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Israel

May 11, 2026

Tel Aviv 4:22 pm

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Netanyahu fears being left out as Trump pursues Iran diplomacy

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was not surprised by President Donald Trump’s suspension of Project Freedom and move toward talks with Iran, but analysts say Washington may not be fully weighing Israel's concerns in negotiations with Tehran.

Traffic passes a billboard depicting Iranian ballistic missiles in service, with text in Arabic reading "the honest [person's] promise" and in Persian "Israel is weaker than a spider's web," Valiasr Square, Tehran, April 15, 2024. ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images.

Analysis

CIA report on Iran missiles undercuts Netanyahu as war euphoria dissipates

The findings cast doubt on Israel’s wartime gains and put pressure on Netanyahu’s campaign strategy ahead of elections.

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

People gather at the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted Beirut's southern suburbs neighborhood of Haret Hreik on May 6, 2026.

Israel strikes Beirut in breach of Lebanon ceasefire

Israel has continued to carry out strikes in southern Lebanon but had not targeted Beirut since the ceasefire took effect.

Latest News

Analysis

Israel fears Trump seeking Hormuz win while sidestepping Iran nuclear issue

Amirhossein KHORGOOEI / ISNA / AFP via Getty Images

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

Culture

Lebanon's churches, mosques and archaeological sites damaged in Israeli strikes

A man sits watching as Lebanese first responders search for human remains among the rubble the day after a house was targeted in an Israeli airstrike in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh, on May 1, 2026.

Analysis

Can Bennett, Lapid unite Israel’s opposition to unseat Netanyahu?

Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Yair Lapid (L) speaks to outgoing Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, during a meeting at the Knesset (parliament), in Jerusalem on June 30, 2022. - Final approval of the parliament dissolution bill was initially expected by midnight but was postponed to June 30 as coalition and opposition lawmakers sparred over last-minute legislative details, several sources familiar with the parliamentary said. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / AFP) (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images)

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

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

U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi reacts to the results of the U.S. midterm elections at a Democratic election night party and rally in Washington, U.S. November 6, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC1889CBEC00

Midterms revamp Middle East policymaking in Congress

Tuesday’s elections will re-order the committees in charge of foreign policy.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the Cyber Week conference at Tel Aviv University, Israel, June 20, 2018. REUTERS/Ammar Awad - RC15B2CE7200

Cyber attacks increasingly penetrating Israel’s politics

Israeli researchers fear that cyberwar in the form of fake social media accounts or even attacks on the vote count could plague the upcoming election year.

Israel's defense minister pushes death penalty for terrorists

Despite objections by Israel's security and defense establishments, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has given Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman a green light to push ahead with a bill allowing military courts to more easily sentence terrorists to death.

Netanyahu checkmates Likud rivals, again

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing an amendment to the Basic Law on the government to ensure that President Reuven Rivlin cannot ask a Likud rival to form the next government.

Muslim family will not give up keys to iconic Jerusalem church despite pressure

The controversy over the key to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem’s Old City says more about the lack of political leadership in Jerusalem than about the current custodian's suitability for the role.

The second assassination of Yitzhak Rabin

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his associates encouraged and benefited from the incitement that led to the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995, but are now portraying themselves as the real victims.

Will Oman broker Israeli-Palestinian peace talks?

The Sultanate of Oman has been making the headlines by receiving Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, followed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, raising speculation about an Omani mediation to advance the peace process between Palestinians and Israelis.

Israeli soldiers stand at a staging area near the border with the Gaza Strip July 31, 2014. Israel pressed ahead with its Gaza offensive saying it was days from achieving its core goal of destroying all Islamist guerrilla cross-border attack tunnels, but a soaring Palestinian civilian toll has triggered international alarm. REUTERS/Siegfried Modola (ISRAEL - Tags: CIVIL UNREST MILITARY POLITICS CONFLICT) - GM1EA7V16RK01

IDF commander seeks help for traumatized soldiers

A veteran Israeli commander is helping raise awareness of post-traumatic stress disorder and raise money to allow some of his former soldiers to obtain treatment for the PTSD they suffer as a result of the 2014 war in Gaza.

Is Bibi’s restraint on Gaza a sea change, or last act before war?

Israeli prime minister, for now, claims “no interest” in toppling Hamas.

Is the PLO serious about suspending its recognition of Israel?

Questions arise as to whether the recent PLO’s Central Committee's decision to stop security coordination and suspend recognition of Israel will be implemented this time.

Israel, Hamas should adopt ‘tacit bargaining’

Much like the tacit bargaining between Israel and Hezbollah following the IDF's 1996 Operation Grapes of Wrath, Israel must now negotiate with Hamas.

Israel Prime Minister Office Israeli Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and head of Mosad Yossi Cohen meet with Sultan Qaboos bin Said and their delegations in this undated handout provided by the Israel Prime Minister Office, in Oman. Israel GPO/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC1203496B60

Mossad chief, Israel’s secret diplomat to the Mideast

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dedicates much effort to building ties with Sunni states and has sent Mossad chief Yossi Cohen to various locales on secret missions.