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Israel

July 12, 2026

Tel Aviv 11:25 am

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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.

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)

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

Trump said diplomacy with Tehran was “a waste of time” after renewed attacks around Hormuz, as US defense chief reportedly cancels Israel visit.

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Lebanon's latest damage estimate outlines reconstruction challenge

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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

Israel, Greece conduct military drills ahead of NATO summit in Turkey

ABIR SULTAN / AFP via Getty Images

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

Members of the Palestinian security forces carry a coffin containing the remains of Palestinian militant Majdi Khanfar during his funeral in the West Bank village of Silat al-Daher, near Jenin, January 20, 2014. Israel has begun to exhume the remains of a number of Palestinian militants, including Khanfar, to return them to their families for burial, the army said on Sunday, a move that could help ease some tension between the adversaries. REUTERS/Abed Omar Qusini (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) -

Palestinian Authority: Israel's security partner

Israel and the Palestinian Authority share a common interest of fighting emerging al-Qaeda cells in the West Bank and the proliferation of global jihad.

Israel's President Shimon Peres (R) meets head of the Bayit Yehudi party Naftali Bennett at Peres' residence in Jerusalem January 31, 2013. Peres began talks with political parties on Wednesday over who should form a new government and appears certain to ask incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to assemble it. REUTERS/Sebastian Scheiner/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3D6TK

Bennett calls diplomatic process harmful to Israeli economy

Israeli business leaders have called on the prime minister to end the conflict with the Palestinians so Israel can prosper, while Economy and Trade Minister Naftali Bennett claims that this will destroy the Israeli economy.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) converses with former Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman during a Likud-Yisrael Beitenu campaign rally in the southern city of Ashdod January 16, 2013. Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party, allied with the nationalist Yisrael Beitenu party, continues to lead opinion polls ahead of Israel's Jan. 22 parliamentary election. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3CJ8M

Palestinian 'incitement': Israel’s usual last resort

Incitement in the Palestinian Authority has not been measured to date by any valid research tool, and yet Israeli officials keep raising this claim whenever they run out of propaganda ammunition to justify their occupation and settlement activities.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks on a mobile phone after his private meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv November 8, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX1553L

When America has the will, Israel finds the way

The Israeli defense minister’s apology for what he said about US Secretary of State John Kerry proves that when America pressures Israel, its gets what it wants; but will it demand a compromise with the Palestinians and accept the price of this pressure?

Israeli soldiers look across the border to Syria in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights August 30, 2013. Israel ordered a small-scale mobilisation of reservists on Wednesday and strengthened its missile defences as precautions against possible Syrian attack should Western powers carry out threatened strikes on Syria. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (MILITARY POLITICS) - RTX131QH

Israel recognizes Assad's staying power

Israel shifts its strategic posture, recognizing that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is staying on and that a jihadist alternative would be even worse.

Israeli's Nobel Laureate in Chemistry Dan Shechtman speaks at the Nobel banquet in the Town Hall of Stockholm December 10, 2011. Shechtman currently works at Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel. REUTERS/Jonas Ekstromer/Scanpix (SWEDEN - Tags: POLITICS) NO COMMERCIAL SALES. SWEDEN OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN SWEDEN. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RTR2V3P2

Could Nobel laureate Shechtman be Israel's next president?

The Knesset is preparing to elect the 10th president of the State of Israel in May 2014, and unlike previous times, candidates include a growing list of names from outside the political sphere.

Palestinians are pictured through the damaged windscreen of a bus as they gather at the scene of an Israeli air strike, which hit a motorcycle, in the northern Gaza Strip January 19, 2014. Israel carried out an air strike on Sunday against a Gaza militant whom it blamed for cross-border rocket attacks last week. Palestinian medics said two people, including a 12-year-old boy, were wounded. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX17KW7

Israel must limit targeted killings to avoid further violence

The elimination by airstrike of Islamic Jihad operative Ahmad Saad on Jan. 19 raises again the discussion on the long-term effectiveness of Israel's targeted killings policy.

(L-R) Israel's military chief Benny Gantz, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Shimon Peres and Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon attend a graduation ceremony of Israeli naval officers in the northern city of Haifa September 11, 2013. Netanyahu said on Wednesday Syria must be stripped of its chemical weapons and that the international community must make sure those who use weapons of mass destruction pay a price. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTX13HVO

Bibi knows where Ya'alon stands on peace talks

In view of Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon's recent statements, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu knows that his top minister might jeopardize the possibility of talks with the Palestinians as he did before.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he addresses the foreign media during a reception marking the new year, in Jerusalem January 16, 2014. REUTERS/Darren Whiteside (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX17GTF

Bibi’s final status map leaves little room for Palestine

The Israeli-Palestinian peace talks eventually come down to the map.

Lifestyles of Israel's rich and rabbinical

The revelations on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's tax haven account are overshadowed by a bribe scandal involving top police officers, Rabbi Pinto and an American politician.

A woman lays a flower on the name of the former Nazi death camp of Auschwitz during a ceremony entitled "Unto Every Person There is a Name" in the Hall of Remembrance at Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, marking Israel's annual day of Holocaust remembrance April 19, 2012. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (JERUSALEM - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS ANNIVERSARY) - RTR30XQZ

Israel debates legality of 'Nazi'

A new bill prohibiting the inappropriate use of the word "Nazi" brings into Israeli public debate the limits of free speech in a country dedicated to spreading the lessons of the Holocaust.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a memorial ceremony for former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon at the Knesset, Israel's parliament, in Jerusalem January 13, 2014. Israel paid homage to Sharon at the first of two funeral services to be held on Monday for a man hailed as a war hero at home but seen by many in the Arab world as a war criminal. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS OBITUARY) - RTX17C56

Israel in 2014: The Knesset

Al-Monitor presents an in-depth guide to understanding of the key figures, alliances and issues likely to define Israel in the coming year.