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Bezalel Smotrich

Minister of Heritage Amichay Eliyahu (left) attends a unity conference at the Knesset in Jerusalem, June 22, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90); Nitzan Alon attends the Herzliya Conference at the Reichman University in Herzliya, July 1, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
Far-right minister says IDF hostage point man ‘to blame’ for Oct. 7 abductions, killings
By Sam Sokol and ToI Staff
Amichay Eliyahu leads coalition backlash against Nitzan Alon for pushing back after Smotrich claimed credit for captives' return, says top general would have enabled Hamas to threaten Israel again
L-R Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in Jerusalem, June 15, 2026 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90) and Nitzan Alon at the Herzliya Conference at the Reichman University, July 1, 2026 (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
July 1, 2026, 1:29 pm
Disputing Smotrich, ex-hostage pointman says more captives could have come home alive
Nitzan Alon says the war could have ended at least a year earlier, but ‘cabinet refused earlier comprehensive deals in the name of total victory, which is a falsehood’
By Emanuel Fabian and ToI Staff
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich presents an assistance program to support Israel's technology and export sectors, Jerusalem, June 30, 2026. (Finance Ministry Spokesperson)
June 30, 2026, 6:53 pm
Israel rolls out NIS 1.6 billion aid plan for tech sector hit by rapid shekel surge
Government says program will help extend eroded financial runway of startups and export companies and enable them to maintain and expand their R&D centers and operations in Israel
By Sharon Wrobel
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich attends a ceremony for the construction of 1,000 new housing units, in Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha, near the border with the Gaza Strip, southern Israel, June 29, 2026. (Tsafrir Abayov/Flash90)
June 29, 2026, 10:21 pm
Smotrich says plans drawn up to establish 3 Israeli settlements in Gaza
Finance minister urges Netanyahu to approve communities in northern Strip, asserts move will boost security; US opposes Jewish settlements in Gaza; move unlikely to go ahead
By Stuart Winer and ToI Staff
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich holds a press conference at the Finance Ministry in Jerusalem, May 19, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
June 29, 2026, 2:05 pm
Smotrich takes credit for return of all hostages; former captive decries ‘gaslighting propaganda’
‘I think it is thanks to me,’ the far-right minister asserts, despite having opposed various deals throughout the Gaza war that would have seen hostages released sooner
By ToI Staff
June 29, 2026, 1:47 pm
Daily Briefing June 29: Can anyone build a coalition without the Haredi and Arab parties?
Political correspondent Ariela Karmel discusses the Knesset’s packed agenda and how Israel’s political parties are positioning themselves ahead of the October election
By Gabriella Jacobs and Ariela Karmel
Illustrative: A man transports boxes of medication from Nablus's Rafidiya hospital to an ambulance vehicle waiting behind a barrier at the entrance to the Palestinian village of Turmus Ayya in the West Bank, on May 6, 2026. (Zain JAAFAR / AFP)
June 29, 2026, 5:50 am
Short of funds for drugs or doctors, West Bank health system falters under Israeli sanctions
A yearlong freeze on transfers of tax revenues has resulted in the debt-ridden PA Health Ministry being unable to provide many services, with physicians striking over inability to help patients
By Nurit Yohanan
Illustrative: Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich addresses the Knesset on January 28, 2026. (Sam Sokol/Times of Israel)
June 25, 2026, 8:20 pm
Smotrich vows long-sought assistance plan for Israeli tech harmed by strong shekel
Amid wave of layoffs and fears that multinationals and local tech will relocate abroad, government set to propose package to help mitigate financial damage created by shekel spike
By Sharon Wrobel
Chairman of the “Together” party and former prime minister Naftali Bennett speaks during a press conference in Tel Aviv, June 15, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
June 23, 2026, 12:17 pm
Bennett calls to dismantle illegal settlement outposts, draws right-wing leaders’ ire
Head of Together party stresses he’s ‘in favor of legal settlement in Area C,’ but not on Palestinians’ private land or areas A and B, which are to be part of ‘Palestinian autonomy’
By ToI Staff
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir waves the Israeli flag as he tours the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City. May 14, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)
June 21, 2026, 2:20 pm
Netanyahu is letting extremist ministers dismantle Israel’s global standing
With allies losing patience over incendiary rhetoric from Ben Gvir and Smotrich, the prime minister’s refusal to rein in his radical cabinet partners threatens to completely isolate the nation
By Tal Schneider
Sgt. First Class Nir Ben Ari, 21, who was killed fighting against Hezbollah in Lebanon, overnight June 19-20, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)
June 20, 2026, 11:01 pm
IDF soldier killed, 13 injured in overnight Hezbollah attack in southern Lebanon
Sgt. First Class Nir Ben Ari is killed amid effort to capture terror group’s ‘strategic’ underground facility beneath Ali Taher ridge; 3 more troops killed in Friday incident named
By Emanuel Fabian
Vice President JD Vance speaks to reporters in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Thursday, June 18, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
June 18, 2026, 11:53 pm
Vance slams Israeli ‘freakout’ over Iran deal, says Trump only world leader who still likes Israel
VP lambasts Israeli ministers who called on Netanyahu to disregard accord, insists Iran won’t get relief without final deal. Scolds Israel: ‘You can’t just kill your way out of solving every problem’
By ToI Staff, Leon Kraiem and Jacob Magid
US President Donald Trump (left) meets with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas during a summit to support ending the two-year Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, Oct. 13, 2025, in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. (YouTube screenshot)
June 17, 2026, 3:18 am
US weighs boosting ties with PA as it seeks to advance Gaza plan and Abraham Accords
Officials tell ToI that sides have been holding talks with aim of signing an MOU, which PA hopes will lead to reopening of DC diplomatic office shuttered in Trump’s first term, but US enthusiasm waning
By Jacob Magid
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich attends a cornerstone-laying ceremony for the new settlement of Doran in the Mount Hebron region of the West Bank, June 16, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
June 16, 2026, 4:55 pm
Smotrich says he’s ‘abolished Hebron agreement,’ given Israel more power in flashpoint city
Minister says he’s undoing accord with PA on zoning authority over Hebron Jewish settlement, Tomb of the Patriarchs, as part of effort to extend control throughout West Bank; US in response warns against annexation
By Jeremy Sharon and Jacob Magid
Left-to-right: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu walks outside his office at the Knesset on June 3, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90); Opposition Leader Yair Lapid leads a Yesh Atid faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, June 15, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90); Gadi Eisenkot, head of the Yashar party, speaks during a conference at Tel Aviv University, May 12, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni/ Flash90); Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich holds a press conference ahead of the vote on the state budget at the Knesset, June 15, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
June 15, 2026, 11:52 am
Ministers say Israel won’t be bound by Iran deal, as opposition castigates Netanyahu’s ‘absolute failure’
Defense minister vows the IDF will remain in southern Lebanon, hit Iran hard if needed, despite Trump-Tehran MOU ending Lebanon fighting; Bennett calls Trump-imposed terms a product of failed Israeli leadership
By Emanuel Fabian, Ariela Karmel, Sam Sokol and ToI Staff
The aftermath of an Israeli airstrike that targeted Hezbollah at a building in Beirut's southern suburbs on June 14, 2026 (Ibrahim AMRO / AFP)
June 14, 2026, 2:55 pm
Israel braces for Iranian missile fire after strike on Hezbollah target in Beirut
Tehran warns attack ‘will not go unanswered’; IDF says it hit command center in Lebanese capital’s southern suburbs, reportedly killing three
By Emanuel Fabian
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