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.

Today is day 165 of the war with Hamas. Zman Yisrael editor Biranit Goren and settlements reporter Jeremy Sharon join host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on the phone yesterday. It was their 20th phone call since the outbreak of war following Hamas’s October 7 attack, but their first since February 15. Goren fills us in on the broad strokes points addressed in the conversation, according to both leaders' readouts.

The phone call came four days after a scorching speech from longtime pro-Israel stalwart and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer — who is the most senior Jewish lawmaker in Congress -- calling for early elections in Israel to replace Netanyahu. What are the scenarios that could lead to new elections?

The United States imposed more sanctions on three Israeli settlers -- and, for the first time, two illegal outposts -- implicated in West Bank violence. What does it mean to sanction an outpost?

Six Israeli settler activists were arrested Friday night during a Shabbat dinner next to the Erez Crossing into Gaza, where they were spending a Shabbat dedicated to calling for the resettlement by Israel of the Gaza Strip. Sharon takes a step back and delivers the big picture.

More than half of the evacuees from Israel’s south — 32,000 out of the 60,000 people whom the government evacuated from locales within a 7-kilometer radius (4.3 miles) of the border with Gaza — are back in their communities. So the question remains how are they going to be protected?

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 19, 2024

Biden rules out support for major Rafah op, in first call with PM in over a month

US targets three settlers, two illegal outposts in second round of sanctions

Six settler activists arrested at Erez Crossing after 50 people stage Shabbat event

Over half of southern evacuees back home as officials prep massive rehabilitation push

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: Settlement activists hold a Shabbat event at the Erez crossing on the Israeli border with northern Gaza, March 16, 2024. (Courtesy Shavei Aza and Back to Home)

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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.

Today is day 164 of the war with Hamas. Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman and military correspondent Emanuel Fabian join host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

The IDF released footage of what it says are Hamas operatives opening fire at troops from Shifa Hospital in Gaza City this morning as the army carried out a fresh raid on the medical center overnight. Why has the IDF returned to the medical compound now?

Israel’s negotiating team is expected in Doha today for some two weeks of indirect negotiations. Berman weighs in on what we possibly can expect.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was in Israel for the second time during the war with Hamas and he expressed concern for protecting civilians and providing humanitarian aid. How did Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu respond?

Thursday’s speech by US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is continuing to see ripples both in Israel and abroad. Berman weighs in with some Israeli responses and how this speech may affect US Jewry at this fraught time.

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 18, 2024

Israeli delegation to head to Doha for hostage talks Monday after security cabinet ok

As ministers meet, protesters block roads in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, urge hostage deal

‘We’re not a banana republic’: Netanyahu denounces Schumer’s call for Israeli elections

Germany’s Scholz meets PM, calls for hostage deal with ‘longer-lasting ceasefire’

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: File: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, center, meets with Sen. Charles Schumer, D-NY, March 23, 2010, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

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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.

Today is day 163 of the war with Hamas. Military correspondent Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Palestinian sources have told a UK-based Saudi newspaper that Marwan Issa, the deputy commander of Hamas’s military wing and the terror group’s third most senior official in Gaza, was at the location targeted in an Israeli strike last week. But Fabian explains that we still don’t know whether he was hit.

The Israel Defense Forces says a “suspicious aerial target” was intercepted over night over the maritime space in the area of the coastal northern city of Acre. Fabian suggests three possibilities.

The World Central Kitchen NGO offloaded about “200 tons of food” onto a Gaza shore yesterday. That aid now needs to reach civilians. We drill down into the IDF's role in securing its journey, especially after claims by the Hamas terror group that troops had opened fire on crowds of civilians waiting for aid at a square in Gaza City.

A Palestinian gunman opened fire Saturday at an Israeli settlement neighborhood in the West Bank city of Hebron, according to the military, before being shot dead by troops. Who was he and where did he shoot from?

