Articles

Internal struggles between factions within the Sepharadic ultra-religious movement Shas are only beginning. The absence of the unifying figure of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef is still sorely felt, and only time will tell whether the rabbinical elite or the Knesset members representing a moderate electorate will gain the upper hand.

The legal basis for deferring military service for Yeshiva students no longer exists, removing legal justification for the transference of funds to religious institutions with students under 26. Funding for Torah study institutions is the most substantial question that needs to be addressed at the current time, when Israeli society is rethinking its relations with the Haredi public. 

With US arsenals stretched to the limit and other allies lining up for their share, it's time to forge a new defense supply channel.

Arab-Israeli public officials are being increasingly targeted by criminals, hoping to get their way through threats, extortion and force ahead of Tuesday's local elections. Running for office shouldn't cost people their lives.

The local elections this week in Israel—taking place at a time of war—have many Israelis asking, perhaps louder than usual, is it actually important to vote in these elections? The answer to this question is a resounding yes.

In Israel, social borders, political demands and the status of women continue to underscore tensions between liberal democratic values and the conservative, ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities.

The US, the UK, France and other states have announced the imposition of economic sanctions on Israeli residents who are believed to be complicit in 'settler violence.' This document aims to outline the framework of international economic sanctions and contextualize the sanctions imposed on Israelis. 

Most Israelis think Palestinian terrorism will remain the same or increase if a Palestinian state were declared. A vast majority (81%) of Israelis think the likelihood of reform in the Palestinian Authority is low, while a majority of Israelis think absolute victory in Gaza is unlikely.

Twenty years into the social media revolution, of which Facebook is the poster child, we need to reassess and renew our fundamental democratic principles.

Over the weekend, Moody’s Investors Service announced that it had downgraded Israel’s credit rating from A1 to A2 and assigned it a “negative” credit outlook. Our policymakers would be well advised to study the risk analysis and assessment in Moody’s report closely and to take all possible steps to mitigate the risks. 

Foreign Israel critics use advancements in AI, including ChatGPT, to misrepresent their actions through Hebrew translations; addressing this requires international laws to make AI developers accountable.

Israeli reserve soldiers are making unimaginable sacrifices to protect their country. To rise to the challenge of meeting the IDF's expanded personnel needs, Israel's policy solutions must be as diverse as are the reservists serving this nation. A "one-size-fits-all" compensation approach will not cut it. 

How are elections in ultra-Orthodox municipalities different from those in non-orthodox local authorities? Are they comparable to the Arab community? A survey an analysis of the political structure of Haredi local authorities. 

From a historical perspective, the proportion of female heads of local authorities in Israel has been extremely low—essentially negligible throughout most decades. How does women’s representation in local authorities during the first two decades of the 21st century compare?

59% of Jewish Israelis oppose a deal that would lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state with guarantees from the US and peace agreements with Arab states such as Saudi Arabia; when asked to choose, 51% of Israelis said they think the main goal of the war should be bringing the hostages home and 36% think it should be toppling Hamas; half of Israelis think the ICJ ruling, issuing temporary measures, to be harsh.

Minister of the Economy Barkat's decision to remove Adv. Michal Cohen from her role as Director of the Competition Authority compounds a two-pronged problem. On the one hand, the diminishing number of women in Ministry leadership roles, and on the other, increased political interference in professional authorities, risking their independence and professional standards. 

A decision to allow Palestinian workers back into Israel is not at all a simple matter. Despite recommendations by Israel's security agencies to allow entry to Palestinian workers, the Ministers of Construction and of the Economy oppose it for security reasons. As alternative solutions to the severe shortage of workers are unsatisfactory, we must ask ourselves whether we, as a country, are prepared to withstand another socioeconomic crisis.

Since the Knesset passed Amendment 44 to regulate the possibility of impeaching MK's in 2016, no request has been made, making the case of MK Ofer Cassif unprecedented. An MK can be expelled if the Knesset finds that his or her actions constituted incitement to racism or support of an armed struggle against Israel. 

In a few weeks elections will be held in local authorities across Israel. While they were originally scheduled for October 31st, 2023, they were postponed due to the outbreak of war. Elections during wartime raise a slew of challenges that are exceptional to the circumstances. Find out everything you need to know about wartime local elections in Israel.

In its order on provisional measures, the Court appeared to engage in transactional justice. It used harsh rhetoric to describe the catastrophic situation in the Gaza Strip while minimizing the impact of the order by adopting ambiguous language on the contents and scope of the plausibility test.

Elections to the local authorities in Israel take place every five years. The original date of the elections was October 31st, 2023, but due to the outbreak of the war, the elections were delayed and will take place on February 27th, 2024.

While neither Israel nor South Africa achieved a complete win, one thing is clear: the story of Israel before the ICJ is only beginning

While the ICJ decision briefly mentions the immediate context of the lawsuit, namely the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, Judge Barak directs them to the full picture that they did not address. He writes about the events of October 7 as Israelis know them to be true.

Prof. Amichai Cohen, a senior fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute and an expert in international law, made the following comments on the International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision today regarding provisional measures in the case of South Africa v. Israel on the Application of the Genocide Convention.

Beyond the fact that the Torah does not make the call to commit genocide, the Tanach and its interpretations in fact obligate the Jewish people to abide by the laws of war. To a large extent, humanity's earliest laws of war can be found in the Bible. 

Most Jewish Israelis expect the war to continue for months, while a majority of Jewish respondents oppose a deal for the release of the hostages in return for the release of all Palestinian prisoners and a cessation of the fighting in Gaza. Meanwhile, over 60% of Israelis claim that their personal lives have returned to normal. 

This survey was conducted in order to assess public opinion regarding the preferred economic policy in light of the war in Gaza, to identify the main areas of concern to the public, and to examine the public’s views on various social issues.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) at the Hague held public hearings in the case against Israel for alleged violations of the Genocide Convention. In this essay we address three aspects of the case: the ways the parties framed the events, the request to suspend Israeli military operations, and the conditions for issuing provisional measures. 

Recently, a new answer to the dilemma of the 'modern Haredi' has been advanced enthusiastically by Rabbi David Leibel, one that maintains religiosity while increasing civic participation in the economy and in defense of Israel. 

Two judgments issued by the Supreme Court in the first week of 2024 deal a decisive blow to the Netanyahu government’s efforts to radically rebalance the branches of government.