Ruth Pollard
Ruth Pollard is the Middle East Correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Her job takes her throughout the Middle East and North Africa, reporting on the Arab revolutions from Egypt, Libya, Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan, Tunisia and on the conflict in Israel and Palestine.
Obama arrives in Israel, this time as president
Ruth Pollard Barack Obama landed in Israel on Wednesday for the first time as US President, on a mission to ease past tensions with his hosts but facing scepticism about his plans to thwart Iran's nuclear threat.
Support for Israeli PM plummets
Ruth Pollard, Tel Aviv New centre-left party led by former TV presenter wins surprise second place as Kadima party founded by Ariel Sharon is wiped out.
'Australian's suicide in solitary': Netanyahu under pressure
Ruth Pollard Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under pressure to answer questions over allegations that an Australian citizen committed suicide while being held in solitary confinement in the country's...
Peace plans, Obama put squeeze on Netanyahu
Ruth Pollard JERUSALEM: Israel is entering the final phase of its election campaign with an increasingly rocky relationship with the US and under pressure from France and Britain, who are reportedly working...
Labor's star rises in Israel after giving ground on Palestinian peace
Ruth Pollard ''THE left was dying,'' says Stav Shaffir matter-of-factly.
Lapid leans right to rescue Netanyahu
Ruth Pollard As Benjamin Netanyahu scrambled to form a stable coalition on Wednesday, Israel's new political star signalled his intention to join the government, rejecting the idea of forming a centrist "blocking...
Israel's rising star a partner for Netanyahu's coalition
Ruth Pollard As Benjamin Netanyahu scrambled to form a stable coalition, Israel's new political star rejected the idea of forming a centrist ''blocking majority'' to put the brakes on the right-wing Prime...
Centre will not hold as Lapid rejects block on Netanyahu
Ruth Pollard JERUSALEM: As Benjamin Netanyahu scrambled to form a stable coalition, Israel's new political star signalled his intention to join the government, rejecting the idea of forming a centrist ''blocking...
Ruth Pollard
Economy looms large in Israeli elections
Ruth Pollard When hundreds of thousands of Israelis took to the streets to protest against the country's impossibly high cost of living and a deterioration in public services, the anger of the demonstrators was...
Israel's settlement plan sparks protest
Ruth Pollard Israel is facing international condemnation over its plans to significantly expand settlement construction in occupied territory in the West Bank, Fairfax's Ruth Pollard reports.
'Calm must return': truce agreed after bloody Gaza conflict
Ruth Pollard A deal to end the bloody eight-day conflict in Gaza and Israel has been announced in Egypt overnight and took effect at 9pm local time (6am AEST.)
Security Council plans debate as ceasefire hopes dim
Ruth Pollard AS MIDDLE EAST leaders work with the US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, to broker a ceasefire agreement acceptable to Israel and Hamas, United Nations ambassadors in New York announced the...
Chaos in Gaza as Israel steps up bombardment
Ruth Pollard Israel intensified its attacks on the Gaza Strip in the hours before an expected ceasefire announcement, pounding multiple targets in Gaza City and dropping leaflets telling residents in key areas to...
Celebrations greet Gaza ceasefire
Ruth Pollard A deal to end the bloody eight-day conflict in Gaza and Israel came into effect early this morning, drawing hundreds of Gazans onto the street to celebrate after both sides continued to trade rocket...
A fragile peace: in pursuit of a solution
Ruth Pollard As shop owners pushed open their metal shutters and signs of life returned to the streets of Gaza, the scars of eight deadly days of open warfare between Israel and Hamas marked a landscape already...
Tectonic plates have shifted as Gaza wakes to uneasy truce
Ruth Pollard AS SHOP owners pushed open the metal shutters and signs of life returned to the streets of Gaza, the scars of eight deadly days of open warfare between Israel and Hamas marked a landscape already...
Ruth Pollard
Fragile peace
Ruth Pollard As shop owners pushed open their metal shutters and signs of life returned to the streets of Gaza, the scars of eight deadly days of open warfare between Israel and Hamas marked a landscape already...
'Hamas speaks for all' - militants back talks for truce
Ruth Pollard GAZA CITY: Gaza's smaller militant groups are ready to back a Hamas and Islamic Jihad-endorsed truce with Israel, but warn that six days of shelling and air strikes have barely made a dent in their...
Children paying heavy price in Gaza
Ruth Pollard Covered in blood and dust and wrapped carefully in white cloth, the bodies of four young children lie next to each other, two to a drawer, in the morgue of Gaza's largest hospital.
'Deadliest day': children killed in Gaza air raids
Ruth Pollard Covered in blood and dust and wrapped carefully in white cloth, the bodies of four young children lay next to each other, two to a drawer, in the morgue of Gaza's largest hospital.