A Bedouin Israeli man who crossed into the Gaza Strip in 2016 and allegedly joined Hamas before being detained while trying to cross back into Israel during the ongoing war, has died in custody, authorities said Saturday. Fabian tries to put the pieces of his story together.

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 17, 2024

NGO says 1st aid ship to Gaza is unloaded, supplies being readied for distribution

IDF probe: Palestinian gunmen killed Gazans waiting for aid, army did not fire

Palestinian gunman opens fire at Hebron settlement neighborhood, is killed by troops

IDF chief says Israel in ‘multi-front war,’ urges vigilance amid Ramadan tensions

Bedouin Israeli said to have joined Hamas in Gaza dies after found unconscious in cell

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.

Check out the previous Daily Briefing episode:

https://omny.fm/shows/the-daily-briefing/day-162-who-was-senator-schumers-howler-speech-aim

IMAGE: A Palestinian woman sits on a cart next to a box of food rations provided by charity World Central Kitchen at a makeshift street market in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on March 14, 2024. (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.

Today is day 162 of the war with Hamas. US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

This morning US and Jordanian aircraft dropped food supplies to Palestinian civilians trapped in the Gaza Strip in a joint humanitarian aid operation and the World Central Kitchen NGO has finished unloading its first maritime aid shipment, in a test run for a new aid route by sea from Cyprus. Magid explains what we know so far.

Magid spoke with a few officials this week who told him that Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani proposed expelling Hamas’s leaders from Doha during a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken days after the terror group’s October 7 onslaught. How was this proposal made — and why was it rebuffed?

US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Thursday called on Israel to hold new elections, saying he believed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had “lost his way” and was an obstacle to peace in the region. What was the context for his comments and how were they received both in the US and in Israel?

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 16, 2024

NGO says 1st aid ship to Gaza is unloaded, supplies being readied for distribution

First ship to use new sea route arrives in Gaza with 200 tons of humanitarian aid

Qatar emir proposed expelling Hamas officials in meet with Blinken days after Oct. 7

Biden hails ‘good speech’ by Schumer criticizing Netanyahu, says many Americans agree

Senate leader Schumer urges Israeli election, says Netanyahu ‘has lost his way’

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: File - Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks to reporters at the Capitol in Washington, March 12, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

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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.

Today is day 161 of the war with Hamas. Environmental reporter Sue Surkes joins host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.

Surkes talks about her interview with one of the founders of Achim LaNeshek, Brothers in Arms, the civilian organization with tremendous organizational skills who are expanding their societal efforts to education and needs in Gaza border communities along with some political aspirations.

She discusses the shortage of olive oil in Israel, the rising prices, and the need to import olive oils, sometimes fake olive oils that end up having to be recalled by importers.

Surkes also looks at the pause on urban development for Jerusalem's Bible Hill, an urban nature hilltop with plans for a hotel and commercial center, but the discovery of its ownership by a nearby church canceled plans.

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 15, 2024

Impact of olive oil shortage on Israel could have been averted, industry chief says

With olives pressed and picked, local farmers hope consumers discover oil in Israel

Jerusalem mayor reverses support for large development at Bible Hill nature spot

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: Members of the Brothers in Arms movement protest outside the house of minister Yitzchak Goldknopf in Jerusalem on February 26, 2024 (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.

Today is day 160 of the war with Hamas. Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan in our Jerusalem office for today's episode.

Brig. Gen. Dan Goldfus, the commander of the Israel Defense Forces’ 98th Division, went off script yesterday during a briefing near the Gaza border and addressed Israel’s leadership. What did he say and how were his remarks received?

The National Unity wing of the coalition is no longer united: On Tuesday evening, MK Gideon Sa’ar, the leader of the right-wing New Hope party, unexpectedly announced he was breaking off from the National Unity faction, dissolving his alliance with Minister Benny Gantz. Horovitz weighs in.

