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Israel

May 18, 2026

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Somaliland’s first ambassador to a foreign country formally, Mohamed Hagi, presented his diplomatic credentials in Jerusalem to Israeli President Isaac Herzog, on May 18, 2026.

Israel accredits Somaliland's first ambassador: What to know

Israel was the first country to recognize the breakaway region on the Horn of Africa last year.

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.

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

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un looks at a rocket warhead tip after a simulated test of atmospheric re-entry of a ballistic missile, at an unidentified location in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang on March 15, 2016. REUTERS/KCNA ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE AUTHENTICITY, CONTENT, LOCATION OR DATE OF THIS IMAGE. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR A

Netanyahu's road to Iran runs through North Korea

Israel fears that if North Korea continues to develop its nuclear arsenal, Iran will no longer agree to restraints on its nuclear program.

Israeli girls play near a sign at Mount Bental, an observation post in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights that overlooks the Syrian side of the Qunietra crossing August 21, 2015. Israel said it killed four Palestinian militants in an air strike on the Syrian Golan Heights on Friday, after cross-border rocket fire from Syria prompted the heaviest Israeli bombardment since the start of Syria's four-year-old civil war. REUTERS/Baz Ratner - RTX1P1OA

What's behind Israel's decision to welcome Syrian orphans?

Right-wing nongovernmental organizations in Israel have launched campaigns in favor of Syrian refugees, calling upon the government to show that Israelis care about their neighbors being massacred daily.

US Secretary of State John Kerry speaks with European Union Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini as they take part with other foreign ministers and representatives in a family picture during the Mideast peace conference in Paris, France, January 15, 2017. REUTER/Bertrand Guay/POOL - RTSVM99

Palestinians need own strategy to end occupation

The disappointing Paris peace conference should convince Palestinians of the need to develop a strategy of their own and not to rely on the international community to end the Israeli occupation.

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - FEBRUARY 27: (ISRAEL OUT) Israelis enjoy at Shuka bar in Mahane Yehuda open market on February 27, 2014 in Jerusalem, Israel. The Mahane Yehuda Market is over 100 years old. Often reffered to as "The Shuk", the market in the heart of Jerusalem is a popular attraction with both locals and international tourists alike. (Photo by Lior Mizrahi/Getty Images)

The secret nightlife of Jerusalem’s old market

Ultra-Orthodox leaders are fighting to keep the old Jerusalem market of Mahane Yehuda from slipping further into a hot nightspot.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) speaks to Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump during their meeting in New York, September 25, 2016. Kobi Gideon/Government Press Office (GPO)/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - RTX2SIOS

Who will have upper hand in Trump’s Mideast policy?

Palestinians are enlisting the European Union, Egypt and Russia to counterbalance pro-Israeli positions that prevail within President Donald Trump’s entourage.

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man stands in front of the U.S Embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel January 24, 2017. REUTERS/Baz Ratner - RTSX3UD

Have the Palestinians blocked US Embassy move to Jerusalem?

Senior Palestinian officials believe that their restrained diplomatic approach through Jordanian and Egyptian channels helped suspend the relocation of the US Embassy to Jerusalem.

People walk past signs bearing the name of U.S. President-elect Republican Donald Trump in Tel Aviv, Israel November 14, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner - RTX2TLRV

Does Trump's 'America First' approach bode ill for Israel?

It is unclear whether US President Donald Trump will see in his new isolationist strategy an interest for the United States to mediate between Israel and its neighbors.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) arrives at a Likud party meeting at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem January 16, 2017. Picture taken January 16, 2017. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTSW82I

Will Netanyahu's allies abandon him?

For now, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is confident that Likud members and voters support him despite the police investigations, but some are very troubled by the allegations against him.

Smoke rises following what witnesses said were Israeli air strikes in Gaza August 23, 2014. Israeli aircraft bombed the Gaza Strip on Saturday and Palestinian militants fired rockets at the Jewish state, the military said, with no end in sight to the deadliest violence between the sides in years. REUTERS/Ahmed Zakot (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR43GTS

Israel’s Gaza war and ‘post-truth’ politics

On the eve of the release of the report on the failures of the political leadership during Operation Protective Edge, the country’s leaders have launched a war of versions in order to derive political benefit.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem January 8, 2017. REUTERS/Abir Sultan/Pool - RTX2XXSV

Netanyahu’s coalition rivals prepare for battle

Political figures on the right are jockeying for position to lead Israel's right wing in anticipation of a police investigation and other issues forcing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step down.

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters while signing executive orders at the White House in Washington January 24, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTSX5NX

Trump follows predecessors in slowing Israel embassy move

Overshadowed by his unorthodox campaign promises, new US President Donald Trump, in his first days in office, has followed convention elsewhere in slowing down his pledge to move the US Embassy to Jerusalem.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (C) meets with representatives of Palestinian political parties and movements in Moscow, Russia, January 16, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin - RTSVQQQ

Did Kerry plan's failure hand Putin the Middle East?

Russia has ignored the 2006 decision by the Quartet not to engage in contacts with Hamas until it renounces violence, suggesting another move by Moscow to fill the vacuum left by the United States in the region.