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Ben Sales

Ben Sales

Ben Sales is a news editor at The Times of Israel
News editor Ben Sales appears on the Daily Briefing with host Jessica Steinberg on October 8, 2026 (Flash 90)
October 8, 2026, 2:20 pm
Daily Briefing Oct. 8: Shared grief, deep divisions – Israel marks October 7
News editor Ben Sales discusses the ceremonies held on the third anniversary of the Hamas attack, democratic expectations for election day, and candidates’ reactions to the flydubai attack
By Jessica Steinberg and Ben Sales
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, surrounded by supporters, during an election campaign tour in Ashdod, September 29, 2026. (Liron Moldovan/Flash90)
October 1, 2026, 12:50 pm
Will the flydubai attack save Netanyahu’s struggling campaign?
The PM, with his eye for optics, is leveraging the power of incumbency to link himself with the passengers’ heroism — and suggest that Israel is in too much danger to take a risk on someone new
By Ben Sales
A man walks past a television channel advertisement featuring Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, and his main rival, opposition candidate Gadi Eisenkot, ahead of Israel’s general election, in Ramat Gan, September 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
September 30, 2026, 5:03 am
‘It’s bad’: In a polarized Israel, the likeliest election result is more uncertainty
This may be Israel’s most consequential election ever. But neither side has a clear path to victory and they’re both plagued by infighting. On Oct. 27, don’t expect a reckoning
By Ben Sales
Yousef Jabareen submit the Joint List slate to the Central Elections Committee at the Knesset in Jerusalem, September 8, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
September 28, 2026, 6:00 am
The ban on Arab parties will likely be reversed. To its critics, that isn’t exactly a relief
Often, the most extreme measures — like banning Arab-led parties from the election — get tossed, but their impact can live on
By Ben Sales
September 22, 2026, 2:42 pm
Daily Briefing Sept. 22: Did muting Macklemore make his message louder?
News editor Ben Sales discusses backlash following the dismissal of rapper from Ed Sheeran’s tour and examines why economic platforms rarely win Israeli elections
By Gabriella Jacobs and Ben Sales
Macklemore performs at Austin City Limits Live at the Moody Theater during the South by Southwest Music Festival on March 17, 2023, in Austin, Texas. (Jack Plunkett/Invision/AP)
September 17, 2026, 6:34 pm
The Macklemore battle presents a trap that pro-Israel activists have yet to escape
The cancellation of the pro-Palestinian rapper from Ed Sheeran’s tour is still playing out. But advocates for Israel are still struggling to figure out how to quash anti-Israel invective without drawing even more attention to their opponents
By Ben Sales
People shop at a supermarket in Jerusalem, a day before the start of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, September 10, 2026. (Rachel Alroey/Flash90)
September 15, 2026, 1:57 pm
Israelis are feeling economic anxiety. Why aren’t politicians talking about it?
Voters say they care about kitchen-table issues at a time of rising costs. But in the wake of Israel’s worst catastrophe, and amid political polarization, experts say the path to victory, as always, runs through matters of war and peace
By Ben Sales
News editor Ben Sales appears on the Daily Briefing with podcast host Jessica Steinberg (Flash 90)
September 6, 2026, 1:54 pm
Daily Briefing Sept. 6: Netanyahu has burned bridges. How will that play out at the polls?
News editor Ben Sales discusses the US ambassador’s reaction to violent settlers, pitfalls for the PM in Israel’s upcoming election, and antisemitic similarities on the US political spectrum
By Jessica Steinberg and Ben Sales
Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive candidate in the Democratic primary for US Senate in Michigan, talks poolside with streamer Hasan Piker at a party for content creators supporting his campaign, August 3, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
September 5, 2026, 5:47 am
El-Sayed and Vance call each other ‘evil,’ while both handling antisemitism the same way
The Republican US vice president and Democratic Senate candidate in Michigan each show reluctance to disavow inflammatory supporters, in sign of collapsing firewall between politicians and extremists
By Ben Sales
Ministers Gilad Erdan, left, and Moshe Kahlon, center, alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Knesset on May 20, 2019. (Noam Revkin Fenton/Flash90)
September 3, 2026, 3:16 pm
One-hit wonders keep saving Netanyahu. This time, he might be played out
A constellation of center-right parties could unite to bolster the prime minister, as their now-defunct predecessors have done. But even if they do, it may not be enough to get him a majority
By Ben Sales
Argentina's President Javier Milei sings on stage during a recorded rehearsal for the upcoming Israel Independence Day ceremony in Jerusalem, April 19, 2026. (AP/Ohad Zwigenberg)
August 25, 2026, 2:06 pm
Why Israel is having a moment in Latin America — and what might make it last
Jerusalem is being embraced by right-wing Latino leaders eager to follow the White House’s example, cater to evangelical voters and benefit from Israeli technology. The challenge is to ensure the new warmth is sustained
By Ben Sales
James Fishback (left) and Dan Bilzerian. (YouTube, Randy Shropshire / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)
August 20, 2026, 3:19 am
Trounced in Florida GOP primary, antisemitic candidates believe ‘victory’ is still near
Heavy defeats of Dan Bilzerian and James Fishback show voters are turned off by classical antisemitic rhetoric, yet they may ‘have the wind at their back’ as young Americans increasingly turn against Jews and Israel
By Ben Sales
News editor Ben Sales appears on the Daily Briefing with host Jessica Steinberg on August 13, 2026 (Flash 90)
August 13, 2026, 12:27 pm
Daily Briefing Aug. 13: As election nears, can voters see extremism in their own camps?
News editor Ben Sales reviews Israelis’ concerns about political violence; he also marks 25 years since the Sbarro bombing and reports on the latest in the US political primaries
By Jessica Steinberg and Ben Sales
Police and medics surround the scene of a suicide bombing inside Jerusalem's Sbarro restaurant, Thursday, August 9, 2001. Fifteen people were killed, and 130 injured. A sixteenth victim died in 2023. (AP/Peter Dejong)
August 9, 2026, 11:17 am
25 years ago, the Sbarro bombing opened a wound in Israel that still hasn’t healed
Suicide attack at Jerusalem pizzeria killed 16, including 8 children; a quarter of a century later, a family reckons with its ongoing fight for justice — and a new wave of grief after October 7
By Ben Sales
Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive candidate in the Democratic primary for US Senate in Michigan, speaks during a primary election night event August 5, 2026, at the Majestic Theatre in Detroit. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
August 6, 2026, 3:59 am
Abdul El-Sayed’s Michigan primary win is a watershed moment for anti-Israel Democrats
Progressive in key swing state takes a step closer to the US Senate, after tens of millions of dollars spent by AIPAC, marking a huge victory for opponents of Israel in the party
By Ben Sales
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