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Israel

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Israel. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Jerusalem

Head of State

President Isaac Herzog

Head of Government

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sign the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement on August 7. Photo: PPI /ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Saudi Arabia

Erdogan wants Turkey-Saudi Arabia-Pakistan defence pact to draw more countries

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has said Istanbul expects Egypt to join the pact ‘in the next stage’.

30 minutes ago

Science

China is sending scientists to Iran for rare earth ‘exploration and processing’

50 minutes agovideocam

US, Israel war on Iran

US says it has fired on ship in Gulf of Oman to enforce Iranian ports blockade

12 Aug 2026 - 4:36AMvideocam

Venezuela

Israel and Venezuela renew consular ties after 17 years of no diplomacy

Move comes after Israel sent aid to Venezuela following recent earthquakes. Venezuela broke ties with Israel after the start of the Gaza war.

12 Aug 2026 - 2:43AM

A Venezuelan flag waves as people search for bodies in Caraballeda, La Guaira, after earthquakes in June. Israel sent aid to Venezuela following the earthquakes. Photo: Reuters

United States

Rights groups sue the Trump administration over ICC sanctions

Lawsuit says Trump’s executive order targeting the International Criminal Court for investigating Israeli crimes in Palestine is ‘illegal’.

12 Aug 2026 - 1:31AM

Diplomacy

Opinion | A strong China is the best hope for the ‘long peace’ to endure

If China’s rise shows it rejects hegemonic ambitions, the hope is that it can make a difference and foster a more peaceful world.

11 Aug 2026 - 8:30PMvideocam

US, Israel war on Iran

Trump demands Iran pay compensation as hopes fade for Hormuz agreement

US president says the issue must be included in future negotiations after Tehran sought damages for US and Israeli strikes.

11 Aug 2026 - 5:55AMvideocam

Black smoke rises following explosions near a military base hosting US forces in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil in July. Photo: AP

China-Middle East relations

‘Islamic Nato’ may create China opening in Middle East

A new military alliance between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey creates a potential gap with the US and the possibility of greater China influence in the region.

10 Aug 2026 - 5:07PM

US, Israel war on Iran

Trump says US ‘low-keying it’ with Iran, playing down urgency over Hormuz

US president calls dealings with Tehran a ‘chess game’ as a diplomatic breakthrough fails to materialise.

10 Aug 2026 - 2:21PM

Middle East

Yemen’s Houthis attack Saudi refinery, testing new defence pact

Rebel strikes hit Jazan oil complex and kill seven in Mocha as Saudi Arabia seals security alliance with Turkey and Pakistan.

10 Aug 2026 - 4:28PM

A drone launching from an undisclosed location in Yemen. Photo: Houthi Military Media Centre via EPA

China-Middle East relations

China waits in wings as Mecca pact signals Gulf move beyond US security umbrella

The Nato-style deal between Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey highlights the growing doubts in the region about over-reliance on Washington.

10 Aug 2026 - 1:15AMvideocam

The defence pact fuelled talk of an “Islamic Nato”. Photo: EPA

Israel-Gaza war

Israel’s Netanyahu rejects Trump’s Gaza plan endorsed by Hamas

Israeli leader dismisses 15-point document for the future of war-torn Gaza in the latest break with the White House.

10 Aug 2026 - 3:26PM

Science

US and Israeli physicists hail China’s glueball discovery as a ‘triumph’

Global experts praise team for solving 50-year-old puzzle, while Chinese social media buzzes with Nobel Prize predictions.

9 Aug 2026 - 6:58PMvideocam

Saudi Arabia

How Saudi-Turkey-Pakistan pact acts as ‘insurance’ over US disengagement

The Mecca deal may emerge as a third geopolitical ‘centre of gravity’ in the Middle East, with more members joining, analysts say.

9 Aug 2026 - 4:00PMvideocam

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (centre), flanked by Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, signing a joint defence agreement in Mecca on Friday. Photo: Turkish Presidency Press Office/AFP

Israel-Gaza war

‘Hopeless’: Palestinian Christians leave West Bank as hardships mount

Christians leave due to the deterioration of the humanitarian and economic situation in the West Bank, clergy members say.

