The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

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.

Legal reporter Jeremy Sharon and Arab Affairs reporter Gianluca Pacchiani join host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today's episode.

We begin with a briefing from political reporter Carrie Keller-Lynn who traveled with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to Berlin late last week for Israel’s biggest ever defense sale. She tells us about the significance of this sale, beyond the numbers.

Five members of a single Bedouin family were killed on Wednesday in a shooting inside a house in Basmat Tab’un, a village in the north, around 22 kilometers (14 miles) east of Haifa. Pacchiani give more details about this massacre in broad daylight and describes how some of the programs aimed at staunching this bloodletting in Arab communities are being discontinued.

Sharon gives highlights from Thursday’s recusal law hearing at the High Court, including drama surrounding Attorney Aner Helman.

Discussed articles include:

Germany signs nearly €4 billion deal for Israel’s Arrow 3 missile defense system

5 Bedouin family members shot dead in northern home; Arab community toll rises to 188

Netanyahu government nixed effective programs to fight Arab crime, experts say

AG’s lawyer tells High Court she can’t force a PM’s recusal, then says she can

At hearing, Knesset lawyer admits PM recusal law is personal, argues that’s irrelevant

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IMAGE: Illustrative: Two Arrow 3 interceptors are launched during a test of the missile defense system on January 18, 2022. (Defense Ministry)

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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.

Zman Yisrael editor Biranit Goren and senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur join host Amanda Borschel-Dan in today's episode.

The High Court of Justice is hearing petitions demanding it annul a controversial piece of government legislation that blocks the ability of the attorney general to order the prime minister to recuse himself from office. Our guests break down what this legislation is and dig into its deeper meaning.

Goren tells us about a four-part public broadcasting documentary series on the Yom Kippur War that delves into the fighters of Squadron 201. According to its program notes, the series presents new testimonies of pilots and navigators, who stand for the first time in front of the cameras and in frank monologues deal with the open wound left by the war. She tells us why it gave her goosebumps.

Discussed articles include:

High Court set to hold key hearing on prime minister recusal law

Sequel to constitutional showdown pits government against court on PM recusal law

Herzog: 50 years after Yom Kippur War, Israel facing ‘state of emergency’

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IMAGE: President of the Supreme Court Esther Hayut and Supreme Court Justices at a court hearing on petitions against the government's 'Recusal Law' at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, September 28, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

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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.

US bureau chief Jacob Magid and social media editor Sarah Tuttle Singer join host Jessica Steinberg for today's podcast.

Magid discusses latest on efforts toward normalization of ties between Saudis and Israel, including stipulations regarding Palestinians, but not conditioned upon peace with Palestinian state.

He also talks about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hour-long meeting with Jewish leaders in New York ahead of Yom Kippur, which included an unexpectedly frank question-and-answer session and some public pushback from Sara Netanyahu.

Tuttle-Singer speaks about Hidden Gems, a new Times of Israel Community initiative in which reporters share their favorite spots around Israel, including stunning views, delicious delicacies and off-the-beaten track locations.

Steinberg mentions several cultural events marking 50 years since the Yom Kippur War, including an exhibit by filmmaker Amos Gitai at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art and guided tours, talks and stays in the Golan Heights, with one hosted by Kibbutz Ortal, called 50 Years Later.

Discussed articles include:

PA officials: If Israel stops unilateral actions for Saudi deal, we’ll stop ours

Saudis putting aside Arab Peace Initiative amid Israel normalization talks – officials

In meet with US Jewish leaders, PM dodges criticism of extremist coalition partners

50 years on, filmmaker Amos Gitai remembers Yom Kippur War in museum exhibit

On anniversary of war, a Golan kibbutz invites visitors for historic, cultural tours

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IMAGE: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the state ceremony marking 50 years since the Yom Kippur War at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl, on September 26, 2023 (Photo by Chaim Goldberg/FLASH90)

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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.

Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman and religion reporter Canaan Lidor join host Amanda Borschel-Dan in today's episode.

Berman is back in Israel from accompanying Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the United States and fills us in on the lesser-discussed meetings that occurred on the sidelines at the United Nations.

Foreign minister Eli Cohen met with his Emirati counterpart Abdullah Bin Zayed on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly as well, marking three years to the Abraham Accords. What was said there?

A senior Saudi delegation will visit the West Bank this week for a meeting with Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas. Was this meeting already scheduled or is it directly related to the seemingly sped up normalization?

During the much-awaited meeting between President Joe Biden and the prime minister, Biden said, “I think without Israel, there’s not a Jew in the world who’s secure. I think Israel is essential.” How was this received by the Diaspora?

All the headlines in Israeli media this morning are surrounding the Yom Kippur prayer service in Tel Aviv where, despite a court order, worshippers set up a temporary mechitza. Lidor breaks it down for us.

50 years ago during the Yom Kippur fast, many Israelis in reserve duty were suddenly activated to go fight. Berman shares part of his experiences on a trip to the far north to mark the anniversary of the 1973 war.

Discussed articles include:

Netanyahu discusses potential Saudi deal in first known meeting with Erdogan

DR Congo will move its embassy to Jerusalem, leader tells Netanyahu at UN sidelines

Saudi delegation to visit West Bank this week as Israel normalization talk increases

Israeli, Emirati foreign ministers meet to talk 3 years of Abraham Accords

Prominent Zionists laud Biden’s remark that no Jew anywhere is safe without Israel

PM slams ‘left-wingers rioting against Jews’; Lapid: Messianists brought religious war

Activists block public Tel Aviv Yom Kippur prayers as Orthodox group sets gender divider

Segregated Yom Kippur prayers spark slurs and bitterness, not atonement, in Tel Aviv

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IMAGE: Two Israeli soldiers sit beneath a road sign, with a tank in the background, somewhere in the Sinai Desert, October 8, 1973. (AP Photo/Robert Dear)

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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 environment reporter Sue Surkes join host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today's episode.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the United Nations on Friday. What were Horovitz's takeaways from the 25-minute speech?

On Saturday, the Saudi foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan also addressed the UN General Assembly. Which country was not named in his speech.

Around 2,000 protesters opposed to the government’s judicial overhaul rallied Friday against Netanyahu as he delivered his speech and he also sat down with US Jewish leadership. What came out of that meeting?

Surkes just returned from Chad where she accompanied a group of neonatologists on a unique aid mission aimed at dramatically reducing preventable Infant mortality rates in Africa. She tells us more.

Discussed articles include:

Netanyahu wraps up US visit as protesters shout ‘shame’ at departing convoy in NY

Full text of Netanyahu’s UN address: ‘On the cusp of historic Saudi-Israel peace’

Netanyahu predicts a new Middle East, is silent on the havoc he’s unleashed in Israel

In UN speech, Saudi FM urges formation of Palestinian state, doesn’t mention Israel

2,000 protest against Netanyahu outside UN as he addresses General Assembly

In meet with US Jewish leaders, PM dodges criticism of extremist coalition partners

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IMAGE: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly, September 22, 2023 at United Nations headquarters. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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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.

Senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur and health reporter Renee Ghert Zand join host Amanda Borschel-Dan in today's episode.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a long-awaited face-to-face with US President Joe Biden yesterday. We begin the program with a report from diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman, who is traveling with the prime minister.

Rettig Gur looks at the Saudi defense pact aspect of the normalization process that was highlighted in the Biden-Netanyahu meeting, including the intriguing question of whether this would mean the other nations’ forces would aid in any armed struggle.

Ghert-Zand recently reminded readers, “As in the US, one in eight Israeli women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime.” How have Israeli mammogram recommendations shifted in line with this statistic?

With the upswing in new COVID cases, are we any closer to understanding long COVID? We hear about the grab-bag of symptoms and few options for treatment.

And finally, the first Israeli team to compete at the Invictus Games came home Monday from Dusseldorf, Germany having won 14 medals, including three golds in table tennis.

Discussed articles include:

Meeting Netanyahu, Biden calls to uphold democratic values, talks up Saudi deal hopes

Health officials remind Israeli women of new mammogram guidelines

As patients suffer, long COVID remains a collection of symptoms with no single cure

IDF disabled veteran athletes bring home 14 medals from their first Invictus Games

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IMAGE: President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in New York, September 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

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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.

Knesset correspondent Carrie Keller-Lynn and religion and diaspora affairs reporter Canaan Lidor join host Jessica Steinberg for today's podcast, with a briefing from political correspondent Tal Schneider, reporting from the US.

Schneider offers an update on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's trip in the US, including his meeting with Elon Musk, his first-ever meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the protestors awaiting him at every stop.

Keller-Lynn turns to Tuesday's discussions in the Knesset and comments made by Likud minister David Amsalem in response to Netanyahu's remarks to Elon Musk about the judicial overhaul.

Lidor discusses his trip to Uman, Ukraine over Rosh Hashanah, along with the tens of thousands of male pilgrims who made the long, arduous trip, often with young sons in tow.

Keller-Lynn speaks about the Knesset approval for transferring NIS 149 million ($39 million) to the Religious Services Ministry and the intense debate over the sum of money following last week's approval of nearly half-billion shekels for ultra-Orthodox education and religious organizations.

Lidor also discusses the influx of funding to the Conference of European rabbis, the umbrella Jewish organization now relocated to Munich, and which has tried to rival Chabad as the leading Jewish umbrella group in Europe.

