JNS Middle East correspondent Josh Hasten and JNS CEO and Jerusalem Bureau Chief Alex Traiman unpack this week’s headlines out of Israel, broadcasting from the JNS Media Hub in Jerusalem.First, the hosts cover Israel’s covert and overt operations in southern Syria, where the IDF is stepping in to protect the embattled Druze community under attack by Bedouin militias backed by Syria’s failed regime. The global media is blaming Israel, but what’s really happening on the ground?

Then, we dive into a political earthquake: new revelations from a U.S. congressional report expose that the Biden-Harris administration may have funded anti-Netanyahu protests through American NGOs, an alleged effort to undermine Israel’s judicial reforms and democratic process.

Chapters

00:00 Political Bombshells and Diplomatic Firestorms

02:07 Syria's Turmoil and Israel's Involvement

07:05 The Druze Community and Israel's Defense

12:52 U.S. Funding Controversies and Judicial Reforms

24:09 Gaza's Hostage Situation and Military Strategies

30:07 Local Clans and Future Governance in Gaza

40:07 Tensions in Judea and Samaria

52:02 The Future of Israel's Government and Military Service

JNS CEO and Jerusalem Bureau Chief Alex Traiman returns from Washington with firsthand insights after accompanying Prime Minister Netanyahu on his third meeting with President Donald Trump. Joining him in studio is Josh Hasten, JNS Middle East Correspondent, for an exclusive breakdown.

What happens next?

The IDF successfully located and returned the bodies of three hostages—Judy Weinstein-Chagai, Gadi Chagai and Thai worker Natapang Pinta—who were brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre. In parallel, Hamas escalated its psychological warfare, threatening to execute 25-year-old Matan Zangalkar, a living hostage believed to be held in Gaza, if Israel launched a rescue operation. JNS CEO and Jerusalem Bureau Chief Alex Traiman and Middle East Correspondent Josh Hasten analyze the IDF’s intelligence breakthroughs, the calculated cruelty of Hamas’s threats and the impossible decisions facing Israeli commanders as they balance rescue efforts with operational risks.

Learn how Hamas propaganda—echoed by major media outlets like The New York Times, CNN and BBC—spreads false accusations against Israel, fueling real-world violence and diplomatic hostility.

What happens when Israel’s enemies strike abroad—and its critics strike from within? On this week’s “Jerusalem Minute,” JNS CEO and Jerusalem Bureau Chief Alex Traiman and JNS Middle East correspondent Josh Hasten unpack the week’s most critical developments from Jerusalem.

Filmed on Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day), the episode begins by comparing Israel’s miraculous 1967 Six-Day War victory to the grueling, nearly 600-day war against Hamas. The hosts confront the shocking murder of two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington, D.C., allegedly carried out by a Hamas sympathizer influenced by years of anti-Israel incitement and media misinformation. They analyze the global spread of antisemitic violence and discuss the rising threat not only from Hamas—but also from within, citing inflammatory comments made by former IDF Deputy Chief Yair Golan and former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

JNS Middle East Correspondent Josh Hasten and JNS CEO and Jerusalem Bureau Chief Alex Traiman break down the latest developments as Israel officially launches “Operation Gideon’s Chariots,” its most expansive ground campaign yet to fully dismantle Hamas and take control of Gaza. Reporting from both Jerusalem and Washington, D.C., the hosts explore what’s driving this military escalation, the role of U.S. support and what it means for the fate of the remaining Israeli hostages.

As Hamas releases dual U.S.-Israeli citizen Edan Alexander—a move widely interpreted as a gesture toward President Donald Trump during his high-profile Middle East trip—questions are swirling about the administration’s true posture toward Israel. In this episode of Jerusalem Minute, JNS CEO and Jerusalem Bureau Chief Alex Traiman and JNS Middle East Correspondent Josh Hasten explore the latest developments shaping U.S.-Israel relations and the broader Middle East.

JNS CEO Alex Traiman and Josh Hasten, JNS Middle East correspondent, break down the biggest stories from Israel and the region following the historic first annual JNS International Policy Summit.

From a Houthi ballistic missile strike at Ben-Gurion Airport that narrowly missed Traiman himself, to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bold declarations on Iran and Hamas, this episode takes you to the front lines of Israel’s multi-front war.

A bombshell New York Times report reveals that President Donald Trump rejected a proposed joint U.S.-Israel military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, opting instead for last-ditch negotiations. Join JNS CEO and Jerusalem Bureau Chief Alex Traiman and JNS Middle East Correspondent Josh Hasten as they debate whether Trump’s strategy is a sign of weakness or a smart play to corner Tehran diplomatically before the gloves come off.