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.

Today’s panel comprises Olympics correspondent and breaking news editor Amy Spiro and diplomatic reporter Lazar Berman, alongside host Amanda Borschel-Dan.

We start with the Israeli highs and lows from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The country won an unprecedented four medals, including the first gold to a female sports star, Linoy Ashram, over the weekend. While Israel has never medaled in a winter Olympics, the clock is already ticking and athletes have begun qualifying.

New Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was sworn in last week among flare-ups at sea and a barrage of 19 rockets shot into Israel by Hezbollah. Is Iran flexing? Is this shift in power marked by a shift in tactics?

Berman introduces new Israeli ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog. He also gives a preview of Foreign Minister Yair Lapid's upcoming Morocco trip this week. Will the food be as good as it was in the United Arab Emirates?

And finally, Borschel-Dan speaks about an archaeology story she wrote last week that discusses the first hard evidence of the 8th century BCE earthquake discussed in the Book of Amos.

Discussed articles include:

Rhythmic gymnast Linoy Ashram wins Israel’s 3rd-ever Olympic gold

Fresh off Olympic gold, Linoy Ashram says she’s ‘the happiest’ with achievements

Hezbollah rocket attack on Israel a ‘message’ to new PM, says Iranian commander

Iran nuclear talks could resume in September, says EU official

Mike Herzog, president’s brother and Brig. Gen. (Ret), named as ambassador to US

Archaeologists unearth 1st Jerusalem evidence of quake from Bible’s Book of Amos

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IMAGE: Israeli gymnast Linoy Ashram performs during the rhythmic gymnastics individual all-around final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, on August 7, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP/Ashley Landis)

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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.

Today’s panel comprises Zman Yisrael editor Biranit Goren and political correspondent Tal Schneider, along with host Raoul Wootliff.

We open today's show with a look at yesterday's rocket fire from Lebanon towards Israel, and the Israeli response. Could the tension on the northern border escalate into a war? We explain why further strife is possible even if neither side wants it.

With the Knesset yesterday closing its first legislative session of the new government's term, we assess the success and failures of the new coalition and look ahead to the challenges it faces in the coming weeks and months.

And finally, with coronavirus cases continuing to rise, we ponder the possibility of a new lockdown and look at how the government is attempting to beat the latest outbreak.

Discussed articles include:

3 rockets fired from Lebanon at Israel; IDF responds with 3 rounds of shelling

Israel launches airstrikes in Lebanon as blaze from rocket engulfs northern hill

After all-day debate, Knesset cements Bennett-Lapid rotation in law

PM to opposition: We okayed budget in 36 hours, you couldn’t do it in 36 months

Health minister: Lockdown over holidays is a last resort

With over 3,000 cases for 2nd day, PM says ‘we’ll know when to hit the brakes’

Ministers approve slew of new restrictions to curb COVID resurgence from Sunday

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PHOTO: Paramedics look on as smoke rises from the scene where rocket landed near the northern city of Kiryat Shmona, on August 4, 2021. (Magen David Adom)

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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.

Today’s panel comprises environment reporter Sue Surkes and Palestinian affairs correspondent Aaron Boxerman, along with host Amanda Borschel-Dan.

Israel is currently suffering under an ongoing heatwave and it appears things are only going to get worse. Surkes explains why -- and what the Israeli government is doing to combat this trend. Hint: Not enough.

We go to Boxerman and a neighborhood in Jerusalem that has seen innumerable flare-ups over the past several years. Could a newly proposed compromise to keep the Palestinians in their homes but still give the Jewish organization "ownership" be the key to putting out the fires?

This week the Israeli government issued another 15,000 work permits for Palestinians to enter the State of Israel. At the same time, while COVID is spreading in Israel, there is poor tracking in the Palestinian Authority. Should this worry Israelis? And what is the significance of these new work permits?

Finally, we discuss Redefine Meat, a new plant-based meat substitute that is blowing Surkes away.

Discussed articles include:

Relentlessly hotter: Sizzling heat increasingly the norm in Israel, data shows

Israel swelters as heatwave peaks, with temperatures set to hit 43°C in south

Environment Ministry to get extra NIS 625 million to fight climate change

Supreme Court floats compromise in Sheikh Jarrah eviction cases

Ministers okay granting 15,000 more work permits to Palestinians

At sizzling event, Israel’s Redefine Meat launches its 3-D cow alternative

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IMAGE: Israelis enjoy the beach in Tel Aviv on a hot summer day. June 29, 2021. (Miriam Alster/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.

Today’s panel comprises US correspondent Jacob Magid and breaking news editor Emanuel Fabian, along with host Raoul Wootliff.

On today's show, we look at the Biden administration's appointment of Holocaust historian Deborah Lipstadt to serve as US Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism.

We check in with preparations from both the US and Israeli administrations for Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's planned trip to Washington. What is Israel doing to bolster the relationship with the US ahead of the visit?

We've seen a couple of incidents involving IDF troops in the West Bank over the past day. We assess the various claims being made about them from both sides.