Discussed articles include:

Arguing overhaul still ‘good,’ Likud minister likens opponents to apartheid regime

On my umpteenth trip to Uman, I finally visited Rabbi Nachman’s grave

Knesset okays NIS 149 million for Rabbinate salaries, renovations of rabbis’ tombs

Orthodox European rabbinical group finds a home in Munich, with new funding

IMAGE: In the streets of Uman, a day after Rosh Hashanah, September 18, 2023 (Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

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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.

News editor Luke Tress and US bureau chief Jacob Magid join host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today's episode.

Today's show begins with a brief report from diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman, who is traveling with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the United States.

Tress sheds light on what anti-judicial overhaul protesters have in store for the prime minister this week and delves into who they are and where their funding comes from.

Magid reports on an optimistic initiative put together by Saudi Arabia, the European Union, the Arab League and other international partners that is aimed at incentivizing Israel and the Palestinian Authority to restart peace talks.

Magid reported last week that the United Arab Emirates Ambassador to the United States said that the Israeli government is engaged in a process of de facto annexation of the West Bank, and that it may be up to other countries weighing normalization with Israel to stop it. He speaks about this carrot versus stick approach.

And finally, the Orthodox Union has certified a strain of lab-grown meat as kosher for the first time. We hear what kind of cells these are and where they can be found.

Discussed articles include:

TOI Webinar: No vote, no voice? Diaspora Jews’ influence on Israel’s judicial overhaul crisis

PM says original overhaul proposal ‘was bad,’ but must fix how Israel chooses judges

New York anti-overhaul activists launch week of protests as Netanyahu arrives

‘100% carrots’: Arab states, EU unveil plan to entice Israel, PA to sign peace deal

Saudi-backed EU venture aims to incentivize Israeli-Palestinian peace

UAE envoy: De facto West Bank annexation unfolding, but our ability to stop it wanes

In first, leading kosher authority Orthodox Union certifies lab-grown meat

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IMAGE: A plane flies a banner protesting against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he visits Tesla's Fremont, California, factory on September 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

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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 military correspondent Emanuel Fabian joint host Amanda Borschel-Dan.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set off last night for about a week in the US. We talk about what he hopes to accomplish, how was he greeted at Ben-Gurion Airport and his flammable response to protesters.

Rioting continued along the Gaza border on Friday and Sunday and yesterday morning, a Palestinian was reportedly stabbed and wounded as groups of settler and Arab youths clashed in the West Bank city of Hebron overnight. Fabian updates on clashes with Palestinians over the long weekend.

On Friday, the High Court of Justice pushed off a planned hearing on petitions against Justice Minister Yariv Levin’s refusal to convene the Judicial Selections Committee by a month. Horovitz weighs in on the new timing of the hearing and gives background.

On early Friday, an explosive device that was planted near a tree in Tel Aviv’s Hayarkon Park went off. What do we know about who was behind this as well as the unrelated arson of the famous statue of prime minister David Ben-Gurion on early Saturday morning?

Discussed articles include:

TOI Webinar: No vote, no voice? Diaspora Jews’ influence on Israel’s judicial overhaul crisis

Outcry after Netanyahu says anti-overhaul protesters joining forces with Iran, PLO

Leaving for US, PM says protesters joining forces with PLO and Iran, defaming Israel

Israel temporarily shutters Gaza pedestrian crossing following border rioting

Palestinian said stabbed in brawl with settlers in Hebron

High Court pushes off Tuesday hearing on Levin’s refusal to convene judicial panel

2 suspects detained on central Israel highway after blast in Tel Aviv park

Iconic Ben-Gurion headstand statue on Tel Aviv beach badly burned in attack

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IMAGE: Anti-judicial overhaul demonstrators protest against the Israeli government's judicial overhaul and against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, at the Ben-Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv, September 17, 2023. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

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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.

Zman Yisrael editor Biranit Goren and senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur join host Amanda Borschel-Dan in today's episode.

Ahead of next week’s High Court hearing, Justice Minister Yariv Levin told the High Court of Justice on Wednesday that only he has the right to convene the Judicial Selection Committee and that the court has no authority to order him to do so. At the same time, Speaker of the Knesset Amir Ohana seems to be suggesting an alternative court system. What is going on here?

On Tuesday, Rettig Gur published an in-depth oped titled, "Neither coalition nor High Court respects Basic Laws. Urgently needed: A constitution.” Both guests weigh in on why Israeli institutions deserve to learn the real "rules of the game."

Discussed articles include:

TOI Webinar: No vote, no voice? Diaspora Jews’ influence on Israel’s judicial overhaul crisis

Levin tells court: ‘Only I have authority to convene Judicial Selection Committee’

Neither coalition nor High Court respects Basic Laws. Urgently needed: A constitution

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on iTunes, Spotify, PlayerFM, Google Play, or wherever you get your podcasts.

IMAGE: Israeli Justice Minister Yariv Levin attends the weekly cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, March 5, 2023. (Gil Cohen-Magen/Pool via AP)

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