Middle Israel

Middle Israel: Roman Gofman's Mossad successes will be measured by Barnea's failures - opinion

After targeting Iranian nukes and missiles, the spy agency should now focus on dethroning the mullahs and confronting the "Anti-Zionist International."

|ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
ONE OF the Mossad’s notable failures is the botched assassination attempt of then-Hamas leader Khaled Mashal in 1997. The organization’s incoming chief, Roman Gofman, will need to both examine and reform the Mossad’s inner workings.
Yariv Levin (left), Benjamin Netanyahu, and Itamar Ben-Gvir in the Knesset last year. The question is whether this brazen effort to bury the truth will work, and the answer is it won’t.

Denial as policy: Why Israel's government fears a real October 7 inquiry - opinion

Middle Israel: A century after Hindenburg turned failure into a “stab-in-the-back,” Israel’s government now takes a page from his book.

|ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir speaks to Israeli soldiers near the Gaza border, October 9, 2025

Two years on: How the Israel-Hamas War is a landmark in military thinking - opinion

MIDDLE ISRAEL: As the war that began with Hamas’s massacre turns two, the question is what impact, if any, should it have on military thinking, in Israel and elsewhere.

|ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
US President Donald Trump in the Oval office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, September 30, 2025

How US President Donald Trump is boxing Israel, Hamas into a Gaza deal - analysis

To get to “yes” on both sides, Trump reached into his toolbox of his concept of dealmaking - as well as his own doctrine about big ideas and peace in the Middle East.

|BySETH J. FRANTZMAN

To recover, Democrats must expel anti-Zionist extremists who put off Middle America - opinion

The Democratic Party’s defeat has many causes, but its anti-Zionist wing has clearly contributed to its electoral collapse.

NOVEMBER 9, 2024ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
THE DEMOCRATIC Party has faced a tightening siege by radicals – some, like Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, with a Middle Eastern agenda. Here, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) speaks, as Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Massachusetts), Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota), and Rashida Tlaib (D-Michigan) listen

There’s no question, everyone should vote Trump - opinion

If you care about the future of America, if you care about the safety and security of Jews in America, if you care about the US-Israel relationship - then pull the lever for Trump.

OCTOBER 28, 2024ByARYEH LIGHTSTONE, SHMUEL WINIARZ
REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL nominee and former US president Donald Trump speaks on Saturday during a campaign rally in Novi, Michigan.

Farewell Baghdad? Iran shifts to consolidate its power in Iraq - analysis

Iran consolidates its influence in Iraq through Shi'ite militias, using the country as a hub for regional power projection, targeting Israel, and aligning with proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas.

SEPTEMBER 27, 2024ByJONATHAN SPYER
A VEHICLE carrying the coffin of a commander from Iraq’s Ktaeb Hezbollah armed group, who was killed in what the militia called a ‘Zionist attack’ in Damascus on Friday, is seen during a funeral in Baghdad on Sunday.

Netanyahu faces backlash at hostage shiva, signaling political isolation

Middle Israel - The Netanyahus’ shiva call to the Danino family laid bare the prime minister’s social detachment, moral bankruptcy, and political demise

SEPTEMBER 13, 2024ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
THE FAMILIES OF Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alex Lobanov, and Almog Sarusi meet in Tel Aviv in September.

Weeping with Rachel: The plight of the Goldberg-Polin matriarch - opinion

Middle Israel - In the wake of the October 7 attack, Rachel Goldberg-Polin emerged as a powerful voice for hostage families, capturing hearts worldwide.

SEPTEMBER 6, 2024ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
RACHEL AND JON Goldberg-Polin attend the funeral of their son, Hersh, on Tuesday, in Jerusalem.

For Jerusalem, Armageddon is part of life - opinion

Persia ruled over Jerusalem twice, resulting in starkly contrasting periods. In light of of a pending attack and Tisha b'Av, which one are we in today?

AUGUST 9, 2024ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
ISRAELIS GATHER to hear the annual reading of ‘Lamentations’ on the eve of Tisha B’Av outside of Independence Hall in Tel Aviv, last year.

Erdogan's rule crushes freedom, incites unnecessary escalation - opinion

It could have been different. Turkey could have been a great engine of world peace, a natural mediator between Arabs and Jews, but for now, it must endure yet more of the man who crushed its freedom.

AUGUST 2, 2024ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
Recep Tayyip Erdogan (seated) attends a meeting of the heads of state of the North Atlantic Council, Indo-Pacifc Partners, and the European Union at the 2024 NATO Summit in Washington, DC, last month.

Draft evasion is not God’s will, and shouldn't be treated as such - opinion

Monday’s draft-evasion vote was worthy of Sodom, which outlawed justice and legalized crime.

JUNE 14, 2024ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
DESPITE THE IDF’s calculation that it needs 7,000 new troops, the vote to revive an older haredi draft bill was approved by the majority of the Knesset members.

Israel-Iran alliance: Jerusalem's arm sales to the Islamic Republic during Iran-Iraq War

Clandestine Israeli sales of military equipment helped turn the tide of the war and prevent Iran from falling to Saddam’s forces.

JUNE 14, 2024ByALEX WINSTON
Snapshots illustrating the relationship between Israel and Iran

Hamas can be defeated by rendering it insignificant in Palestinian arena - opinion

Israel can still stabilize the northern part of the Gaza Strip, allow local authorities to operate, while removing Hamas-affiliated officials.

MAY 29, 2024ByUDI DEKEL
Palestinian fighters from the armed wing of Hamas take part in a military parade to mark the anniversary of the 2014 war with Israel, near the border in the central Gaza Strip, July 19, 2023.