After the unprecedented violence in Washington that took five lives darkens the US president’s legacy, Netanyahu’s close alliance with Trump turns from asset to liability. Listen to Dan Shapiro and Ben Samuels 

Former US ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro and Haaretz US correspondent Ben Samuels join Allison Kaplan Sommer to assess the damage following the violence uprising by Trump supporters in Washington, DC and  what it means for the US-Israel relationship, and to discuss the policies of the future Biden White House when it comes to Iran and the Palestinians.  

 

We ask: Will Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s continuing loyalty to Trump harm Israel’s ability to build relationships with the Biden administration? How badly have the scenes of violence in the Capitol damaged American credibility overseas? Are the US and Israel headed for an unavoidable showdown over the restoration of the Iran nuclear deal? Should Israel really be worrying so much about the “Obama people” in Biden’s foreign policy team?  

We also discuss the reawakening of anxiety in the American Jewish community regarding their security after the events of last Wednesday - and why the victory of Jon Ossoff in his Senate race in Georgia marked a milestone in American Jewish history. 

https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/.premium-horrified-u-s-jewish-lawmakers-groups-slam-trump-for-d-c-violence-1.9429986 

https://www.haaretz.com/world-news/.premium-the-far-right-will-be-one-of-biden-s-biggest-problems-here-s-how-he-can-fight-back-1.9431992

https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/.premium.HIGHLIGHT-ossoff-s-expected-georgia-win-will-make-jewish-history-1.9428335

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On this week’s episode of Haaretz’s Election Overdose Podcast, hosts Anshel Pfeffer and Dahlia Scheindlin discuss with Dr Gayil Talshir of the Hebrew University the changing ideological currents in Israeli politics and whether being anti-Netanyahu is a strategy or a vision. Have questions for Anshel and Dahlia? Follow them on twitter and leave your comments there @AnshelPfeffer @dahliasc. Read more from Anshel and Dahlia on Haaretz.com.

It turns out you can never have too much of a good thing as Israel embarks on its fourth election in two years. This time you won’t have to face it alone, as Anshel Pfeffer and Dahlia Scheindlin, along with guests, guide you through Israel’s electoral thickets, the issues, the personalities, the polls and a history of elections in campaign jingles. This week, along with The New York Times’ David Halbfinger, they try to work out how Benjamin Netanyahu and Benny Gantz were dragged in to an early election neither of them wanted, what were the true aspirations of the weed legalization party, and what if anything will be different this time

Haaretz.com Editor-in-Chief Avi Scharf and Senior Columnist Anshel Pfeffer join Allison Kaplan Sommer to say goodbye and good riddance to 2020 - and ring in 2021 a year that will be bringing Israel into an unprecedented fourth round of elections.  

We discuss: How Netanyahu will have to face elections in which, for the first time,  his challenge comes from the right, in a new party led by Likud refugees. We ask whether by the time Israelis go to the polls on March 23, Netanyahu will be blamed for government failure to manage the coronavirus pandemic or if he’ll be seen as the conquering hero who got Israelis vaccinated quickly and efficiently. 

We also talk about how tracking planes has led to Haaretz scoops, and look back on the most memorable moments - and stories of 2020, the year that no one is sorry to leave behind.  

Recommended related reading:

https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium.HIGHLIGHT-the-israeli-left-should-take-a-time-out-in-the-upcoming-election-1.9399894

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.HIGHLIGHT-gantz-s-political-party-was-last-year-s-largest-now-it-s-the-walking-dead-1.9390642

https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/.premium-israel-businessman-uae-spy-planes-iran-saudi-arabia-1.769671

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-azeri-defense-ministry-plane-landed-twice-in-israel-this-month-1.5436544

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/haaretz-and-the-coronavirus-how-we-are-reporting-the-news-and-staying-safe-1.8698987

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Allison Kaplan Sommer is joined by Meirav Arlosoroff and Omer Benjakob on the first day Israelis receive their COVID vaccinations to discuss pandemic policy and the dangerous cyberattacks threatening the security of Israel and the United States. 

We ask whether Netanyahu’s prime time vaccination Saturday night was a PR stunt or whether he should be applauded as the first world leader to publicly get the coronavirus shot, as we assess his successes and failures when it comes to leading Israel through the pandemic. 

