In the current Hamas-Israel war, things are very different than before.

In previous conflicts, Israel practiced what was called "mowing the lawn," which meant degrading Hamas' capabilities, but avoiding all-out war. That is no longer the case.

But in an asymmetric war, how does that look long-term, and what power vacuum will take hold if and when Hamas is no longer in charge in the Gaza Strip?

To provide insight, we interview Efraim Inbar, President of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security.

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For scores of Israelis, the horrors of Hamas' genocidal October 7 massacre didn't end four months ago; it continues every single day. Not just for the Israelis who continue to endure rocket fire, or who lost loved ones fighting the terror group in Gaza, but also for the families of the remaining 136 hostages in Gaza.

There are now negotiations for a possible release of this last group of hostages being coordinated by Qatar, the oil-rich Persian Gulf kingdom, which is playing a central role.

Qatar, while being home to senior Hamas leadership, is also working to secure the release of these kidnapped Israelis. This past Friday, at Qatar's Embassy in Ottawa, a gathering took place to show support for these efforts and to apply some pressure on Qatar to ensure the hostages are released.

Jodi Green, Communications and Advocacy Specialist at the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, who helped organize the gathering, joins us as our guest this week.

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Since October 7, posters showing the faces and names of the Israeli hostages kidnapped by Hamas have become ubiquitous around the world, reminding the public about the true nature of the terrorist group and showing the reality of Israel's suffering.

Grotesquely, these same posters are also being widely torn down by anti-Israel activists, who oppose the humanization of Israelis, and beyond publicly naming and shaming these vandals, there wasn't much that could be done.

One Canadian mayor thought otherwise. In early November, Mayor Jeremy Levi of Hampstead, Quebec, a suburb of Montreal, announced that his town would adopt a by-law penalizing the removal of the posters with a $1,000 fine. He also added that the monies raised would be donated to Israeli charities.

What exactly is the explanation for antisemitism? No matter what excuse is cited by those seeking to demonize Jews, it fails to explain the pervasiveness and intensity of Jew-hatred, both from the extreme right and the extreme left.

But despite the inherent illogic in antisemitism, there remains a tendency to attempt to explain it and categorize it.

Our guest this week is attempting to put all that to rest. Alex Ryvchin is co-Chief Executive Officer of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, and an author whose recent book, The 7 Deadly Myths: Antisemitism from the time of Christ to Kanye West, seeks to guide readers through the specific myths underlining antisemitism, and in turn, help offer Jews & their allies, the news media, and the public at large the tools to understand and combat it.

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Amongst Israel's enemies, there are many fronts in war: In

But there is yet another front, often unknown to the general

And while these threats are very real to Israel, the country

Freilich joins us on this week's podcast, and

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The social media platform X, formerly called Twitter, has often been criticized by Jewish leaders and human rights organizations for what critics say is its failure to act on addressing widespread antisemitism, particularly since coming under the ownership of Elon Musk in the fall of 2022.

But for some, simply speaking out against the social media giant isn't good enough.

In January 2023, the European Union of Jewish Students, alongside HateAid, a German non-profit organization, commenced legal action against Twitter for neglecting to remove reported hateful content from its platform, saying that its failure represents a violation of its own Terms and Conditions, as well as running afoul of German hate legislation.

Avital Grinberg, the former president of the European Union of Jewish Students who initiated the lawsuit, joined us as a guest to discuss the legal action, its chances of success, and what they are looking to achieve.

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The judicial overhaul being proposed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has united countless Israelis in at least one way: their strong opinions on the matter. To its supporters, the legislation represents a critical need to stand in the way of an activist and unelected judiciary. To its opponents, it is an unforgivable assault on democracy.

But is there room for compromise between the two sides, and what is taking place behind the scenes that may be missed by the international news media? In this week's podcast, we are joined by one of Israel's most foremost public intellectuals and a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, Yossi Klein Halevi. He is a prominent opponent of the legislation but has also sought to close the gap between Israelis to ensure that disagreement can remain civil and with Israel's best interests always in mind.

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Thirty years ago, on September 13, 1993, Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) signed a Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements, which were more commonly known as part of the Oslo Accords, called because they were secretly negotiated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. What are the significance of these accords three decades later, and do they help provide any hope for any future peace between Israel and the Palestinians? And what exactly caused the Oslo Accords, once seen as a promising roadmap towards negotiations, to fail?

To help share the in-depth details behind Oslo, we are joined by Maurice Hirsch. He previously served as Director of the Military Prosecution for Judea and Samaria. He is currently the Director of PA Accountability and Reform Initiative at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.

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Israel is widely known as the Start-up nation, producing a disproportionate number of high-tech companies, and a general ambiance of ingenuity. But what exactly is Israel's secret sauce? What makes Israeli society do things differently? Many answers have been offered, including the country's small and vulnerable area, its paucity of natural resources, its focus on education, and even its military draft. But do those answers do justice to the truth?

To help us unpack Israel's secret, we are joined by Yaniv Rivlin. Yaniv is a high-tech entrepreneur who co-founded Bird, the company behind Tel Aviv's ubiquitous electric scooters, which have helped change the face of the city.

Yaniv's new book, Live Like a Startup, helps shed light on Israel's culture of innovation, and he joins us this week as our guest.

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In 2011, after a large earthquake and tsunami struck Japan, killing tens of thousands of people, Israeli teams were on the ground, providing critical relief and rescue operations. 

That earthquake, which also created a large nuclear meltdown and the discharge of radioactive water in Fukushima, was one of the largest disasters in recent memory, but it still didn't stop Israelis from coming to the other side of the world to offer aid.

Yotam Polizer was there, leading the efforts of IsraAID, an Israeli humanitarian aid group that has become one of the most widely recognized Israeli organizations around the world, having operated in Sierra Leone, Liberia, the Philippines, and elsewhere.

Today, Yotam is IsraAID's CEO, and he joins us to discuss

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