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Israel

July 14, 2026

Tel Aviv 6:37 am

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Israelis turn out to cast their ballots on election day for the 20th Knesset on March 17, 2015 in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Explainer

Israel's next election: Who's leading in polls and what's at stake?

After months of negotiations and speculations, the coalition announced that general elections will take place on Oct. 27.

Jim WATSON / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

As US-Iran fighting resumes, Israel weighs 3 options with restraint winning, for now

Despite Israel's military readiness to resume strikes on Iran, officials say looming elections make Netanyahu more likely to stay out unless Tehran forces his hand.

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

Former Israeli army chief of staff Gadi Eizenkot speaks during the launch of the Yashar party's election campaign in Hod Aharon, in central Israel, on June 30, 2026.

New Israeli election poll puts Eisenkot ahead of Netanyahu: What to know

Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party has now bypassed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud in the polls, cementing his status as Netanyahu’s main opponent.

Latest News

Trump declares MoU with Iran 'over' as Hegseth cancels trip to Israel

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte (not shown) for bilateral talks at Beştepe Presidential Compound during the NATO Summit on July 08, 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 Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Explainer

Lebanon's latest damage estimate outlines reconstruction challenge

Froun

Analysis

Trump's F-35 push for Turkey runs into CAATSA — and Israel

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) welcomes US President Donald Trump (R) upon his arrival on Air Force One at Etimesgut Air Base near Ankara, on July 7, 2026, before attending the 36th NATO Heads of State and Government Summit. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)

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

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

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

Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman attends a meeting with the business community in Uganda's capital Kampala, September 10, 2009. Lieberman, accompanied by business and military delegation, is on an official African visit to Ethiopia, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, and Nigeria. REUTERS/James Akena (UGANDA POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTR27O1U

Liberman's secret plan to storm the Likud Party

Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman considers registering thousands of his supporters in the Likud Party, which will enable him to take control of it on his way to the premier's seat.

An Orthodox Jewish man pushes himself on a wheelchair outside Hadassah hospital, where the critically ill Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is being treated, in Jerusalem January 14, 2006. Doctors tending to Sharon are concerned that the Israeli prime minister has not shown signs of emerging from a coma and may take longer than hoped to regain consciousness, hospital sources said on Friday. REUTERS/Chris Helgren - RTR185BP

Downfall of Israel's Hadassah hospital sign of deeper crisis

The collapse of the Hadassah hospital demonstrates that as long as the government avoids dealing with powerful interest groups that control the economy and threaten politicians, the next fiasco is just a matter of time.

Suhad al-Katib, a Palestinian woman patient who suffers cancer sits inside her house after she was not allowed to enter Israel, in Gaza City February 12, 2014. Israel has denied entry permits to some 50 Palestinian medical patients from the Gaza Strip because the words "State of Palestine" appears on the letterhead of their application, officials said on Wednesday. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST HEALTH) - RTX18O7O

Gaza's cancer patients suffer due to siege, division

The political division between Gaza and Ramallah, in addition to the Israeli-Egyptian blockade, is leaving cancer patients in the Gaza Strip without adequate medical care.

TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY JEAN-FRANCOIS LE MOUNIER - (FILES) - A Cruise liner enters the Grand Harbour in Valletta, the capital city of Malta, 05 October 2002. Malta enters the EU's border-free Schengen zone, 21 December 2007, a change many hope will boost tourism to the tiny Mediterranean state. Joining the Schengen zone along with eight other countries, Malta will become the first independent island state of Europe without border controls of the 22 Schengen zone countries. AFP PHOTO / BEN BORG CARDONA (Phot

Malta, Israel's new gateway to Europe

Malta, one of Israeli tourists' prime destinations, stands out for its exceptional Maltese-European citizenship sale for rich immigrants and for having the highest number of asylum seekers per capita in Europe.

