Let’s meet two Labour MP’s from Britain’s Parliament determined to speak out against antisemitism. 

I met Sharon Hodgson and Joani Reid at the Actions Matter summit held in Vienna in December 2024, organized by ELNET, the European Leadership Network in partnership with the Combat Antisemitism Movement.

170 experts from more than ten countries came together to counter the alarming global rise in antisemitism since October 7, focusing on the problem in education, culture, sports, and digital spaces and to develop, then create a strong call to action.

Everyone there understood the urgency of international cooperation to ensure that Jewish communities can live as freely as possible from hatred, violence, and discrimination.

This episode is presented with the cooperation and support of ELNET UK, a bipartisan, cross-party international organisation working to advance UK-Israel relations based on shared democratic values and strategic interests.

Music: Mozart Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K. 488: I. Allegro

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It was my honour to introduce Major Andrew Fox to South Hampstead Synagogue, "more than just a Shul/Synagogue - and the sense of community was even further heightened by hosting the conversation between us on October 7th. 

Andrew Fox is a Research Fellow at the Henry Jackson Society

He served in the British Army for sixteen years with three tours to Afghanistan, one of them with US Army Special Forces. 

He was in the Parachute Regiment and the Special Forces Support Group and there were also tours in Bosnia, the Middle East, and Northern Ireland. 

He retired in 2021 as a Major.

Since then, Andrew's leveraged his huge experience into academia, as a senior lecturer in the War Studies and Behavioural Science at the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst.

He holds degrees in Law & Politics, Modern War Studies and Psychology. 

As you’ll hear his areas of expertise include Defence, the Middle East, and disinformation.

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Israel is engaged in a war it doesn't want and not of its making.

A quiet Shabbat morning, also the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah where Jews celebrate finishing reading the Torah and then start to read it again, “In the Beginning”, was shattered by a mass invasion of Hamas terrorists, smashing through the concrete border wall, paragliding into Israel, before rampaging through a music festival killing 260, machine gunning people at the bus stop and in their own homes in Sderot and on kibbutzim. 

Gruesome videos and pictures swiftly circulated on X, horror one can never unsee.

The elderly and babies slaughtered, women raped, bodies taken in to Gaza paraded and desecrated, mothers with children in their arms abducted are all now hostages in Gaza’s terror tunnels and tower blocks.

Depravity and barbarism reminiscent of the European Holocaust and Russian pogroms. 

How did Israel’s famed security services miss this evil plan fermenting?

Can Israel contain this war to just one front? Or when Benjamin Netanyahu says retaliation will change the Middle East does that mean going to the source of this terror, Tehran? 

Is the long anticipated attack from Hezbollah about to happen? And what catastrophe would this wrought on Israel’s towns and cities? 

How will Israel prevail? 

These are questions for Israel’s former deputy national security adviser, Chuck Freilich, author of "Israeli National Security: A New Strategy for an Era of Change" and his latest, "Israel and the Cyber Threat: How the Startup Nation Became a Global Cyber Power", MirYam Institute's in-house military analyst, Yaakov Lappin and hosted by MirYam Institute CEO, Benjamin Anthony. 

The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.

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“Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum” (IDDF), Est. 2022 - A  Biweekly Podcast with Chuck Freilich and Benjamin Anthony

Episode 37 of the Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum (IDDF) – with Prof. Chuck Freilich, former Israeli Deputy National Security Advisor, and Benjamin Anthony, Co-Founder of the Miryam Institute. 

This episode of the podcast features an exclusive interview of Chuck, by Benjamin, recorded in the JBS studios in New York. 

The two discuss Chuck's new book, "Israel and the Cyber Threat - How The Start Up Nation Became A Global Cyber Power."

It's a fascinating discussion that examines the recruitment process of the IDF in the realms of intel and cyber, as well as the cultural "chutzpa gone viral" that the Israeli people take into the cyber realm and technological innovation. 

Enjoy!

Click on this link to read Chuck's exclusive monograph, Israel: The Making of a Global Cyber Power .

Click here to learn more about JBS: https://jbstv.org/

The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.

