The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

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.

Political correspondent Ariela Karmel and diplomatic reporter Nava Freiberg join host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.

As the Prime Minister's Office announces Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's upcoming meeting with US President Donald Trump on December 29 in the US, Freiberg notes that the two leaders will discuss the next phases of the Gaza peace plan. She says the emerging security arrangements between Israel and Syria are also on the table and discusses media reports that Netanyahu was meant to sign a security agreement with Syria in September, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Karmel and Freiberg review different aspects of the 40-signature debate earlier this week in the Knesset, in which Netanyahu publicly supported the current Haredi draft bill for the first time. The prime minister also defended Israel's international standing, pointing to the recent visit of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and his regular phone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Karmel discusses a special Knesset panel formed to advance Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi’s controversial media bill and bypass the Knesset Economics Committee run by Likud MK David Bitan, given the lack of consensus in Karhi's own Likud party over the bill meant to overhaul Israel's broadcast media.

Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Trump to host Netanyahu on December 29 for talks on advancing Gaza plan

Netanyahu denies report he refused to ink deal with Syria on sidelines of UN in September

Netanyahu backs ‘historic’ Haredi draft bill in fiery Knesset debate on wartime conduct

Panel chair assails press as special Knesset committee takes up media oversight bill

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Podwaves.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at 40 signatures debate in the Knesset on December 8, 2025. (Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

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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.

Military correspondent Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Maj. Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon, who served as the IDF’s point man on hostage negotiations since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, onslaught, says that Hamas has “objective” difficulties in finding the body of  Ran Gvili, the last deceased hostage in Gaza. We learn what is happening in Gaza and the potential power vacuum left in the southern anti-Hamas militia following the death of its leader Yasser Abu Shabab.

The IDF confirmed carrying out a wave of airstrikes in southern Lebanon overnight, saying it targeted Hezbollah sites, including a training facility used by the terror group’s elite Radwan Force. Fabian describes how the IDF strikes generally come after the mechanism put in place following the November 2024 ceasefire doesn't act.

A year following the fall of the Assad regime, Fabian explains how the buffer zone was immediately taken by the IDF, which will be very hesitant to release at least two strategic points.

We are then updated on a widespread operation that took place in the West Bank over the past couple weeks and an uptick in attacks against soldiers there.

And our final stops on our tour are Egypt and Jordan, both relatively quiet borders, but with their own particular challenges. Fabian weighs in.

Since the outbreak of the war on October 7, 2023, 922 soldiers, officers, and reservists, including several dozen local security officers, have been killed across its various arenas. Today, we focus on those who were wounded -- physically and emotionally -- and how the army is moving forward.

To finish the program, we learn about a pilot program integrating female recruits into the Combat Engineering Corps’ elite Yahalom unit and why it is deemed a success, paving the way for women combat engineers to become a permanent role in the military.

Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Trump to host Netanyahu on December 29 for talks on advancing Gaza plan

Anti-Hamas militia leader Yasser Abu Shabab killed in ‘internal clash’ in Gaza

Palestinian who sped car toward troops in Hebron killed, as is passerby; soldier lightly hurt

Over half of soldiers treated in rehab centers have mental health issues, stats show

IDF declares trial of women combat engineers in elite Yahalom unit a success

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Pod-Waves.

IMAGE: A military helicopter evacuates the injured from the Ziv Medical center in Tzfat wounded by a missile fired by the terrorist organization Hezbollah, February 14, 2024. (Ayal Margolin/Flash90)

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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.

Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad fled Syria for Russia a year ago as rebels commanded by Syria’s new president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, seized the country. Initially greeted with some skepticism for his terrorist ties, al-Sharaa is now feted on world stages. Horovitz shares impressions from what he heard from Syrian officials during a recent Damascus trip and how their new leader, under the Trump administration's wing, is increasingly boldly criticizing Israel and its hold on the buffer zone between the two nations.

This morning, US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz arrived in Israel for an official visit focused on advancing Washington’s peace plan for Gaza. Yesterday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the first phase of the ceasefire in Gaza is “almost” complete, and that he expects to move on to its second phase soon, at a joint Jerusalem press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. However, yesterday evening, the premier expressed skepticism about the notion that a multinational force meant to patrol Gaza could successfully disarm Hamas. We speak about Israel's concerns, Hamas's alleged readiness to "freeze" its weapons arsenal and the current facts on the ground in Gaza.

Israeli and Qatari officials met in New York on Sunday, according to a report, in the first of a series of trilateral meetings set up by US envoy Steve Witkoff, who is looking to mend ties that were frayed by Israel’s botched September strike on Hamas offices in Qatar. At the same time, the White House is also reportedly looking to broker a summit between Netanyahu and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi. Horovitz weighs in.

During his meeting with Merz yesterday, Netanyahu said that he will not retire from politics in exchange for a pardon in his corruption trial, and also that he is not interested in a plea bargain. Horovitz sets the scene and explains its significance in the ongoing Netanyahu legal saga.

Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Syria still struggles to heal from civil war, a year after Assad regime’s fall

Netanyahu says phase one of Gaza truce ‘almost’ complete, alongside Germany’s Merz

Eyeing phase two in Gaza, PM airs skepticism on whether international force can disarm Hamas

Hamas ready to discuss ‘freezing or storing’ its weapons, says terror group official

Israel, Qatar meet as US looks to mend relations, move to phase 2 in Gaza – report

White House said to be pushing for summit between Netanyahu and Egypt’s Sissi

Netanyahu says he won’t quit politics in exchange for pardon in corruption trial

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Pod-Waves.

IMAGE: Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, greets people as he attends celebrations marking the first anniversary of the ousting of former President Bashar Assad in Damascus, Syria, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki) I

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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.

US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Magid joins us from the Doha Forum, an annual gathering bringing together government officials, policymakers, civil society representatives and business leaders from around the world to discuss major global challenges.

Qatar’s Prime Minister said yesterday that Doha does not consider the current situation in Gaza to be a ceasefire, arguing that this would require an Israeli withdrawal from the entirety of the enclave. At the same time, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty called for deploying the International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Gaza “as soon as possible,” claiming that Israel is using the absence of international monitors on the ground in Gaza to violate the ceasefire on a daily basis. We hear additional statements critical of Israel and discuss their significance, even as the Trump administration appears to announce that Phase 2 of the Gaza ceasefire will commence in the coming weeks.

Also yesterday at the Doha Forum, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa accused Israel of “exporting crises” to other countries around the region to distract from its “horrifying massacres” in Gaza. We learn how those at the forum consider that the Syrian president, once denounced as a terrorist, is a legitimate actor in the region, whereas Israel is not.

Piling on to the criticism against Israel at the forum, also yesterday, a senior Saudi diplomat said that while there is much focus in the international community on the need for the Palestinian Authority to engage in a comprehensive reform process, a reform of the Israeli government is what is most needed for peace in the region.

Magid puts this new Saudi statement in the context of what we also learned yesterday: that the US and Saudi Arabia had reached understandings on the eve of Hamas’s October 7 attack regarding the concessions Israel would have to make vis-à-vis the Palestinians for Riyadh to normalize relations with Jerusalem. Magid previews what he has uncovered, which will be discussed more in depth in Friday's Lazar Focus podcast.

Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Qatari PM: Gaza truce can’t be considered ceasefire until Israel leaves the Strip

Trump says next phase of his Gaza plan will soon commence amid concern it’s stalling

Syria’s Sharaa slams Israel for ‘exporting’ conflict to region to hide Gaza ‘massacres’

Senior Saudi diplomat: It’s Israel, not PA , that most needs reform to secure peace

ToI reveals: US and Saudis reached understandings on Palestinian component of normalization before Oct. 7

The day after that never came: How time ran out on Blinken’s plan for postwar Gaza

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Pod-Waves.

IMAGE: (From L) CEO and President of the International Crisis Group Comfort Ero, Spain's Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares, Egypt's Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, Norway's Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide and Saudi Cabinet of the Minister of Foreign Affairs's minister plenipotentiary Manal Radwan attend the opening day of the Doha Forum, an annual diplomatic conference, in Doha on December 6, 2025. (Mahmud HAMS / AFP)

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In the first episode of Thoughts & Prayers, host Jessica Fisher explores one of the oldest and most unsettling questions in Jewish life: Does prayer work?

