The US television series inspired by an Israeli prisoner of war drama is to return for a third series.

Homeland, which is based on Gideon Raff's original Hebrew language series Hatufim, will air for a further 12 episodes next year.

The second season is currently being shown in the US and in the UK, with audience numbers on the rise.

Filming is expected to start in the spring, after Homeland's star Claire Danes gives birth to her first child. The initial episodes of both the first and second series were filmed in Israel – in the first instance doubling as Iraq, in the second as a stand-in for Lebanon – but it is not known whether the producers are planning to return in future.

Last month Mr Raff was awarded the Emmy for best writing in a drama series for his work on the show, along with Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon.

Homeland is perhaps the most successful of Israel's crossover hits, although others in the work include Israeli autism drama Yellow Peppers, Pillars of Smoke, a series about a mystery at a secretive commune, and an English-language version of The Gordin Cell, a series following former intelligence agents.