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Israel

May 19, 2026

Tel Aviv 7:42 pm

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NICOSIA, CYPRUS - APRIL 24: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrives for an informal meeting of European Union leaders on April 24, 2026 in Nicosia, Cyprus. The EU heads of state and government are meeting over two days to discuss the conflict in Iran and the Middle East, including freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, the effects of high fuel prices, and how Europe may contribute to de-escalation and a peace agreement. (Photo by Byron Smith/Getty Images)

Syria's Sharaa renews ban on Israeli imports in customs law: What to know

The renewal comes even as Damascus pursues US-backed security talks with Israel aimed at reducing tensions along the border.

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.

Somaliland's first ambassador to Israel announces embassy in Jerusalem: What to know

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

A bride and group couple rides in a military jeep arriving for a public mass wedding ceremony at Imam Hossein Square in Tehran on May 18, 2026. Iran said on May 18 that it had responded to a new US proposal aimed at ending the war, adding that diplomatic exchanges continue despite Iranian media reports describing Washington's demands as excessive. Washington and Tehran have been swapping proposals in an effort to end the conflict which the US and Israel launched on February 28, but they have held only a sin

Analysis

Israel pushes for full Iran blockade as it awaits Trump's next move

Israel’s preferred strategy, sources told Al-Monitor, calls for a comprehensive naval, economic, land and air blockade of Iran, alongside tighter sanctions and covert activity aimed at destabilizing the regime.

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

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.

Latest News

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

talks

Analysis

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

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.

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

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

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 Barack Obama looks up during his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in New York September 21, 2016. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTSOTI2

Obama’s last chance of ending Israeli occupation

President Barack Obama must now muster the courage to fulfill his 2009 Cairo speech pledge to push for the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Why Israeli Arabs prefer studying in the West Bank

Israeli-Arab students find it difficult to pass the entry exams of universities in Israel that favor Hebrew-speaking Israeli Jews, and prefer enrolling in West Bank universities.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attend a concert, dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the restoration of diplomatic relations between the two countries at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, June 7, 2016. Sputnik/Kremlin/Mikhail Klimentyev/via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - RTSGGFA

Russia emerges as a center of gravity for Israel

Given that Russia’s influence in the Middle East excluding Syria remains limited, Moscow is looking for other entry points — but can Israel offer such an opportunity?

Isaac Herzog leader of Zionist Union, gesture as as he delivers a statement at the party headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israel, May 18, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner - RTSEWFI

Can Israel's opposition leader challenge Netanyahu?

With Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu up again in the polls, Zionist Camp leader Isaac Herzog needs to present to the public a coherent and clear political program in order to defeat him.

Meet the IDF’s new deputy chief of staff

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman decided to act quickly by appointing Maj. Gen. Aviv Kochavi as the IDF’s deputy chief of staff, before the State Comptroller published his report of Operation Protective Edge.

A general view shows Rabin square during a rally commemorating the 20th anniversary of the assassination of late prime minister Yitzhak Rabin in Tel Aviv, Israel, October 31, 2015. Tens of thousands of Israelis attended the rally in Tel Aviv. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RTX1U63N

Israel's Zionist Camp is back in the game

The Labor Party announced that it will organize the annual Yitzhak Rabin memorial ceremony, which was originally canceled for budgetary reasons, thus reconnecting with the Zionist Camp's original political-diplomatic peace agenda.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the opening of the winter session of the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem October 31, 2016. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTX2R7C5

How Bibi is trying to punish Arab MKs for skipping Peres’ funeral

The Arab Joint List rejected Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to boycott the list’s members who were absent from former President Shimon Peres’ funeral, but how long can Israel’s Arab population withstand these Israeli pressures?

Students walk at the campus of the Ariel University Centre in the West Bank Jewish settlement of Ariel September 13, 2012. An Israeli government move to upgrade Ariel University Centre in the occupied West Bank to a full-fledged university has put the 30-year-old school at the centre of a debate at the core of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: how the settlements will figure in defining a future Palestinian state. Picture taken September 13, 2012. To match Feature PALESTINIANS-ISRAEL/SETTLEMENTS REUTERS/Ro

Why Israel is pouring cash into this settlement university

Israel's academics are outraged that Ariel College-turned-University is receiving more funding than any other university in Israel, most of which are far more reputable institutions.

U.S. President Barack Obama meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in New York September 21, 2016. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTSOTEX

Will Obama push for UN settlement-freeze resolution?

US President Barack Obama wants to leave a practical legacy to his successor in the form of a Security Council resolution rejecting West Bank settlements, yet this might have to wait if Hilary Clinton wins the presidential elections.

A general view shows the plenum as Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the opening of the winter session of the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, in Jerusalem October 31, 2016. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RTX2R7SE

Netanyahu's happiness industry

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech at the opening of the Knesset's 2016 winter session was focused on the wonderful situation of Israeli citizens while ignoring the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and growing disparities within Israeli society.

A Houthi follower carries a mock missile as he shouts slogans during a demonstration against the United Nations in Sanaa, Yemen, July 5, 2015. Hundreds of supporters of the Iran-backed Houthi rebels took to the streets of the Yemeni capital on Sunday to protest against the United Nations and its alleged support of Yemen's exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. REUTERS/Mohamed al-Sayaghi - RTX1J485

What recent Houthi moves in Red Sea mean for Israel

Houthi assaults against US and UAE vessels should indicate to Israel that control of Red Sea waters might be at stake.

Israel's Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (2nd L), Defence Minister Shimon Peres and Security Advisor Ariel Sharon (R) walk together during a visit to an army base in the Golan Heights in this file picture taken December 11, 1975 and released by the Israeli Government Press Office (GPO). REUTERS/Yaacov Sa'ar/GPO/Handout (POLITICS) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. ISRAEL OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN ISRAEL. BLACK AND WHITE ONLY - RTR2UFU7

How political struggles are blurring Israel's national memory

Israel's love for its assassinated heroes is proving fickle, with Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin’s legacy of peace diminishing by the year while the right builds up that of far-right tourism minister Rehavam Ze’evi.