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Israel

April 21, 2026

Tel Aviv 12:00 pm

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Olmert

Interview

Olmert: Only Israeli-Lebanon deal can curb Hezbollah, occupation 'unviable'

Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told Al-Monitor that Israel will only be able to defang Hezbollah if it reaches an agreement with the Lebanese government.

Jewel SAMAD / AFP via Getty Images

Lebanon-Israel negotiations to continue even as Iran talks stall

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun also said that Lebanon will lead the negotiations and that no other party will take part, emphasizing that this track is separate from any other talks.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a joint press conference with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in Jerusalem on February 26, 2026. (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Why Netanyahu caved to Trump on Lebanon and what it means for Israel

Israelis express anger that the prime minister's maneuvering to stay out of jail has allowed the US to once again "hijack" foreign policy and national security decision-making.

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

Trump announces Lebanon-Israel ceasefire, will invite Aoun and Netanyahu to White House

The announcement follows landmark talks between Israel and Lebanon in Washington on Tuesday.

Latest News

Trump, Rubio speak to Lebanon's president amid push for Aoun-Netanyahu call

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun (C) arrives to attend a cabinet session to discuss an army plan to disarm the Shiite Muslim group Hezbollah, at the Presidential Palace in Baabda, on September 5, 2025. In August, under heavy US pressure and fearing Israel would intensify its strikes, Lebanon's government ordered the army to draw up a plan for disarming Hezbollah by the end of the year. (Photo by ANWAR AMRO / AFP) (Photo by ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

First round of Lebanon-Israel talks concludes in Washington: What to know

Oliver Contreras / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

As Lebanon-Israel talks begin, can Rubio press Netanyahu into ceasefire?

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to the press as he departs Tel Aviv for Qatar following an official visit, at Ben Gurion International Airport, near Lod, Israel, September 16, 2025. Israel heavily bombarded Gaza City on September 16 2025, witnesses told AFP, after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio backed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's new offensive there and its stated goal of eradicating Hamas. (Photo by NATHAN HOWARD / POOL / AFP) (Photo by NATHAN HOWARD/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

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

Meloni suspends Italy's military cooperation agreement with Israel

Meloni

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

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) meets with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha, Oct. 25, 2023.

Qatar ‘hopeful’ about hostage talks with Hamas as Turkey warns of regional shockwaves

As Qatar expresses hope for the release of more Israeli hostages, Turkey’s top diplomat has warned Israel against a ground invasion.

Gaza journalists

At least 24 journalists, majority Palestinians, killed in Israel-Hamas war

The number of journalists killed in the Israel-Hamas war in three weeks already exceeds the number of journalists killed in Ukraine in the year and half since Russia invaded, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

TOPSHOT - A picture taken from the southern Israeli city of Sderot on October 25, 2023, shows smoke ascending over the northern Gaza Strip following an Israeli strike, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (Photo by RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP) (Photo by RONALDO SCHEMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel-Hamas war poised to inflame Middle East arms race, pressure security partnerships

As the Middle East descends into a new phase of conflict and confrontation, regional states look poised to significantly boost military spending and procurement.

Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Erdogan

Turkey’s Erdogan hails Hamas as liberators, leaving detente with Israel in shreds

The Turkish president's speech on Wednesday aligned himself more firmly with the Sunni Muslim world, while pushing aside the benefits of closer ties with Israel and other regional economies.

Smotrich

Israel credit outlook lowered, budget to be amended amid Hamas war

Israel’s credit rating was in trouble before the war in Gaza due to the government’s controversial judicial reform plans, and the war is affecting the country's fiscal situation.

NINEVEH, IRAQ - JUNE 20: Iraqi PMF fighters June 20, 2017 on the Iraq-Syria border in Nineveh, Iraq. The Popular Mobilisation Front (PMF) forces, composed of majority Shi'ite militia, part of the Iraqi forces, have pushed Islamic State militants from the north-western Iraq border strip back into Syria. The PMF now hold the border, crucial to the fall of Islamic State in Mosul, blocking the Islamic State supply route for militants from Syria to Mosul. (Martyn Aim/Getty Images).

No consensus yet among Iraqi armed groups on joining Israel-Hamas war

Interviews with faction leaders reveal anger with Hamas over starting a unilateral conflict, but also a determination to get involved if Hezbollah greenlights such a move and Israel invades Gaza.

THOMAS COEX/AFP via Getty Images

Israeli airstrikes in Syria mark 4th suspected round since Gaza war

The Israeli military said it struck Syrian military targets in response to rocket fire in yet another cross-border flare up, leading to casualties among Syrian forces.

US President Joe Biden holds a press conference following a solidarity visit to Israel, on October 18, 2023, in Tel Aviv, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants based in the Gaza Strip, entered southern Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in Gaza on October 8. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP) (Photo by BREN

Al-Monitor/Premise poll: 82% of Americans wary of US intervention in Israel-Hamas war

As the Israel-Hamas war rages on and threatens to spill into a wider regional conflict, Americans are either unsure of or reject a US military intervention in the region, according to a new Al-Monitor/Premise poll.

Jordan queen rues West's 'glaring double standard' on Gaza

Agence France-Presse

A Palestinian man uses a fire extinguisher to douse a fire following an Israeli strike, in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on Oct. 14, 2023, as fighting between Israel and the Hamas movement continues for the eighth consecutive day.

In a first, Blinken backs possible ‘humanitarian pause’ in Gaza

Secretary of State Antony Blinken's comments come as the US is increasingly concerned that Israel's military campaign in the Gaza Strip could fuel a broader regional conflict.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and UAE's President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed meet on Oct. 24, 2023.

Turkey's Fidan travels to UAE, Qatar, seeks mediation on Israel-Hamas war

The top Turkish diplomat, who met with the Emirati leaders in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, is set to travel to Qatar, where Hamas' political bureau is based.

Floral tributes and a poster depicting Russian President Vladimir Putin are seen left at the fence of the Palestinian embassy in Moscow on October 19, 2023. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants entered Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip on October 8. (Photo by Natalia KOLESNIKOVA / AFP) (Photo by NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Israel relayed to Russia 'dissatisfaction' over its Hamas position as rift widens

Israel is concerned by declarations by Russian President Vladimir Putin and other officials that could signal a shift in Moscow’s views toward it.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs