As Israel’s gas exports to Egypt and Jordan have stopped and restarted three times since October 2023, Azerbaijan’s state oil company, known as SOCAR, has moved into every layer of Israel’s energy business at once. Those positions came together publicly at the 31st Baku Energy Forum and the first Azerbaijan-US Economic Dialogue. They provide backup supply when Israeli gas goes offline, as it did for 32 days during the Hormuz war. Israeli energy security analyst Elai Rettig of

Representatives from NATO militaries and European defense companies came to a series of field demonstrations of a critical Israeli system shown by Elbit Systems Ltd’s Swedish subsidiary, Walla reported. The system is now a basic capability for a modern army, but many NATO militaries still lack it because of years of neglect in defense buildup since the end of the Cold War. Now, as several European militaries fear a possible war with Russia, that gap is even more evident. “The

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis said that they would ban Israeli maritime navigation in the Red Sea, adding to challenges for global shipping through the Middle East during the Iran war. The group said in a statement it had launched an attack on Israel and enacted a total ban on Israeli shipping in the Red Sea, warning of further ‌escalation. The Red Sea, leading to the Suez canal, is a crucial shipping lane in its own right, and during the Iran war has become the main alternati

A swarm of Moroccan locusts is wreaking havoc upon eastern Iran’s agricultural sector, according to Iranian media reports and footage showing large numbers of the insects descending on affected areas. Primarily feeding on grain crops, date palms, citrus fruits, fruit trees, olives, and figs, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has described the species as “one of the most serious pests of many cultivated plants.” Iran has now entered its sixth consecut

The partnership between India and Israel is fortified by shared problems, mentalities, and opportunities, and the friendship between the two nations is only set to grow in the future, a group of Indian political figures, entrepreneurs, activists, influencers, journalists, and commentators told The Jerusalem Post. “Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu, what they cemented during this visit was that we are civilizational partners,” said Vijeth Umbalagodu T

Amid attempts by some in Israeli society to prevent women from serving in combat roles in the IDF, the air force is quietly establishing a special commando unit, similar to the General Staff Reconnaissance Unit, composed entirely of female soldiers. An IDF official said that its creation represents a broader shift in the mindset of the IDF, and the air force in particular, toward integrating women into significant and complex combat roles. The air force noted that after the w

Armenian prime minister Nikol Pashinyan gave the red-carpet treatment, with a military band, to EU Council chairman António Costa and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen for a first-ever EU-Armenia summit in Yerevan. They also signed a six-page declaration celebrating the “historic milestone” in relations and envisaging EU investment in solar energy, transport links, and the AI and digital sectors in Armenia. Pashinyan said the EU investment blueprint and legal

Brazil was set to join other Latin American countries that have shortened working hours after the lower house of the Brazilian parliament approved a constitutional amendment establishing a 40-hour, five-day workweek. Currently, Brazilians work five eight-hour days and four hours on a sixth day for 44 hours total. The amendment would end the six-day workweek without reducing pay for at least 37 million people and establish a 40-hour weekly work limit. It would guarantee two co

Hong Kong has overtaken Switzerland as the top global booking center for cross-border wealth, ‌a first that is unlikely to be reversed as hubs in Asia grow faster than the European safe-haven, Boston Consulting Group said. Wealth from China and an IPO boom in 2025 helped Hong Kong rise to a $2.95 trillion offshore behemoth for the world’s rich. Hong Kong is cementing its role as China’s gateway to global markets, though that same concentration ties its trajectory tightly to e

Germany has seen a rise in the number of people seeking German citizenship since it made it possible in mid-2024 for people to have passports from multiple countries and reduced the required time of residence to five years from eight. The statistics come from 14 of Germany’s 16 federal states, with data still lacking from the eastern states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Saxony-Anhalt, according to Welt am Sonntag. Several municipalities reported that naturalization numbers we

Nearly 80% of Gazans are interested in emigrating from the Gaza Strip, according to a recent survey the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) shared with senior Israeli officials. Since the war began following the October 7 massacre, more than 44,000 Gazans—including medical patients and individuals holding visas for third countries—have exited the Strip through the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings. -www.jpost.com, 18 May 2026 Commentary: According t

New research from the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) uses C14 dating of preserved organic samples taken from one of two ancient fortresses in the Arava in southern Israel. The findings suggest they were built by the biblical kingdom of Israel almost 2,800 years ago, and not by the Assyrian empire decades later. With no systematic data or information to rely upon, the consensus among scholars was that the fortress, built over a perfect square measuring 100 meters (328 feet

Canada, the EU, EU-aspirant, and other European states have pledged closer alignment in the face of Russian and US geopolitical threats. “It’s my strong personal view that as the international order will be rebuilt, it will be rebuilt out of Europe. And so I’m very appreciative of the symbolism of this invitation,” said Canadian prime minister Mark Carney at a European summit in Yerevan. “We are the most European of non-European countries,” he added. The Yerevan summit of the

Israeli defense electronics company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems has unveiled Storm Shield, a compact electronic warfare system designed to protect unmanned aerial vehicles operating in highly contested airspace and anti-access/area denial environments. With electronic warfare being widespread, and so many unmanned aerial vehicles, especially tiny ones, being activated, it is difficult to find a solution in the market. Therefore, Rafael created Storm Shield, which provides

A leading German media executive declared that he was “a goy” (non-Jew) and “a Zionist,” telling the World Jewish Congress in Geneva that the free world must confront antisemitism, anti-Zionism, and online radicalization before they undermine Western democracy itself. Mathias Döpfner, CEO of Axel Springer, the owner of Politico and Business Insider, delivered the remarks at a WJC (World Jewish Congress) Governing Board gathering marking 90 years since the organization was fou

China loves electric cars: making them, driving them and selling them to the rest of the world. But despite growing global interest in the innovative sector, Chinese electric cars remain out of reach for consumers in the world’s second-largest auto market, the United States. Advanced technology and affordable prices have driven the explosive success of Chinese electric vehicles such as BYD’s Sealion 06, a midsize SUV that “NBC Nightly News” took on a test drive in Beijing. Th

Russia test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile as part of efforts to modernize the country's nuclear forces, a launch hailed by President Vladimir Putin just days after his claim that the fighting in Ukraine is nearing an end. The Sarmat—designated “Satan II” by NATO—is meant to replace about 40 Soviet-built Voyevoda missiles. Its development began in 2011 and before now, the missile had only one known successful test and reportedly suffered a massive explosion du

An Israeli citizen said that the Belgian consulate denied her request to renew her long-held Belgian passport because she lives in the Pisgat Zeev neighborhood of Jerusalem, located beyond the Green Line. Annabelle Herciger-Tenzer told Channel 12 news that after submitting the request, she received the following response from the consulate: “After reviewing our population registry records, we found that you reside in a settlement that is not recognized under international law

Syria has selected an offshore location for its first deep-water oil and gas exploration project involving US energy company Chevron and Qatar’s UCC Holding, the Syrian Petroleum Company. Syria’s territorial waters in the eastern Mediterranean are considered strategically important due to major natural gas discoveries in recent years involving Egypt, Israel, Cyprus and Lebanon. According to Tawil, onshore oil production had previously served as a central source of state reven

China has issued a new proposal urging cities to integrate youth development into urban planning, housing, health care, education and public services, in a broader push to make urban life more supportive for young people, children and families. Authorities are trying to reverse China’s demographic decline after official data showed births fell to 7.92 million in 2025, with the birth rate dropping to a record low “By 2030, the concept of youth-development-oriented cities will