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Israel

May 19, 2026

Tel Aviv 10:56 am

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Men gather around the husk of a destroyed pickup truck that was driven by a local shepherd who was reportedly struck by Israeli forces and buried by locals at a grave nearby, in the Najaf desert in southwestern Iraq, on May 12, 2026.

What we know about secret Israeli bases in Iraq

Iraqi authorities have said there are no longer any hostile forces operating in its territory.

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

Latest News

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

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

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

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting of the Presidential Council for Strategic Development and Priority Projects at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, November 25, 2016. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool - RTST9DD

Will Putin invite Netanyahu, Abbas to Moscow?

The United States, France and Russia could join forces to form a new Middle East axis that will promote the two-state process.

Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett gestures during a preliminary vote on a bill at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem November 16, 2016. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo - RTSV2KJ

Is Israel’s education minister abandoning secular schools?

Recent data indicates that Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett is using his budget to inject more orthodox and national values into schools, reducing the budget for teaching democratic and pluralistic values.

Palestinian Football Association President Jibril Al Rajoub gestures during a news conference in the West Bank city of Ramallah November 5, 2015. Palestine will host this month's home World Cup qualifiers against Saudi Arabia and Malaysia in Jordan, soccer's governing body FIFA said on Thursday. FIFA announced on Wednesday that Palestine could no longer stage the matches at their 12,000-capacity Faisal Al-Husseini stadium on the Israeli-occupied West Bank for security reasons. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman - RTX

Will new Fatah leaders' fluency in Hebrew make a difference?

The Palestinian leaders who were elected for Fatah's Central Committee speak Hebrew fluently, which some analysts say will help break the language barrier during talks with Israelis.

Israeli soldiers take position during a protest against Jewish settlements in Jordan Valley near the West Bank city of Jericho November 17, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman - RTX2U5RA

Israel's controversial settlement bill provokes Palestinian blitz

Palestinians believe that the Israeli regularization bill, designed to authorize settlements built on Palestinian lands, serves as a "smoking gun," proving that Israel is not interested in negotiations.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) and Benny Begin, the son of the late Prime Minister Menahem Begin and a member of Netanyahu's cabinet, arrive to the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem October 31, 2010. Netanyahu will travel to New Orleans early in November for an annual U.S. Jewish conference, but is unlikely to meet President Barack Obama, who will be in Asia. REUTERS/Jim Hollander/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXU1NU

Is this the end of the liberal Likud?

The punishment of Benny Begin for voting against the settlement Regularization bill shows how extremist the Likud Party has become.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry addresses a news conference during a NATO foreign ministers meeting at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, December 6, 2016. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir - RTSUY19

Can Kerry convince Obama on final MidEast move?

US Secretary of State John Kerry, who labored relentlessly to promote the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, wants President Barack Obama to support a UN resolution against the settlements before leaving office.

A picture taken on October 21, 2014 in the West Bank village of Zayem near Jerusalem, shows the Israel's controversial separation barrier with the Jewish settlement of Maale Adumim in the background. AFP PHOTO/AHMAD GHARABLI (Photo credit should read AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images)

Will Israel expand settlement to Jerusalem border?

Israeli plans to expand the Ma’ale Adumim settlement and achieve territorial continuity all the way to Jerusalem might spark international uproar.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) meets Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry in Jerusalem July 10, 2016 REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTSH5M1

Will Trump bring Egypt, Israel closer?

Observers wait to see what role, if any, the Trump administration might play in a rapprochement between Israel and Egypt.

Israeli soldiers of the Ultra-Orthodox brigade take part in a swearing-in ceremony in Jerusalem May 26, 2013, after they have completed their basic training in the Israel Defense Forces. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (JERUSALEM - Tags: MILITARY RELIGION) - RTX1021M

Ultra-Orthodox soldiers in Israel rejected by their own

Ultra-Orthodox soldiers whose families and communities rejected them for enlisting are finding solace in a new organization of Israelis who have pledged to support them.

Saudi-Egypt crisis leaves Israel concerned

Two arms deals recently inked by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has Israel baffled and worried.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) attends a preliminary vote on a bill at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem November 16, 2016. REUTERS/Ammar Awad - RTX2TXXZ

Why Netanyahu blames the left

With his wife being questioned by the police, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu multiplies his attacks against the media and the left, blaming them for persecuting his family.

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man looks out from a condensation-covered window of a bus in Jerusalem December 11, 2013. High winds and heavy rain showers poured across Israel on Wednesday with local media reporting by mid-morning 45 mm of rain in a central town near Tel Aviv, and snow had covered Mount Hermon near Israel's border with Syria. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (JERUSALEM - Tags: ENVIRONMENT SOCIETY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX16DZI

Why Israel’s Beersheba buses dropped Arabic announcements

With Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pointing a finger at Israeli Arabs for wildfires, it's no wonder that the city of Beersheba removed announcements in Arabic from its public buses.