Through deeply personal reflection and conversation with Sara Labaton, Josh Warshawsky, and Akiva Mattenson, the episode traces how ancient mystics, modern rationalists, and everyday seekers wrestle with the meaning and purpose of prayer — whether it changes the world, transforms us, or simply helps us keep knocking on a locked gate. Thoughtful, searching, and grounded in lived experience, this opening chapter invites listeners to reconsider what it really means to pray.

Sources referenced in this episode include:

Shabbat Kedusha
Nahmanides’ interpretation of Exodus 29:46
Emet atah hu rishon
Babylonian Talmud Yoma 69b:14
Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 32b
John Ashbery – “At North Farm”

Thoughts & Prayers is a new limited podcast series from the Shalom Hartman Institute that explores the tensions, questions, and contradictions at the heart of Jewish prayer today. Hosted by Jessica Fisher, each episode weaves together personal stories, classical texts, and conversations with leading rabbis, scholars, and educators to ask what prayer can still mean — and why it matters.

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Welcome to The Reel Schmooze with ToI film reviewer Jordan Hoffman and host Amanda Borschel-Dan, where we bring you all the entertainment news and film reviews a Jew can use.

This week, the pair speaks about two films, "Eleanor the Great," directed by Scarlett Johansson, and the documentary, "Son of a Seeker," by first-time filmmaker Kai Balin.

But first, we hear in this week's "Jangle" segment, Hoffman recounts the recent votes of the New York Film Critics Circle for their annual "best-ofs," which are also known as the “Elite Oscars.”

Next, we turn to two news items surrounding "Eleanor the Great." The first is that first-time director Scarlett Johansson said in an interview that she was asked by a would-be financial backer to change her film’s plot away from the Holocaust. And then we also heard this week that one of the Holocaust survivors featured in the film, Sami Steigmann, was asked not to speak at a Brooklyn middle school about antisemitism due to his pro-Israel views.

We then review the film "Eleanor the Great," directed by Johansson and written by Tory Kamen. It stars the great June Squibb, Erin Kellyman, Jessica Hecht, and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Then we turn to the independent documentary "Son of a Seeker," which is being shown at some Jewish film festivals, and learn about the unusual story of a third-generation Holocaust survivor who learns, after attending Jewish day school and contemplating immigration to Israel, he may not be Jewish after all.

Hear who gave both films a seal of approval on this week's The Reel Schmooze.

The Reel Schmooze is produced by the PodWaves and can be found wherever you get your podcasts.

IMAGE: June Squibb, left, and Scarlett Johansson attend the special screening of "Eleanor the Great", hosted by Sony Pictures Classics and The Cinema Society, at Village East by Angelika on Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025, in New York. (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

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Welcome to The Times of Israel's Lazar Focus. Each Friday, join host deputy editor Amanda Borschel-Dan and diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman for a deep dive into what's behind the news that spins the globe.

This week, we're joined by Julien Lerisson, the head of delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Israel and Occupied Territories.

Berman reviews the organization's troubling history of failures regarding Jews, specifically during the Holocaust, but also moving forward in its rejection of Israel's national Magen David Adom chapter until two decades ago.

We learn about the ICRC's work in Gaza during the hostage releases and Lerisson shares the humanitarian group's frustrations with its inability to access those held by Hamas and other terrorist groups in Gaza.

Lerisson tells us about the group's core principle of neutrality and how a mission to serve humanity is at the center of its work in war-torn and disaster-prone regions.

Lazar Focus can be found on all podcast platforms. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves.

IMAGE: Julien Lerisson (courtesy)/ A Red Cross vehicle carrying the remains of a deceased hostage handed over by Hamas militants heads toward the border crossing with Israel for transfer to Israeli authorities, in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, December 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

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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.

US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.

After Israel and Lebanon held direct talks on Wednesday in the presence of US envoy Morgan Ortagus, Magid remarks on the rare contact between the two countries. The US aims to prevent the expansion of Israeli operations in Lebanon during the ongoing ceasefire, while Israel wants to ensure that Hezbollah is not able to rearm.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly weighed in on Jewish settler violence against Palestinian villagers, and Magid notes the premier's insistence on redirecting the so-called hilltop youth's criminal tendencies via educational efforts rather than using security measures or imprisonment. Netanyahu also discussed legalizing certain West Bank outposts in light of their role in preventing Palestinian land grabs in Area C.

