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Israel

May 19, 2026

Tel Aviv 2:46 pm

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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

People watch the raising of a Palestinian flag during a rally marking the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, in the West Bank city of Tulkarm November 14, 2016. REUTERS/Abed Omar Qusini - RTX2TLI1

Declaration of Independence barely remembered in Palestine

The 28th anniversary of the Palestinian Declaration of Independence came and went without fanfare.

Interpol's headquarters are seen in Singapore November 18, 2015. REUTERS/Thomas White - RTS7V48

Palestinians say Interpol bid on hold, not defeated

The Palestinian application to join Interpol has been suspended in what Israel is claiming as a diplomatic victory, but the Palestinians are undeterred by the setback.

Palestinian fishermen ride their boats as they return from fishing at the seaport of Gaza City early morning September 26, 2016. Picture taken September 26, 2016. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem - RTSPO9A

Gaza fishermen not permitted beyond 6-mile zone any time soon

As Israel keeps delaying the decision to allow Gazan fishermen to go further into the sea, they are left with a small nautical area where fish are scarce.

The dome and minarets of a new mosque are seen in the Israeli-Arab village of Abu Ghosh, near Jerusalem November 22, 2013. In a Holy Land rich with religious sites, the new Abu Ghosh mosque is rare - as is the hilly village from which it rises. Bankrolled largely by Chechnya and named after its former leader Akhmad Kadyrov, who was slain by Islamist militants in 2004, the glimmering shrine tells of this small Israeli Arab community's historical ties to the restive Russian province. Picture taken November 22

Israel moves forward with banning calls to prayer

A proposed Israeli law would ban the use of loudspeakers to amplify calls to prayer in mosques in Jerusalem and within the Green Line.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) and European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini speak to media following their meeting in Jerusalem, on May 20, 2015. AFP PHOTO / POOL / DAN BALILTY (Photo credit should read DAN BALILTY/AFP/Getty Images)

Will Trump's win prompt EU to adopt independent Mideast policy?

Given US President-elect Donald Trump's past declarations regarding the two-state solution, the European Union is now exploring a more independent regional policy as a basis for international consensus.

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat speaks during a news conference in Jerusalem February 23, 2015. Barkat and his security guard wrestled a Palestinian attacker to the ground near city hall on Sunday after an ultra-Orthodox Jew was stabbed with a knife at a busy intersection. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS CRIME LAW) - RTR4QSB2

Jerusalem mayor plays with fire in threat to Palestinian homes

The mayor of Jerusalem has threatened to demolish Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem if the Amona settlement is evacuated.

Israeli Druze MP from the Likud party, Ayub Kara, gestures during an interview in Jerusalem on February 21, 2005. Israeli prime minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu denies he had asked a MP from his hawkish Likud party to meet a Syrian figure, his spokeswoman said on March 11, 2009. "We flatly deny Ayub Kara was sent on our behalf or that he transmitted a message from Netanyahu," Dina Libster told AFP. Ayub Kara, a Druze minority MP, said on March 10 he had met an "important Syrian Allawite leader" who e

The trouble with Israel's deputy minister

Israeli security officials accuse Deputy Minister Ayoob Kara of revealing an affair under gag order, thus endangering lives.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrives to visit a Qatari-funded rehabilitation and artificial limbs hospital in the northern Gaza Strip June 28, 2016. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem - RTX2IMA5

Half a million Palestinian children send letters to Ban Ki-moon

Half a million Palestinians wrote letters to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as part of a campaign to shed light on Israel’s detention of Palestinian children.

Israel's new man in Ankara could be in for bumpy ride

The choice of prominent diplomat Eitan Naeh as Israel’s ambassador to Turkey is a clear sign of the importance his government places on fixing the relationship, but though he's being magnanimously received in Turkey, he'll have his hands full clearing the path to normalization.

Israeli Housing Minister Uri Ariel speaks to reporters at a ceremony announcing the resumption of construction of an Israeli neighbourhood in East Jerusalem August 11, 2013. Israel moved forward on Sunday with plans to build nearly 1,200 new homes for Jewish settlers holding fast to a defiant settlement policy just days before its expected release of Palestinian prisoners. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX12HFR

Israeli minister's gift gaffe leads to awkward standoff with Russians

When Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev visited Israel, Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel impulsively offered him the expensive drone he was admiring in an incident that amused but also concerned Israelis.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas attends a meeting for the Central Council of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, March 19, 2015 file photo REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman/File photo - RTSR1TC

Is Abbas persecuting supporters of his rival?

Ahead of the Fatah conference, activists are claiming that President Mahmoud Abbas persecutes all those suspected of supporting his exiled rival, Mohammed Dahlan.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem November 13, 2016. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTX2TEZ9

Netanyahu prefers an uninvolved Trump

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hopes that President-elect Donald Trump won’t invest his energies in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.