8 Aug 2026 - 11:48AM

Catholic nuns and Christian worshippers attend mass at the Latin Monastery (Deir al-Latin) in the Palestinian Christian town of Taybeh in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Photo: AFP

Americas and the Caribbean

Trump ally Abelardo de la Espriella sworn in as Colombia president

The right-wing ex-lawyer who calls himself ‘The Tiger’ vowed to bomb cocaine labs, build mega prisons and usher in closer ties with the US.

8 Aug 2026 - 2:39PM

China-Middle East relations

Where do China-Israel ties stand after closure of Chengdu consulate?

Amid recent bilateral friction, Beijing has no intention of maliciously damaging relations with Middle East country, analyst says.

7 Aug 2026 - 10:27PMvideocam

Middle East

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan sign joint defence deal

The nations are particularly concerned by the increasingly aggressive military stances of both Israel and revolutionary Shiite Iran.

7 Aug 2026 - 10:53PMvideocam

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan is welcomed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, ahead of the signing of a defence deal between Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Friday. Photo: Turkish Presidential Press Office/Handout via Reuters

US, Israel war on Iran

Iran seeks to bar US and Israeli ships in Hormuz deal with Oman

Tehran pushes for strict transit bans and fees in draft waterway pact as Trump claims negotiations are ‘moving along good’.

7 Aug 2026 - 11:24AM

US, Israel war on Iran

How US became trapped in ‘dreadful situation’ of its own making over Iran war

With Iran holding firm to its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, Trump faces one of two choices: capitulate or risk a ‘forever war’, experts say.

6 Aug 2026 - 3:21PMvideocam

Ukraine war

Why Russia’s ballistic missiles are breaking through in Ukraine

Interceptors are running low, warning times are seconds, and only one air-defence system can stop them.

6 Aug 2026 - 1:53PM

A warehouse in Kyiv on fire after a missile strike on Wednesday. Photo: AP

United States

Progressive Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan primary in jolt to Democrats

He defeated moderate Haley Stevens, who was backed by the Democratic establishment, in a vote seen as a test of the party’s direction.

6 Aug 2026 - 3:50AM

Michigan Democratic Senate primary winner Abdul El-Sayed speaks during a press conference in Detroit statue on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

US, Israel war on Iran

Iran nears Hormuz deal with Oman, conditions reopening on US actions

Tehran agrees to joint route with neighbour across strait, taking effective control of traffic without Washington’s input.

6 Aug 2026 - 12:24PM

Middle East

Netanyahu says Israel didn’t agree to US-backed Gaza plan

The Israeli leader has received guarantees that the Israeli army would only need to leave its current positions in Gaza after Hamas disarms.

5 Aug 2026 - 8:13PM

Hong Kong economy

Hong Kong ship crews stranded in Strait of Hormuz ‘safe and offered counselling’

Industry representative says the stranded crew face little immediate safety risk, though months at sea have affected them mentally and physically.

5 Aug 2026 - 6:21PM

As of July, about 6,000 seafarers were stranded in the Strait of Hormuz. Photo: Reuters

US, Israel war on Iran

US waging war on Iran not worth the cost, most Americans say in new survey

Marquette Law School poll also found 75 per cent of respondents nationwide did not believe the conflict was worth the cost.

5 Aug 2026 - 2:42PM

American forces launch strikes against Iran on July 22. Some 88 per cent of respondents to a nationwide survey believed the US had not achieved its war goals. Photo: AFP/US Central Command

United States

Defunct SpaceX rocket crashes into moon, kicks up dust

The school bus-sized object weighing four tonnes slammed into the lunar surface at 8,690km/h.

6 Aug 2026 - 5:24AMvideocam

United States

US-Saudi nuclear doubt, Boko Haram’s AI terrorism: 7 global relations reads

From US arms promises to EU sanctions and USMCA troubles, here are highlights from the SCMP’s overseas correspondents in July 2026.

4 Aug 2026 - 10:14PM

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Israel

Erdogan wants Turkey-Saudi Arabia-Pakistan defence pact to draw more countries

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has said Istanbul expects Egypt to join the pact ‘in the next stage’.

China is sending scientists to Iran for rare earth ‘exploration and processing’

US says it has fired on ship in Gulf of Oman to enforce Iranian ports blockade

Israel and Venezuela renew consular ties after 17 years of no diplomacy

Move comes after Israel sent aid to Venezuela following recent earthquakes. Venezuela broke ties with Israel after the start of the Gaza war.