Last month, the Trump administration shelved the idea of sanctions on Palestinian Authority leaders, after PA Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas fired his finance minister when it was discovered that illicit "pay to slay" payments were still being made to Palestinian security prisoners. Magid talks about the White House decision, and its sense of satisfaction with the development.

Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Officials from Israel and Lebanon hold first direct talks in decades in Naqoura

Netanyahu said to back recognition of illegal farming outposts in West Bank

Social equality minister roundly panned for plan to divert Arab economic development funds

US shelved sanctions on PA leaders after Abbas fired minister over prisoner payments

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Pod-Waves.

IMAGE: FILE - A helicopter flies over a base of the U.N. peacekeeping force, in the southern town of Naqoura, Lebanon on Oct. 14, 2020. The French oil giant Total said Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022 it will soon launch exploration activities in search for gas in the Mediterranean off Lebanon's coast following last month's historic deal between Lebanon and Israel on their maritime border. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein, File)

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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.

Military correspondent Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Yesterday, two soldiers were lightly injured in a stabbing attack near the northern West Bank settlement of Ateret. The attack came hours after a soldier was lightly hurt in a car-ramming near the city of Hebron. Both attackers were killed. Are we seeing an uptick in attacks on soldiers in the West Bank?

At recording time, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, the Al Quds Brigades, said it was searching for the body of a hostage in northern Gaza with a team from the Red Cross. It has since been announced that remains will be handed over to Israel this evening.

These announcements came a day after Hamas handed over remains to Israel via the Red Cross, which Israel said today did not belong to either of the two remaining hostages. Regardless of the full return of the deceased hostages, this morning Israel stated it will reopen the Rafah Crossing in the coming days for the exit of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Egypt. We learn about the significance of this step.

Yesterday evening, the IDF’s new Hasmonean Brigade for ultra-Orthodox troops completed its first-ever squad commanders’ course, which the military says lays the groundwork for “the future generation of Haredi commanders in the army.” We learn more about the bridgade and whether it can overcome the strife surrounding the lack of Haredi enlistment. However, Fabian adds, according to Channel 12 news, the IDF is short of about 1,300 officers at the ranks of lieutenant and captain, and another 300 majors.

The military on Tuesday completed a reorganization of its C4I and Cyber Defense Directorate, with a new artificial intelligence unit and an expanded electronic warfare array that will further enhance Israel’s defensive cyber capabilities, including countering drone attacks. We hear about the new units and learn about some practical applications for their work.

Israel’s high-powered laser interception system, dubbed “Iron Beam,” will be delivered to the military at the end of the month, the head of the Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Defense Research and Development said Monday. Fabian explains where it could be used -- almost immediately.

Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Israel says remains handed over by Hamas are not of Ran Gvili or Sudthisak Rinthalak

Three soldiers injured in West Bank stabbing, ramming attacks; assailants killed

IDF’s Haredi brigade graduates its first squad commanders’ course
 
IDF faces manpower crisis as fewer soldiers keen on military career, new data shows

Focusing on AI and electronic warfare, IDF restructures computer service directorate

IDF to receive ‘Iron Beam’ laser interceptors at the end of the month

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Podwaves.

Image: Signals officers of the C4I and Cyber Defense Directorate are seen in an undated photo published by the army on December 2, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

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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.

Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman joins host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu receives his fifth invitation to visit US President Donald Trump at the White House, discusses Berman, an important opportunity given the Gaza ceasefire that is stuck in its first phase. 

Berman notes that Trump wants to further Israel's security agreements with Syria, where there were clashes last week between IDF troops and Islamist Syrians. He says that conversation will be the centerpiece of the Trump-Netanyahu meetup, if it takes place.

After the US signed major agreements with Saudi Arabia during the recent White House meeting between Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Berman notes that Trump's focus is on other conflicts right now, and not necessarily on Israel and Saudi relations.

Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Trump speaks to Netanyahu, invites him to visit, warns Israel not to ‘interfere’ in Syria

As Trump and Saudi prince heat up ties, Israel normalization left out in the cold

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Podwaves.

IMAGE: President Donald Trump talks with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, Israel's parliament, Monday, Oct. 13, 2025, in Jerusalem. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, Pool)

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