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.

It is day 251 of the war with Hamas. ToI senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's special episode of What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring one key issue currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World.

This week, host deputy editor Amanda Borschel-Dan speaks with senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur.

On Tuesday, the United Nations published an annual report on children in armed conflict, which for the first time added the Israeli military, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad to its list of worst offenders. The decision to add the IDF to what has become known as “the list of shame” was due to what the report said was its killing and maiming of children and attacking schools and hospitals. Israel asserts that it operates according to international law, taking steps to avoid civilian casualties.

And on Wednesday, a UN inquiry alleged both Israel and Hamas committed war crimes in the early stages of the Gaza war, saying Israel’s actions also constituted crimes against humanity because of the immense civilian losses, and that they included acts of “extermination.”

This week, we discuss the use of international bodies to delegitimize Israel and how international law -- developed in part by Jews -- no longer protects the little guys.

Discussed articles include:

UN reports accuse Israel of ‘extermination,’ crimes against humanity; Hamas of war crimes

UN publishes report with IDF, Hamas, PIJ added to ‘list of shame’ for first time

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel

THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown

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

IMAGE: Israel's legal team waits to hear the arguments of South Africa's legal team as part of South Africa case against Israel over Rafah offensive at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, on May 16, 2024. (Nick Gammon/AFP)

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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.

It is day 251 of the war with Hamas. US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told CNN that nobody in the organization knows how many of the 116 remaining hostages kidnapped on October 7 are still alive. Magid dives into what else he said, including Hamas's stance on the ongoing hostage release negotiations.

US President Joe Biden said Thursday said he doesn’t expect a ceasefire and hostage release deal for Gaza to be reached in the near future, saying Hamas needs to shift its position closer to Israel’s US-backed proposal on the table. Is the US losing patience?

On Thursday, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich tweeted that he signed an order to transfer some NIS 130 million ($35 million) of tax funds Israel collects on behalf of the Palestinian Authority to victims of terror. The issue of the PA frozen funds apparently came up during Sect. of State Antony Blinken’s meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier this week. Magid explains potential fallout of a West Bank pushed over the brink.

A poll released Wednesday found rising support for the Hamas terror group among Palestinians, both in the West Bank and in Gaza. Magid delves into the poll, which was conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PCPSR) between May 26 and June 1.

For more updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Top Hamas official: Nobody has any clue how many hostages still alive

Biden says Hamas needs ‘to move’ on truce deal, blaming terror group for hold-up

Smotrich says he transferred $35 million in PA funds to terror victims

US official: Netanyahu refusal to release PA tax funds due to pressure from right

Poll: Support for Hamas on the rise among Palestinians, now double Fatah’s

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel

THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown

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

IMAGE: Students of Birzeit University in the West Bank chant slogans during a protest in support of Gaza on June 10, 2024. (Zain Jaafar / AFP)

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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.

It is day 251 of the war with Hamas. Diplomatic reporter Lazar Berman and military reporter Emanuel Fabian join host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Yesterday, Hezbollah launched some 215 rockets and several more missiles and drones at northern Israel. The barrages marked the largest attack carried out by Hezbollah during ongoing fighting on the Lebanon border amid the war in the Gaza Strip. This came after the Israel Air Force struck southern Lebanon and killed Hezbollah top commander Taleb Abdullah on Tuesday night. Fabian fills us in.

After the past several days of conflict along the northern border -- due to an escalation from both side -- Berman examines what a war between Israel and Hezbollah would not look like.

The IDF said Wednesday it would recognize a reservist with post-traumatic stress disorder who took his own life as a fallen soldier, and he will receive a military burial as his family had requested. Fabian tells us more about the case of combat engineer Sgt. Maj. (res.) Eliran Mizrahi.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said today while speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a Group of Seven (G7) meeting of leaders in southern Italy that Israel is standing behind a ceasefire proposal for the eight-month-old war in the Gaza Strip, and the goal is to bridge gaps with Hamas and get to a deal soon. Berman examines Hamas's statements and the ability to carry on negotiations.

A UN Commission of Inquiry alleged on Wednesday that both Israel and Hamas committed war crimes in the early stages of the Gaza war, saying Israel’s actions also constituted crimes against humanity because of the immense civilian losses, and that they included acts of “extermination.” What happens next?

For more updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

215 rockets fired at north after IDF killing of ‘most senior’ Hezbollah officer yet

IDF to recognize reservist with PTSD who took own life as a fallen soldier

Blinken pans Hamas response to Israeli offer, says some of its changes ‘not workable’

UN reports accuse Israel of ‘extermination,’ crimes against humanity; Hamas of war crimes

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel

THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown

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

IMAGE: The coffin of Taleb Abdallah, known as Abu Taleb, a senior field commander of Hezbollah who was killed in what security forces say was an Israel strike, is carried during his funeral in Beirut's southern suburbs on June 12, 2024. (Anwar Amro / AFP)

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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.

It is day 250 of the war with Hamas. Political psychologist Nimrod Nir joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's special episode.

Since mere days after the October 7 Hamas onslaught on southern Israel, in which some 1,200 were killed, mostly civilians, and 250 taken hostage to Gaza, Nir has been consistently taking the temperature of Israelis’ feelings about the ensuing war. Working with a massive pool of some 5,000 people, Nimrod has collected vast amounts of data and published some of it in a War Omnibus.

Nir is a fellow at The Hebrew University’s Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace and also the CEO of Agam Labs, a multi-disciplinary research facility that aims to aid decision-makers in understanding the Israeli psyche.

The findings from the past eight months of war include how people view the zero-sum equation of hostages or war, how conspiracy theories affect public opinion and whether or not the Israeli people will be “together” in victory.

For more updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog.

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

IMAGE: Nimrod Nir, a fellow at The Hebrew University’s Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace and the CEO of Agam Labs, a multi-disciplinary research facility. (courtesy)

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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.

It is day 249 of the war with Hamas. Political correspondent Tal Schneider join host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.

Schneider discusses latest regarding hostage deal, including Channel 12 release of details regarding permanent ceasefire, countering Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's ongoing statements about not ending the war. She also speaks about the US proposal for a hostage deal for captives with US citizenship, and what could be discussed regarding that possibility with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Israel Tuesday.

Schneider then looks at discussions in the Knesset on Monday, following Knesset member Benny Gantz's resignation from the coalition and war cabinet, and how that could affect the rest of the Netanyahu coalition.

She speaks about the vote and Knesset approval to revive an ultra-Orthodox enlistment bill that would lower the current age of exemption from service for Haredi yeshiva students from 26 to 21. The only coalition member to vote against the bill was Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, a brave political move for him, says Schneider, but unclear how that will affect the bill or coalition going forward.

Steinberg mentions the Shavuot cookbook put together by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, with recipes and stories about hostages from their families and loved ones, as they move forward into another holiday.

For more updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Israel’s full offer said to provide for ‘permanent’ truce before all hostages return

Blinken discusses hostage proposal, ‘day after’ Gaza war in meeting with Netanyahu

Knesset approves revival of ultra-Orthodox enlistment bill; Gallant votes against

Gantz quits war government, says PM preventing ‘true victory’ over Hamas, urges elections

Hostages’ families share favorite Shavuot recipes as they hold out hope for loved ones

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel

THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown

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

IMAGE: Hostage families wait outside Tel Aviv's Kempinski Hotel on June 11, 2024 to meet with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (Credit Yael Gadot)

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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.

It is day 248 of the war with Hamas. Zman Israel editor Biranit Goren and military reporter Emanuel Fabian join host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Fabian fills us in on more details of the rescue operation that freed four Israelis — Noa Argamani, Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov and Shlomi Ziv -- including who held the latter three. What do we know about Palestinian journalist Abdallah Aljamal?

A cell of Hezbollah operatives launched anti-aircraft missiles at Israeli fighter jets over southern Lebanon on Sunday, the military said, amid intensifying cross-border skirmishes between Israel and the Iran-backed terror organization. How serious was this threat?

Last night, National Unity head Benny Gantz quit the wartime coalition that he joined shortly after the launch of the war. Goren speaks about the reasons he gave for leaving and where that leaves the war cabinet.

The Knesset is set to vote today on whether to renew the legislative process of a controversial draft law first proposed in the previous Knesset. We learn about the background of this proposed law, what it includes -- and what it symbolizes.

For more updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

IDF: Hamas terrorist and journalist was holding 3 hostages in home alongside family

Freed hostage Andrey Kozlov reunites with family after rescue from Gaza

In first, Hezbollah tries to down fighter jets as border fighting further ratchets up

Gantz quits war government, says PM preventing ‘true victory’ over Hamas, urges elections

Ben Gvir’s party resumes coalition support, demands more power on war issues

Knesset to vote on reviving Haredi IDF bill in bid to put off High Court intervention

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel

THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown

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

IMAGE: Former Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz announces his resignation during a televised address in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, on June 9, 2024. (Jack Guez / AFP)

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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.

It is day 247 of the war with Hamas. Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Israel celebrated yesterday after the IDF announced that it had rescued Noa Argamani, Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov, and Shlomi Ziv from eight months of Hamas captivity in Gaza. Horovitz shares his impressions of the mood of the country.

Protesters at rallies in Tel Aviv and across the country on Saturday night called for new elections and the return of the hostages held in captivity in Gaza. The protests at the same time as war cabinet minister Benny Gantz was meant to give a statement at the deadline of his self-imposed ultimatum of whether or not to stay in the government. We hear what may be some of Gantz's considerations.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to visit the region starting tomorrow, even as Israel awaits Hamas’s response to the hostage deal proposal pushed by US President Joe Biden. Could the rescue operation reframe the negotiations in any way?

On Friday, Israel, Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad were added to the United Nations’ so-called “list of shame,” which is attached to an annual report released by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s office that documents alleged rights violations against children in armed conflict, sparking outrage in Jerusalem. Horovitz weighs in.

