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

Israel cover image

Israel

May 17, 2026

Tel Aviv 8:41 pm

32°C

talks

Lebanon-Israel ceasefire extended 45 days as US opens security talks

The Pentagon will host Israeli and Lebanese military delegations for a round of separate security talks later this month.

US President Donald Trump talks to UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as he departs the Al Bateen Executive Airport on May 15, 2025, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Analysis

‘A reckless act’: Netanyahu sparks UAE fury by claiming secret visit

Just as UAE-Israeli relations were deepening through cooperation against Iran, the Israeli prime minister publicly embarrassed Abu Dhabi by revealing his March visit.

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

Israel's Netanyahu suing New York Times over column on Palestinian rape

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar rejected New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof's accusations of systematic sexual abuse and rape of Palestinian prisoners, calling the claims a "blood libel."

Latest News

Analysis

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

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

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

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

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.

Netanyahu fears being left out as Trump pursues Iran diplomacy

Ronen Zvulun / AFP via Getty Images

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. President Donald Trump boards Air Force One as he departs from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, U.S. May 17, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTX367P8

Did Trump endanger Israeli-US intelligence cooperation?

Israel is at loss over revelations that President Donald Trump exposed sensitive intelligence information to Russia.

Palestinians alone in FIFA face-off against settlement teams

Arabs in Israel as well as in the Gulf states might pay lip service to defending the rights of Palestinians under Israeli occupation, but meaningful commitment has often been lacking.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem May 14, 2017. REUTERS/Abir Sultan/Pool - RTX35QO5

Will Netanyahu govern forever?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claims that he has no plans to advance the next election, but the leaders of the coalition know that he can make them any time it suits him.

Palestinians attend a rally marking the 29th anniversary of the foundation of the Islamic Jihad movement in Gaza City October 21, 2016. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem - RTX2PVA3

Where does Hamas' policy document leave Islamic Jihad?

Despite strong bilateral ties, differences over the new policy document emerged between Hamas and Islamic Jihad, raising questions on the future of their relations.

Netanyahu trapped between Trump, Israeli right wing

US President Donald Trump would like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s assistance in tabling the issue of moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem, but Netanyahu fears the reaction of his right-wing coalition partners.

A sign is seen at the Erez border crossing between Israel and northern Gaza Strip December 28, 2014. Hamas authorities in the Gaza Strip prevented on Sunday a group of Palestinian children who lost parents in the July-August war with Israel from making a rare goodwill visit to the Jewish state, organisers of the trip said. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR4JF9V

Gazans say Israel on wrong track with reported railway plans

Israel has announced it will establish a railway into the Gaza Strip in what Palestinians suspect is only a bid to bolster its image.

Veteran Hamas strategist Mahmoud Al-Zahar gestures during an interview with Reuters at his house in Gaza City April 29, 2014. A Palestinian unity deal will not lead Islamist group Hamas to recognise Israel's right to exist and will not result in any Gaza militants coming under President Mahmoud Abbas's control, Al-Zahar said on Tuesday. To match Interview PALESTINIAN-ISRAEL/HAMAS REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3N3DL

Hamas policy shift deepens internal rift

Senior Hamas official Mahmoud al-Zahar's objection to recognizing Israel's 1967 borders as the basis for the creation of a future Palestinian state puts him at odds with the movement's new leadership.

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 15: U.S. President Donald Trump (R) and Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) shake hands following a joint news conference at the East Room of the White House February 15, 2017 in Washington, DC. President Trump hosted Prime Minister Netanyahu for talks for the first time since Trump took office on January 20. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Anxiety high among Israeli right as Trump visit nears

The Israeli right is apprehensive about President Donald Trump's upcoming visit as he continues to proclaim his determination to make a deal ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah addresses his supporters from a screen, during a ceremony marking a year after Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddine(picture on banner) was killed in an attack in Syria, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon May 11, 2017. REUTERS/Aziz Taher - RTS16886

Are Hezbollah, Israel heading for a third war?

As talk of a third war breaking out between Lebanon's Hezbollah and Israel is increasing, some analysts say it is highly unlikely given the costs both sides would have to bear.

Players from Israeli soccer clubs affiliated with Israel Football Association, Ariel Municipal Soccer Club and Maccabi HaSharon Netanya, play against each other at Ariel Municipal Soccer Club's training grounds in the West Bank Jewish settlement of Ariel September 23, 2016. Picture taken September 23, 2016. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RTSPDUE

Palestinians lament FIFA's delayed decision on settlement teams

FIFA’s failure to make a decision about its own members' not honoring its statutes reflects the tremendous political pressure that is constantly exerted by Israel on various world bodies.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas delivers a statement accompanied by U.S. President Donald Trump during a visit to the White House in Washington D.C., U.S., May 3, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria - RTS14ZUF

Will Trump launch Mideast shuttle diplomacy?

Palestinian leadership hopes that US President Donald Trump’s upcoming regional visit will advance the launching of a peace process based on the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative.

FILE PHOTO - A Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptor is launched during a successful intercept test, in this undated handout photo provided by the U.S. Department of Defense, Missile Defense Agency. U.S. Department of Defense, Missile Defense Agency/Handout via Reuters/File PhotoATTENTION EDITORS - FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CL

Congress OK with Saudi missile defense sale amid warming Israel-Gulf ties

Israel seems fine with Saudi Arabia getting an anti-ballistic missile system, as does Capitol Hill.