Israel - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Israel cover image

Israel

October 11, 2026

Tel Aviv 9:36 am

27°C

The British Consulate General in east Jerusalem represents the British government in Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza during a protest against the recently announced British sanctions, aimed at economic activity in Israeli settlements in the West Bank, on Sept. 14, 2026, in Jerusalem.

Explainer

Israel-UK relations hit new low over settlements, Gaza: What to know

Despite Britain’s ban on goods from Israeli settlements and Israel’s closure of the British Consulate in East Jerusalem, both countries are seeking to keep communication channels open.

GRAND ISLAND, NEBRASKA - OCTOBER 05: U.S. President Donald Trump wraps up an appearance at a campaign rally at Pinnacle Bank Expo Center on the Nebraska State Fairgrounds on October 05, 2026 in Grand Island, Nebraska. Trump is campaigning for incumbent U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE) and Gov. Jim Pillen ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Analysis

Deal or war? Israel fears fallout from Trump’s next move on Iran

Israel is struggling to decipher the White House’s intentions toward Iran, given Washington's contradictions around launching a fresh military campaign.

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

Passengers board a flydubai flight, bound for Dubai, before taking off from Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv, on Sept. 30, 2026.

Mossad, Shin Bet in UAE: What we know about Israel’s FlyDubai probe

The National Security Council is probing foreign carrier security protocols, while police investigate two senior Transportation Ministry officials suspected of providing private services for aviation companies.

Latest News

Why Netanyahu still resists an independent probe 3 years after Oct. 7

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lays a wreath during the state memorial ceremony for the third anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack, at Mount Herzl military cemetery, Jerusalem, Oct. 5, 2026.

West Bank olive harvest begins amid settler attacks on Palestinians, groves

Palestinian men sitting in and by a tractor look on after another man was injured by gunfire whilst being chased away by Israeli forces, in Aqraba in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Oct. 6, 2026.

Analysis

Three years after Oct. 7, Hamas’ grip on Gaza tests Netanyahu’s ‘total victory’

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the state memorial ceremony for the third anniversary of Oct. 7 attack, at Mount Herzl military cemetery, Jerusalem, Oct. 5, 2026.

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

Israel bars UK Greens leader over Zionism-racism resolution: What to know

Green Party leader Zack Polanski delivers his speech during day one of the Green Party annual conference at Brighton Centre on Oct. 2, 2026, in Brighton, England.

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

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

Palestinian children have their picture taken in front of the Dome of the Rock on the compound known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif and to Jews as Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old city, on the first day of Eid al-Adha October 15, 2013. Muslims around the world celebrate Eid al-Adha to mark the end of the Haj by slaughtering sheep, goats, cows and camels to commemorate Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail on God's command. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (JERUSALEM - Tags: RELIGION) - RTX14BUK

Jordan rejects Jewish prayer at Al-Aqsa mosque compound

A bill before the Israeli Knesset would allow Jewish prayer at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound and, if passed, inflame Israel-Jordan tensions.

Palestinian members of the al-Qassam brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, stand guard as they wait for the arrival of Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip December 7, 2012. Hamas's exiled leader Meshaal will step onto Palestinian land for the first time in 45 years on Friday for a "victory rally" in the Gaza Strip, displaying his newfound confidence after last month's conflict with Israel. Meshaal, the Islamist group's leader, who has not visited the Palestinian Territor

Up close and personal with Hamas' Mourabitoun unit

In an exclusive, Al-Monitor gained rare access to one of Hamas' most reputable brigades, the Mourabitoun, which are likely to play a lead role in any future confrontation with Israel.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry steps aboard his aircraft en route to Geneva, after holding private talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv November 8, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX1553K

Will Israel wag the dog on Iran?

The Obama administration is struggling to make the case that Israel will benefit from a nuclear deal with Iran.

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton (obscured) and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (4th R) arrive at a news conference at the end of the Iranian nuclear talks in Geneva November 10, 2013. Zarif and Ashton said on Sunday they hoped Iran and six world powers would reach an agreement when they gather again in 10 days, adding that the latest round of talks on Tehran's nuclear programme was something all delegations can build on. REUTERS/Jason Reed (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS)

Iran and the two Genevas

There is widespread understanding that a nuclear deal on Iran will facilitate progress on Syria.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has his tie adjusted before the arrival of Poland's President Bronislaw Komorowski to their meeting in Jerusalem November 4, 2013. REUTERS/Menahem Kahana/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX14ZOS

Netanyahu faces possible lose-lose on Iran, peace process

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may be right in his vigilance on Iran, but if US-Israel relations suffer, he could find himself with a nuclear Iran and a Palestinian state.

Activists unveil a giant Palestine flag in support of a Palestinian statehood outside the European Union Council in Brussels November 19, 2012. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir (BELGIUM - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3ALZ9

Palestinians Sideline EU on peace process

Despite EU aid, the Palestinian government is not insisting on a more prominent European role in the peace process.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry walks to his plane after a private meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv November 8, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX1553J

The cost of Netanyahu's campaign against an Iran deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's opposition to an Iranian nuclear deal has a cost in US-Israel relations.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heads a special cabinet meeting marking 40 years since the death of David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister, in Sde Boker in southern Israel November 10, 2013. Netanyahu voiced satisfaction on Sunday over the failure of Iran and world powers to clinch a nuclear deal and said he lobbied against it in calls with government leaders. REUTERS/David Buimovitch/Pool (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX157M9

Netanyahu could lose his Iran card

If Tehran and the world powers enter into a long-term diplomatic process that slows down Iran’s nuclear program, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be left without the one major issue that topped his agenda for the past few years.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaches out to shake hands with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Jerusalem November 6, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX151ZB

Will US cave to Netanyahu again?

US Secretary of State John Kerry's blunt words for Israel shows he is withstanding pressure from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but for how much longer?

A general view of the UNESCO headquarters before a ceremony for the "UNESCO-Equatorial Guinea International Prize for Research in the Life Sciences" in Paris July 17, 2012. Rights groups said on Monday UNESCO's decision to award a science prize sponsored by the president of Equatorial Guinea was "shameful and utterly irresponsible". Despite calls to abandon it, the governing council of Paris-based UNESCO voted by 33 to 18 with six abstentions to approve awarding what was originally called the "UNESCO-Obiang

The US-UNESCO tragedy

Is the US role in UNESCO a casualty of Palestine's membership?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he delivers a statement to the media after meeting U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv November 8, 2013. Israel rejected out of hand on Friday a mooted deal between world powers and Iran, just as Kerry prepared to join nuclear talks that aim to nail down an interim agreement on the decade-old standoff. REUTERS/Debbie Hill/Pool (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX1555A

Netanyahu rejects 'deal of the century for Iran'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Secretary of State John Kerry reportedly clash before Kerry headed to Geneva for the Iran talks.

A Palestinian student walks past a mural depicting late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in Gaza City November 7, 2013. Swiss scientists who conducted tests on the remains of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, whose widow Suha says he was poisoned by radioactive polonium, will give a news conference on Thursday on their findings. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CRIME LAW SOCIETY) - RTX153OJ

Despite Swiss report, controversy over Arafat's death continues

The publication of the Swiss inquiry into the death of Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat does not offer an end to the debate over whether he was poisoned.