President of the Palestinian Football Federation, Major General Jibril Rajoub speaks during a press conference in Ramallah on February 12, 2014. Rajoub, said that the Palestinian Federation began a campaign to boycott Israeli athletes at the international level, in protest against the obstacles set by Israel against Palestinian sportsmen. AFP PHOTO / ABBAS MOMANI (Photo credit should read ABBAS MOMANI/AFP/Getty Images)

Rajoub: an agreement with Israel is within reach

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Fatah senior official Jibril Rajoub is optimistic on peace talks: "If the Israelis are willing, creative solutions can be found for everything.”

Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men take part in the Tashlich ritual near the shore of the Mediterranean Sea in the southern city of Ashdod September 12, 2013, ahead of Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement, which starts at sundown Friday. Tashlich is a ritual of casting away sins of the past year into the water. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: RELIGION) - RTX13J3K

Israel’s ultra-Orthodox key to peace

In an interview with Al-Monitor, ultra-Orthodox strategic expert Itzik Sudri claims that the ultra-Orthodox should be integrated as more active partners to the diplomatic process, considering their politically moderate worldview.

Israeli gas platforms are seen in the Mediterranean sea, some 15 miles (24 km) west of the port city of Ashdod, February 25, 2013. Israel's huge new offshore gas resource offers its enemies an obvious target and gives its navy, long overshadowed by other branches of the Israeli armed forces, a big job that will require extra spending. Picture taken February 25, 2013. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: MILITARY ENERGY BUSINESS POLITICS MARITIME) - RTXY5G1

Energy reserves add new twist to Cyprus talks

The negotiations over the future of Cyprus are linked to energy reserves in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Smoke rises after shells exploded in the Syrian village of al-Jamlah, close to the ceasefire line between Israel and Syria, as seen from the Israeli occupied Golan Heights March 5, 2013. In response to the explosion in the Syrian village on Tuesday the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said that they are carefully tracking events that take place in Syria and are prepared for any eventuality. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (Tags: POLITICS MILITARY CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3ELP3

Israeli security chiefs modify assessment on Syrian war

The Israel Defense Forces estimate that the Syrian war may last a decade, ending with Syria being divided into several cantons, with jihadist forces on the Israeli border and Hezbollah gaining in military experience.

Israeli MP Labour Party members Isaac Herzog (L) and Hilik Bar (C) shake hands with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as they attend a meeting with Knesset members (Israel's Parliament) in the West Bank city of Ramallah on October 7, 2013. The Palestinians must "recognise Israel as the state of the Jewish people" in order to achieve real peace, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on October 6, 2013. AFP PHOTO/ABBAS MOMANI (Photo credit should read ABBAS MOMANI/AFP/Getty Images)

Labor's Herzog demands Palestinian recognition of Israel as Jewish state

Statements by opposition leader Isaac Herzog supporting the demand that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state might pave his way into Benjamin Netanyahu's government, but be detrimental to negotiations.

Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman (R) greets his Canadian counterpart John Baird before their dinner in Jerusalem January 19, 2013. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper is on a four-day visit to Israel and the Palestinian Territories. REUTERS/Darren Whiteside (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX17LHJ

Israeli foreign minister shifts to center

With perhaps an eye on a future run for prime minister, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman is establishing himself as a key player in US-Iran relations and in any eventual agreement with the Palestinians.

Palestinians are seen through a damaged car window as they look at the scene of an Israeli air strike in the centre of the Gaza Strip February 9, 2014. An Israeli air strike on the Gaza Strip on Sunday critically wounded a Palestinian whom the military said was responsible for launching rockets at southern Israel. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX18GBQ

Hamas deploys border patrol to prevent rocket attacks on Israel

A recent round of rocket fire from Gaza and IDF air strikes was followed by an exchange of messages between the two sides and reaffirmation of a commitment by Hamas to try to prevent future rocket fire.

Safeguarding Iraq’s Jewish Archive

Iraq has decided to repatriate some of the Jewish historical documents found in Baghdad after the fall of the Saddam Hussein regime, while others will go on international display, providing a window for the world into Iraq’s cultural heritage.