Rights groups sue the Trump administration over ICC sanctions

Lawsuit says Trump’s executive order targeting the International Criminal Court for investigating Israeli crimes in Palestine is ‘illegal’.

.css-1pcrwvc{color:#2aa191;}Opinion | A strong China is the best hope for the ‘long peace’ to endure

If China’s rise shows it rejects hegemonic ambitions, the hope is that it can make a difference and foster a more peaceful world.

Trump demands Iran pay compensation as hopes fade for Hormuz agreement

US president says the issue must be included in future negotiations after Tehran sought damages for US and Israeli strikes.

‘Islamic Nato’ may create China opening in Middle East

A new military alliance between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey creates a potential gap with the US and the possibility of greater China influence in the region.

Trump says US ‘low-keying it’ with Iran, playing down urgency over Hormuz

US president calls dealings with Tehran a ‘chess game’ as a diplomatic breakthrough fails to materialise.

Yemen’s Houthis attack Saudi refinery, testing new defence pact

Rebel strikes hit Jazan oil complex and kill seven in Mocha as Saudi Arabia seals security alliance with Turkey and Pakistan.

China waits in wings as Mecca pact signals Gulf move beyond US security umbrella

The Nato-style deal between Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey highlights the growing doubts in the region about over-reliance on Washington.

Israel’s Netanyahu rejects Trump’s Gaza plan endorsed by Hamas

Israeli leader dismisses 15-point document for the future of war-torn Gaza in the latest break with the White House.

US and Israeli physicists hail China’s glueball discovery as a ‘triumph’

Global experts praise team for solving 50-year-old puzzle, while Chinese social media buzzes with Nobel Prize predictions.

How Saudi-Turkey-Pakistan pact acts as ‘insurance’ over US disengagement

The Mecca deal may emerge as a third geopolitical ‘centre of gravity’ in the Middle East, with more members joining, analysts say.

‘Hopeless’: Palestinian Christians leave West Bank as hardships mount

Christians leave due to the deterioration of the humanitarian and economic situation in the West Bank, clergy members say.

Trump ally Abelardo de la Espriella sworn in as Colombia president

The right-wing ex-lawyer who calls himself ‘The Tiger’ vowed to bomb cocaine labs, build mega prisons and usher in closer ties with the US.

Where do China-Israel ties stand after closure of Chengdu consulate?

Amid recent bilateral friction, Beijing has no intention of maliciously damaging relations with Middle East country, analyst says.

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan sign joint defence deal

The nations are particularly concerned by the increasingly aggressive military stances of both Israel and revolutionary Shiite Iran.

Iran seeks to bar US and Israeli ships in Hormuz deal with Oman

Tehran pushes for strict transit bans and fees in draft waterway pact as Trump claims negotiations are ‘moving along good’.

How US became trapped in ‘dreadful situation’ of its own making over Iran war

With Iran holding firm to its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, Trump faces one of two choices: capitulate or risk a ‘forever war’, experts say.

Why Russia’s ballistic missiles are breaking through in Ukraine

Interceptors are running low, warning times are seconds, and only one air-defence system can stop them.

Progressive Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan primary in jolt to Democrats

He defeated moderate Haley Stevens, who was backed by the Democratic establishment, in a vote seen as a test of the party’s direction.

Iran nears Hormuz deal with Oman, conditions reopening on US actions

Tehran agrees to joint route with neighbour across strait, taking effective control of traffic without Washington’s input.

Netanyahu says Israel didn’t agree to US-backed Gaza plan

The Israeli leader has received guarantees that the Israeli army would only need to leave its current positions in Gaza after Hamas disarms.

Hong Kong ship crews stranded in Strait of Hormuz ‘safe and offered counselling’

Industry representative says the stranded crew face little immediate safety risk, though months at sea have affected them mentally and physically.

US waging war on Iran not worth the cost, most Americans say in new survey

Marquette Law School poll also found 75 per cent of respondents nationwide did not believe the conflict was worth the cost.

Defunct SpaceX rocket crashes into moon, kicks up dust

The school bus-sized object weighing four tonnes slammed into the lunar surface at 8,690km/h.

US-Saudi nuclear doubt, Boko Haram’s AI terrorism: 7 global relations reads

From US arms promises to EU sanctions and USMCA troubles, here are highlights from the SCMP’s overseas correspondents in July 2026.

Opinion | A strong China is the best hope for the ‘long peace’ to endure