Bezalel Smotrich

Bank of Israel lowers interest rate to 3.5% in response to strong shekel, halt in war with Iran

The Bank of Israel Monetary Committee, headed by Amir Yaron, announced that the national interest rate will be lowered once again to 3.5% as inflation declines and the shekel remains strong.

  New Israeli Shekel banknotes and coins are seen in this picture illustration taken November 9, 2021.
 The High Court of Justice in Jerusalem

High Court proposes canceling Eliyahu’s Israel Land Authority appointment

Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter speaks during a signing ceremony hosted by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (out of frame) at the US Department of State in Washington, DC, on June 26, 2026.

Lebanon deal focused on dismantling Hezbollah, not Israeli withdrawal, ambassador Leiter says

Israeli Minister of Defense Benny Gantz, Israeli soldiers and Israeli veterans and disabled IDF soldiers seen during a march honoring IDF wounded and disabled IDF, in Tel Aviv, November 17, 2021.

IDF Disabled Veterans Organization warns of 'national disaster' amid exclusion in defense budget


Discussion on Goldknopf’s proposal to lower VAT postponed by two weeks

The Tax Authority warns that the move will entail a revenue loss of NIS 8.5 billion per year, which would be funded by cuts or an increased deficit.

Yitzhak Goldknopf

Smotrich claims hostages returned thanks to his opposition to earlier Gaza deal

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said he drew a line with Netanyahu and had a necessary role in returning the hostages after October 7.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich holds a press conference at the Finance Ministry in Jerusalem, May 19, 2026.

Eisenkot files petition demanding Smotrich remove 'manipulative' AI-generated video

Eisenkot’s petition accused Smotrich of attempting to “spread hatred, lies, and mislead voters,” stating that “there is no place for lying, deception, and manipulation in the current election system.

Gadi Eisenkot, head of the Yashar party, holds a press conference with the party’s new member Yoram Cohen in Tel Aviv, May 5, 2026.

Marathon Knesset meetings set to rapidly advance haredi parties’ contentious Torah study bill

The bill seeks to enshrine Torah study in the country’s Basic Law as part of a proposal that critics argue encourages draft evasion and changes the status of yeshiva students who do not serve.

MKS ATTEND a House committee meeting at the Knesset, the Israeli Parliament in Jerusalem, on June 16, 2026.

Grapevine, June 21, 2026: Peace, a distant dream - opinion

Movers and shakers in Israeli society.

Danna Azrieli (8th from left) with Ziv Koren, Noam Horev and former hostages .

Netanyahu: IDF will exact 'very heavy price' from Hezbollah after deaths of four soldiers

"I told the Prime Minister, even in our private meetings: For every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers must weep," Ben-Gvir wrote on X/Twitter.

Lt. Col. Dor Ben Simhon commander of the 52nd Battalion of the 401st Brigade

Editor's Notes: Israel just met the America that comes after Trump - comment

Here is a bet you can hold me to. The respect from the US lasts. The protection that used to come with it does not, and it gets tested before the year is out, probably in Lebanon.

US VICE President JD Vance and President Donald Trump listen to Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the White House, April 23, 2026, during an earlier round of talks. Trump leads now; Vance and Rubio are next. Israel was in the room as an ambassador, not a principal.

'Can't kill your way out of every problem': JD Vance spars with Ben-Gvir, Smotrich over Iran deal

'What is your exact proposal?' Vance asked in an interview with the New York Times • 'Can’t just kill your way out of solving every single national security problem that you have,' US VP says

US Vice President JD Vance speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, US, June 18, 2026

Iran deal turns into global loyalty test as tension builds between Trump and Israel - analysis

Trump remains popular, powerful, and rhetorically committed to Israel’s survival. But his support now comes with public scolding, transactional accounting, and an unmistakable demand from Netanyahu.

US President Donald Trump, with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, holds a press conference during the G7 Summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, June 17, 2026.

Smotrich claims historic Hebron shift as Israel advances new building plans

This is the first approval of its kind since the signing of the Hebron Agreement in 1997, under which restrictions related to the Jewish community were subject to approval by the Hebron municipality.

AN AERIAL view shows the Cave of the Patriarchs, a site sacred to Jews and Muslims, in the city of Hebron, November 2, 2020.