And finally, we look at how McDonald's avoided a bust up with Israel even as it announced the same policy that caused huge controversy for Ben and Jerry's.

Discussed articles include:

Holocaust historian Deborah Lipstadt nominated as US antisemitism envoy

Israel seeking to bolster PA, says senior official ahead of Bennett’s US visit

Israel eyeing East Jerusalem housing project ahead of Bennett’s Washington visit

Heavy gun battle in Jenin between Israeli troops, attackers; 6 Palestinians hurt

IDF shoots Arab Israeli allegedly trying to break through West Bank barrier

Testing troops’ readiness, IDF launches drill along Lebanon border

How McDonald’s took the same stance as Ben & Jerry’s but avoided public backlash

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PHOTO: Prime Minister Naftali Bennett delivers televised remarks at Ben Gurion Airport, on June 22, 2021. (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.

Today’s panel comprises senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur and breaking news editor Amy Spiro, our Olympics correspondent, along with host Amanda Borschel-Dan.

For the first time in over three years, the cabinet has approved the state budget. Filled with reforms and plans for the future, the budget will now go to the Knesset where it must pass in early November or the government will fall.

Yesterday, all of Israel celebrated the country's second-ever Olympic gold medal, the nation's first medal in gymnastics, which was awarded to Artem Dolgopyat. What else is in store from Team Israel this week?

Freedom of religion activists got a boost from Dolgopyat's mother, Angela Bilan, who explained that while her son has been in a serious relationship for three years, because only his father's side of the family is Jewish, he cannot be married in Israel. Rettig Gur explains the system and how it may soon get an update -- at the initiative of the ultra-Orthodox.

Discussed articles include:

Cabinet approves state budget for 1st time in 3 years in key test for government

Israel’s modest gold medalist: Artem Dolgopyat proves a disarming Olympic hero

Artistic gymnast Artem Dolgopyat wins Israel’s 2nd-ever Olympic gold

Israel’s Olympic gold medalist Dolgopyat: I’m already planning for Paris 2024

After trouncing by South Korea, Israeli Olympic baseball hopes hang on next game

Israel’s Olympic gold medalist can’t marry in the country, his mother laments

Facing religious reforms, some Haredim now call to separate religion and state

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IMAGE: Artem Dolgopyat of Israel celebrates after winning the gold medal on the floor exercise during the artistic gymnastics men's apparatus final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, August 1, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

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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.

Today’s panel comprises diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman and health reporter Nathan Jeffay, along with host Amanda Borschel-Dan.

On Thursday, an alleged Iranian drone attack killed a Romanian and British citizen on the Israeli-managed MT Mercer Street oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman. Foreign Minister Yair Lapid has called for an international response in talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and “joint activities against Iranian terrorism and the formulation of a substantive and effective international response,” according to a Lapid tweet.

Next, we hear about the pluses and minuses of Israel’s campaign to give those over 60 a third dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine. Jeffay also brings a new test that may help doctors evaluate how much a patient could deteriorate from the virus, very early on.

Berman updates us about the three-week saga of three Israeli filmmakers who were arrested in Nigeria while making a documentary about Igbo Jews.

Then, a humanitarian ripple effect in light of the Abraham Accords: a domino kidney donation between the United Arab Emirates and Israel.

And finally, we speak baseball with super-fan Berman and the status of the sport in Israel.

Discussed articles include:

Israel in diplomatic campaign for a forceful world response to attack on ship

US said increasingly skeptical return to Iran nuclear deal is possible

Experts: Third vaccine dose for elderly might not help, but it won’t hurt either

Israeli test tells COVID patients their chance of deterioration, on 0-100 scale

Israeli filmmakers arrive home after 20 days in Nigerian prison

3 women receive kidneys in Israel-UAE organ exchange, 1st with Arab state

Israel’s Olympic baseball team beats Mexico, keeping medal hopes alive

MLB vets immerse themselves in Jewish heritage, build Israel’s baseball team

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PHOTO: Israelis above 60 years old receive their third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at a Clalit health care maintenance organization, on August 01, 2021, in Jerusalem. (Olivier Fitoussi/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.

Today’s panel comprises political correspondent Tal Schneider and senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur, along with host Amanda Borschel-Dan.

Diving right into the Knesset, we discuss which reforms passed in a flurry of activity this week -- and which did not. The rabbinical courts may soon move into a more modern Orthodox sphere and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid is now officially the alternate prime minister and is meant to step into office in two years. But high hopes for cannabis went up in smoke.

On Sunday, the budget will get its debut in the Knesset with a first reading of the Arrangements Bill. What is this bill and what are some of the hot-button issues? Hint: Israeli farmers are throwing eggs on the highway today.

And finally, Rettig Gur distills his long-read essay on antisemitism versus Zionism. It is a thought-provoking look at the historical and current contexts of this ongoing debate that is well worth a read.

