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

Israel cover image

Israel

May 14, 2026

Tel Aviv 5:44 am

20°C

Artillery units are positioned near the Lebanese border in northern Israel, May 4, 2026.

Analysis

Israel’s drone dilemma: Hezbollah’s low-cost threat reshapes Lebanon front

While Israeli and Lebanese delegations are set to meet in Washington for the third time, the Israeli military faces a growing threat from Hezbollah’s cheap yet highly lethal drones.

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

Two men stand next to the burned remains of a Palestinian vehicle in the Wadi al-Rakhim area of Susya village in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on May 1, 2026.

EU ministers agree to sanction violent West Bank settlers: What to know

European foreign ministers have agreed to sanction extremist West Bank settlers, but are still discussing the list of names.

Latest News

Netanyahu fears being left out as Trump pursues Iran diplomacy

Ronen Zvulun / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

CIA report on Iran missiles undercuts Netanyahu as war euphoria dissipates

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.

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

Israel strikes Beirut in breach of Lebanon ceasefire

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

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

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sits in the audience ahead of a planned address at the Muni World 2018 conference in Tel Aviv, Israel February 14, 2018. REUTERS/Nir Elias - RC1B832C7E70

How could Bibi lose by offering 'ultimate deal' with Iran?

Israel Pulse columnist Akiva Eldar calls for direct Iran-Israel talks; Ali Akbar Velayati opposes Sadr-Communist bloc; Has Islamic State returned to Hawija?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks via a video link from Israel to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) policy conference in Washington, U.S., March 27, 2017. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts - RC1F228F8BE0

Pro-Israel lobby struggles to bring parties together ahead of annual conference

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee hasn’t made much headway on key issues such as the Iran nuclear deal and anti-boycott legislation.

Mideast braces for war: Israel vs. Iran-backed Hezbollah

Israel is threatening a new war against Hezbollah and its weapons plants in Lebanon and Syria.

Europe starts preparing Mideast peace initiative

The one-sided decision by the United States to relocate its embassy to Jerusalem in May opens the way for a European Mideast peace initiative.

Israeli recognition of Ethiopian religious leaders just a start

It took Israel decades to accept Jewish Ethiopian religious leaders and to integrate them as rabbis, but it remains to be seen how much the reforms will be implemented.

Netanyahu's Case 4000 takes center stage

With all that is going on with Netanyahu, recent revelations in Case 4000 might turn it into the Israeli prime minister’s No. 1 problem.

Labour party leader Shelly Yachimovich leaves after campaigning at the Mahne Yehuda market in Jerusalem January 16, 2013. In decline since the peace it sought with the Palestinians unravelled into violence, Israel's Labour Party looks set to regain some lost ground in next week's election after waging an economy-focused campaign. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - GM1E91G1OP101

Israel's revolutionary sexual harassment law

The Law to Prevent Sexual Harassment adopted by the Knesset 20 years ago represented a real breakthrough in changing social norms and priorities overnight.

Palestinians plan their own event to mark US Embassy move

The Palestinians might prefer an "alternative ceremony" to the relocation of the US Embassy to Jerusalem, instead of the usual rage days.

Book in praise of older women gets Israel's top prize

Esther Peled, a female author who defies convention, is awarded Israel’s most prestigious literary prize with the book that describes a woman’s journey on her way to a “room of her own.”

David Friedman (L), the newly appointed United States Ambassador to Israel, shakes hands with Israel's President Reuven Rivlin, during a ceremony whereby Rivlin received Friedman's diplomatic credentials at his residence in Jerusalem May 16, 2017. REUTERS/Heidi Levine/Pool - RC1CB682D2C0

US ambassador to Israel lobbies in favor of settlers

US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman acts more like an ambassador of the settlers vis-a-vis the Trump administration.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan chats with Jordan's King Abdullah as they pose for a group photo during an extraordinary meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul, Turkey, December 13, 2017. REUTERS/Osman Orsal - RC1F351E9400

Jordan and Turkey get cozy

Jordan and Turkey are boosting political, trade and economic ties amid regional challenges and shared interests in the outcome of nearby conflicts.

Israeli border policemen detain a Palestinian protester during clashes near Jerusalem's Old City December 26, 2015. Palestinians protested demanding that they be given the bodies of their brethren who have been killed during the latest wave of violence with Israel. REUTERS/Ammar Awad - GF10000276454

How the occupation seeped into Israel's judicial system

Case 4000 has exposed the use of detention by Israeli police and court officers in Israel to pressure suspects into breaking, a tactic typically used by the Shin Bet on Palestinians in the occupied territories.