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

Israel cover image

Israel

September 25, 2026

Tel Aviv 11:39 am

28°C

Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu waves to delegates leaving before his UN speech

Delegates walk out as Netanyahu touts Iran war, slams Qatar and Turkey at UN

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa's statement that the Golan Heights will “remain Syrian territory," while praising US President Donald Trump, whom he did not meet on the trip.

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

Latest News

Analysis

After France's settlement ban, Israel sees no warming of ties with Macron government

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and French President Emmanuel Macron arrive to hold a joint press conference in Jerusalem, Oct. 24, 2023.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

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

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 youth looks at flowers and flags laid next to tombstones on Memorial Day, when Israel commemorates it's fallen soldiers, at Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem May 8, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RC1C955B89F0

The politics of mutual grief

Bereaved Israelis and Palestinians held an annual memorial event for victims on both sides of their conflict after the High Court of Justice overruled an attempt by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to prevent Palestinians from entering Israel to attend the ceremony, which is held on the same day that Israel honors its fallen soldiers.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks to reporters in flight after a previously unannounced trip to Baghdad, Iraq, May 8, 2019. Mandel Ngan/Pool via REUTERS - RC1CBE5511B0

Israel looks to Trump to halt Iranian nuke

Iran's announcement that it will resume uranium enrichment is causing great concern in Israel.

Israeli-Arabs key to returning the center-left to power

Comparing Israel’s demographic profile with the results of the recent election show that large numbers of Israeli Arabs not voting, some due to intimidation, had a dramatic impact on the political map.

Israeli-Russians celebrate WWII Victory Day

Israelis are not really aware of the heroism demonstrated by thousands of World War II veterans who immigrated to the country from Russia in the 1990s.

Streaks of light are pictured as rockets are launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, as seen from the Israeli side of the border March 25, 2019 REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RC1BAFEB0A50

Can Israel stop Hamas, Islamic Jihad arms race?

The latest round of violence showed Israel that Hamas and the Islamic Jihad have each an impressive arsenal of rockets and improved abilities to use them.

Netanyahu’s separation policy feeds Hamas violence

Israel's longtime policy of separation between the West Bank and Gaza Strip as well as punishment measures against the Palestinian Authority could help actually Hamas take over the West Bank.

Rockets are fired from Gaza towards Israel, in Gaza May 5, 2019. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem - RC1917143790

What’s behind recent escalation between Gaza, Israel?

Egypt and Qatar broker a cease-fire following the deaths of 27 Palestinians and four Israelis, but will the blockade on Gaza ease as a result?

Israel wants to strengthen, annex West Bank settlements

Israel will offer investors grants to build hotels in West Bank settlements, which reflects Israel’s intention to annex more parts of the West Bank.

Natural history, conservation and politics meet in West Bank museum

The Palestine Museum of Natural History and the Palestine Institute for Biodiversity and Sustainability bring Israeli and Palestinians together to preserve knowledge about the ecology, environment and cultivation of Palestine.

Different faiths, shared sites explored in Istanbul

An exhibition in Istanbul sheds light on religious sites and pilgrimages sacred to Christians, Muslims and Jews alike, a phenomenon that is not widely known but is quite common in the Mediterranean region.

White House senior adviser Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law, speaks during a discussion on "Inside the Trump Administration's Middle East Peace Effort" at a dinner symposium of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) in Washington, U.S., May 2, 2019. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RC1B17280EE0

Kushner rejects calls to delay release of Mideast peace plan

Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, said Thursday the Trump administration would issue its Middle East peace plan, though several regional experts have argued that the plan's release would cause more harm.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas chairs a session of the weekly cabinet meeting, in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank April 29, 2019. Majdi Mohammed/Pool via REUTERS - RC1F5F1B5D10

Abbas needs to dismantle the PA

Instead of playing into Benjamin Netanyahu's policy of treating the Oslo Accords like a final agreement, the Palestinian leadership should dismantle the Palestinian Authority and hand the keys back to Israel.