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Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter – 17 May 2026

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Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

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What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF –11-14 May 2026
(Click on the blue title)



Lay of the Land’s Photo Pick of the Week

BEYOND BOOS AND BOYCOTTS

As much as they try pull Israel down, it Rises, Survives and Thrives – 2nd place at 2026 Eurovision in Vienna

It was a triumphant finish at the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest in Viena for Israel in a year filled with many European governments, broadcasters, and artists all conspiring to prevent Israel from competing. They failed – and this is the second year running that Israel has finished in second place. Watch here: https://youtu.be/E2aL4xRzNXI (photo: Georg Hochmuth / APA / AFP via Getty Images)



ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

JEWS IN EVERDAY LIFE – WHEN VISIBILITY IS A RISK

How do you raise a child to feel proud, rooted, and secure in their Jewish identity while knowing that visibility can sometimes bring risk – an empathetic look at today’s mental health toll caused by antisemitism.
By Bev Moss-Reilly

Constantly on Alert. Caution entering a synagogue, unease sending a child to school, weary over displaying a Magen David openly, these are routine anxieties of being a Jew today in the Diaspora. While Israeli Jews run to bomb shelters,  their brethren abroad are no less in need of  ‘shelter’.

JEWS IN EVERDAY LIFE – WHEN VISIBILITY IS A RISK
(Click on the blue title)



(2)

MIDTERM ELECTIONS IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Historically the midterm elections result in a loss of seats by the ruling party in the House of Representatives and a small change in the makeup of the Senate.
By Neville Berman

Mindful of the Midterm. The coming midterm elections “will provide the first clue as to what can be expected after Trump leaves office.” Apart from domestic politics, the writer is concerned how it will impact the world and particularly an increasingly targeted Israel.

MIDTERM ELECTIONS IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
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(3)

DOWNTURN IN DUBAI

As regional tensions escalated into direct confrontation with Iran, the impact on Dubai’s tourism sector, so beloved by Israeli travelers, was almost immediate.
By Motti Verses

Calm before the Storm. It is mid-day and before the war, “Pool Ambassador”  Alex from Ghana, dressed in a smoking jacket and top hat, serves juices at the Ritz Carlton in Dubai. Today there are few tourists to serve. An industry as shaky as a tray in one hand over water!

DOWNTURN IN DUBAI
(Click on the blue title)



LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

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While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves.  LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).

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