The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Diplomatic reporter Lazar Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today's show. In today's special longer Friday episode, Berman charts the evolving essential purpose of the IDF, starting with its origins. He speaks of the push-pull of a fledgling organization as both a defensive and offensive body. We learn how the fight for Israel's independence crystallized the need for an easily maneuverable fighting machine that would not hinder the Jewish state's need for a stable economy. Berman explains how first prime minister David Ben-Gurion's solutions worked well -- until with the shifting tides of warfare, they really didn't. In this podcast, the first installment of a two-part conversation, we hear how after a series of wars and political decisions, the stage was set for the IDF's catastrophic failure on October 7. For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog. Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves. IMAGE: A detachment of Haganah soldiers overlooking Acre relaxes on May 21, 1948, after the three-day fight for the city, which surrendered on May 18. 1948. (AP Photo/FN)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Jessica Steinberg on today's show. Magid discusses why former defense minister Yoav Gallant resigned from the Knesset, which appears to be primarily due to his opposition to legislation that would allow ultra-Orthodox men exemptions from army service. The move is somewhat confusing, given that Gallant's vote could have made a difference regarding certain legislation, but he seems to be leaving as a political move, to cement his future possibilities. Magid looks at why the hostage talks are reported to have stalled, with obstacles that included Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's not offering a viable alternative as to who would fill the void of Hamas leadership in Gaza, and the Hamas stance that it can't locate all the remaining hostages held in Gaza. He also reviews a Palestinian Authority crackdown on armed terror groups in Jenin in the northern West Bank, and its relationship to the fall of Assad to rebel groups in Syria. Criticism of the Palestinian Authority's activity was broadcast on Al Jazeera, and the news channel was then barred temporarily from the West Bank. For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog. Discussed articles include: Gallant resigns from Knesset, denounces imminent bill to exempt Haredim from IDF Hamas said willing to free only 22 of 34 living hostages demanded by Israel in deal PA halts Al Jazeera West Bank broadcasts amid criticism of its terror crackdown Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves. IMAGE: MK Yoav Gallant in the corridors of the Knesset on December 23, 2024. (Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Political correspondent Sam Sokol joins host Jessica Steinberg on today's show. Sokol discusses the political machinations in the Knesset as voting over the 2025 budget leads National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and several ultra-Orthodox parties to threaten to oppose the bill, given some of the planned cuts. While Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich have banded together in the past over their political aspirations, the two have been at odds for some time, which could possibly lead to a break in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition, explains Sokol. Sokol reviews the further political dramas that played out on Tuesday in the Knesset, as Netanyahu, recovering from a successful prostate removal surgery at the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, was forced to leave his hospital bed and return to the Knesset, in order to cast a decisive vote on the budget law, and thwart Ben Gvir. Another Knesset member, Likud MK Boaz Bismuth, who was in the midst of the seven-day mourning period for his mother, was also pushed to leave the shiva and come to the Knesset and vote in favor of the bill. Sokol also offers a brief description of the fragment of a Houthi missile that landed in his Beit Shemesh neighborhood late Monday night. For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog. Discussed articles include: PM leaves hospital to cast decisive vote on a budget law, thwarting Ben Gvir revolt Coalition factions threaten to vote against key budget bill over cuts, Haredi draft In rare cross-aisle cooperation, MKs back bill to penalize ministers who snub oversight IDF downs ballistic missile from Yemen as sirens heard across central Israel Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves. IMAGE: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a vote at the plenum of the Knesset in Jerusalem, on December 31, 2024. (Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today's show. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is recovering after a successful prostate removal surgery at the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem on Sunday. The premier was moved to an underground, fortified recovery ward where he is expected to spend several days under observation amid fears he could be targeted by rocket or missile fire during the ongoing war. What do we know about Netanyahu's health moving forward? Netanyahu held a high-level meeting during which he told those present that Israel will resume fighting after a hostage deal, if one comes about, according to a Channel 12 report. Horovitz discusses the fraught ongoing hostage talks and reports that Hamas has changed the number of hostages that will be released in any potential first phase. Jimmy Carter, the longest-lived American president, died on Sunday at the age of 100. We hear how Carter is remembered in Israel and how the issue that toppled his presidency -- Iran -- is increasingly resonant for the United States. For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog. Discussed articles include: Netanyahu stays in the hospital Monday night after prostate surgery Report: Alarming hostage negotiators, PM says Israel should be upfront about plan to resume war after deal Hamas said willing to free only 22 of 34 living hostages demanded by Israel in deal PM on Carter’s death: Israel-Egypt peace treaty ‘offers hope for future generations’ ‘He will rot in hell’: Iranians remember Jimmy Carter as ‘architect of sanctions’ Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves. IMAGE: Former US president Jimmy Carter holds a copy of his book, 'Palestine: Peace, Not Apartheid,' at a book signing in Tempe, Arizona, December 12, 2006. (AP Photo/Paul Connors)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.