Discussed articles include:

After blunder, Knesset gives initial ok to bill for rabbinical court reform

New budget bill shows coalition launching sweeping reforms despite fragility

Smashing produce on road, farmers block highways over planned agriculture reform

A hatred that dwells alone? Antisemitism debate cuts to heart of Zionist vision

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IMAGE: Israeli farmers block junctions all over Israel in protest of the Finance and Agriculture ministries plan to open up the fruit and vegetable market for import, at the Bilu Junction, on July 29, 2021. (Yossi Aloni/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.

Today’s panel comprises breaking news editor and current Olympics correspondent Amy Spiro and Palestinian affairs correspondent Aaron Boxerman, along with host Amanda Borschel-Dan.

We launch into Olympics news with brief updates on what are Israel's current medal chances and what else can we look forward to watching with Team Israel in the next few days. Then we turn to the continuing saga of judokas who are forfeiting matches against Israel to express solidarity with the Palestinian people. Kosher?

Next, we hear about the Palestinian five-member Olympics delegation: how they entered the games despite not qualifying, and more interestingly, which Palestinian Authority politician is in charge of the team -- and why.

The Israeli government appears to be asking for a delay in the High Court's delivery of a decision regarding Sheikh Jarrah. Why now, and will this ploy work?

And finally, back to the games and the amazing story of Israeli siblings who both competed in the triathlon this week.

Discussed articles include:

Winning judo silver in Tokyo, Iranian defector Mollaei dedicates medal to Israel

International Olympic Committee ‘concerned’ by forfeits to avoid Israeli judoka

Palestinian Olympians from Gaza, Canada, US, Jerusalem compete in Tokyo

Fearing fresh unrest, Bennett gov’t weighing delay for verdict on Sheikh Jarrah

For Israeli triathlete brothers, the Olympics is a family affair

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IMAGE: Iranian defector Saeid Mollaei, competing under a Mongolian flag, reacts after losing to Takanori Nagase of Japan, unseen, during the men -81kg final of the judo match at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, July 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

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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.

Today’s panel comprises military correspondent Judah Ari Gross and US correspondent Jacob Magid, along with host Raoul Wootliff.

On today's show, ripples continue across the globe from the revelation that dozens of countries were targeted by Israeli spyware firm NSO Group. We look at what was revealed and how it's impacting Israel.

In Israel's south, things appear to be heating up in Gaza. We ask what Hamas wants and how likely they are to get it.

And finally, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is meant to be going to the US next month. We hear an update on preparations for his trip and what issues are at stake.

Discussed articles include:

Worldwide probe finds tech by Israel’s NSO Group targeted media, politicians

Government said to form team to deal with fallout of NSO spyware revelations

Israel: If NSO Group violated export permits, ‘appropriate action’ will be taken

European leaders blast use of Israeli spyware to target activists, reporters

Critics call for curb on spyware after revelations about Israel’s NSO

IDF strikes Gaza after incendiary balloons spark fires in south

Message in a balloon: Hamas threatens violence unless Israel allows Qatari aid

Bennett aides to travel to DC for meetings with Biden staff ahead of PM’s visit

Biden pushing off Jerusalem mission reopening until coalition stabilizes

Months after it was downed, Iran UAV still swimming with fishes in kibbutz pond

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IMAGE: This August 25, 2016 file photo shows the logo of the Israeli NSO Group company on a building where they had offices in Herzliya, Israel. (AP Photo/Daniella Cheslow, File)

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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.

Today’s panel comprises environmental reporter Sue Surkes and diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman, along with host Amanda Borschel-Dan.

Overnight we heard of an Environment Ministry freeze of the United Arab Emirates-driven gas pipeline deal. In the Abraham Accords-led deal, Gulf oil would be brought by tankers to Eilat and then piped over mainland Israel to the port city of Ashkelon, from where it would be distributed to Europe. But the ministry has many doubts and accuses the Europe Asia Pipeline Company of not fulfilling its due diligence. How could this affect Israel diplomatically?

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid named a first permanent envoy to the UAE, Amir Hayek. Why is this move significant and who is Hayek?

Lapid gave a wide-ranging briefing to journalists yesterday. According to Lapid, the past decade-plus of neglect and poor budgeting for the Foreign Ministry has created a rise in global antisemitism. Who is to blame? He who must not be named.

Surkes brings us the tragically ironic tale of an Israeli-led expedition to Sudan that was tasked with saving Red Sea coral. Until the ship ran aground in the Straits of Tiran and inflicted untold damage on a coral reef.

And finally, the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History has a new exhibit on that explains the concept of global warming to the masses. It's a must see, says Surkes.

Discussed articles include:

Israel partially freezes UAE oil pipeline deal over environmental concerns

Lapid taps business executive as first permanent envoy to UAE

Lapid assails Netanyahu-era neglect for diplomacy as antisemitism soared

Winds of peace fuel Israeli-led expedition to Sudan to save Red Sea coral reefs

With coral research delayed by crash, scientist not waiting to dive back in

New exhibit seeks to explain climate change, how to arrest it

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IMAGE - In this September 15, 2020, file photo, from left; former Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former US president Donald Trump, and United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan, sit during the Abraham Accords signing ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

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