We also discuss the assault by Iranian and Arab hackers against Israeli companies and national security infrastructure in light of the devastating Russian cyber aggression in the United States. 

Recommended related reading:

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.HIGHLIGHT-can-israel-actually-meet-netanyahu-s-ambitious-covid-19-vaccine-target-1.9360597

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-why-local-lockdowns-failed-to-curb-covid-19-in-israel-1.9370034

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/iran-israel-response-pay2key-who-behind-cyberattack-israeli-firms-1.9381287 

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/tech-news/.premium.HIGHLIGHT-it-s-not-about-money-destructive-cyberattack-proves-israel-lacks-one-key-thing-1.9357223 

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Host Allison Kaplan Sommer is joined by Amira Hass and Dahlia Scheindlin to talk about the Trump-brokered normalization agreement between Israel and Morocco, the spread of COVID-19 in the West Bank and Gaza, and the latest bombshell in Israeli politics.We ask: How do the Palestinians - and their leaders - feel about Israel’s ongoing series of agreements with Morocco and other Arab states? Has the coronavirus improved or worsened the Israeli military’s treatment of Palestinians?We talk about whether the fact that Benjamin Netanyahu’s new challenge on the political right is removing the Palestinian issue from Israeli political discourse completely. Also discussed: whether the Palestinian Authority will ever hold elections, and if the incoming Biden administration can even contemplate engaging with Israeli-Palestinian peace with both sides in political disarray.

Recommended related reading:

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-morocco-normalize-relations-trump-western-sahara-king-mohammed-vi-1.9363779 

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-if-freed-palestinian-teen-at-risk-for-covid-19-will-be-detained-without-trial-1.9353555 

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-netanyahu-can-t-count-on-the-gulf-peace-deals-for-political-salvation-1.9159484 

https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/palestinians/.premium-palestinian-authority-set-to-receive-four-million-doses-of-russian-covid-19-vaccine-1.9367648   

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With a Knesset vote paving the way to Israel’s fourth election in a row, Kahol Lavon leader Benny Gantz finally appears to be ready to sign the death warrant of Israel’s ailing coalition government. Host Allison Kaplan Sommer is joined by Chaim Levinson and Noa Landau to explain the fallout following the preliminary vote - and discuss why Israel’s current politics are so dysfunctional.  We ask: Will the vote actually lead to a fourth election as early as March, or will Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu figure out a way to delay the inevitable? Why is the Israeli left and center so visible and vocal on the streets demonstrating against Netanyahu’s government, but so weak and fragmented in the polls? And why, after Gantz has so visibly crashed and burned, are politicians and pundits looking so longingly at yet another general with no political experience - former chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot - to save the “anyone but Netanyahu” camp? 

Related reading: 

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-gantz-says-his-party-will-vote-with-the-opposition-to-dissolve-parliament-1.9340933 

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.HIGHLIGHT-with-another-election-looming-israel-s-center-left-is-looking-for-a-new-savior-1.9347711  

https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-israeli-leftists-enough-with-the-generals-1.9338661

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Host Allison Kaplan Sommer is joined by Esther Solomon and Amir Tibon to discuss the aftermath of the dramatic assassination of the 'father of Iran’s military nuclear program,' its effect on the Trump-Biden transition, and the potential consequences of Iranian retaliation. PLUS: Has the liberal media been gaslighted by Trump and his supporters following his election defeat?

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Host Simon Spungin is joined by Amos Harel and Amir Tibon to discuss the flurry of activity – diplomatic and otherwise – surrounding the United States, Israel and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Will defeated U.S. President Donald Trump use his last few weeks in office to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities – or is he too preoccupied with his quixotic battle against the election results? What plans do the newly installed Pentagon officials have for the last two months of the Trump Administration? And will Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seek or be given a green light to attack Iran?

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Host Simon Spungin is joined by Judy Maltz and Chemi Shalev on the day after Joe Biden was confirmed as the 46th president of the United States. The team discusses how Biden’s victory and Trump’s defeat will affect Israeli politics in general and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in particular. We also ask: Why will all eyes be on Iran during the transition period and the first weeks of the Biden Administration? What will become of the “Deal of the Century” and the Abraham Accords? Who will replace settlement-loving David Friedman as U.S. ambassador? And will Biden make good on his promise to put the fight against antisemitism high on his agenda?

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