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

Hamas said Saturday it was reviewing a new Israeli proposal for a truce and hostage deal, amid intensified efforts to broker an agreement. At the same time, Israel told a top-level Egyptian delegation that it will give Hamas "once last chance" before launching the Rafah operation. Magid updates us on what we know so far.

US troops have begun constructing a maritime pier off the coast of Gaza with the aim of speeding up the flow of humanitarian aid into the enclave when it becomes operational in May. With the pier already suffering mortar fire, where will the troops be housed? 

On Thursday, Magid paid a visit to the Northwestern University campus in Evanston, Illinois, and was witness to the set-up of its ongoing pro-Palestine protests. He reports back. 

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Avigail Idan’s meeting with Biden was ‘something special,’ family says

Hamas says it will study Israel’s latest response in truce, hostage deal negotiations

Israel tells Egypt it’s giving hostage deal ‘last chance’ before launching Rafah op

US troops begin constructing Gaza pier, aiming to have it operational by early May

Gaza ‘solidarity encampment’ shakes up Northwestern campus but leaves no clear winners

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. 

IMAGE: People rally on the campus of Northwestern University demanding the school divest from Israel, on April 25, 2024 in Evanston, Illinois. (Scott Olson/ GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via 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 203 of the war with Hamas. Yeshiva University president Rabbi Ari Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's special in-depth interview episode.

Berman was in Israel when Hamas invaded Israel's south on October 7, slaughtering 1,200 and taking 253 individuals hostage to Gaza. He told The Times of Israel this week that he felt called to return to New York, where he heads Modern Orthodoxy's flagship institution, and began immediately call on his university head peers to form a broad coalition to condemn the massacre and ensuing suffering.

More than 100 institutions of higher education, including public and private, faith-based, and historically Black colleges and universities, signed onto a a statement saying that they stood "with Israel, the Palestinians who suffer under Hamas' cruel rule in Gaza and all people of moral conscience."

Today, as violent anti-Israel protests are erupting on campuses throughout the United States, Berman shares his insights into the failings of the educators who allowed them to proliferate.

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Hundreds arrested across US campuses as police clamp down on anti-Israel protests

US Catholic universities offer campuses as refuge for ‘harassed’ Jewish students

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. 

IMAGE: Yeshiva University head Rabbi Ari Berman (Yeshiva University)

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

So-called pro-Palestinian rallies have sprouted up on US campuses, from Columbia University in New York -- where in-person classes have been canceled -- to the University of Southern California on Wednesday, just hours after police at a Texas university aggressively detained dozens of protesters. Horovitz describes what he believes are the protesters’ goals.

A senior Israeli defense official said Wednesday that the Israel Defense Forces has conducted all necessary preparations to take Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah and can launch an operation the moment it gets government approval. But will the IDF also wait for US approval?

Thirty years after the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, Argentina has asked Pakistan and Sri Lanka to arrest Iran’s interior minister Ahmad Vahidi who is a lead suspect in planning the attacks. Why is Argentina again interested in seeking justice for the bombing?

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

The goal of the campus Jew-haters: To render Israel indefensible, in both senses of the word

At heart of protests sweeping US universities is demand they divest from Israel

Dozens arrested at U of Texas, USC as anti-Israel protests spread to more US campuses

As anti-Israel encampment at Columbia endures, Jewish students lament ‘Judenrein’ campus

IDF ready to conquer Gaza’s Rafah, awaiting government okay, says senior official

Argentina asks host countries to arrest visiting Iranian minister over 1994 bombing

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. 

IMAGE: Students attend a pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel rally against the Israel-Hamas war on the campus of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, on April 24, 2024. (Frederic J. Brown / 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 201 of the war with Hamas. Military reporter Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Yesterday, the Israel Defense Forces intensified its operations against Hamas terrorists in the central and northern Gaza Strip, as the war reached its 200th day. Fabian explains what is happening on the ground and where the Gazan citizens are meant to be evacuating.

Hamas officials in Gaza claimed on Saturday to discover a mass grave with more than 200 bodies at a hospital in Khan Younis that was recently the target of a military raid. How exactly was the IDF involved?

Overnight, IAF fighter jets carried out a wave of strikes on Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon, following repeated attacks by the terror group on northern Israel. Fabian speaks about the unusual drone attack that came deep into civilian Israel over the holiday.

Maj. Gen. Aharon Haliva, chief of the Israel Defense Forces’s Military Intelligence Directorate, announced his resignation on Monday. Why now? 

Police on Monday detained 13 people suspected of attempting to smuggle goats onto the Temple Mount in Jerusalem to sacrifice the animals in honor of Passover, in line with ancient Jewish tradition. What was different this year? 

