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Israel

June 12, 2026

Tel Aviv 11:23 pm

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Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon close to the Beaufort Castle as seen from a position across the border in the Upper Galilee, in northern Israel on June 4, 2026.

'Pilot zones' offer litmus test for Lebanon to clear Israel border of Hezbollah

As the Trump administration focuses reaching a peace deal with Iran, US officials have been hosting backroom talks between Israeli and Lebanese diplomats aimed at finally resolving the question of Hezbollah’s entrenchment along Israel’s northern border.

US President Donald Trump talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Knesset, Jerusalem, Oct. 13, 2025.

Analysis

'A complete disaster': Israel scrambles for clarity as Trump touts emerging Iran deal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu relayed Israel’s red lines to Trump, but given the current rift between the two leaders, the demands may be little more than a wish list.

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

US President Donald Trump (R) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shake hands as they arrive to speak to journalists during a joint press conference at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, on Dec. 29, 2025.

As Trump casts doubt on Netanyahu's future, Likud rushes to reaffirm support

By questioning whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will run in the next Knesset elections, President Donald Trump may have dented one of the Israeli leader's key political assets ahead of the vote.

Latest News

Explainer

Turkey-Israel tensions flare over Syria, Lebanon, East Med: What to know

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan buttons up his jacket during a press conference after the conclusion of the G20 Leaders' Summit at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg on November 23, 2025.

Analysis

'We are already hearing the bus': Israeli insiders fear Netanyahu is losing Trump’s backing on Iran

US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrive to speak to journalists during a joint press conference at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, on December 29, 2025. US President Donald Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Florida on December 29 for crucial talks on moving to the next stage of the fragile Gaza truce plan.The two leaders also discussed Iran, with Trump saying that if Tehran rebuilt its nuclear facilities the United States wo

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

Knesset's public image in free fall

The Israeli public has lost trust in the Knesset as its members advance anti-democratic legislation and provoke each other into embarrassing public altercations.

B'Tselem field researcher Iyad Hadad (2nd R) listens to a testimony from a Palestinian farmer, who said his land was damaged in an attack by Israeli settlers, in the West Bank village of Turmus Aya near Ramallah June 8, 2015. B'Tselem is an Israeli NGO that has long been a bane of the government, tirelessly flagging human rights abuses by Israel's military in the Palestinian territories. Set up by a group of academics, lawyers, journalists and politicians more than 25 years ago, the organisation - whose nam

The dirty war between Israel’s right-wing and left-wing NGOs

Israeli human rights nongovernmental organizations object to an investigative report by Channel 2 that accuses an activist of plotting against Palestinian land owners selling their property to Jews but stained all the NGOs in the process.

Netanyahu offers royal welcome to new IDF submarine

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu personally welcomed Israel's fifth German-made submarine.

Netanyahu runs against himself in Likud primaries

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is currently the only candidate in the upcoming Likud primary for party leadership that he initiated, and yet he still fears losing to blank ballots.

Have Israelis abandoned any hope for change?

A bitter fate awaits Israel's democracy unless the Israeli silent majority shakes off its learned helplessness.

Palestinian industrial parks: Boon or bondage?

The Jenin industrial project is scheduled to start operating this year, with opponents claiming that such projects are in direct conflict with the Palestinian Authority's goal of becoming a fully independent and sovereign state.

Israel's new head of the Mossad intelligence agency Yossi Cohen attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem January 10, 2016. REUTERS/Gali Tibbon/Pool - RTX21QF0

New Mossad chief brings touch of Bond, lots of reality to the job

Yossi Cohen, the well-groomed new head of Mossad, has a challenging road ahead in adapting his agency to deal with the diverse and convoluted equations of potential threats to Israel.

Israeli media veers right

Israeli media focused on the less significant details when covering the capture of the Tel Aviv gunman, instead of the main story concerning relations between Jews and Arabs in the country.

How Bibi buried plan to develop Israeli Arab sector

Three days after its approval, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has killed a historic plan to invest in the Israeli-Arab sector by imposing three conditions that cannot be met.

Palestinians create digital museum to promote their cause

A group of Palestinian youth and historians created a digital museum to prove the historical Palestinians’ right to the land of Palestine and to challenge the Israeli narrative.

Arab MK says battle for equality, ending occupation 'inseparable'

Aida Touma-Sliman, the only Arab committee chair in the Knesset, talks to Al-Monitor about the need for equality, ending the occupation and women's rights.

Former defense minister condemns Bibi's 'divisive' message

In an interview with Al-Monitor, former Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz insists that despite the current violence, it's time for Israel to present a new diplomatic initiative and "initiate and lead" instead of "blaming the other side."