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The study aims at examining the urgent changes in the Israeli position from the Syrian crisis (2011-2017) which came as a result of the complexities of the positions of the conflicting parties to the conflict and the problems it left for Israel in visualizing the final status in line with its strategic interests. This made Israel deal with the crisis from the beginning in a tactical manner, and according to the updates imposed. Thus, the Israeli position on the crisis has undergone several transformations, influenced to a large extent by the development of its events, which is linked to the set of international and regional changes intertwined with it. This position ranged between the state of ambiguity, and sometimes limited intervention during the first years of the crisis, and the sufficiency of relying on the United States to protect its interests, and direct military action after the Russian intervention in 2015, to confront the threats to its national security, represented mainly by the growing of the Iranian controlling power from its northern border. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What are the implications of governmental responses to crises for street-level implementation? The COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique opportunity to compare the formal role that decision-makers require of street-level bureaucrats (SLBs) during a crisis. Textual analysis of 36 legislative documents and emergency regulations in Israel indicates that the additional duties assigned to police officers, teachers, and physicians reflect three interrelated changes in street-level implementation: increased policy ambiguity, higher risk exposure, and expanded discretion. Decision-makers' expectations of SLBs during a crisis highlight the inherent limit of policy-as-written to account for the operational, action-imperative essence of on-the-ground service delivery.Note: In the interests of space, street-level theory and the pandemic context underpinning the articles for this Special Issue are discussed in detail in the Introduction to the Issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]