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

On war’s 200th day, Israel intensifies Gaza operations; soldier killed in action

IDF rejects ‘baseless’ claim it dug mass graves at Gaza hospital; analysts also doubt charge

‘I will always carry the pain’: IDF intel chief Aharon Haliva resigns over Oct. 7 failure

Police detain 13 trying to smuggle goats onto Temple Mount for sacrifice ritual

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. 

IMAGE: Troops of the Kfir Brigade's Netzah Yehuda Battalion operate in northern Gaza's Beit Hanoun, in a handout image published April 23, 2024. (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.

It is day 200 of the war with Hamas. Host Jessica Steinberg speaks with Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin, parents of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin in a pre-recorded interview.

The couple speaks about the painful realities of marking the holiday of Passover, the holiday of freedom, when their only son is still held captive by terror organization Hamas.

Goldberg and Polin discuss their latest trip to the US, which included meetings with members of Congress and the Biden administration, and the hostage deal that was under discussion at the time, and later rejected.

Polin views the most recent proposal as Hamas’s opportunity to accept the ceasefire and end the suffering of the Gazans.

They both speak about the palpable shift in US attitudes, and then the subsequent Iranian attack, when Israel was backed by the global community. Polin discusses that moment as a real opportunity for Israel to say it wouldn't respond until all the hostages come home.

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s parents contemplate Passover with their son in captivity

Passover celebrants urged to set a seat for a hostage, use a Haggadah of hope

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. 

IMAGE: Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin, parents of Hamas hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin (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 199 of the war with Hamas. Diplomatic reporter Lazar Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Following days of unrest and anti-Israel action at Columbia University in New York City, the university’s Orthodox rabbi sent a message to Jewish students urging them to stay away from campus until it is deemed safe again. The situation has spiraled so out of control that President Isaac Herzog and President Joe Biden are publicly denouncing the situation. Berman weighs in.

Two US sources told The Times of Israel yesterday that in addition to the Netzah Yehuda Battalion -- which the Biden administration is reportedly slated to sanction this week -- Washington is reportedly considering sanctions against other Israeli military and police units alleged to have committed human rights violations against Palestinians. Berman explains the 1997 Leahy law that is being enacted and how it was applied in the past on other countries' militaries.

In a pre-Passover video, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would “land additional and painful blows” on Hamas over the holiday to increase pressure on the terror group to free the hostages it has held in the Gaza Strip for over six months. Berman explores what is missing today versus in November when the sides successfully freed over 100 hostages. What would it take for Sinwar to unharden his heart and let our people go?

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Biden blasts ‘alarming surge of antisemitism’ amid anti-Israel protests at Columbia

Columbia rabbi urges Jewish students to stay home until campus deemed safe

US mulling sanctions against other IDF units for alleged rights violations – sources

Netanyahu vows imminent ‘painful blows,’ diplomatic pressure on Hamas to free hostages

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. 

IMAGE: File - Yahia al-Sinwar, the Gaza Strip chief of the Palestinian Islamist Hamas movement, greets supporters as he arrives to attend a rally marking Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day, April 14, 2023. (Mohammed Abed / 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 198 of the war with Hamas. Political correspondent Tal Schneider and legal and settlements reporter Jeremy Sharon join host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.

Schneider discusses the current nature of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh's relationship with Turkey as Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan hosted Haniyeh over the weekend and as Qatar discusses possibility of expelling Hamas leadership from Doha.

She also looks at the latest in the US-Israel relationship, as the Biden administration considers sanctioning an IDF battalion known as Netzah Yehuda, largely made up of soldiers from more extremist backgrounds, known for alleged human rights abuse against Palestinians.

Schneider considers this possible step by the US against the backdrop of the approved $17 billion US military aid package, and as the US continues to look carefully at how the IDF is handling some of its actions in Gaza.

Sharon talks about the latest efforts by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich who is starting the process of legalizing 68 illegal outposts, part of his coalition agreement with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has to satisfy the demands of this far-right political partner.

Steinberg speaks about preparations for Passover among the hostage families, including a seder for 500 members of Kibbutz Be'eri at Tel Aviv's Hostages Square, and other efforts in order to mark this complicated season and holiday.

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Live blog April 21, 2024

Hamas leaders said looking at leaving Qatar amid growing pressure in hostage talks

To punish Israel for Gaza war, Turkey’s citizens will gladly suffer the economic cost

House okays $17 billion in military aid for Israel under major spending package

Israel aghast as US said poised to sanction IDF unit with history of abuses

Smotrich said pushing to start legalization process for 68 illegal West Bank outposts

Passover celebrants urged to set a seat for a hostage, use a Haggadah of hope

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. 

