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.
Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition on Wednesday submitted a bill to dissolve the Knesset and trigger elections, as the government competed with the opposition to control the process of disbanding parliament and determining when voters will go to the ballot box. The bill did not specify an election date. Horovitz weighs in on the complexities and delves into the timing of the upcoming elections.
Netanyahu announced yesterday that he had made a secretive visit to the United Arab Emirates and met with its leader, President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, during the US-Israeli war with Iran earlier this year. For its part, the UAE has strongly denied that this visit took place. What's happening here?
The Board of Peace’s Gaza envoy Nickolay Mladenov said at a briefing with foreign reporters in Jerusalem yesterday that Hamas is consolidating its power in the Strip, while dragging its feet in agreeing to a US-backed framework for handing over its weapons that has led to the stalling of plans to rebuild the war-damaged enclave. Horovitz explores these harsh truths.
The New York Times published an opinion piece that alleged widespread rape of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, including by dogs. Backlash, calling the entire article a "blood libel," has noted that Nicholas Kristof's article relied on sources that have alleged ties to the Hamas terror group or have praised it. Horovitz discusses the multi-layered issues surrounding this oped and how The Times of Israel has covered the allegations in it.
To close out the program, we hear about The Times of Israel's policy on labeling the territories occupied by Israel since 1967 as the "West Bank," versus Judea and Samaria.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Bring it on? Why the ultra-Orthodox, the opposition, and maybe Netanyahu think earlier elections will work for them
Coalition files bill to dissolve Knesset, doesn’t set an election date
Netanyahu says he secretly visited the UAE during the Iran war, hails ‘historic breakthrough’
Accused of ‘blood libel,’ NYT defends column alleging Israeli rape of Palestinian inmates
‘Blood libel’: Israel rejects NYT column alleging widespread rape of Palestinian inmates
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Yitzchak Ledee.
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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.
The Israel Defense Forces announced Tuesday that its troops recently crossed the Litani River for a weeklong raid against Hezbollah, as the terror group’s leader rejected any attempt by Israeli and Lebanese officials to achieve its disarmament during upcoming peace talks in Washington. We learn what is happening on the ground even as drones continue to penetrate northern Israel.
On Friday, Israeli settlers forced Palestinians to exhume the body of a relative from a freshly dug grave and move it to another location, after claiming the deceased was buried too close to an Israeli settlement. We dissect allegations that IDF troops stood by during this event, as well as during other incidents, including violent acts against Palestinians.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
IDF says it carried out weeklong raid on Hezbollah sites beyond Lebanon’s Litani River
IDF reservist killed in Hezbollah explosive drone attack in northern Israel
Hezbollah airs drone footage showing strike on Iron Dome battery in northern Israel
Settlers force Palestinians to exhume body of relative buried near West Bank settlement
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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.
Following US President Donald Trump's comment about the ceasefire with Iran being on "life support," Magid reports on possible Iranian willingness to give up on stockpiles of highly enriched uranium that are buried far underground and Trump's frustration when those terms weren't included in their latest proposal.
The European Union approved a round of sanctions against violent Jewish settlers, and Magid names the settler organizations involved in establishing settlements and outposts and the individuals associated with them, which now won't have access to funds from Europe.
A donation of $100 million from the United Arab Emirates will help set up a Gaza police force to maintain internal security in the Gaza Strip, reports Magid, although he notes that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not fully on board with this latest Board of Peace plan.
Yasser Abbas, the millionaire son of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, is up for a position on the powerful central committee of Fatah, and Magid discusses the possible scenarios that could take place during the upcoming conference.
Magid briefly notes a slight kerfuffle between Israel's US ambassador Yechiel Leiter and several American Jewish organizations that are cosponsoring an event with the Spanish government that has been strongly critical of Israel.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Trump says Iran ceasefire ‘on life support’ after Tehran submitted ‘garbage’ proposal
EU foreign ministers approve sanctions on violent Israeli settlers, Hamas leaders
UAE sends Board of Peace $100 million for training of new Gaza police force — officials
Abbas seen positioning son for Palestinian leadership, dismaying those seeking new blood
Israeli envoy takes rare swipe at US Jewish groups for cosponsoring Spanish exhibit
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.
IMAGE: US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Jessica Steinberg in today's Daily Briefing podcast. (ToI)
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Welcome to 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 legal expert Dr. Cochav Elkayam-Levy.
Almost immediately following Hamas’s murderous onslaught on southern Israel, humanitarian law expert Elkayam-Levy established and now heads The Civil Commission on Oct. 7th Crimes by Hamas against Women and Children.
On May 12, the commission released a massive report that documents and chronicles Hamas’s systemic use of rape and sexual violence against women -- and men -- on October 7, while taking hostages and during their captivities.
Elkayam-Levy visited The Times of Israel's Jerusalem studio for this wide-ranging conversation. Listener discretion is advised.
Since the Hamas onslaught on southern Israel, Elkayam-Levy and her team of forensics and legal experts, alongside professional archivists and others, have carefully gathered witness testimony and over 10,000 pieces of visual evidence that prove the terrorists' use of sex abuse as a tactical war crime.
We hear about 13 categories of abuse perpetrated on people from over 50 nationalities. We learn that the tactic of broadcasting the crimes via livestreams has made Hamas heroes in the eyes of some fundamentalists who are already importing the terror group's sadistic methods, as seen in Syrian attacks on Druze in July.
Elkayam-Levy discusses the impossible mission of providing a voice for the voiceless and creating a historical database that accurately portrays the scope of the horror. She has faced unfathomable blowback and is clear-eyed about how the commission's report will be received.
So this week, we ask Dr. Cochav Elkayam-Levy, what matters now?
What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Yitzchak Ledee.
IMAGE: Dr. Cochav Elkayam-Levy (Muki Schwartz) / On October 13, 2023, Israeli soldiers inspect the site of the Nova music festival where at least 340 Israeli festival-goers were killed during the attack by Hamas militants on Oct 7, near the border with the Gaza Strip in southern Israel. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit, 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.
Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
Yesterday, Iran handed over its much-anticipated response to the latest US peace proposal. US President Donald Trump quickly declared it "totally unacceptable." We delve into the ongoing skirmishes between Iranian drones and Gulf states, including Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, and speak about potential scenarios facing Trump in the near future.
In a lengthy "60 Minutes" interview last night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that the war is “not over” despite Trump’s apparent desire to end hostilities and insistence that Iran had been roundly defeated. We hear highlights from what was on -- and off -- camera, including his quasi-acceptance of some responsibility for the October 7, 2023, massacre on Israeli soil.
The US will host the third round of ambassador-level talks between representatives from Israel and Lebanon on May 14 and 15. What are the aims of the ongoing talks -- and how feasible is any kind of agreement as long as Hezbollah is still firmly entrenched in Israel's neighbor to the north?
A former senior US official and a former senior Israeli official are offering a new vision to restart their nations' bilateral relationship. Berman met with former US ambassador to Israel Tom Nides and former IDF Military Intelligence chief Amos Yadlin last week and brings back a vision with some cautious optimism.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
‘Unacceptable’: Trump rejects Iran response to US peace offer, as Netanyahu insists war ‘not over’
UAE, Kuwait and Qatar all report drone attacks as Iran ramps up its threats
Netanyahu concedes he bears some responsibility for Oct. 7, but says ‘everyone’ shares it
IDF reservist killed in Hezbollah explosive drone attack in northern Israel
Past top Israeli, US officials reveal new vision for ties rooted in tech partnership
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yitzhak Ledee filmed and edited this episode.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.