Will Trump go all the way with Iran? And if not, what are his options? There are many tools, apart from direct military assault, that the US can us to continue to weaken Iran, and prevent China from regaining its Middle East assets.

Also in this episode: Israel’s coming ground incursion into Lebanon, and an update on Sde Teiman: the indictments against the Force 100 soldiers, alleging abuse of a Palestinian prisoner, have been withdrawn. Gadi explains what this means.

What is the Iranian game plan, and is it working? What does the choice of Mojtaba Khamenei to be the heir to his father’s role as Supreme Leader say about the regime and its ability to sustain itself? Gadi and Mike discuss.

Plus, the reignited war with Hezbollah offers a chance, Gadi says, to rid ourselves of the idea that all of Israel’s military success can be reversed. It's time to make South Lebanon into North Israel.

Are the American and Israeli war aims the same? Regime change may turn out to be an ambiguous definition. Mike and Gadi assess the different scenarios which may fall under that phrase, and consider which ones events – and Trump – may end up imposing.

The world is holding its breath while the US is gathering its forces in the region. Mike and Gadi are convinced Trump means business. What will emerge in Iran after a strike is, however, far from clear. Also in this episode: the Gaza board and the latest moves by Israel’s wild Supreme Court bent on toppling Netanyahu’s coalition. We call it legal surrealism. But most importantly: what did Mike’s mother ask the dentist about?

Mike sees three possible scenarios in which this can unfold. In all three there will be massive consequences for Israel, the US and the world order. Also on this episode: who is trying to break Trump’s faith-based coalition from within, and why? And finally: Gadi’s hilarious twitter feud with NYT’s Ronen Bergman.

On this episode: the Bondi Beach shooting, the rising tide of antisemitism, and the recent conference at the Hudson Institute, about how the hatred of Jews is weaponized to undermine American national security. Also - Israel's Deep State is thrashing around in an attempt to cover up the crimes of the IDF Advocate General. Will it succeed? And this is the Icelandic comedian Gadi mentioned: https://www.instagram.com/reels/DOebgY8jXx-/  

It is not clear how the theory of the Trump plan will be implemented in practice - and above all it is still unclear how Hamas will be disarmed. Has the UN Security Council Resolution made things any clearer? Are Israel's friends in Baku, Azerbaijan going to help solve this conundrum, and finally, have Israel Update's listeners managed to explain to Mike and Gadi what a conundrum is? And here are the links we promised:

Zineb Riboua's piece on why the right get Mamdani wrong: https://www.hudson.org/politics-government/what-right-gets-wrong-about-zohran-mamdani-zineb-riboua

And here's Mike's conversation with Caroline Glick: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6y1cJqp9JM  

The plot thickens! The tale of the rape that never was, and now the suicide attempt that Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer Yerushalmi seems to have faked, opens a window into everything that has been convulsing Israel in recent years.

The scandal over the doctored tape of the rape-that-never-was in Sde Teiman is the eye of a huge storm that has to do with everything that convulsed the country in recent years.

Major General Yifat Tomer Yerushalmi the head of the IDF prosecution resigned in disgrace over the affair – and was reported missing while we were recording this session. It turned out that she is alive, and just “lost” her phone in the sea while attempting suicide (or staging such an attempt). 

Tommy Robinson, the outspoken activist against the importation of Jihad into the UK, visited Israel. His support for Israel's war won many hearts in the country. Mike was skeptical but Gadi insisted on having him on the show (in this Mikeless joint episode of Gadi's Hebrew language podcast Gatekeeper, and Israel Update).