Welcome to The Times of Israel’s Daily Briefing, your 15-minute audio update on what’s happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, from Sunday through Thursday.
Editor David Horovitz and diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman join host Amanda Borschel-Dan in today's episode.
After five days of fighting, the ceasefire ending Operation Shield and Arrow is holding. While the IDF, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant all claim its goals were met within seconds, Horovitz discusses why it was so difficult to lockdown a ceasefire. 
Hamas did not overtly join in on the barrage of rocket fire that rained upon Israel. What can be read into the passive permission Hamas gave to what Horovitz calls its "evil little Iranian-mobilized sister"?
Inconclusive elections were held in Turkey yesterday and a run-off is set for May 28. Berman weighs in on what either winner means for relations with Israel.
Borschel-Dan chimes in with a massive 1,800-year-old cargo of precious marble building materials that was recently discovered off the coast of Israel.  
Discussed articles include:
Rocket launched from Gaza shatters calm, but fragile ceasefire appears to hold
Israel’s Gaza operation met its goals in seconds; trouble is, it went on for 5 days
Hamas, undeterred, sat on the sidelines as Islamic Jihad and Israel slugged it out
Turkey set for historic run-off vote after Erdogan falls short of majority
Swimmer discovers precious marble cargo from 1,800-year-old Mediterranean shipwreck
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IMAGE: Palestinian Hamas supporters take part in a festival in Nablus to support the Palestinian resistance in Gaza and the West Bank, May 11, 2023. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Looking to rule the PA, Hamas sat out recent Gaza conflict

Welcome to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing: Your update on what&rsquo;s important in Israel, the Middle East and The Jewish World.

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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.
It is day 214 of the war with Hamas. Zman Yisrael editor Biranit Goren and Diaspora reporter Canaan Lidor join host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
The Israeli military confirmed that its 401st Armored Brigade captured the Gazan side of Rafah Crossing on the Egyptian border this morning. Israel is now in control of all above-ground crossings into Gaza. The crossing was captured amid a “pinpoint operation” against Hamas in “limited areas of eastern Rafah,” the IDF said. Goren weighs in on whether this is a one-and-done operation or the start of the much-talked-about Rafah op.
The New York Times reported this morning that Hamas intends to include the remains of several dead hostages among the 33 captives it says it will release in the first phase of a hostage and truce deal it proposed. Israel has previously insisted that the first stage include only living hostages and had reduced its demand from 40 hostages, with the understanding that not all those in that category were still alive. After Hamas said yesterday it had accepted a deal put forward by mediators, Israel stated that what Hamas put forward was significantly different from what Israel had agreed to.
Where does this leave us?
Lidor has reported from the annual March of the Living in Auschwitz for many years. He talks about why this year, in the shadow of the October 7 massacre by Hamas, it felt so different.
For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.
Discussed articles include:
Army announces two reserves troops killed in Hezbollah drone attack Monday
Hamas claims to accept ceasefire, hostage deal; Israel: This isn’t what we agreed to
Specifics of a deal Hamas says it accepts, and that Israel says does not meet its terms
Protesters block roads to demand Israel accept ceasefire-hostage deal, halt Rafah push
At Auschwitz, Holocaust survivors scarred by October 7 march in a show of resilience
At Auschwitz march, participants rally around concern over hostages and antisemitism
THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel
THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown
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: This image grab taken from footage released by the Israeli army on May 7, 2024, shows the 401st Brigade's combat team tanks entering the Gazan side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt in the southern Gaza Strip on May 7, 2024. (Fayez Nureldine / Israeli Army / AFP) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Day 214 - Has the IDF crossed the Rubicon into Rafah?

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.
It is day 213 of the war with Hamas. Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman and military reporter Emanuel Fabian join host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told his American counterpart, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, in a phone call overnight that Israel was left with no choice but to launch its offensive in southern Gaza’s Rafah. Fabian reports on the IDF's evacuation order for Palestinians living in the eastern part of the city, along the border with Egypt.
This potential operation comes after four Israeli soldiers were killed and 11 more were wounded in a Hamas-claimed rocket attack on a staging ground near the Gaza Strip on Sunday. We hear what was and was not targeted in the barrage.
Berman weighs in on whether the timing of the barrage -- during a particularly sensitive moment in hostage negotiations -- was coincidental. We hear updates from the past several days and why Berman thinks the talks are potentially still ongoing.
A siren sounded throughout Israel at 10 am, marking Yom Hashoah, Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day. We learn about Holocaust survivor and partisan Dr. Hanan Karshai, who recently died in Jerusalem, aged 98.
For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.
Discussed articles include:
IDF calls on Palestinians to evacuate eastern Rafah ahead of planned offensive
Gallant to US defense chief Austin: Israel has ‘no choice’ over Rafah operation after deadly Hamas barrage
3 soldiers killed, 11 hurt inside Israel by Hamas rocket attack from Rafah
THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel
THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown
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: Palestinians hold leaflets dropped by Israeli planes calling on them to evacuate ahead of an Israeli military operation in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, May 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Ismael Abu Dayyah) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Day 213: War at a crossroads as IDF orders partial Rafah evacuation