Yesterday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a a virtual meeting with ministers from Britain, Cyprus, the European Union, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates on a new maritime corridor for aid into Gaza after which he told reporters that protecting and aiding Palestinian civilians must be “job number one” for Israel in the Gaza Strip. How does this jibe with Israel’s two stated goals of the war — the dismantling of Hamas and bringing home the hostages?

The IDF said Wednesday it plans to direct a significant portion of the 1.4 million displaced Gazans in Rafah toward “humanitarian islands” in the center of the territory, ahead of a planned operation in the Gazan city. Horovitz explains what little we know about this plan and the Rafah operation's timing.

On Sunday night, Jonathan Glazer won an Oscar -- and lost Horovitz's respect. Glazer used his acceptance speech to deliver a very damning message to the world in which he “misidentified the root cause of the October 7 slaughter and the war.” Horovitz explains.

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 14, 2024

In rare critique, IDF general says politicians must ‘be worthy of us’

Polls show slow start for solo Sa’ar, dramatic impact for Bennett and Cohen parties

‘A statesmanlike right’: Why Gideon Sa’ar has decamped Gantz’s National Unity party

Blinken: Protecting civilians must be ‘job number one’ for Israel in Gaza

IDF: Civilians in Rafah will be evacuated to ‘humanitarian islands’ before ground op

And the Oscar for incendiary misdiagnosis of the cause of a massacre of Jews goes to…

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 commander of the 98th Division, Brig. Gen. Dan Goldfus, speaks to the press from the Gaza border, March 13, 2024. (Emanuel Fabian/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.

Today is day 159 of the war with Hamas. Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman and military correspondent Emanuel Fabian join host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

This morning two people are wounded in a stabbing attack at the “tunnels” checkpoint near Gush Etzion on the West Bank’s Route 60 highway, south of Jerusalem. Fabian gives updates.

Israelis awoke to optimistic media chatter about the status of hostage release negotiations. Berman fills us in.

Earlier in the week, the IDF struck central Gaza strike, targeting Hamas #3 Marwan Issa. We hear about the ongoing uncertainty whether the strike was successful.

A ship taking almost 200 tons of food to the Gaza Strip left Cyprus early on Tuesday, according to the World Central Kitchen, in a pilot project to open a new sea route for aid to Palestinians amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

Also yesterday, the United Nations used a new land route to deliver food directly into northern Gaza from an IDF crossing near Kibbutz Be’eri for the first time. And again, on Tuesday, Morocco sent 40 tons of humanitarian supplies for Gaza via Ben Gurion Airport, in another bid to diversify aid routes into Gaza.

We discuss the different routes and the IDF's role in securing them, as well as the diplomatic impact the need for aid to the Palestinians is having on Israel's "friendly" neighbors. We also hear about the status of UNRWA funding and which organizations Israel is willing to work with.

Finally, Fabian gives us an update on the sharp uptick in the conflict in the north.

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 13, 2024

Two lightly injured in stabbing at West Bank checkpoint, assailant shot dead

Jammed hostage talks advancing as Hamas softens under Qatari pressure — diplomat

IDF airs footage of strike on Hamas’s No. 3, but says still unclear if he was killed

UN and Morocco deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza via land routes through Israel

As first ship sails, Israel to inspect all aid from Cyprus; aid groups will distribute

IDF strikes Hezbollah sites deep in Lebanon; 100 rockets fired at 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. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves.

IMAGE: Palestinians line up for a meal in Rafah, Gaza Strip, on March 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)

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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.

Today is day 158 of the war with Hamas. Political correspondent Sam Sokol and Tech Israel editor Sharon Wrobel join host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.

Sokol discusses political reactions to the statement made by Sephardic chief rabbi Yitzhak Yosef regarding a mass ultra-Orthodox exit from Israel if yeshiva students are forced to enlist in the army.