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“Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum” (IDDF), Est. 2022 - A  Biweekly Podcast with Chuck Freilich and Benjamin Anthony

Episode 36 of the Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum (IDDF) – with Prof. Chuck Freilich, former Israeli Deputy National Security Advisor, and Benjamin Anthony, Co-Founder of the Miryam Institute. 

Chuck and Benjamin begin by discussing the Oslo Accords. Chuck explains that Oslo was merely a framework agreement, which set out the parameters of a five-year period of negotiations designed to bring about a final peace agreement, but without specifying its nature.  Oslo was thus silent about a possible Palestinian state and the final status of Jerusalem, borders, settlements and refugees. 

Chuck believes Oslo was a mixture of success and failure. Benjamin opposes any deal that might include land for peace and compromise on Jerusalem and believes that other options exist.

They then turn to a discussion of the topics raised in the meeting between Biden and Netanyahu (Saudi Arabia, Iran, normalization, judicial reform, 2 states) and between Netanyahu and Turkish President Erdogan and they discuss the painful downturn in Israeli ties with Turkey since Erdogan came to power.

Join us as Chuck and Benjamin agree and disagree, in detail and in-depth, always respectfully, on the critical issues Israel faces.

The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands 

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“Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum” (IDDF), Est. 2022 - A  Biweekly Podcast with Chuck Freilich and Benjamin Anthony

Episode 35 of the Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum (IDDF) – with Prof. Chuck Freilich, former Israeli Deputy National Security Advisor, and Benjamin Anthony, Co-Founder of The Miryam Institute. 

In this episode, Chuck and Benjamin discuss the passing of former Director of the Mossad Shabtai Shavit, who died this week during a vacation in Italy. They analyze his view that the Iranian nuclear weapons program may or may not be intended for actual use by Iran and discuss the possibility of nuclear terrorism. 

Benjamin expresses his fundamental opposition to any peace agreements predicated upon Israeli territorial concessions and asserts that agreements should be based on the principle of peace for peace, not land. Chuck is willing to consider land for peace, but acknowledges that his support for a deal with Syria in 2000 was mistaken. 

They then discuss the dangers of the Saudi demand that the US accede to their having an enrichment capability. Chuck believes that a sufficient  regime of inspections can be established.

Join us as Chuck and Benjamin agree and disagree, in detail and in-depth, always respectfully, on the critical issues Israel faces.

Enjoy. Subscribe. Leave a Review. 

The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.

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Episode 34 of the Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum (IDDF) – with Prof. Chuck Freilich, former Israeli Deputy National Security Advisor, and Benjamin Anthony, Co-Founder & CEO of the Miryam Institute. 

In this episode, Chuck and Benjamin discuss the pros and cons of a possible US-Israeli defense treaty, a potential side product of the US-Israeli-Saudi normalization deal now under discussion. Chuck describes the conditions under which a treaty such as this would be favorable for Israel, although he is in a minority view among Israeli defense officials, Benjamin leans more towards the majority view, raising concerns about the future deployment of IDF forces abroad. 

They also briefly touch on the assassination of the head of the Russian Wagner Force, Yevgeny Prigozhin and the first Republican presidential debate. Benjamin expresses concern over GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s call for ending military aid to Israel when the current 10-year package expires in 2028. Chuck shares his deep concern, believing that the relationship with the US is critical to Israel’s national security. The two disagree on the background to statements such as Ramaswamy's and similar ones by Democratic candidates. Benjamin attributes this primarily to anti-Semitism, particularly on campus. Chuck to Israel’s policies regarding the West Bank.

Join us as Chuck and Benjamin agree and disagree, in detail and in-depth, always respectfully, on the critical issues Israel faces.

The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.

To purchase Chuck’s new book, "Israel and the Cyber Threat: How the Startup Nation Became a Global Cyber Power", click here: https://tinyurl.com/2sa4tfur

The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.

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“Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum” (IDDF), Est. 2022 - A  Biweekly Podcast with Chuck Freilich and Benjamin Anthony

Episode 33 of the Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum (IDDF) – with Prof. Chuck Freilich, former Israeli Deputy National Security Advisor, and Benjamin Anthony, Co-chair of the Miryam Institute. 

