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Israel

June 23, 2026

Tel Aviv 1:22 pm

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Former Israeli Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot gives a press conference in Tel Aviv, on December 4, 2018.

Can political novice Eisenkot defeat Netanyahu in upcoming elections?

The former military chief of staff is emerging as the prime minister's strongest rival in upcoming elections, overtaking former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in recent polls.

US President Donald Trump holds a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Palm Beach, Florida, Dec. 29, 2025.

Analysis

How Netanyahu used Lebanon strikes to push back on Trump’s Iran deal

The latest ceasefire in Lebanon leaves Netanyahu squeezed between Washington and domestic pressure.

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

Latest News

'Let Syria take care of Hezbollah': Trump criticizes Israel, leans on Sharaa to help in Lebanon

EVIAN-LES-BAINS, FRANCE - JUNE 16: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a bilateral meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on the sidelines of the G7 summit, on June 16, 2026 in Evian-les-Bains, France. Leaders from the Group of 7 (G7) countries convened in Evian, France, near the Swiss border, for their annual summit to discuss challenges to peace and security for Ukraine and Europe, the situation in the Middle East, and other geopolitical issues. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Get

Explainer

Ben-Gvir's move to run separately in Israel elections revives debate over party alliances

Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir takes part in the Jerusalem Day celebrations on May 14, 2026, in the Old City of Jerusalem.

Analysis

'He knew it was over': Inside Netanyahu’s response to Trump’s Iran deal as Israel recalibrates

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

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

Analysis

Erdogan-Netanyahu war of words signals deeper rivalry for regional influence

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Turkish House in New York on Sept. 19, 2023.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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

Ahmad Khalaf prays outside al-Aqsa mosque after he was released from an Israeli prison, in Jerusalem's old city December 31, 2013. Israel freed 26 Palestinian prisoners on Tuesday, days before U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was due back in the Middle East to press the two sides to agree a framework peace deal. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION) - RTX16YA6

Gazans dream of praying at Al-Aqsa Mosque

Israel has prevented Gazans from traveling to Jerusalem since 2000, but their strong connection with the Holy City is inspiring new campaigns for change.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (R) speaks to his former personal secretary Shula Zaken during his hearing at Jerusalem's District Court September 24, 2012. An Israeli court spared Olmert a prison term over a conviction for breach of trust on Monday, potentially paving his way to a political comeback. REUTERS/Sebastian Scheiner/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS CRIME LAW) - RTR38CUD

Olmert's political comeback crumbles

The grand political plans of former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert suffered a mortal blow with the testimony of his former confidante Shula Zaken, leaving the center-left without a leader for the next elections.

Ultra-Orthodox alliance put to test in municipal election

New municipal elections in Beit Shemesh will test the power of a new alliance of ultra-Orthodox factions.

Ismail Haniyeh, prime minister of the Hamas Gaza government, prays before delivering a speech in Gaza City October 19, 2013. Haniyeh urged rival Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to speed up the implementation of the faltering Egyptian-brokered unity deal to heal six years of political rifts. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX14GN2

Hamas debates technocrat government in Gaza

The loss of financial support from Iran has reportedly contributed to Gaza's current crisis, according to Hamas sources.

M302 rockets found aboard the Klos C ship are displayed at an Israeli navy base in the Red Sea resort city of Eilat March 10, 2014. The ship seized by the Israeli navy on suspicion of smuggling arms from Iran to the Gaza Strip docked on Saturday in Israel, which planned to put the cargo on display in hope of denting Tehran's rapprochement with the West. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3GG0P

Iranian weapons shipment no 'tiebreaker'

The rollout of Israel's seizure of a ship carrying Iranian arms may have disappointed Israeli leaders looking for a public relations windfall.

RAMALLAH, WEST BANK - NOVEMBER 20: In this handout image supplied by the office of the Palestinian president, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (C) meets with Mohammad Barakeh (2L), head of the Israeli Democratic Front for Peace and Equality, on November 20, 2012 in Ramallah, West Bank. Abbas is preparing to make an appeal to the United Nations on November 29 to grant nonmember status to the Palestinian Authority even as leader of Hamas Khaled Meshal holds truce talks in Cairo with leaders from Egypt, Qat

Right-wing Knesset members lash out at Arabs for ratings

Housing Minister Uri Ariel's remarks against Arab Knesset members aim first and foremost to attract headlines, says Arab Knesset member Mohammad Barakeh in an interview with Al-Monitor, but they sometimes serve Arab Knesset members as well.

A rocket is seen on a ship seized by the Israeli navy in the Red Sea in this handout picture released by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) March 5, 2014. The Israeli navy seized the ship in the Red Sea on Wednesday that was carrying dozens of advanced Iranian-supplied rockets made in Syria that were intended for Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, the military said. REUTERS/IDF/Handout via Reuters (MILITARY) ATTENTION EDITORS - FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS.

Israel's 'campaign between the wars' with Iran

The latest capture of a vessel carrying weapons en route to the Gaza Strip reveals Israel's ongoing battle against Iranian attempts to gain a military foothold in the region — while nuclear negotiations follow their course.

An Palestinian activist sits inside a structure in an old village known as Ein Hajla, in the Jordan Valley near the West Bank city of Jericho January 31, 2014. Some 100 Palestinian and foreign activists took part in a campaign to try to resettle the village and to protest Israel's occupation of the West Bank including the Jordan Valley. The graffiti on the wall reads "There is something worth living on this land for" (L) and "Ein Hajla village" (R). REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNRES

Jordan Valley essential for a viable Palestinian state

US Secretary of State John Kerry should work to ensure that full sovereignty of the Jordan Valley is given to the Palestinians to ensure a future state is economically viable.

Is Tel Aviv's vegan craze here to stay?

A vegetarian diet amasses more and more supporters in Israel, but is this a genuine change of heart, a fashionable trend or the latest outlet for an “acceptable” aggressiveness?

Israeli soldiers from Galei Tzahal, the Israeli army radio station, work in the newsroom at the station's studios in Jaffa, south of central Tel Aviv November 10, 2013. The Israeli military operates two radio stations, a news-based station that started broadcasting in 1950, and Galgalatz, a popular music station marking its 20th anniversary. The stations mostly employ soldiers who work alongside civilian presenters, including leading names in Israeli broadcasting. Picture taken November 10, 2013. REUTERS/Ni

Israeli workforce still dominated by men

Unlike other Western countries, Israel invests little in daycare and maternity leave, which explains the concerning data in the state comptroller's latest report on the representation of women in the public service.

Left-wing Israeli activists take part in a rally in Jerusalem in this May 15, 2010 file photo. The weekend rally in Jerusalem by Israelis demanding an end to their country's settlement and occupation of the West Bank was hailed by its left-wing sponsors as the start of a major push that could help U.S. peace efforts. Photo taken May 15, 2010. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun/Files (JERUSALEM - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTR2DYLU

An Israeli leftist finds glimmer of hope

Can this common declaration, written by former Knesset member Einat Wilf and professor Mohammed S. Dajani Daoudi, unite Israelis and Palestinians around the divisive issue of Israel as a Jewish state and Palestine as the Palestinian people's homeland?

U.S. President Barack Obama (R) shakes hands with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as they sit down to meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington March 3, 2014. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3G01E

Netanyahu misreads Obama on settlements

At his address to the AIPAC conference, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ignored the warning by US President Barack Obama that the continued settlement policy would isolate Israel even further.