Wrobel looks at why markets and investors are currently bullish on Israel, a sense of cautious optimism given the waning war in Gaza and fewer signs of engagement in the north.

Sokol talks about the latest mayoral elections in Beit Shemesh, the central city with a large ultra-Orthodox population and a new, moderate Haredi mayor.

Wrobel describes a forum created by spouses of reservists for their particular needs during wartime, as they struggle to care for kids, homes, and jobs.

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 12, 2024

Watchdog group calls for removal of chief rabbi for politicizing judicial role

Assailing chief rabbi, Lapid says Haredim would have to get jobs if they moved abroad

Despite war uncertainty, Israeli stocks and the shekel attract investors

Ultra-Orthodox retake Beit Shemesh, former Haifa mayor Yona Yahav returns to office

Fired during war, reservists’ wives band together to battle for job security

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: Sephardi Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef attends a prayer for the release of Israelis held hostage by Hamas terrorists in Gaza, at the Rachel's Tomb on October 25, 2023 (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.

Today is day 157 of the war with Hamas. Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

At the Oscars last night, the acceptance speech from Jonathan Glazer -- writer-director of the Holocaust drama “The Zone of Interest” -- was used to comment on the Israel-Hamas war. Glazer appears to equate the massacre perpetrated by Hamas on October 7 with the ongoing war in Gaza. Berman weighs in on how prevalent this thinking may be in the wider population.

Berman attempts to make sense of conflicting reports over the status of negotiations to secure a hostage release deal.

At the Institute for National Security Studies conference in Tel Aviv on Thursday, Berman had a long in-depth sit-down conversation with retired US Gen. David Petraeus who commanded US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan among other high-level assignments during a 37-year military career. We hear what Petraeus has to say about IDF tactics in Gaza.

In a session at the INSS conference, former Shin Bet chief Nadav Argaman said the organization had pushed for a surprise attack on Hamas’s top leadership for years before the devastating October 7 terror onslaught, but Israel’s political leadership repeatedly shot the idea down. We hear more about the politicized atmosphere at the conference.

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 11, 2024

‘Oppenheimer’ wins big at Academy Awards where Gaza, Ukraine wars cast shadow

‘He’s wrong’: PM bluntly rejects Biden critique, says most Israelis back his policies

Former Shin Bet chief: Government repeatedly rejected plans to kill Hamas’s Sinwar

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: James Wilson, from left, Leonard Blavatnik, and Jonathan Glazer accept the award for 'The Zone of Interest' for best international feature film during the Oscars, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, March 10, 2024. (Chris Pizzello/AP)

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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.

Today is day 156 of the war with Hamas. Military correspondent Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Police and the Shin Bet say 13 Arab Israelis from northern Israel are being charged with planning terror attacks on behalf of Hamas. Who were arrested as far as we know?

The Hamas operative who killed Maj. (res.) Amishar Ben David during a battle in southern Gaza on Friday was killed in an airstrike, the IDF says. How common is such a very precisely targeted strike?

Some 37 rockets were fired in two volleys from Lebanon at the Mount Meron area this morning, and overnight fighter jets struck several Hezbollah sites in southern Lebanon overnight, including infrastructure in Ayta ash-Shab, an anti-tank missile post in Maroun al-Ras, and a site where Hezbollah operatives were spotted in Khirbet Selm. How are these connected?

Police arrested 20 East Jerusalem residents on suspicion of incitement and support for terrorism over the past two weeks, according to a statement released this morning as the Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins. What else has been happening ahead of Ramadan, especially in the West Bank?

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

Discussed articles include:

Live blog March 10, 2024

Hezbollah fires barrage at north after deadly IDF strike in Lebanon

IDF officer killed in Gaza fighting, raising toll of slain troops to 248

Seven soldiers wounded by IED blast in West Bank town; troops launch manhunt

Hezbollah fires rocket volleys at north, hits home with anti-tank missile

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: IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip in a photo cleared for publication on March 9, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

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