Why we publish The Times of Israel in Arabic and Persian

Did you know that we publish an Arabic version of The Times of Israel? And a Persian version for Iranian readers? Why we do so goes to the heart of The Times of Israel’s mission.

Soon after we started The Times of Israel a decade ago, we recognized a problem: Israel news in Arabic and Persian media is often obstructed by ideological filters that prevent factual reporting. This distortion does a great disservice to the millions of Arabic and Persian readers in Israel’s region and worldwide, and significantly hampers Israel’s ability to reach common ground with its neighbors.

We believe that independent, truth-based journalism is essential to maintain not only the democratic foundations of the State of Israel, but also an accurate picture of Israel in the eyes of the all-important Arabic and Persian-reading populations.

So we started our Arabic and Persian sites, staffed in Israel by native Arabic and Persian-speaking editors. The readership of these sites is now substantial, and as they continue to grow we hear our readers’ demand for direct interaction with the real Israel, rather than a distorted version. This affirms a core principle of our editorial ethos: covering day-to-day life is essential to illuminate the complex shades of Israel – not ignoring, but going far beyond the endless cycle of conflict-related news.

We believe this work is essential to Israel’s future. But it’s expensive and cannot be supported by advertising alone. If you agree that representing Israel honestly to millions of Arabic and Persian readers worldwide is critical, would you please consider supporting our work by joining The Times of Israel Community today?

JOIN OUR COMMUNITY OF SUPPORTERS

Thank you most sincerely for your support,

The Times of Israel team