For more updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Rescue brings rare cause for Israeli joy, before hearts return to 116 hostages still held

Father of hostage Almog Meir Jan died hours before son’s rescue: ‘He died of grief’

Protesters nationwide hail hostage rescue, urge deal to free the rest; 33 arrested

Israelis rejoice over news of successful mission to rescue 4 hostages from Gaza

Blinken to return to Israel next week, as US pushes Hamas to take hostage deal offer

Israel livid as it’s added to UN ‘list of shame’ for wartime children’s rights violations

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel

THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown

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

IMAGE: An Israel Air Force CH-53 Sea Stallion military helicopter flies over as people gather with Israeli national flags outside Sheba Tel Hashomer Medical Centre in Ramat Gan on June 8, 2024, where Israeli hostages were transferred after being rescued from captivity in the Gaza Strip since the October 7 attacks. (Jack Guez / AFP)

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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.

It is day 246 of the war with Hamas. Military reporter Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

After eight months in captivity, four Israeli hostages -- Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 21, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41 -- were rescued alive in a minutely planned IDF operation from Hamas captivity Saturday in a daring daylight operation in the central Gaza Strip. Fabian fills us in.

The IDF said Friday that they had carried out an airstrike on a Hamas command center that had been set up in a United Nations school in Gaza City’s Shati neighborhood, killing several members of the cell. The strike comes a day after the IDF hit another UN school in Gaza’s Nuseirat refugee camp, which was housing what it said was a compound used by dozens of terror operatives, 17 of which have so far been identified. Fabian discusses what we know about both strikes.

A drone launched from Lebanon impacted in an open area in the Jezreel Valley, near Nazareth, in northern Israel on Friday afternoon, in what is potentially the deepest drone strike during this conflict. Fabian describes why the use of drones is on the rise.

For more updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

IDF rescues 4 hostages from 8 months’ captivity in daytime operation in central Gaza

IDF says strike hit Hamas command room housed in container at Gaza City UN school

In apparent deepest attack of war, drone launched from Lebanon strikes near Nazareth

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel

THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown

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

IMAGE: An image depicting Noa Argamani, one of four Israeli hostages rescued by the Israeli army, is held up as Israeli activists rally during an anti-government demonstration, calling for the return of Israeli hostages being held in the Gaza Strip following their kidnapping by Palestinian Hamas terrorists during the October 7 attacks, in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv, on June 8, 2024. (Jack Guez / AFP)

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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.

It is day 246 of the war with Hamas. Host Amanda Borschel-Dan speaks with archaeologist Prof. Jodi Magness for today's bonus episode from our What Matters Now weekly podcast series.

This Wednesday, Israel marked Jerusalem Day, which celebrates the reunification of Jerusalem following the 1967 Six-Day War.

But the capital has a rich and fascinating history of rulership changes since its foundation circa 1000 BCE.

Magness just published her latest book, "Jerusalem Through the Ages: From Its Beginnings to the Crusades," through Oxford University Press. She stopped by The Times of Israel's Jerusalem offices to speak about the ancient eternal city's rulerships and populations throughout the eras.

“Jerusalem Through the Ages” is a 700-page weighty tome that delves into the city’s history through archaeological evidence and also texts, including the Bible and extra-biblical material such as the Egyptian Amarna Letters.

Magness is Kenan Distinguished Professor for Teaching Excellence in Early Judaism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the author of 11 books, including "Masada: From Jewish Revolt to Modern Myth," "Stone and Dung, Oil and Spit: Jewish Daily Life in the Time of Jesus," and "The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls." From 2011 until 2023, Magness directed excavations at Huqoq in Israel’s Galilee and uncovered its breathtaking mosaics.

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

IMAGE: Prof. Jodi Magness in Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre, on April 11, 2022. (Amanda Borschel-Dan/The Times of Israel)

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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.

It is day 245 of the war with Hamas. US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address a joint session of Congress on July 24, top US lawmakers announced on Thursday. Will this truly be a bipartisan event?

Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan informed his US counterpart Linda Thomas-Greenfield yesterday that Jerusalem opposes the Security Council resolution being advanced by the Biden administration that expresses support for the hostage-ceasefire proposal Israel made last week. Why is Israel opposing an Israeli proposal?

The United States warned Thursday that Israel will see a "massive" negative impact if the Palestinian Authority collapses as Washington again pressed Israel to let revenue flow. Who is holding up the money and on what grounds?

The US State Department announced on Thursday sanctions against the Lions’ Den terror group that was established over two years ago in the northern West Bank. Why now?

In a new interview with ABC News, US President Joe Biden said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has listened to his warnings against a major military offensive in Rafah and that Biden believes Netanyahu supports the hostage deal Israel submitted last week. What else did you hear?

For more updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

‘Falling for Hamas tactics’: IDF names 9 terrorists killed in school strike, slams media

Netanyahu to defend ‘just war’ in July 24 speech to joint session of US Congress

Israel rejects Security Council resolution in support of its own hostage deal offer

US announces sanctions on largely dormant West Bank terror group Lions’ Den

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel

THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown

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

IMAGE: Troops of the Givati Brigade operate in southern Gaza's Rafah, in a handout photo published June 6, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

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