In this episode, Chuck and Benjamin conduct an in-depth discussion of a possible Israeli-Saudi normalization deal, under US aegis. According to the emerging contours of the agreement, Israel would have to make major concessions on the Palestinian issue and the US would have to accede to Saudi demands for a defense treaty, civilian nuclear program and sales of advanced weapons. 

Benjamin opposes concessions on Israel’s territorial birthright as the price of a deal, believes that normalization with the Saudis should simply be in exchange for normalization, and that it is not critical for Israeli purposes. Chuck believes that normalization would constitute an historic change in Israel’s strategic circumstances. Since Chuck supports separation from the Palestinians in any event, his concerns focus on the proposed civil nuclear program, which should be made contingent on a strong inspections mechanism.

Join us as Chuck and Benjamin agree and disagree, in detail and in-depth, always respectfully, on the critical issues Israel faces. 

The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands 

Click here to read Chuck's article: https://www.inss.org.il/publication/usa-saudi-arabia-israel/

Enjoy. Subscribe. Leave a Review. 

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“Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum” (IDDF), Est. 2022 - A  Biweekly Podcast with Chuck Freilich and Benjamin Anthony

Episode 32 of the Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum (IDDF) – with Prof. Chuck Freilich, former Israeli Deputy National Security Advisor, and Benjamin Anthony, Co-Founder of the Miryam Institute. 

In this episode, Chuck and Benjamin continue their discussion of the ongoing crisis in Israel centering around the judicial overhaul process. Following the Knesset decision to nullify the “reasonability” criteria by which the Supreme Court has heretofore weighed the cases before it, both Chuck and Benjamin are deeply concerned by the dire effects of the situation on the cohesion of the IDF and defense establishment as a whole. Benjamin fervently opposes the injection of the IDF into the protest movement. Chuck has a different opinion. 

They also conduct an in-depth discussion of the dramatic report by NY Times columnist, Tom Friedman, that President Biden is seeking to broker normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia - with heavy terms and conditions attached. Chuck is supportive of such a deal. Benjamin is far more reserved and opposes the Palestinian dimension that would accompany any normalization.  

Join us as Chuck and Benjamin agree and disagree, in detail and in-depth, always respectfully, on the critical issues Israel faces. 

The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.

Enjoy. Subscribe. Leave a Review. 

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Episode 31 of the Israel Defense and Diplomacy Forum (IDDF) – with Prof. Chuck Freilich, former Israeli Deputy National Security Advisor, and Benjamin Anthony, Co-Founder of the Miryam Institute. 

In this episode, in which Benjamin succeeds Danny Ayalon as Chuck’s interlocutor, they begin by extending their deep appreciation to Danny for his participation to date. Danny is moving on to new and better pursuits and Chuck and Benjamin wish him every success. It has been a pleasure working with him. 

Chuck and Benjamin then turned to the ongoing crisis over the judicial reform process, which has reached another turning point with the proposed nullification of the “reasonability” criteria by which the Supreme Court has heretofore weighed the cases before it. Both Chuck and Benjamin agree that the reform process was entirely unnecessary, is tearing Israeli society and the IDF apart and has weakened Israel in the eyes of its adversaries. They disagree regarding its causes. Chuck believes Netanyahu’s legal considerations motivated it, Benjamin disagrees. They also disagree over the growing threat to serve by reservists in elite IDF units, should the legislation actually go through. Although both find this highly problematic and are concerned precedent set, Chuck’s thinking has changed and he is now supportive of it, whereas Benjamin believes there is no justification whatsoever.

They then conduct an in-depth discussion of developments in the Palestinian area, including the reasons for the recent two-day operation in Jenin, its consequences and causes. Chuck continues to believe that there is no realistic alternative to a separation between the two peoples, presumably through a two-state solution, Benjamin does not believe that this is possible and seeks alternatives.

Join us as Chuck and Benjamin agree and disagree, in detail and in-depth, always respectfully, on the critical issues Israel faces.

The MirYam Institute. Israel's Future in Israel's Hands.

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