07.15.2026 Coalition Decides: Elections to Be Held on October 27, the Original Date On May 20, the Knesset approved in a preliminary reading a bill to dissolve the Knesset and bring forward the elections, with the support of the coalition, following the escalation of the crisis between the Likud faction and the ultra-Orthodox factions. More recently, reports have indicated that understandings have been reached between Likud and the ultra-Orthodox parties, apparently removing the need to hold early elections. By Asaf Tzvi
07.14.2026 Avi Dabush, The Democrats: “Voting in Israel Is Class-Based. If We Remain a Secular Centrist Party, We Will Have a Problem” Avi Dabush, a resident of the Gaza border communities and Executive Director of Rabbis for Human Rights, is running for a spot on The Democrats’ Knesset list. He seeks to bring new communities into the party’s leadership and voter base. He grew up in Ashkelon and shaped his political identity through protests against the Oslo Accords. Now he argues: “We walk around Sderot and Ofakim and hear nostalgia for the Rabin government.” By Nizzan Zvi Cohen
07.13.2026 National AI Program Requires Large Data Centers; Concerns Over Strain on the Electricity Grid The government seeks to accelerate the construction of data centers to avoid falling behind in the global AI race. However, local authorities and civil society organizations warn of planning challenges, the transfer of land and energy resources to private developers, and electricity consumption “on the scale of a small city.” By Yoel Rothschild
07.13.2026 The War in Syria Has Changed the Status of Druze Women A study by Dr. Janan Faraj Falah of the University of Haifa examined the dramatic shift that occurred in the traditional social structure of the Druze community in the As-Suwayda Governorate: “They had a dual role: both providing support at home and physically fighting on the ground, and the surrounding society did not object to their leaving the home for the purpose of defense.” By Yael Alantan
07.12.2026 "A Serious Blow to the Principle of Equality": Government to Cut Half a Billion Shekels from Program to Combat Crime in Arab Society The government secretary informed ministries that the budget will be transferred to the police and the Shin Bet. | CEO of Jewish Arab nonprofit Sikkuy-Aufoq: "It is not enough to rely only on police force; there is also a need to address the social, economic, and infrastructural roots of crime." By Yaniv Sharon
07.12.2026 The Question Israel Can No Longer Afford to Postpone The cost-of-living crisis, the housing shortage, public transportation, food security, and climate change are not separate challenges but different manifestations of the same fundamental question: how can Israel build a prosperous economy that is not defined solely by economic growth? To do so, policymakers must redefine the development model the country seeks to pursue. By Amit Ben-Tzur and Oded Kinan
