Edward Finkelstein

Ousted Syrian president Bashar al-Assad is studying Russian and retraining in ophthalmology while living in Russia, according to a report published Monday by The Guardian, which cited a friend of the family as well as sources in Russia and Syria and leaked data.

When gunfire broke out near Bondi Beach in Australia, panic spread quickly among families gathered nearby. 

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar stood before 108 Israeli ambassadors in Jerusalem and declared that Israel “cannot succeed” without revolutionizing its public diplomacy.

Lebanon is finally saying out loud what its political class has been too afraid to admit: the country wants its sovereignty back. 

In an unusual move that cuts against the usual script of mutual accusations and threats, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, has delivered a direct appeal to the people of Lebanon: We want peace, not your territory.

Officially, Europe is outraged. Diplomats queue at microphones to denounce Israel’s conduct, lawmakers compete over who can issue the sternest rebuke, and foreign ministries draft statements soaked in moral urgency.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has appointed his military secretary, Maj. Gen. Roman Gofman, as the next director of the Mossad, Israel’s foreign intelligence agency.

Israel said Wednesday that its first direct discussions with Lebanon in more than four decades were held in a “positive atmosphere,” raising cautious hopes for progress between the two countries, which remain technically at war.

Saudi Arabia’s push to turn mining into a pillar of its post-oil economy got a major boost this week after a leading local operator reported the discovery of around 11 million tonnes of high-potential mineral resources in the kingdom’s southwest.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog hosted on Monday a delegation of Muslim religious leaders from Senegal, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, and Togo in Jerusalem, marking a rare and symbolically powerful moment of interfaith, diplomatic, and strategic engagement.

Israel is about to flip the switch on a new era of warfare. On December 30, the country will fully deploy the Iron Beam, a high-powered laser system built to shoot down drones, rockets, missiles, and mortars—at the speed of light.

Turkey on Thursday strongly rejected the newly signed maritime demarcation agreement between Lebanon and Cyprus, arguing that the deal ignores the rights of Turkish Cypriots and therefore cannot be accepted.