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Israel

September 23, 2026

Tel Aviv 3:46 am

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Analysis

Why Netanyahu is distancing himself from Trump ahead of Israeli election

No meeting has been announced between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly summit in New York.

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

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

Latest News

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

OLIVER BUNIC/AFP via Getty Images

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.

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 child waves a Hezbollah flag as she holds pictures of martyrs as Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah addresses his supporters during a rally to commemorate Martyrs' Day in Beirut, February 16, 2013. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3DVC2

The Israel-Hezbollah Shadow War

Israel and Hezbollah prefer a shadow war of terror and assassination rather than disturbing the uneasy truce on the Israel-Lebanon border, writes Ali Hashem.

A woman walks past campaign posters for the Arab-led Hadash party in the Israeli-Arab city of Umm al-Fahm December 26, 2012. Disillusioned, disappointed and divided, Israeli Arab voters will traipse to the polls next week in ever dwindling numbers, aware that none of their community will have any say in how the country is run. Picture taken December 26, 2012. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3CHRM

Barakeh: Arab-Israelis A Faceless Entity

Knesset member Mohammad Barakeh, leader of the bi-national party Hadash, explains to Mazal Mualem why the most social justice-oriented party in Israel did not benefit from the fruits of Israel’s social-protest movement, and points an accusing finger at the government and the media for ignoring Israel's Arab citizens.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas lights a torch during a rally marking the 48th anniversary of the founding of the Fatah movement in the West Bank city of Ramallah December 31, 2012. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: ANNIVERSARY POLITICS) - RTR3C0A1

Abu Mazen Tries to Calm The West Bank

The West Bank is seeing a new spike in protests and violence, but Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) still offers the best hope to avoid a third intifada, writes Shlomi Eldar.

Dina (R), a nine-year-old Palestinian girl, cries as her father Saleh Kostero puts his arms around her and her cousin Halla (L) during the demolition of their house in the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Beit Hanina February 5, 2013. A statement from the Jerusalem Municipality said there was a court order for the demolition of the house, which was built without a permit in an open landscape area where construction is forbidden. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST BUSINESS CONSTRUCTIO

Israel Ramps Up Demolition Of Palestinian Homes

Israel has intensified its demolition push in East Jerusalem to support development of a "Greater Jerusalem," reports Dalia Hatuqa.

Mount Hermon is seen in the background as Israeli soldiers travel on mobile artillery units after an exercise in the Golan Heights, near Israel's border with Syria February 14, 2013. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed the territory in 1981, a move not recognised internationally. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR3DSD4

Obama Should Make Clear US Position on Golan

The announcement that Genie Energy, a US company, has been granted a license for oil exploration in the Golan requires the US to make clear its position that the Golan Heights are Syrian territory under Israeli occupation, writes Clovis Maksoud.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) shakes hands with former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, head of the centrist Hatenuah party, during their joint statement at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem February 19, 2013. Netanyahu took his first step in forming a new government on Tuesday saying he had signed a coalition deal with Livni, who will handle efforts to renew stalled Middle East diplomacy. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3DZYL

Netanyahu's Many Roles

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has proven he can appeal to many audiences, and may consider Hatneua Leader Tzipi Livni as his bridge to the international community if he is able to form the next government, writes Ben Caspit.

A journalist walks through tear gas fired by Israeli security officers (unseen) during clashes with stone-throwing Palestinians following a rally marking the 48th anniversary of the founding of the Fatah movement, in the West Bank village of Bilin near Ramallah January 4, 2013. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3C3NU

Israel Should Recognize Rights Of Palestinian Journalists

Daoud Kuttab writes on the need for Israel to grant Palestinian journalists greater access and freedom of movement.

Protesters shout anti-Israel slogans during a protest in front of a court house in Istanbul November 6, 2012. Hundreds of protesters chanting "Murderer Israel!" gathered outside an Istanbul court on Tuesday at the start of a trial of a group of former Israeli military commanders charged over the 2010 killing of nine Turks aboard a Gaza-bound aid ship. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CRIME LAW) - RTR3A20Q

More Than Meets the Eye In Turkish-Israeli Ties

Semih Idiz writes that while Turkish-Israeli relations seem to be at a low, Ankara and Tel Aviv continue to engage on security and energy matters.

A mosque in the Palestinian West Bank village of Abdullah Ibrahim (rear) is seen behind houses in West Bank Jewish settlement of Efrat, near Bethlehem December 22, 2011. Israel on Wednesday said four European U.N. Security Council members should support a resumption of stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace talks because their criticism of the Jewish state, including it's construction of new settlements, could sideline them from negotiations. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2VJOQ

Israeli Settlement Leader Invites Obama to Visit

Oded Ravivi, head of Efrat's regional council, talks about the personal invitation he extended to the US president to visit the Gush Etzion settlement block in an interview with Mazal Mualem.

A Palestinian labourer installs solar panels at a photovoltaic plant in the West Bank city of Jericho March 27, 2012. Funded by Japan, the solar power plant will be the first of its kind in the Palestinian Territories and will supply power to Jericho's electricity grid. Picture taken March 27, 2012. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman (WEST BANK - Tags: ENERGY BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT) - RTR30750

Building High-Tech Success Stories In Palestine

Thirty-five young Palestinian high-tech entrepreneurs enrolled for studies at a USAID-supported program at Tel Aviv University with the aim of upgrading their managerial skills, reports Tali Heruti-Sover.

A combination photo shows Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on January 21, 2013 and Naftali Bennett (R), leader of the Bayit Yehudi party, in Tel Aviv January 20, 2013. Netanyahu made an election-eve appeal on Monday to wavering supporters to "come home", showing concern over a forecast far-right surge that would keep him in power but weaken him politically.In the last stretch of a largely lacklustre campaign that could produce the most hardline government in Israel's history, Netanyah

Lapid-Bennett Alliance Holds Firm in Talks Over New Israeli Government

Yair Lapid of Yesh Atid and Naftali Bennett of HaBayit HaYehudi are holding firm as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu assembles his new government, writes Mazal Mualem.

Jordanian activists and relatives of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons who are on a hunger strike take part in a protest outside the Red Cross offices in Amman February 21, 2013. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3E2WU

Issawi Case Raises Questions About Israeli Military Law

The re-arrest of Samer Issawi has raised new questions about the Israeli military's practice of arrest and detention without charges, writes Lena Odgaard.