Israel - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Israel cover image

Israel

September 24, 2026

Tel Aviv 7:57 pm

27°C

Leader of the Arab Israeli party Ra'am (United Arab List) Mansour Abbas (R) and Israeli politician Yoav Segalovitz (L) attend a news conference in Nazareth on August 31, 2026. Abbas announced that Segalovitz, an Israeli Jew, will join his party for the upcoming Israeli elections. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP via Getty Images)

Israel election committee bars two Arab lists from upcoming vote: What to know

Israel's Central Elections Committee barred the Arab-majority Raam party, the Arab joint list party and two Arab politicians from participating in the Oct. 27 elections.

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP via Getty Images

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

Latest News

Analysis

How Netanyahu is leveraging Houthi threat in secret Saudi normalization push

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)

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

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)

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

Netanyahu to pass Ben-Gurion in time served, but not in stature

Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, and its incumbent prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who will soon break the record set by the former as the country's longest-serving premier, represent opposing worldviews and aspirations.

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) speaks about Trump administration policies towards Muslim immigrants and her own immigrant background at a news conference by members of the U.S. Congress "to announce legislation to repeal President Trumpís existing executive order blocking travel from majority Muslim countries" outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Jim Bourg - RC1BC6C8A7F0

Ilhan Omar seizes spotlight to push pro-BDS resolution

Rep. Ilhan Omar plans to introduce a pro-BDS resolution days after President Donald Trump invoked Israel to defend his racist tweets that put her in the national spotlight.

Will Liberman save Israel’s democracy?

Whatever his motives, this coming September Yisrael Beitenu leader Avigdor Liberman could secure his place in history as the politician who successfully saved Israel from extreme religiosity and separated a criminal suspect from the prime minister’s seat.

Israel's Education minister Rafi Peretz arrives to attend the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem June 24, 2019. Menahem Kahana/Pool via REUTERS - RC17F0C591D0

Will Israel's religious right stand for conversion therapy for gays?

The statement by United Right party head Rafi Peretz on conversion therapy for gays generated harsh reactions also from within his own political camp.

Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman (R) sits opposite of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Cabinet Secretary Tzachi Braverman during the weekly cabinet meeting at the prime minister's office in Jerusalem, June 10, 2018. Jim Hollander/Pool via Reuters - RC13DBD58690

Despite Netanyahu's blitz, Liberman grows stronger

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expended great efforts to hurt Yisreal Beiteinu leader Avigdor Liberman in a battle for his Russian voters, but Liberman continues to make gains in the polls.

Israeli court rules Abbas responsible for terror attacks

An Israeli court ruled that the Palestinian Authority is to be held responsible for terror attacks not carried out by its own people, prompting questions of how the ruling will affect PA security cooperation with Israel.

Gaza not soothed by minor Israeli trade concessions

Despite a truce understanding, tension is still high on the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives to the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem July 14, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RC1FC20FC200

Netanyahu says he’ll never evacuate West Bank settlements

By stating that Israel will never again evacuate settlements, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu officially denied any intention of pursuing his 2009 recognition at his Bar Ilan speech of the two-state solution.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shake hands as Netanyahu departs the White House from the West Wing in Washington, U.S. March 25, 2019. REUTERS/Leah Millis - RC12B9AA4CE0

It's time for Israel-US defense treaty

A defense pact with the United States would mean much more for Israel than statements such as recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

Israel accuses Hamas of building explosives lab in West Bank

Israel has announced that it foiled a Hamas plan to establish an explosives lab in the West Bank, warning that Hamas still seeks to extend the armed resistance from Gaza to Ramallah.

A woman casts her ballot as Israelis vote in a parliamentary election, at a polling station in Tel Aviv, Israel April 9, 2019. REUTERS/Corinna Kern - RC1166A61B30

What Israel’s coalition will look like after September elections

The Sept. 17 elections offer a very unclear picture so far, with a multitude of possible scenarios for the composition of the next government and no clear win for either camp.

Palestinian workers break rubble pieces to be recycled and used for construction, in Gaza City June 11, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem - RC1F8C76D860

Israel discretely increases number of entry permits for Gaza workers

Israel has increased the number of entry permits for Gaza laborers, after years of demands from farmers in the south of Israel.