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.
It is day 211 of the war with Hamas. Military reporter Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
Iman Zareb, a senior figure in the Iran-backed group’s Rafah Brigade, was killed along with two other Islamic Jihad fighters in an Israeli bombardment on a “hideout apartment” in Rafah, the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet Security Service said yesterday in a joint statement. We hear more about Zareb and what his terrorist organization's role was on October 7 and until now.
An officer in police’s elite Yamam counter-terrorism unit was seriously wounded and five Palestinian gunmen, members of a terror cell, were killed Saturday during a 12-hour raid in the West Bank town of Dayr al-Ghusun. Fabian explains the goals of the raid and how it was carried out.
Elyakim Libman, 23, an Israeli who was thought to have been abducted by Hamas during the October 7 attacks, was declared dead Friday after his body was found in Israel. We learn how this identification was made, and what led to his murder.
The Israel Defense Forces on Thursday announced the promotion of five generals as part of a series of appointments in the General Staff — a forum of senior commanders responsible for the various branches and departments of the military — including the next head of intelligence. As expected, there has been a lot of blowback, both from families of victims and hostages and from politicians.
On Wednesday, Channel 12 news reported that nearly all of the army’s posts along the border with the Gaza Strip failed a routine inspection carried out just three days before Hamas’s October 7 onslaught. Fabian weighs in on why this is troubling, but not exactly a comparable test of the base's readiness that October 7 proved to be.
For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.
Discussed articles include:
Islamic Jihad commander who led Oct. 7 assault on Sufa killed in Rafah strike — IDF
5 Palestinian gunmen killed, Israeli officer seriously hurt in 12-hour West Bank op
Remains of Elyakim Libman, presumed a hostage since Oct. 7, found in Israel
IDF appoints new intel chief, promotes 4 other generals, despite far-right opposition
Father of soldier killed on Oct. 7 to petition appointment of new IDF intel chief
Report: Many IDF posts on Gaza border failed inspections in days before Oct. 7
THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel
THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown
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: Elyakim Libman, security guard at the Supernova desert rave who was murdered on October 7, 2023 (Courtesy) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Day 212 - Oct. 7 victims' graves reopened to ID more burnt corpses

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.
It is day 211 of the war with Hamas. US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
After a day filled with a flurry of optimistic headlines surrounding the proposed hostage release deal, Taher Nunu, a Hamas official and advisor to Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh, said meetings in Cairo with Egyptian and Qatari mediators have begun and Hamas is dealing with their proposals “with full seriousness and responsibility.” However, he reiterated the terror group’s demand that any deal should include an Israeli pullout from Gaza and an end to the war, conditions that Israel has previously rejected. With no real movement on either side, why the media storm?
Qatar is prepared to accept a request from the US for it to expel Hamas’s leaders from Doha and is anticipating one could be made soon, a source familiar with the matter told Magid. If expelled, to where is the terror organization expected to relocate?
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at a DC event that whatever one thinks of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or the current government, “what’s important to understand is that much of what he’s doing is not simply a reflection of his politics or his policies; it’s actually a reflection of where a large majority of Israelis are in this moment.” We discuss how this stance is starkly different than previous takes by the Biden administration.
Magid reported onsite from anti-Israel protests at several Chicago area high schools and universities this week. We hear what shocked him.
For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.
Discussed articles include:
Hamas indicates it may agree to deal; Israeli official insists truce won’t end the war
Qatar anticipating US request to expel Hamas leaders, is open to doing so — source
Blinken says Netanyahu’s handling of war reflects views of ‘a large majority of Israelis’
Gaza campus protests spread to Chicago high schools, alarming Jewish students
THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel
THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown
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: Campus police stand between demonstrators at a pro-Palestinian, abti-Israel encampment on the campus of the University of Chicago and counter demonstrators after a brief skirmish between the groups on May 3, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Scott Olson/Getty Images/AFP) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Day 211 - Are US high schools the next Gaza war battleground?

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.
It is day 210 of the war with Hamas. Political correspondent Tal Schneider and archaeology reporter Gavriel Fiske join host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.
Schneider discusses the latest regarding aid for Gaza, brought in Thursday through Israel's Erez Crossing, rebuilt for trucks after being destroyed by Hamas on October 7, followed by the seizure of the aid by Hamas terrorists. She also describes the temporary floating pier being built by US troops on the Gaza shores for the transfer of additional aid.
Schneider looks at Turkey's decision to halt all trade with Israel, a major blow for both countries given the annual $7 billion turnover in commercial trade, as Turkey erases all traces of Israel from its import and export systems after 75 years of trade.
Fiske explains the complicated science of carbon-dating techniques utilized by a team at the Weizmann Institute who examined the rings of trees and other organic matter to determine the size and breadth of ancient Jerusalem.
For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.
Discussed articles include:
US says Hamas seized first aid shipment that entered Gaza via reopened Erez crossing
Turkey halts all trade with Israel; Jerusalem denounces ‘dictator’ Erdogan
New carbon-dating techniques enable ‘absolute chronology’ of First Temple-era Jerusalem
THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel
THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. 
IMAGE: A ship of Freedom Flotilla Coalition anchors at Tuzla seaport in Istanbul, Turkey on April 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Looking to rule the PA, Hamas sat out recent Gaza conflict

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