Herb Keinon

Herb Keinon is a senior contributing editor and analyst, writing extensively on diplomacy, politics and Israeli society.

He has been at the paper for 35 years, 20 of those as its diplomatic correspondent, and during this time has covered up close the major stories that have shaped the nation for more than three decades: from the first intifada to the withdrawal from Gaza; the massive immigration of Soviet Jews to the Rabin assassination; the Ariel Sharon premiership to that of Benjamin Netanyahu.

Keinon also writes a popular monthly "light" column on daily life in Israel. A collection of these columns, French Fries in Pita, was published in 2014.

Keinon lectures widely in Israel and around the world on political and diplomatic developments in the country.

Originally from Denver, Keinon has a BA in political science from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and an MA in journalism from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana.

The United Nations flag over the Jerusalem offices of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestinian refugees.

Israel spotlights UN bias ahead of 2026 vote, but change rests with donors - analysis

Israeli anti-government protesters hold placards during a demonstration against Israel's prime minister and in support of establishing a state commission of inquiry into Hamas' October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel, on Habima Square in the coastal city of Tel Aviv on November 22, 2025.

The inquiry into October 7 can either help heal or deepen Israel’s divide - analysis

CYPRIOT PRESIDENT Nikos Christodoulides (C) holds a trilateral summit with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (R) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the presidential palace in the Cypriot capital Nicosia on September 4, 2023.

Turkey key underlying issue as Israel, Greece, Cyprus hold summit - analysis


Bondi Beach massacre exposes Israel’s limits, forcing a rethink on Jewish security abroad

NATIONAL AFFAIRS: The Sydney attack highlights the need to rethink how Jerusalem approaches the security of Jews far beyond Israel’s borders.

In an age of “globalizing the intifada,” what is Israel’s responsibility for the security of Jews abroad and what are the limits of its reach? A sign reading “Jewish Lives Should Matter, Too” is seen among floral tributes outside Bondi Pavilion in Sydney on Thursday to honor victims

Ankara's absence: Why Turkey’s exclusion from meeting on joint Gaza force matters - analysis

While the world is not beating down the door to send troops to Gaza as part of the second stage of the Trump peace plan, Ankara has said it is ready to send some troops immediately

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan walks after speaking to the media, at the end of the G20 Leaders' Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, November 23, 2025

Shooting at Bondi Beach is what a globalized intifada looks like - analysis

The Bondi shooting was not an isolated act of violence. It was the logical endpoint of the normalization of radicalized anti-Israel rhetoric in Australia.

A member of a jewish community reacts as he stands at the site of a shooting incident at Bondi Beach in Sydney on December 14, 2025. Towels, bags and baby strollers littered Sydney's Bondi Beach Sunday -- the harrowing aftermath of the country's worst mass shooting in years.

Israel's global standing slowly recovers as diplomatic tsunami begins to recede

NATIONAL AFFAIRS: Israel's international standing is shifting, moving from isolation to slow, uneven recovery as global engagement grows.

Has there been a slight shift this week in Israel’s diplomatic outlook? Here, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz speak to the media during a joint press conference in Jerusalem on Sunday.

Waltz in Israel signals a new order for Gaza as UNRWA wins big General Assembly vote - analysis

Waltz’s first major foreign trip since taking office is more than a symbolic gesture; it is the operational rollout of the Trump administration’s Gaza plan.

Mike Waltz and UN Ambassador Danny Danon observe at the US military base in Kiryat Gat on November 9, 2025.

Nakoura talks show Israel's seriousness about security, Lebanon committed to sovereignty - analysis

The Lebanese state is edging towards reclaiming a sliver of sovereignty, while Israel is unwilling to look the other way as the clock runs out.

A war between Israel and Lebanon (illustrative)

Merz visit highlights new strategic, and strained, Germany-Israel bond - analysis

Notably, Germany opposed various sanctions proposals in the EU. It is one of the few countries Israel can count on to at least abstain from one-sided UN General Assembly resolutions.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog (R) and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (L) at the President's Residence in Jerusalem, December 6, 2025.

Trump, trial, and troops: Inside the perfect political storm that triggered Netanyahu's pardon push

NATIONAL AFFAIRS: A sympathetic White House, a punishing courtroom schedule, and a looming coalition crisis over haredi conscription explain the prime minister’s sudden pardon request.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is dealing with a US president who is personally, emotionally, and politically invested in his fate. Trump has never hidden his view that Netanyahu should be pardoned. Here, the two stand together in the Knesset, during Trump’s October visit.

Israel’s new preemptive doctrine collides with Trump’s vision for Syria, Middle East - analysis

The ambush that met the Israeli forces on their way out, and the airstrikes that followed, turned the operation into a diplomatic issue stretching from Damascus to Washington.

US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hold a joint press conference in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, DC, US, September 29, 2025.

Herzog Park name change means more than policy, its an attack against Jewish identity - analysis

The saga over the park in Dublin is not a trivial matter. It is about the right of Jews to be fully themselves in the societies they helped build.

A dog walks next to a plaque on a stone that reads 'Herzog Park' commemorating Chaim Herzog, Israel's sixth president, who was born in Belfast, as Dublin City Council has prepared a motion to rename 'Herzog Park' to 'Hind Rajab Park' after Hind Rajab from Gaza, in Dublin, Ireland, November 30, 2025.