IMAGE: A sign reading 'Happy Freedom holiday' refers to Passover, with the words 'Happy' and 'Freedom' crossed out, in Tel Aviv, April 16, 2024 (Photo by Miriam Alster/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.

It is day 197 of the war with Hamas. US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today's episode in the Jerusalem office.

The alleged Israeli strike in Iran overnight Thursday-Friday went beyond the scope of several small drones described by Tehran. The strike reportedly included at least one missile launched by Israeli Air Force warplanes that targeted an air defense radar site near Isfahan that was part of an array defending the nearby top-secret Natanz nuclear site. What are we hearing from the US so far about the attack on Iranian soil?

White House Mideast czar Brett McGurk said on Friday that the regional cooperation that took place in the thwarting of Iran’s attack on Israel last weekend is something that the Biden administration has been working to bolster for the past several years. What else did he say?

The Biden administration has managed to continue holding high-level discussions with Saudi Arabia in recent weeks aimed at brokering a normalization agreement between the leading Gulf kingdom and the Jewish state, three US officials told Magid last week. What does this information signal?

The Palestinian Authority said on Saturday that it will reconsider bilateral relations with the US after Washington vetoed a Palestinian request for full United Nations membership. Magid dives into the meaning of the vote.

Magid describes Benzi Gopstein, a far-right Israeli activist and close ally to National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir who was targeted in the third round of sanctions imposed by the Biden administration, aimed at clamping down on settler violence in the West Bank.

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Live blog April 20, 2024

In ‘message,’ IDF said to fire missiles at radar defense for secret Iran nuclear site

US vetoes Security Council resolution recognizing Palestinians as full UN member state

PA’s Abbas threatens to reconsider ties with US after veto of UN membership bid

Top Ben Gvir ally, former MK aide among targets of latest US and EU settler sanctions

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. 

IMAGE: Illustrative - Demonstrators burn a US and an Israeli flag during the funeral for seven Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps members killed in a strike in Syria, which Iran blamed on Israel, in Tehran on April 5, 2024. (Atta Kenare / 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 196 of the war with Hamas. Zman Yisrael editor Biranit Goren and military reporter Emanuel Fabian host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today's episode in the Jerusalem office.

Explosions were reportedly heard near the Iranian city of Isfahan early Friday in what some international media is claiming was Israel’s launch of the heavily anticipated reprisal strike for the Iranian attack on Israel Saturday night. Fabian briefs us on what is being reported and gives us updates on the conflict along Israel's northern and Gaza border. Goren weighs in on the immediate consequences of the alleged attack on Iran.

Ahead of next week’s Passover holiday, Jerusalem Affairs Minister Meir Porush wrote to United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland and demanded that he work to provide the hostages in Gaza with matzah and wine for the Seder night. Goren dives into their ongoing captivity and how it is a consequence of decisions made by the Israeli government on October 7.

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Live blog April 18, 2024

Iranian air base reportedly attacked in ‘limited’ Israeli reprisal strike

Minister demands UN envoy ensures Gaza hostages have matzah, wine for Seder night

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. 

IMAGE: A man walks past a banner depicting missiles along a street in Tehran on April 19, 2024. (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 195 of the war with Hamas. Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today's episode in the Jerusalem office.

The United States led a group of 48 countries at the United Nations in condemning Iran’s missile and drone attack on Israel last weekend. Horovitz weighs in.

Egyptian officials tell a Qatari outlet that the US has accepted Israel’s plan for an operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, in return for not carrying out a large strike in Iran in response to Tehran’s unprecedented missile and drone attack. Horovitz postulates that Israel may have missed its chance for true retaliation for the Iran strike.

The New York Times is reporting that “multiple American officials” think that Israeli officials miscalculated the severity of Iran’s response to the April 1 strike on a building in Damascus in which several Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commanders were killed. Based on previous targeted killings of key Iranian players, should Israel have anticipated Iran's large-scale potentially devastating strike?

Horovitz conducted an interview with Giora Eiland, a former IDF planning and operations chief and the former head of the National Security Council under prime minister Ariel Sharon. We hear highlights of their discussion.

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Live blog April 18, 2024

PM shelved pre-approved plans for immediate Iran reprisal after Biden call — report

A top ex-general’s radical strategy for tackling Iran, saving the hostages, calming the north

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. 

Check out yesterday's Daily Briefing episode:

https://omny.fm/shows/the-daily-briefing/day-194-tension-on-3-fronts-knesset-passes-1st-rea

IMAGE: An Iranian military truck carries parts of a Sayad 4-B missile past a portrait of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a military parade as part of a ceremony marking the country's annual army day in Tehran on April 17, 2024. (Atta Kenare / AFP)

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