeli police arrested several ultra-Orthodox protesters on Monday after an officer was injured in the demonstrations in the divided city over demands by zealots to restrict access by women to certain streets. REUTERS/Oren Nahshon (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) ISRA

Ultra-Orthodox Conflict Threatens Secular Israeli City

The secular residents of Beit Shemesh are preparing for a final battle against ultra-Orthodox inhabitants over the character of the city, reports Daniel Ben Simon.

Former centrist Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni gestures during a news conference in Tel Aviv November 27, 2012. Livni announced on Tuesday she would challenge Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a Jan. 22 election by running for office as head of a new political party she vowed would "fight for peace." REUTERS/Nir Elias (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3AXEZ

The Case for an Israeli Referendum on Peace

Mazal Mualem argues that a referendum law may well emerge as a useful lever for jump-starting the peace process.