Advertisement
Advertisement
TOPIC
 / people

Bezalel Smotrich

Bezalel Smotrich
The latest news and top stories on Bezalel Smotrich, a prominent Israeli politician. Known for leading the Religious Zionism party, he assumed his current role in 2022, also gaining significant oversight of Israeli settlements in the West Bank. He has a background in law and previously served as Minister of Transportation. His work involves economic policy, budget management and advancing settlement expansion. Key accomplishments include co-founding Regavim, an organisation focused on land use, and promoting legislative changes like parental credit points. He is a controversial figure, known for his far-right views and opposition to Palestinian statehood.
A Lebanese security serviceman stands near the site of a flat targeted by an Israeli airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburbs, Lebanon on Sunday. Photo: EPA
Israel-Iran conflict

Israeli strikes on Beirut foil US peace plans, Iran says ‘no point’ in talks

Israel struck Beirut’s southern suburbs on Sunday, an attack US President Donald Trump said ‘should not have happened’.

14
Middle East

Israel steps up Lebanon strikes to ‘crush’ Hezbollah

Middle East

Israeli far-right ministers want ‘return to war in Lebanon’ despite peace talks

videocam
Israel

Israel adds US$10 billion to its war chest with defence budget increase

Opposition calls 2026 budget ‘greatest theft’ in Israel’s history as the government protects settlement funds while cutting public services.

videocam
An Israeli soldier walks on the rubble caused by an Iranian missile strike on Tel Aviv, Israel, on March 24. Photo: dpa
Israel

European countries appeal to Israel to abandon plans to revive death penalty

Foreign ministers from France, Germany, Italy and the UK expressed concern about the bill which opponents say would target only Palestinians.

videocam
Israel

Israel’s ‘de facto sovereignty’ of West Bank condemned as illegal annexation

Ministers admit new land rules aim to block a Palestinian state, a move the UN and Arab nations slam as a grave violation of international law.

5
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Donald Trump

Allies tepid on joining Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ as countries study invites

Some leaders sign on to the Trump-chaired body, but initial reaction from two key allies, France and Canada, was lukewarm.

7
US President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida. Photo: AP
Israel

Netanyahu faces backlash over US-backed statement on Palestinian independence

The statement indicating support for a pathway to a Palestinian state infuriated Netanyahu’s conservative and ultranationalist allies.

Israel

Israeli settlers torch West Bank mosque sparking US concern

Israeli settlers torched a mosque, defacing it with hateful graffiti, prompting rare condemnations from officials amid rising tensions.

Israel-Gaza war

‘Insult’: Vance slams Israeli vote on West Bank annexation

The US vice-president says a move by Israeli lawmakers towards that end looks like a stupid ‘political stunt’.

4
US Vice-President J.D. Vance (left) with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the prime minister’s office in Jerusalem on Wednesday. Photo: AFP
Israel

Israel advances West Bank annexation bill during J.D. Vance visit

The UN’s highest court said that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, and its settlements there are illegal.

A boy holds a Palestinian flag during a demonstration against what Palestinians say is Israel’s confiscation of their land, as Israeli security forces stand guard, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Photo: Reuters
Israel-Gaza war

Palestinian Authority plans for major role in post-war Gaza despite US blueprint

The Palestinian Authority seeks a pivotal role in post-war Gaza, leveraging Arab support despite Trump’s sidelining and Israeli opposition.

Israel-Gaza war

Israel and Hamas sign ceasefire and hostage deal, sparking hope for peace in Gaza

The ceasefire will take effect after ratification by Netanyahu’s government, which meets after Thursday’s security cabinet session.

videocam
47
Israel-Gaza war

Trump gives Hamas ‘three or four days’ for Gaza ceasefire deal

Hamas is reviewing the peace proposal ‘responsibly’, but Trump warned that if Hamas does not comply, ‘it’s going to be a very sad end’.

5
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting of senior military leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia on Monday. Photo: Reuters
Israel-Gaza war

Trump says he ‘will not allow’ Israel to annex West Bank after Saudi warning

The US president also held talks with Arab leaders who warned him about the grave consequences of any annexation of the territory.

videocam
Palestinian women mourn during the funeral of a man, who was killed during clashes with Israeli settlers the previous day, in the occupied West Bank village of Al-Mughayyir on Wednesday. Photo: AFP
Israel-Gaza war

Israel’s PM vows there will never be a Palestinian state: ‘this place is ours’

Israeli prime minister speaks at a signing ceremony for a major settlement project in the occupied West Bank.

6
Israel-Gaza war

Israel’s annexation plans fuel fears of Palestinians’ annihilation

What is happening in Gaza is tantamount to ‘the final solution’, an academic says, as Israel also plans to annex most of the West Bank.

28
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Israel

UAE says Israeli annexation of West Bank ‘red line’ for Abu Dhabi

The UAE’s warning is its strongest criticism of Israel since the start of the Gaza war, and raises concerns about the Abraham Accords.

4
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and a woman hold a map that shows the long-frozen E1 settlement scheme, that would split East Jerusalem from the occupied West Bank. Photo: Reuters
Middle East

Thousands of reservists report for duty as Israel begins new Gaza offensive

The call-up comes after the Israeli military chief warned that the offensive would endanger hostages and put further strain on the army.

Israel-Gaza war

Netanyahu demands Gaza City is taken faster than planned

The ‘timeline for conquering the last terrorist strongholds and defeating Hamas’ should be shortened, Netanyahu’s office said.

videocam
4
Israel-Gaza war

Tens of thousands of Israelis protest in capital, calling for an end to Gaza war

The renewed energy of the protest movement came with the recent government decision to seize Gaza City and nearby camps in a new offensive.

7
Demonstrators take part in a protest calling for the return of all hostages and an end to the war in Gaza, in Tel Aviv, Israel on Sunday. Photo: Reuters
Israel

Outrage as Israel moves to bisect West Bank to ‘bury’ Palestinian state

Israel advances controversial E1 settlement plan, sparking condemnation and fears it will lead to ‘many more years of bloodshed’.

videocam
Israeli policemen stand guard near the settlement of Maale Adummim, in a land corridor known as E1, outside Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank on August 14. Photo: AFP
Israel-Gaza war

Israel’s Gaza City offensive may be weeks away, leaving time for ceasefire

Two officials say the evacuation of civilians could take until October, despite Netanyahu’s vow to begin the offensive ‘fairly quickly’.

Israel-Gaza war

Israel’s Netanyahu says new Gaza offensive will start soon

Israeli prime minister says his only choice is to seize Gaza City, as the UN Security Council hears new calls for ceasefire and aid.

Israel-Gaza war

Israeli far-right leaders discuss ‘riviera’ plans for war-ravaged Gaza

As Palestinians face dire humanitarian conditions, a Knesset meeting discusses luxury resorts and Jewish settlement for Gaza.

The sun sets behind destroyed buildings in Gaza on July 1. Photo: AFP
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement