A favorite State of Tel Aviv guest, Ya’akov Katz, returns today to dig deeply into the dramatic collapse of the al-Assad regime in Syria and what it all may mean going forward for Syria, Israel, the Middle East, and the world. Following more than 50 years of brutal rule, the despotic rulers were deposed with lightning speed and skill by a group of rebels led by Ha’yat Tahrir al Sham—or HTS for short—an Islamist army led by a former al Qaeda loyalist who is now poised to become the putative leader of Syria. Whereas the joy over the fall of Bashar al-Assad is clear, it may be premature. HTS is really a conglomeration of numerous jihadist groups in Syria that have united over their common goal to depose the Assad regime. In areas in the north of Syria that have been controlled by rebels for more than a week, there are reports that Sharia law has been imposed. Jubilation, in this situation, is better contained for a while until we see how things settle out. Ya’akov and I do what we do—and get into the various regional and global superpowers with strong stakes in this conflict—and, of course, what it may mean for Israel. It has been a very busy few days on the northern border with Syria, where Islamist rebels came disturbingly close to the border with Israel. For now, that risk factor seems to be under control. Finally, we get into quite dramatic developments regarding the possibility of a hostage deal being negotiated. It’s way too early to allow our hopes to be raised… but we can’t help ourselves. Always looking for that silver lining. Thanks for being here and listening.

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Podcast Notes

* First broadcast by the Syrian rebels from the broadcasting center in Damascus.

* Video footage of Syrian Prime Minister being taken to the Four Seasons Hotel, Damascus, by rebel forces

* Article published in the Daily Telegraph about the personal background of HTS leader., Abu Mohammed Julani. (spelling varies)

* Hamas video of hostage Matan Zangauker, released on Saturday, December 7, 2024.

Yaakov Katz is an Israeli-American author and journalist. Between 2016 and 2023, Yaakov was editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post where he continues to write a popular weekly column.

He is the author of three books: “Shadow Strike - Inside Israel’s Secret Mission to Eliminate Syrian Nuclear Power,” “Weapon Wizards - How Israel Became a High-Tech Military Superpower,” and “Israel vs. Iran: The Shadow War.”

Shadow Strike was recently adapted into a docudrama by Reshet Media and his books have been published in a number of languages including English, Hebrew, Czech, Polish, Japanese and Mandarin.

His next book – tentatively titled “Precision Strike” – is scheduled for publication by St. Martin’s Press in the Spring of 2025.

Yaakov served for close to a decade as the paper's military reporter and defense analyst and was a lecturer at Harvard University where he taught an advanced course in journalism. He also served as Israel correspondent for Jane’s Defence Weekly.

Prior to taking up the role of editor-in-chief, Yaakov served for two years as a senior policy adviser to Naftali Bennett during his tenure as Israel’s Minister of Economy and Minister of Diaspora Affairs.

In 2013, Yaakov was one of 12 international fellows to spend a year at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University.

Originally from Chicago, Yaakov has a law degree from Bar Ilan University. He lives in Jerusalem with his wife Chaya and their four children.

A favorite State of Tel Aviv podcast guest, Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus joins us today. A former IDF spokesman with a knack for distilling the complexity of the Middle East, our discussion with Conricus today is longer than usual. That is because - even for this impossibly volatile region - these last few days have been exceptional. A massive insurgency against the rule of Syrian President Bashir Assad was launched in recent days, seemingly out of nowhere. Clearly backed by Turkey, the rebel forces are using American military equipment and advancing quickly on their final target—Damascus. Should the regime falter or fall, then the implications for Israel and the region are significant. We go deep into the weeds on this development before shifting to the West Bank. Always a center of unrest, Judea and Samara have been building to a furious boil, and Conricus worries that Israeli leadership is not paying adequate attention to this area. Jewish extremists have been engaged in unprovoked violence against Arabs, and the Shin Bet security service has been finding significant stashes of advanced weapons to be used by terrorist organizations. None of this bodes well for domestic stability and security. And, finally, of course, there is the Gaza Strip. Whereas hostilities on the northern front seem to be abating with the newly negotiated ceasefire with Lebanon, there is no sign of the conflict slowing in the Gaza Strip, in spite of the very significant degradation of Hamas’ fighting capabilities and weapons arsenal. Israelis are beginning to ask what, exactly, is going on there. Former IDF Chief of Staff and Minister of Defense, Moshe (Bogey) Ya’alon, made some very sharp comments on Sunday about the IDF’s conduct in the Gaza Strip, causing a kerfuffle in Israel and the international media. After more than a year of exceptionally long and grueling service, 25% of the reservists being called up for duty, often for the third time in a year, are refusing to show up. They are losing confidence in IDF leadership, and their lives are in turmoil. And all Israelis—including a majority of Likud supporters—are astonished and furious that 101 hostages remain in Hamas captivity. PM Netanyahu has run out of excuses to delay making their freedom a priority. The question is – will he? A deep and no-holds-barred dive. Have a listen…

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Podcast Notes

* This article gets into the controversial comments made on Sunday by Moshe Ya’alon, which are discussed in the podcast.

Jonathan Conricus served in the IDF for 24 years, four of them as spokesman during the intense 11 days of the Guardian of the Walls Operation between Israel and Hamas. Now a reserve officer, he focuses on American media. He was born in Jerusalem to a Swedish father and an Israeli mother and spent his formative years in Sweden.

Nadav Eyal is one of Israel’s top political analysts and journalists and we are delighted to have him join the State of Tel Aviv for today’s deep dive into the life and death of Yahya Sinwar. We focus on the impact that his death may have on the possibility of an agreement being negotiated for the release of the 101 hostages still being held by Hamas, many of whom we know are dead. The rescue of the hostages is of critical importance to Israel for so many reasons, among them that “to leave no one behind” is central to the ethos and cohesion of the state. Should this fundamental value not be seen to be honored by Israeli citizens, the impact would be extreme. Nadav expertly peels the layers of this complex situation that touches on Israeli domestic politics, regional geopolitics and, of course, the western alliance and America. I was keen to speak with Nadav after reading his column in the Israeli newspaper, Yediot Achronot (largest circulation print newspaper in Israel), on the weekend, in which he touched on many of the issues we discuss here. Have a listen.

Podcast Notes

Nadav Eyal is among Israel’s top journalists and is a past recipient of the Sokolov Prize, the equivalent of a Pulitzer Prize for journalists in Israel. He is the author of several books as well.

This year, he is living in New York City with his family and has been appointed Senior Research Scholar in the Faculty of International and Public Affairs; Adjunct Professor of International and Public Affairs at Columbia School of International and Public Affairs.

Further detail about Nadav Eyal may be found here.

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Tomorrow morning, the Israeli Supreme Court will convene to hear what may be its most important case ever. The coalition government led by PM Benjamin Netanyahu passed a law on July 24 that eviscerates the power of the Court to review a broad class of government decisions. Many Israelis believe that this unprecedented government action will erode democracy, as there are no other checks or balances on the actions of the Knesset. The government takes the position that it can act as it sees appropriate in light of the fact that it controls a majority of the Knesset. This constitutional crisis – in a country with no formal constitution, paradoxically – has wreaked havoc in Israel since January and is likely to escalate following this momentous hearing. Speaking with State of Tel Aviv to explain the layers of complexity – and why the coalition government is so determined to prevail – is Professor Yaniv Roznai, a constitutional law expert at Reichman University who has been deeply involved in these issues throughout. This podcast gets into the guts of the legal issues and what may lie ahead.

Jason Greenblatt is one of those people who found himself in the right place at the right time and seized the moment. Having worked closely with Donald Trump as his in-house commercial real estate lawyer, he jumped at the opportunity to serve President Trump in the White House as a special adviser. Along with Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner and long-time lawyer, David Friedman, Greenblatt was engaged intensively in negotiating the breakthrough Abraham Accords; the Agreements that demonstrated that middle east peace was multi-faceted and did not require a final resolution of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. With a front row seat in the capitals of the region for close to three years, Greenblatt – with his colleagues – achieved an agreement which changed the geopolitical reality of the middle east. Additional countries have since joined the original group and there will surely be more to follow. The benefit to the region – which has an enormous market bloc and diversified economy – positions the middle east to emerge in ways similar to the EU. Greenblatt talks about the “real” Donald Trump, who he admires as a leader and boss, the good days, the bad days and conjectures as to what may come. A brilliant speaker and deep thinker, time listening to Jason Greenblatt just flies by. Enjoy.

Father of three daughters, husband, former elite combat reservist and top tier employment law lawyer, Yaron Kramer has also taken on the role of near full-time activist since January, 2023. He was among the founders of the grassroots protest organization – Brothers and Sisters in Arms – who recognized early on that the judicial reform agenda of the coalition government in Israel was an assault on liberal democracy.

I have been meeting and speaking with Kramer – as everyone calls him – since the early days. In fact, he was among the organizers of the very controversial and attention-grabbing barricade of the Jerusalem offices of Kohelet Policy Forum. We covered that event in depth in podcast episode 5.

Since those early days – when Kramer spoke of the urgency of the moment and the need to be “creative” and push the envelope – things have only gained momentum. Kramer reflects on the past 8 months and is girded for even more intense domestic conflict in the near future. But he – like so many Israelis – will not be discouraged. These are some of the bravest, fiercest and most resourceful warriors, anywhere. And they are turning their talents to saving liberal democracy in Israel.

“Let’s say the truth,” says Kramer. “Netanyahu is weak. Netanyahu is not healthy. Everybody can see it.”

I spoke with Kramer just before he left for a long August vacation with his family. He was in a reflective mood, but fiery. This conversation is a fascinating peek inside the mindset of a top leader of the civilian protest movement opposing judicial reform in Israel. His depth, passion and determination will impress, even if you do not agree.

And me? I’m hiding out here, somewhere north of Toronto. Most beautiful place in the world in August. Enjoy the last of summer!

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Among the many consequences being discussed relating to the coalition government’s judicial reform initiative is the fact that this significant policy shift exposes many senior Israeli defense, security and political leaders to criminal prosecution at the International Criminal Court. Expert Israeli international lawyer, Daniel Reisner, explains why the concern is real and even gets into one case where such an arrest was imminent but thwarted at the last minute. “The intention is out there and the potential for catastrophe is there…But anyone saying that there is no legal risk is just plainly wrong.” To date, the robustness of the Israeli judicial system – in terms of independence and sophistication – has served as a degree of “defense” for those who may be vulnerable. Supporters of judicial reform – including the Kohelet Policy Forum – seem intent on discrediting this assertion as being baseless. If the world spun on an axis of true openness and equality, that might be so, because on a purely legal academic basis, the ICC has no jurisdiction with respect to such matters. But everything is political and imperfect, including the ICC.

 Tune in for this lively and informative discussion.

Today we get into the the coming showdown between the IDF and the extremist coalition government led by PM Benjamin Netanyahu. Last Friday, 169 senior, former defense and security professionals, placed a full page ad in a major Israeli newspaper, calling on the government to halt the judicial reform in order to further damage Israel’s preparedness for war or any form of regional conflict. They are not blowing smoke. Repeated assessments indicate that Israel’s security situation is dire. The instability caused by the judicial reform initiative is exacerbating matters to the point that the country’s security may be in serious danger. (Ret.) Lt. Col. Peter Lerner chats with State of Tel Aviv to unpack how unprecedented such a public statement is and what it all means.

In this second part of our discussion with Professor Karnit Flug, former Governor of the Bank of Israel (2013-18) and currently Vice President of Research at Israel Democracy Institute and a professor at Hebrew University, we discuss the reaction of Wall Street and others to the passage in the Knesset of the Reasonableness Law on July 24. I spoke with Professor Flug on August 6, after she had an opportunity to assess the initial reactions and speculate as to what may follow. She is hoping that the coalition government not only pauses this very damaging judicial reform but that it totally changes its approach, before it’s too late. Not only is there a serious and negative economic impact but many people are pulling up stakes and leaving Israel or not returning from academic and other positions abroad. Listen up, PM Netanyahu!

In this first part of a series, Professor Karnit Flug, Governor of the Bank of Israel from 2013-18, takes us on a tour de force, analyzing the impact of the judicial reform overhaul program on the economy in Israel. She is currently VP Research at Israel Democracy Institute and Professor at Hebrew University. Flug has a unique perspective, having worked at the Bank of Israel for close to 30 years. Throughout her career she worked closely with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and shares her candid insights as to how the man has changed over the decades. She no longer recognizes the once thoughtful, rational Bibi who always made decisions – even if one disagreed – in the best interest of the state and on a rational basis. We touch briefly on her career arc at the outset – which is extraordinary for a woman in the male-dominated field of economics, and go on to cover so much, including the very sensitive topic of ultra-orthodox demands for increased economic entitlements. Professor Flug is extremely worried about what the future will bring. This first discussion was on July 20, just days before the Reasonableness Law was passed in the Knesset, setting off more fierce and widespread protests throughout Israel. Everything in Israel is uncertain now and markets do not respond well to uncertainty. It shows – in a weakened shekel and so much more. We get into US-Israel relations, the whole nine yards.

I suggest you take the time to read an article published on our website, stateoftelaviv.com, on November 15, 2022, entitled: “Fat Man, Thin Man. Will Netanyahu Upend his Economic Legacy?” The piece provides important background and is a really fascinating read. We’ve removed the paywall for a limited time for our listeners.

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Wednesday evening marked the onset of one of the most solemn days in the Jewish calendar;  the destruction of the First and Second Temples, which ended two brief periods of Jewish sovereignty in the land of Israel millenia ago. Many Israelis fear that we are on the verge of witnessing the fall of what we call the Third Temple Era, the 75 years since the state of Israel came to exist. The timing of this national crisis is mind-blowing.

Professor Gideon Rahat explains the present chaos in Israel as a conflict between Israelis and Jews. Israel was created on May 14, 1948, when David Ben Gurion read the Declaration of Independence, proclaiming the establishment of a Jewish state that would uphold values of equality, freedom and justice, regardless of faith or ethnicity. In the decades since, the ultra-orthodox and other extremist constituencies have grown and they all mistrust the state and its institutions, deeply. The coalition government is held together by a deep hatred of various aspects of Israel – like an independent judiciary. Many would prefer a state in which Jewish religious law prevails over secular state law and authority. It’s as foundational a clash of values as is possible. We explore this unceasing quake that is roiling Israeli society, the economy and the security apparatus, and taking the country to the brink.

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On Monday or Tuesday the coalition government led by PM Benjamin Netanyahu seems determined to pass into law the Reasonableness Bill, which will mark the first concrete change to the judicial system which many fear is just the beginning. Key ministers in the government have been unwavering in their commitment to push the whole reform package through in stages, introducing change that many are convinced heralds the end of liberal democracy in the country. Vivian Bercovici speaks with Professor Shany on the various issues of concern and why so many Israelis are deeply alarmed.

For more on what went down in Israel over he weekend have a look at our “24 Hours of Israel in Fact and Viral Video”. It’s a tour de force of an intense weekend of protest, counter protest and a war of viral videos.

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We speak with Carrie Keller-Lynn, political reporter with Times of Israel who was at the major protests – at Ben Gurion airport and in central Tel Aviv. Cops are getting tougher and Israelis angrier. President Biden even jumped into the fray. And PM Netanyahu? He’s AWOL.

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We depart from our usual Sunday review with Ya’akov Katz and bring you this short and intense immersion in the weekly rallies in support of hostages and their families. These events take place all over Israel every Saturday night. I used to attend them in Tel Aviv. But I have relocated to a kibbutz in the south and instead went to the local gathering. It is worlds away from Tel Aviv. The rally takes place at a key intersection in southern Israel, which was swarmed by Hamas locusts, buzzing around on their motorcycles and in pickup trucks. They slaughtered babies, children, the elderly, families. They dragged terrified people from their beds. They stalked those who attended the Nova Music Festival. Route 232 – which winds its way through the area of Israel closest to the Gaza border – was lined with burned cars and bodies. The weekly rallies occur at the intersection of Routes 232 and 34. Many of those attending these rallies are locals who lived through the carnage, lost loved ones, await the release of family and friends still being held hostage.

We have also posted, below, some photographs from the rally.

Tomorrow – we drop a bonus podcast with Israeli journalist and scholar, Nadav Eyal, doing the usual focus on what’s going on in the bigger picture – although we focus heavily on the hostages. This is widely perceived to be a moment of opportunity to re-align power in the middle east. And that must include the hostages.

Thanks for being here.

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A week ago, a major IDF operation began in the northern West Bank Town of Jenin, which has long been a hub of terror operations. In recent years both Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad – both proxies of Iran – have become entrenched in the densely packed urban warrens of the refugee camp in the city of approximately 50,000. IDF special forces uncovered huge weapons caches being warehoused in underground caverns and arrested many. Twelve terrorists were killed in the two day operation. As always, international condemnation was swift and unequivocal, hammering Israel. Nothing new there. What the Jenin operation really accomplished was to fill a vacuum left by the Palestinian Security forces that had pretty much abandoned any enforcement efforts in the city. Israel has now put all on notice that it will step in to manage and curtail terrorist freedom. As Katz points out, such an operation is by no means an “end” in and of itself and must be considered in a much broader context, which he lays out in his usual clear and lively style. Have a listen.

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Approximately 1.3-million of Israel’s 9-million citizens are ultra orthodox, or, haredim. They have large families and the men overwhelmingly choose to study religious texts full time rather than work. The state provides them with living and other stipends that perpetuate entrenched cycles of poverty, which the haredim seem to embrace. Problem is, the tax-paying, general population is not growing as quickly, meaning that such state largesse is not sustainable. A severe economic crisis is imminent but haredi political and rabbinic leaders and their communities seem oblivious. Their calling, they think, is a higher one; to protect the Jewish people through their piety. Most Israelis disagree. As does haredi educator Menachem Bombach. He is determined to demonstrate to haredim that it is not only necessary that they work to support their families but that there is great honor in doing so. His network of schools teaching haredi boys core subjects like English and Math, is revolutionary among haredim and making waves. Big waves. Bombach hopes that the waves are soon a tsunami, transforming Israeli society for the better. We speak at length in today’s episode with the brilliant and inspiring Rabbi Menachem Bombach.

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After 7 years as Editor-in-Chief of the Jerusalem Post newspaper, Yakov Katz put out his final edition at the end of March. And before that, he served for two years as a senior aide to then Minister Naftali Bennett. Katz discusses his “awakening” and experience after seeing the backrooms of Israeli politics at the top, and the moment when PM Bennett called to tell him that he finally saw the “real” Benjamin Netanyahu. He shares his insights into the challenges of dragging legacy media into the digital age, the extreme nature of political discourse in Israel and the quite dangerous precipice on which the country perches, at the moment. It’s a freewheeling chat and Katz’s irrepressible energy is infectious. He speaks very quickly… be prepared to listen!

I sat down with top Israeli journalist Attila Somfalvi last week to catch up on his big picture thoughts. Where are we headed in Israel with all this political dysfunction, security urgencies? Social division? This guy never flags, but he was very candid in saying, off the top, that after 20 years of covering politics in Israel he is worried and anxious. He is also, however, optimistic, because even though the more liberal slice of Israeli society is smaller in number, as he explains it, the much larger and less liberal population – which tends to be religious – cannot survive, literally, without the former. And so, there is this unusual paradox – for a democracy, anyways – where the smaller demographic may have more significant sway. Why? Because they carry the state financially and in terms of security. They quite literally do the heavy lifting. The ultra-orthodox community may say that their religious devotion is what saves Israel but when the rubber hits the road they know it’s the IDF. In this context, Attila analyzes Netanyahu’s downward spiral as Benny Gantz ascends, quietly. There’s no hare in this race…..just two battle-hardened tortoises. But, in the end, Israelis trust no one more than a field-tested General. Blue-eyed Benny fits the bill. One of Israel’s leading journalists, Attila Somfalvi is everywhere:  Ynet TV anchor and political analyst; host of Barrricade – an independently produced political podcast, popular event speaker and great writer – as you will see in the pages of State of Tel Aviv.

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Today we get into the weeds of what goes down on a typical night of protest in the State of Tel Aviv, and Beyond. Our host, Vivian Bercovici, takes us with her with sound, street interviews and narrative – to the streets where 150,000 protest every Saturday night in the heart of Israel. Tel Aviv. Vivian speaks with quiet religious protesters who hold signs every week saying – “we’re brothers” – a bromide that most demonstrators do not embrace. And we hear a lot from one of them. She takes us with her to a police station in south Tel Aviv late that night where eight protesters who have been arrested are being detained and speaks to one of the activists who oversees that they are represented by legal counsel and supported in every way possible. And we finish up the following morning in a Tel Aviv courtroom, where the state intends to detain one man in custody. But he is set free because the judge finds there is no legal basis supporting the state’s position. In the meantime, the man, Omer, has spent a night in a prison cell with four Palestinian men in Israel illegally. This episode brings you the facts. No editorializing. April 15-16 on the streets in the State of Tel Aviv, and Beyond.

Tonight, at sundown, Israel makes the jarring transition from a day of mourning the 24,213 soldiers who have fallen in action and 4,255 civilians killed in terror attacks. It is a deeply sombre day. Every single person in this country has lost someone close. War and loss are not abstract concepts from a previous century. They are raw and very real. As the mourning ends the celebrations begin. The miracle of Jewish nationhood is a fact that no one takes for granted, especially not this year. STLV speaks with two very feisty guys – Dov Zigler and Prof. Neil Rogachevsky – authors of an important and timely book: “Israel’s Declaration of Independence: The History and Political Theory of the Nation’s Founding Moment”, which focuses on the three weeks leading up to the moment when David Ben Gurion declared Israel to be an independent state. The back-story: political machinations; competing factions; the threat of a multi front war with no weapon supply – all these dramatic elements are brought to life by these skillful writers and raconteurs. This is historical story telling at its best and it’s wild to think that in the midst of all the crises coming at him that Ben Gurion only had a few hours to focus on this founding document; the meaning of which we parse and argue about to this day. And, especially this year, as the state of Israel grapples domestically with its basic national values.

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Last night and today, Israel marks Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day. Throughout the country, there are small ceremonies where survivors, or their children, speak of their experiences. People gather in neighborhood parks, at schools. There are also grand state ceremonies, reinforcing the importance of this singular mass murder to the Israeli identity and nation.

In this episode, I speak with Dr. Gali Mir Tibon, a former educator cum historian and writer who has written extensively on the unique and little known exceptionalism of how the Holocaust unfolded so differently in Romania from all other European countries. The story of the 750,000 Romanian Jews – half of whom survived the war – has been overshadowed by the focus on what transpired in Poland, Hungary, present-day Ukraine and in the network of work and murder camps throughout the Third Reich. One of the likely explanations for this is that there were no direct train transports of Jews from Romania to the camps. They were intended to have been sent to Belzec for mass murder but were spared by an astonishing sequence of events.

Gali Mir Tibon shares some fascinating stories, previously untold, of circumstance, luck and heroism. And I weave in relevant anecdotes from my own experience of growing up with my father, also a survivor from Romania. With the opening of historical archives, and the distance of time, we are just beginning to understand the scope of what happened in those horrific years.

In remembrance of all those who perished and those who survived.

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Avi Issacharoff has a lot to say these days. The co-creator of the Netflix hit series Fauda has been focused in recent years on his hugely successful career in television drama. On May 19, he debuts a new docu-drama on Showtime – a four part series about the notorious terrorist Imad Mughniyeh, who was killed in 2008 in a joint CIA-Mossad operation in Damascus. And then there’s the here and now.  Like so many Israelis, in recent months Avi has become deeply involved in the protest movement against the proposed legal reforms of the country’s hard – some say extreme – right wing government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And Avi has harsh words for the PM himself. He speaks openly about what he considers to be the racism of certain political leaders, looking down upon Mizrachi Jews - like him - with contempt. He minces no words, including Netanyahu and his Ashkenaz colleagues in a searing indictment. They posture as being the saviours of the Mizrachim, he charges, yet who are they to represent me? Man oh man, is he ever angry about that. And so much more. Mild-mannered by nature, Avi’s got that middle eastern “charif” quality – a hot streak - too and is not at all shy about expressing his strong views. This is a fascinating, no-holds-barred conversation, where the depth of the artist is on full display - as is his passion for life and Israel.

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If you missed Episode 7, you can find it below.

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Fleur Hassan-Nahum, loyal Likud member and Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem explains how she reconciles her identity as a liberal democratic Israeli with the current focus of her party – and the coalition government – on what many consider to be legislatives reforms that will destroy Israel’s independent judiciary – and liberal democracy. A self-described consensus builder and pragmatist, she quite openly discusses the shortcomings of the rollout of the proposed reforms but is adamant that they are necessary. It is a position that I can neither understand nor accept; but our exchange is a polite reflection of what takes place constantly, these days, all over Israel.  

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Lt Col Jonathan Conricus and I dig into the overwhelmingness of life in Israel these days. We're both pretty seasoned and hardened, but things here just seem to continue to ramp up, not down. As Conricus says in our discussion, he emerged from 25 days of no news or connection to the outside world following his observance of Yom Kippur and was amazed by the enormity and pace of activity. There is a lot going on. We spend the first bit of the podcast today discussing the sharp rise in domestic terror attacks by Israeli Arabs, something that tends not to receive much attention internationally. This disturbing trend is also complemented by terrorism within Israel committed by residents of the West Bank who enter Israel illegally. And then there's the regular stuff. We discuss Iran in detail. As we wait for the Israeli retaliation. Conricus has done significant work analyzing potential targets in Iran, political considerations, and more. See the link in the podcast notes below for the work he has done on identifying potential targets in Iran. This work is done in his capacity as a senior fellow at FDD, a Washington-based think tank. We are now hunkering down for yet another holiday on the Jewish calendar—this is a very busy time of year. Let's hope it's peaceful.

Podcast Notes:

On Sunday March 26, 2023, at 9 pm, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his Minister of Defence, General Yoav Gallant, for daring to warn the nation that we are in a dire security predicament. Gallant urged the Prime Minister to pause the controversial judicial “reform” legislation that most Israelis believe will be the death knell of liberal democracy in the country. Netanyahu’s impulsive dismissal of Gallant sparked massive protests throughout Israel within minutes. Whatsapp mobilized the nation.  Everything came to a standstill. The last 24 hours in Israel have been as dramatic as any in its 75 year history. The country is paralyzed by protests. The main international airport, factories, ports, shops, universities, everything is shut down. A national strike has been called and is supported by Israelis across the political spectrum. This is about preserving democracy and preventing the dictatorial regime that Netanyahu and his coalition partners are determined to impose. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets last night and the protests have yet to subside. Israel may well be on the brink of civil war.

Vivian Bercovici was on the streets of Tel Aviv until 2 am today and helps us understand what is really going down. General Noam Tibon (res.) joins her to discuss what has transpired….they met on Sunday, midday, when things were looking somewhat positive. And then…..KABOOM!

Today’s podcast takes a close look at the Kohelet Policy Forum – a Jerusalem-based think tank financed by two Philadelphia billionaires. Kohelet has been working hard for many years on developing policy proposals and legislation to overhaul the Israeli justice system and with the election of the hard right, ultra-orthodox governing coalition they struck gold. Kohelet policy proposals were embraced by the coalition but enraged the general public – even many who had voted for coalition parties in the last election. For 12 weeks now demonstrations and protests have become larger, more disruptive and social order is rapidly breaking down. Kohelet is proud of their proposals and has yet to voice misgivings regarding the consequences. What is Kohelet and what are they doing and why?

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Israel has been in a state of chaos for months now, with much of the country protesting a package of laws reforming the justice system that many think goes much further – and will be the end of liberal democracy in Israel. We dig deep into the issues and talk to the people organizing these protests: elite combat reserve soldiers, air force pilots, professionals, regular folks. These are the people PM Netanyahu brands as leftists, anarchists, and terrorists. They call him a dictator and say this is the most important war that Israel has ever fought since its founding in 1948.

On the first anniversary of the war with Russia, Ukrainian sculptor Mikhaïl Reva speaks with Vivian Bercovici about deriving meaning from from the horror of the senseless destruction, and discusses his complex ancestry. Mourning the recent loss of his mother, who was Jewish, Reva- who does not identify with any particular organized religion, surprises even himself as he shares the origins his family’s deep ties to Ukraine. So much traces back to a vicious pogrom in 1903) in which his great grandparents were murdered, leaving their young son an orphan. That was Misha’s grandfather, raised in Soviet orphanages during the Nazi years. I expected an immersion in a master’s work and got that, and so much more, from our fascinating conversation.

Please visit our Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to see more photographs and video of Reva’s extraordinary work in progress interpreting the war: “The Russian World”.An early model of Mikhail Reva’s sculpture – “Bucha” – commemorating the victims of the Russian massacre of Ukrainian civilians.

Israel is descending quickly into a crisis that, if unchecked, may well lead to civil war. These are the words of President Isaac Herzog. The words and fears of MK Benny Gantz, former IDF Chief of Staff and Minister of Defence. For months now, the country has been cleaved by sharp divisions that go to the core of Israel’s identity as a liberal democracy. The hard right-wing government coalition led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has brought together some very extreme interests and they are bulldozing their judicial “reforms” through the legislative process at breakneck speed. There is no proper consultation or public discussion and many are of the view that if implemented these changes will destroy the country by allowing extreme religious and political agendas to control national priorities. The tensions peaked on Wednesday night when police used unprecedented violence against peaceful demonstrators, sending 11 to hospital for treatment. Vivian Bercovici, in conversation with journalist Haviv Rettig Gur, on why this time is different. And how much worse it could still get.

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To finally launch this podcast is so huge. I realize a personal dream and expect and hope our stories will resonate. Our first episode is kind of surreal; an impassioned plea from two prominent Israelis – one on the right, the other center left – explaining how dire a moment this is: in Jewish history and the short life of the modern State of Israel. The crisis in Israel is about so much more than justice reform. It is about whether the country has a future as a liberal democracy. Doesn’t get closer to the bone than that. Please tune in and follow us. Tell your family and friends. We’re working on some great episodes. And, no. You won’t hear this stuff anywhere else.

We’ve got a twist.

Always.

As 9.5-million Israelis wait… and wait… the assumption is that Israeli and American government and military officials are working ‘round the clock to assess and decide which targets to hit. In the Islamic Republic of Iran. In retaliation for the launching of close to 200 ballistic missiles at Israel on October 1. When will Israel strike? How hard? Each …

Editor’s Fix: In the podcast I refer to 97 hostages. Some media refer to 97. That number includes those captured on October 7. When 101 is used… it includes four hostages held by Hamas since 2014.

It is significant that the one year mark of what was perhaps modern Israel’s darkest day falls between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. This ten-day period, known as the Days of Awe, is a time when Jewish people are meant to reflect on the past year. To take stock of their inner life, unsparingly. And if they have wronged someone they are expected to seek forgiveness, but only if they do so with humility. Unreservedly.

Whether one “believes” or not, this coincidental timing is profound.

On Monday, October 7, I woke up very early. at 6:30 am, just one minute later than the beginning of the horrific attack of that Black Sabbath, one year ago. We had dreaded this day for so long. And here it was. I set out in late morning for the site of the Nova Music Festival. To get there I drive along Road 232, which was an alley of death one year ago. At the site, I spoke with bereaved family members, among them Shlomo and Rita Krief. They lost their 17-year-old son, Shahaf, at nearby Zikim Beach, one year ago. As often happens in Israel, so many strangers came together to comfort Shlomo and Rita, who were inconsolable.It was a spontaneous gathering and I learned so much and felt so deeply. This vignette is a sampling of how immeasurably October 7 impacted this country and, I expect, will remain with us for decades. Perhaps centuries. 

The way in which families have been treated by the current government has stoked anger and bitterness, regrettably. In so saying I am acting as the conduit for the bereaved. It is something that I heard and was repeated all over Israel last Monday. This is not an issue of partisan politics. Not right or left. This is about abandonment. Not fulfilling one's duty. That is how so many feel today.

And that was very evident in the backstory - which we tell - and the main event commemorating October 7. The Bereaved Families Memorial Ceremony. It was held on Monday night at Yarkon Park in Tel Aviv. Survivors, bereaved, artists, singers. Two thousand people convened for this ceremony that was organized by the brother of a hostage who had been killed in error by the IDF. It was an extraordinary event, televised live in Israel. Not a single government representative or official was included or invited. We tell you why.

In this podcast, I take you on the journey I went on last Monday. It has overpowered me all week. And it is so appropriate to share on this day, just before Kol Nidre, Erev Yom Kippur. The Day of Atonement. You will hear direct, raw testimony. Mournful but hopeful song. Real. Raw. In the moment.

If you want to understand the mood in Israel today, I urge you to watch the ceremony in full. Or dip into the clips we have provided, below. 

Podcast Notes:

* Bereaved Families Memorial Ceremony at Hayarkon Park, Tel Aviv, Monday, October 7, 2024:

* Clip from full ceremony of an interview with Yuval Tabelsi giving testimony about her experience at the Nova Festival one year earlier and how she is coping with the loss of her husband. As there are no English subtitles I have provided a quick translation, following:

The clip opens with Yuval at the dumpsite near the Nova Festival where all the incinerated cars have been taken. She says it is her first time there and she is looking for their car. She very much wants to find the car - something that was theirs at their last moments together. She speaks about how well-suited and happy they were together and moves into a recounting of their final moments. They were trapped at an intersection. He told her to fold in on herself and hide as much as possible. He shouted “Shema Yisrael,” and said he hoped they come through this. She says she believes that Mor understood he would die there. She heard only gunshots, saw her husband dead. And she and her friends smeared Mor’s blood on themselves so that if the terrorists come by the car they will think that they are dead. They heard horrible sounds; including a woman being raped. In her life, she says, she has never heard such screams for help. She said - “Mor - I don’t know where you are now. But if I am going to die - at least not like this.” Every time she visits Mor’s grave, she says……she sings to him Ivri Lider’s song, “I Had a Chance to Love.” :

* Clip of Israeli music legend, Ivri Lider, singing "I Had a Chance to Love", inspired by Yuval's love story, so tragically cut short. Ivri is joined on stage towards the end of the performance by Yuval. The Hebrew lyrics are subtitled in English; and

* Clip of remarks at the October 7 ceremony of Rafi Ben Chitrit, father of a fallen soldier. Remarks are subtitled in English.

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Exactly one year ago, journalist Amir Tibon waited in his safe room with his wife and two young daughters. For help. For the army. Someone. Hamas terrorists rampaged through his kibbutz, yelling “Allahu Akhbar” ceaselessly. They fired their machine guns constantly. They burned homes and threw grenades into rooms where they knew civilians took shelter. They murdered wantonly. And they took hostages. They tried, several times, to shoot open the door to the Tibon house. For some reason they were unable to open it. Amir and I discuss that black sabbath, his family’s life today, returning to live on the kibbutz and the continued captivity of his neighbor and friend, Tzachi Idan.

We then speak with Adam Ma’anit and Heidi Bachram, a couple living in Brighton, U.K. They are both prominent activists for the hostages and combatting antisemitism. Adam is also Tsachi Idan’s cousin. They share with State of Tel Aviv their battle to bring Tsachi home and the indescribable Jew hatred that they have encountered, unabated, in the U.K. and online. You can hear the anguish in Adam’s voice, as he speaks of his cousin, who watched his eldest daughter murdered before his eyes, helpless to do anything to save her. Tsachi was then force marched, barefoot, covered in his firstborn’s blood, to the Hell of Hamas tunnels.

Following the introduction, I speak with Amir Tibon and at approximately 23:00 the interview with Adam and Heidi begins.

Am Yisrael Chai.

Podcast Note

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After almost two months in Canada and the U.S. it’s great to be back in Israel. I awoke Sunday morning to news of a new operation in the Gaza Strip and hoped that it meant we were rescuing hostages. Alas, it’s more about preventing Hamas fighters from regrouping. More like whack-a-mole. You battle in one area, move onto the next, and they return to the …

Everything in Israel seems like a Hollywood action movie that never ends. It has been a wild two weeks. Exploding pagers. Walkie talkies. Daily assassinations of high level Hezballah commanders and leaders. And it all culminated in the assassination of Hezballah leader, Hassan Nasrallah on September 27. Israel continues with targeted operations in Beirut and south Lebanon. Iranian Supreme leader Khamenei fulminates. On “X”, anyways. Seems that’s all he’s been doing, posting rants and threats about the Zionist menace. Vows of revenge. The Houthis are popping off missiles at Israel. And the world waits. Will Iran attack? Will Israel attack Iran directly? Where is western leadership? We get into those questions and more. And we even muse about a curious tweet by Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law….that lays out a thoughtful analysis of the situation…..albeit heavy on the political spin. And Kushner is not known for sharing his geopolitical thoughts publicly. And post editing, just read of a strike on a villa near Damascus that may have killed Syrian President Bashar al Assad’s brother, who was meeting with senior IRGC officials. This is unconfirmed by an authoritative source. But the X account that posted their information is reliable. Just another Sunday with Viv and Ya’akov.

See links for additional information on the podcast, below.

Podcast Notes

See links below the photograph of Prime Minister Netanyahu delivering his speech at the United Nations General Assembly on Friday, September 27 to the transcript of his remarks as well as the video of his speech.

Below is the full text of a post made on "X" on Saturday, September 29. 

Jared Kushner / @jaredkushner

September 27th is the most important day in the Middle East since the Abraham Accords breakthrough. I have spent countless hours studying Hezbollah and there is not an expert on earth who thought that what Israel has done to decapitate and degrade them was possible. This is significant because Iran is now fully exposed. The reason why their nuclear facilities have not been destroyed, despite weak air defense systems, is because Hezbollah has been a loaded gun pointed at Israel. Iran spent the last forty years building this capability as its deterrent. President Trump would often say, “Iran has never won a war but never lost a negotiation.” The Islamic Republic’s regime is much tougher when risking Hamas, Hezbollah, Syrian and Houthi lives than when risking their own. Their foolish efforts to assassinate President Trump and hack his campaign reek of desperation and are hardening a large coalition against them. Iranian leadership is stuck in the old Middle East, while their neighbors in the GCC are sprinting toward the future by investing in their populations and infrastructure. They are becoming dynamic magnets for talent and investment while Iran falls further behind. As the Iranian proxies and threats dissipate, regional security and prosperity will rise for Christians, Muslims and Jews alike. Israel now finds itself with the threat from Gaza mostly neutralized and the opportunity to neutralize Hezbollah in the north. It’s unfortunate how we got here but maybe there can be a silver lining in the end. Anyone who has been calling for a ceasefire in the North is wrong. There is no going back for Israel. They cannot afford now to not finish the job and completely dismantle the arsenal that has been aimed at them. They will never get another chance. After the brilliant, rapid-fire tactical successes of the pagers, radios, and targeting of leadership, Hezbollah’s massive weapon cache is unguarded and unmanned. Most of Hezbollah fighters are hiding in their tunnels. Anyone still around was not important enough to carry a pager or be invited to a leadership meeting. Iran is reeling, as well, insecure and unsure how deeply its own intelligence has been penetrated. Failing to take full advantage of this opportunity to neutralize the threat is irresponsible. I have been hearing some amazing stories about how Israel has been collecting intelligence over the past 10 months with some brilliant technology and crowdsourcing initiatives. But today, with the confirmed killing of Nasrallah and at least 16 top commanders eliminated in just nine days, was the first day I started thinking about a Middle East without Iran’s fully loaded arsenal aimed at Israel. So many more positive outcomes are possible. This is a moment to stand behind the peace-seeking nation of Israel and the large portion of the Lebanese who have been plagued by Hezbollah and who want to return to the times when their country was thriving, and Beirut a cosmopolitan city. The main issue between Lebanon and Israel is Iran; otherwise there is a lot of benefit for the people of both countries from working together. The right move now for America would be to tell Israel to finish the job. It’s long overdue. And it’s not only Israel’s fight. More than 40 years ago, Hezbollah killed 241 US military personnel, including 220 Marines. That remains the single deadliest day for the U.S. Marine Corps since the Battle of Iwo Jima. Later that same day, Hezbollah killed 58 French paratroopers. And now, over the past six weeks or so, Israel has eliminated as many terrorists on the US list of wanted terrorists as the US has done in the last 20 years. Including Ibrahim Aqil, the leader of Hezbollah’s Islamic Jihad Organization who masterminded the 1983 killing of those Marines

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In the podcast introduction, I mistakenly refer to Mr. Neuer’s testimony before a Congressional Committee as having taken place on January 24, 2024. The correct date is January 30, 2024

Hillel Neuer may well be a familiar name to State of Tel Aviv listeners. As Executive Director of UN Watch for twenty plus years, Neuer has been an unwavering force holding the United Nations human rights organizations accountable. Accountable for their constant haranguing of Israel – which the UN holds to a different and impossible standard – and the pandering of UN bodies to countries and terror organizations which egregiously violate human rights. I had an in depth conversation with Hillel earlier this summer about how UN Watch exposed the head of the UNRWA teacher’s union for openly supporting Hamas. And how the head of UNRWA – Philippe Lazzarini – just bowed to the will and ways of these bad actors. It is a fascinating look into the important work undertaken by Neuer which, for the most part, is a lot of old school research, slogging and thinking. A masterful – and theatrical orator – Neuer is at his best when lashing UNRWA and others before various officials around the world. We start off today’s podcast with some of the comments he made today to the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva, before looking back at some of his extraordinary accomplishments since October 7. And he is just revving up.

Podcast notes:

* Transcript of written remarks delivered by UN Watch Executive Director, Hillel Neuer, before the UN Human Rights Council’s 57th session on September 26, 2024 may be read here.

* Video of Hillel Neuer addressing the United States Congress House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Joint Hearing of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Accountability and the Subcommittee on Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations, January 30, 2024. The video can be viewed here. In the accompanying transcript of Mr. Neuer’s remarks there are multiple hyperlinks to the detailed material UN Watch has gathered to support these claims of URWA collusion with Hamas on October 7, before and since.

* News clip from ILTV reporting on the “kidnap” of the body of Yonatan Samerano by UNRWA workers and throwing his body  onto an UNRWA truck on October 7, 2023. ILTV news story is from February 22, 2024 and can be viewed here.

* The link to the UN Watch website can be accessed here. We encourage you to peruse the site, which is a trove of information regarding all manner of human rights issues.

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What else? The pager caper. We talked walkie talkies. And what it all means in the longer run. Is it a serious blow to Hezballah or a warning shot? In the meantime, in spite of massive Israeli air force attacks on rocket and missile launch sites in Lebanon, Hezballah is managing to shoot off hundreds of rockets. They are pounding northern Israel, particularly in the area between Haifa and Nazareth, hoping to hit a large air force base in the vicinity. Instead, they have had numerous direct hits on civilian homes and other buildings. As does everyone, we wonder if there is a strategic plan for war on the northern front, which is not yet apparent. We marvel at the brass-knuckled maneuverings of PM Netanyahu – keeping his political “colleagues” and foes on guard. And, as always, we close with the hostages, who are coming up to a year in captivity. One year.

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First it was the International Court of Justice. South Africa brought a charge of genocide against Israel to be heard and decided in that august forum. That case has been in abeyance since the initial hearing on preliminary issues held in January, 2024. Soon after we began hearing about the International Criminal Court – which has the jurisdiction to hold individuals to account for genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and aggression. In May, ICC Chief Prosecutor, Karim Khan, K.C., appeared before a panel of ICC judges to ask that they issue arrest warrants for Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and then Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant, for having engaged in crimes against humanity by promoting conditions conducive to mass starvation - targeting the people living in the Gaza Strip. These alleged crimes were purported to have dated back to October 8, 2023, a day on which Hamas terrorists continued their mass slaughter of Israeli civilians in the southern part of the country where they had invaded. Israel was in the second day of an existential war. The suggestion that its leaders were plotting mass starvation of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip is beyond absurd. But apparently the ICC judges agreed with Mr. Khan and arrest warrants were issued on November 21. In this episode we speak with Israeli professor and international law expert, Yuval Shany. We get into all the issues and questions I expect many listeners have: Can the ICC do this? Why did it issue the warrants? And – what happens next? Within hours of the arrest warrants being issued there was a furious reaction from Israel as well as the United States – both on the part of President Biden and President-elect Trump. Whatever one’s criticism of Israel may be, this step by the ICC calls into question whether the institution is operating in the interest of the highest ideals of justice or at the behest of nefarious political interests. Professor Shany and I unpack it all.

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Professor Yuval Shany is the Hersch Lauterpacht Chair in International Law and former Dean of the Law Faculty of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He was a member of the UN Human Rights Committee from 2013 to 2020 (and served between 2018-2019 as Chair of the Committee). He currently teaches at the Center for Transnational Legal Studies at King’s College in London and the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, and serves as a Senior Fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute and as an academic visitor in the Oxford Ethics in AI Institute.

Podcast Notes:

Link to NGO Monitor website, as mentioned in the closing remarks of the podcast.

Kidnapped brutally from her parent’s home on Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7, 39-year-old Carmel Gat survived 11 months in a Hamas tunnel dungeon. Starving. Filthy. Abused. Humiliated. Living in barbaric conditions. Somehow, she survived, along with five other young Israeli hostages. They were murdered at the end of August with a bullet to the back of the head. Just like that.

Carmel’s cousins, Shay and Gil Dickmann, have advocated ceaselessly for the negotiation of a deal for the release of all hostages. This family has been devastated. Carmel’s mother, Kinneret, was murdered on that dark day. Her sister-in-law, Yarden, was kidnapped. She was released in November, when Carmel was on the list to walk to freedom. But Hamas reneged and the deal collapsed.

Many in the west are critical of people like Shay and Gil Dickmann for “strengthening the enemy” and “playing into the hands of Hamas.” By protesting, goes the argument, they weaken the state of Israel and make us all more vulnerable. Clearly, they see things differently. And I thought it would be very helpful for their voices and passion and compelling logic to be heard by as many as possible.

Ask yourself as you listen to them… what you would do in their situation.

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As always it has been a crazy week in Israel. As we approach the one year mark since the October 7 attack the country remains numb. But the fury with the Netanyahu government continues to build. No one accepts his explanations for why we have not brought home the surviving hostages. One year on. And his attempts to explain and justify this national disg…

I spoke last night with our frequent guest, former IDF spokesperson, Lt. Col. (Res.) Jonathan Conricus, to focus on what many outside Israel find to be a very confusing state of chaos. There is a government that has made clear that a red line – an inviolable boundary in its negotiations for a hostage deal with Hamas – is that it will not abandon the Philadelphi Corridor. Shortly after this position was made public in a leaked recording from an Israeli security cabinet meeting, the bodies of six hostages were found in the Gaza tunnels. They had been murdered by Hamas a short time before. And their deaths enraged the nation. Were their murders avoidable? Was PM Benjamin Netanyahu being callous to their plight in sticking to this position? Or was he steeling and doing what is necessary for the future of Israel? Listen to our discussion in which we explore this horrible dilemma.

Below, just received before publishing this podcast episode, is the transcript of PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s remarks to the international press at 8pm (Israel time) today, Wednesday, Sept. 4. His very full statement stands as a robust response to many parts of our podcast. I suggest reading the statement in full.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Remarks at his Press Conference for the Foreign Media

Following are Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's remarks, this evening (Wednesday, 4 September 2024), at the GPO in Jerusalem:

"Israel is experiencing days of horror, sorrow and rage. A week ago, we experienced such horror.

Yesterday, I visited in Ashkelon the family of one of the hostages murdered in cold blood. A day earlier, I spoke to several of the families of these murdered hostages. It tears your heart out. I said to them that I'm sorry. I apologized that we, we didn't get them out. We worked so hard to get them. We were close. But we didn't. And they changed the torment of families worried about their loved ones to families grieving for their fallen beloved. That sentiment I know because I belong to that family. But it's a horror.

We also lost brave policemen and brave soldiers who were fighting in the Gaza front and I embraced their families as well. All our people do.

On October 7th, we experienced the worst savagery in this century. On October 7th, we experienced the worst savagery meted on the Jewish people since the Holocaust. These savages massacred our people. 1,200 civilians. They beheaded our men. They raped our women and then murdered them. They burnt babies alive. They took 255 of our people hostages to their underground dungeons. That's a horror that the world saw and responded to initially.

It's important that we remember it. But we were given a reminder. A terrible reminder. Last week, when these savages murdered six of our hostages in cold blood. They riddled them with bullets. Then they shot each of them in the head. Some of them several times.

And these are the savages, these are the terrorists that Iran implanted next to our border as elsewhere. And we're committed to defeating them, to extirpating this evil from our midst. I want to talk to you today about some of the things that we must do to achieve that goal, including the questions of the Philadelphi Corridor.

But before I do that, I want to give your readers and viewers some context because often you see maps of Israel. You think it's a Goliath.

Well, I'd like to give you first an overview of where Israel is. (Click here for a PDF file.)

This is the Middle East, and this is the entire Arab world, and this is Israel. It's one of the world's tiniest countries. I give it the, you know, the thumb test. This is a big one, so you need a bigger thumb. But it's a tiny country. It's one of the tiniest countries on the planet. It's, I think one tenth of one percent of the territory of the Arab world, maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it's two tenths of one percent.

It goes from the river. The river is right here. That's the Jordan River. To the sea, the Mediterranean Sea. So, when Hamas is talking about liberating Palestine from the river to the sea, basically, what they're saying is destroying Israel.

And the entire width of this, it's probably around the width of the Washington Beltway, it's all together in its widest point is about 50 miles. Right here. Tiny.

And here's Gaza there. This is the red thing that you see here. That's Gaza. Now I want to zoom in. When I zoom in, remember how tiny this is. Remember the distances here.

Now, take a look. Here it is enlarged. This is Israel. This is the Mediterranean Sea. The Jordan River is right here.

This is Egypt and the Sinai desert. Now, look at Gaza. Where is Gaza? Gaza is implanted in this tiny country 30 miles from Tel Aviv, 40 miles from our capital Jerusalem, 30 miles from Beer-Sheva. These are three of Israel's largest cities. Gaza is within spitting distance to them.

Israel, up to the disengagement agreement of 2005, Israel controlled this border under an agreement with Egypt after the Camp David Peace Accords. We controlled this part, which is called the Philadelphi Corridor, I'll talk about that in a minute, right down to Eilat in the Red Sea. This was our border. And while there was, I would say a minimal amount of terrorism, that wasn't, we didn’t really face a big problem.

Let's zoom in on that a bit more. Here's Gaza Strip enlarged. Again, this is the situation in Gaza before the disengagement of 2005. And the Gaza Strip is firmly under Israeli control. We control the maritime border. You can't smuggle in weapons. They tried but we stopped it. You control the land border. And you control this border between the Sinai desert, Egypt and Gaza. The Gaza Strip, it's controlled. This is the Philadelphi Corridor. This is the Rafah Crossing. Controlled by the IDF.

Now look at the distances from Gaza. It's four miles to another city in Israel called Ashkelon, where I visited that bereaved family yesterday. It's a population of 170,000 people. They are four miles away. But some of our communities like kibbutz Be'eri, which was one of the hardest hit, is one mile away from Gaza. Kfar Aza is less than one mile away. It's literally walking distance. Okay.

And so, as long as we controlled this, these communities, sometimes they were harassed by this rocket or that rocket but it was marginal. We controlled the security situation. But something happened in 2005. Israel unilaterally disengaged from Gaza. It just went out. It took out everything. It took out the army. It stripped, uprooted communities, took out 10,000 people.

The army left the Philadelphi Corridor. Here's what happened.

This is Gaza after the disengagement. And Hamas now has a weapon smuggling operation nurtured by Iran, financed by Iran, supplied by Iran, delivered by Iran.

And here's what happened. That Philadelphi Corridor became completely porous. The other borders controlled by us. But once this was perforated, even though the policy of Egypt was to prevent it, you know, it didn't necessarily work, it didn't, it didn't succeed. And this border once we left our side of the Philadelphi Corridor, rockets went in, missiles went in, drones went in, ammo went in, weapons manufacturing equipment came in, tunnel drilling equipment came in.

Once we got out, once we left the Philadelphi Corridor, Iran could carry out its plan to turn Gaza into a base, a terrorist enclave that would endanger not only the communities around it but would endanger Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Beer-Sheva, the entire country of Israel. It became a huge terrorist base because we left that Corridor.

So, we vowed, or I would say, all this, you have to understand that the centrality, the centrality of the Philadelphi Corridor to the arming of Gaza, to the arming of Hamas and this all led to the October 7th massacre, which Hamas has vowed, proudly vowed to do again and again and again.

We vowed that they won't be able to do it. So we said, as far as Gaza is concerned, three war goals: The first war goal was to destroy Hamas's military and governing capabilities. The second was to free our hostages. And the third was to ensure that Gaza never again poses a threat to Israel.

And all three of those goals, all three of them go through Israel's control of the Philadelphi Corridor. And it's obvious why. You want to destroy Hamas's military and governing capabilities – You can't let Hamas rearm. It's obvious. So you have to control the corridor. You can't let them have…by the way, it's not only to prevent them from terrorizing us, attacking us, it's also to prevent Hamas or any other terrorist organization from terrorizing the people of Gaza.

Gaza cannot have a future if Gaza remains porous and you can enable rearmament of terrorists through the Philadelphi Corridor.

The second thing is to release the hostages. First of all, you can't prevent, if you leave this Corridor, you can't prevent Hamas from, not only, not smuggling weapons in, you can't prevent them from not smuggling terrorists, hostages out. It's walking distance, nothing. They can easily smuggle hostages out here to the Sinai desert in Egypt, they disappear. It's crossing distance. The distance is nothing, it's meters, meters away.

They cross the, the barrier above ground. They don't even have to go underground. They disappear in the Sinai and then they end up in Iran or in Yemen. They're gone forever.

And you need something to squeeze them, to prevent them, to put pressure on them to release the remaining hostages. So if you want to release the hostages, you've got to control the Philadelphi Corridor. And the third reason, the third goal of ensuring that we prevent Gaza from being again a threat to Israel. It's clear. Gaza must be demilitarized. And it can only be demilitarized if the Philadelphi Corridor remains under firm control and is not a supply line for armaments and for terror equipment.

I think that's clear to most Israelis, to all Israelis. But a question has arisen: that may be the case, but why don't you leave Gaza for 42 days, you could come back. Well, aside from what I said that they could smuggle the terrorists out. I want to show you what they've got under Gaza. I didn't show you that. So I want to show you that.

This is what they have under the Philadelphi Corridor. Just so you understand the supply lines we're talking about. This is one of the tunnels there. Look at the engineering, look at the investment here, look at what they've got. We've got dozens of such tunnels, dozens of such tunnels, underneath the Philadelphi Corridor. To give you an impression of the size of these things: This is a soldier. This is a tunnel. You could drive a truck through this. Indeed, you could. Here's a truck, or it's a Humvee. This is a huge, huge problem.

Now, you're just going to walk away? It's obvious we have to control it, right? I think, once you see this, you understand that? But then the next question is, okay, you leave and you come back. That's what they tell us. Okay. We'll have complete international legitimacy to come back. Sorry, we've gone down that route. We were down that route when we left Lebanon, and people said you can leave Lebanon and you can come back. The first time they fire a rocket you can come back, the world will support you. It didn't. And we've been out of Lebanon for 24 years.

They said the same thing when we left Gaza in the disengagement. They said, you can leave, and the first rocket. I remember, Prime Minister Sharon said this to me. The first rocket above ground or below ground, we'll be able to go back in. It's been 20 years and we haven't gone back in. Because you all know and understand that the international community, including friendly countries, under enormous domestic pressure because of the propaganda that's leveled against Israel and against them, there'll be enormous, international pressure not to come back. What is their message? End the war. End the war. And so, when we want to come back and resume, we'll pay an exorbitant price in many fields, including in the lives of our men.

To come back? It's not a just a military question. It's a military, political, strategic question. And we make that decision. We're not going to leave. 42 days? We're there. I don't want to leave in order to come back in, when I know that we didn't come back in. And it's not going to take another 24 years to come back in. And God knows what price we'll have? How many more massacres? How many more kidnappings? How many more hostages? How many more rapes? It's not going to happen.

So, people said, yeah, but if you stay, this will kill the deal. And I say, such a deal will kill us. And there won't be a deal that way. This is a false narrative. I'm willing to make a deal. I made one already, one that brought back 150 hostages, 117 alive. And I'm committed to return the remaining 101. I'll do everything I can to get them in.

But leaving Philadelphi does not advance the release of the hostages, because the deal cannot be advanced. They'll give you a minor part if they give anything, and keep the rest. Go and argue. You know when they started giving us hostages? When we went into Philadelphi. When we went into Rafah. When we controlled the Rafah Crossing. That's when they felt the pressure. As long as they didn't feel the pressure, they wouldn't do it. The first batch, the first deal that we got, was a result of our invasion, the military pressure we put in. They gave us the hostages. After that, they thought, well, you know, we'll have the international pressure turn on Israel so we won't have to do, we won't have to make any concessions. But after Rafah, their tune changed, and they began to change. If we leave Rafah, if we leave the Philadelphi Corridor, there won't be any pressure. We won't get the hostages.

I said I'm willing to make a deal. The real obstacle to making a deal is not Israel and it's not me. It Hamas. It's Sinwar. On April 27th, I put forward a proposal by Israel, which Secretary Blinken called extremely generous. On May 31st, having met Blinken again, I said, we agreed to the US-backed proposal, and Hamas refused. On August 16th, the US brought forth what they called the final bridging proposal. Again, we accepted, Hamas refused. On August 19th, Secretary Blinken said, Israel accepted the US proposal, now Hamas has to do the same. On August 28th—that's a week ago—the deputy CIA director said Israel showed seriousness in the negotiations, now Hamas must make the deal. This was last week. So, I ask you, what has changed. What has changed in this week? What's changed is that they murdered six of our hostages in cold blood.

Now, the world will seriously demand that Israel make concessions after this massacre? What message does this send to Hamas? I'll tell you what the message is. Murder more hostages, you'll get more concessions. That's not only illogical, it's not only immoral, it's downright insane. So, it's not going to happen. We have red lines before the murder. They haven't changed. We'll hold to them. But we also had flexibility. And I'll tell you one thing, Hamas will pay for this. That you can be assured. We'll make sure that we extract that price from them. But we are firm on our red lines, including the Philadelphi Corridor, for the reasons I described here. I'm flexible where I can be. I'm firm when I have to be.

I think there is a possibility of getting this deal if we stick to this strategy. I said before, we got 150 hostages out because we combined a firm stance with military pressure. And I said that Hamas after that relied on international pressure, but it had weakened. And then we went into Rafah and the Philadelphi Corridor, so it got strengthened, and they were beginning to balk. A condition that they said they'd never accept, a red line, is that we must commit to getting out of Gaza and enabling Hamas basically to take over Gaza again. End the war, get out, let them retake Gaza. That's obviously something we couldn't do.

They said there'll never be a deal. Well, they started caving in there after we took the Philadelphi Corridor. And then they started backing off. You know why they waited? Why they started backing off? Because they waited for Iran to start a general war with Israel. That didn't happen. So then they waited for Hezbollah to start a general war with Israel. That didn't happen either. So now they resort to the final tactic. They're going to sow discord and create international pressure, again using the hostages, even after the murder. And this is something that's not new because they started this a year ago.

You should see this. I mean, this is their tactic. This is Hamas orders for psychological warfare, found in Hamas underground command post on January 29th, that's right after the beginning of the war, 2024. And this is the original document in Arabic. Our soldiers found it.

And here's what it says: Push photos and videos of hostages. Put it out in the media, because that creates enormous psychological pressure. Who's not affected by it? Any human being seeing these souls, these girls, these people, young people from those dungeons, you're affected by. Second: Increase psychological pressure on defense minister. Third: Continue blaming Netanyahu. And fourth: Claim ground operation will not release hostages.

That's Hamas', it's not only their talking points, it's their strategy. And their idea is this will sow internal discord and increase international pressure on Israel. That's what they hope to achieve. And they hope, they think this will happen. Well, it won't happen. I can tell you why it won't happen. I'll tell you why they'll fail. Because overwhelmingly the people of Israel are united. They understand everything that I said here. Overwhelmingly. You should know that. It's important. And the second thing is, we're committed to achieving our goals—all three goals: Destroying Hamas' military and governing capabilities, releasing all our hostages, and ensuring that Gaza does not become a threat to Israel anymore. And all these require standing firm on the things that will ensure the achievement of these goals. And with G-d's help, and with our people's will, and with the courage of our soldiers, we will achieve all goals."

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Within hours of the shock Hamas attack of October 7, video clips and news reports documenting the unspeakable savagery being committed went viral, globally. Equally shocking was that spontaneous street parties broke out all over Europe, the U.K., America, Canada and Australia. People were jubilant, celebrating the massacre even while it was ongoing. They called for the destruction of Israel. And, bizarrely, as they celebrated the carnage they also denied that Muslims would commit such barbaric crimes. But if they did, well, then it was legitimate resistance. Still in the fog and chaos of this massive terror attack, Israel found itself butting up against a wall of denial. Governments, NGOs like the United Nations, and civilians – saying that it never happened. This is where Mattan Harelfisch comes in. An Israeli man reeling in the immediate aftermath, Mattan could not believe that international media referred to crimes – that were documented by Hamas terrorists themselves – as things that “supposedly” occurred. Supposedly. The world was denying the horror. And so, Mattan spoke to IDF Chief Spokesperson, Daniel Hagari, and by mid-October the 47-minute film of the atrocities was produced and screened for 20 international journalists in Tel Aviv. This is part I of the fascinating back-story of how and why the 47-minute film was made; the objectives, the process, the ethics. Part II of this fascinating discussion will drop next week.

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In short, no one is winning. After almost a year of carnage the stakes seem to only get higher, death tolls climb and rhetoric intensifies. But today was, in this miserable context, a relatively good day, when Israel pre-empted a massive rocket and drone assault by Hezballah which likely targeted civilian infrastructure and military sites. Of 3,000 projectiles that were set up to be launched from underground facilities in Lebanon, only 300 were airborne and they did limited damage. But so much damage has already been done and the beleaguered population of Israel is taut. Former IDF Spokesperson and Lt. Col. (Res.) Jonathan Conricus and I expose the very raw condition of Israelis, many of whom feel utterly abandoned by the government and the army. We seem to be like spinning tops… spin, fall, re-spin, fall again. But there is no discernible plan or strategy as to if there is a plan and what that might entail. Even PM Netanyahu’s nerves are frayed. Meeting several days ago with hostage family members, the Prime Minister was sharp with them when they persisted in asking him whether he gave a toss about the hostages. Yes, it was that tense. And Netanyahu chided them, saying that he was fighting to save the state of Israel. As in: I am focused on much bigger issues than your son, or daughter, or husband. Widely reported in the Israeli media, the comment has confirmed the perception many Israelis have of Netanyahu; that he is cold, detached and megalomaniacally focused on his political survival. Power. The moral compass that Israelis felt they had is not being reflected back to them in top leadership. As Conricus so brilliantly distills the crisis: “It’s as if the entire Zionist endeavor relies on 42 days of Israeli control over the Philadelphi corridor.” We unpack it all. Have a listen.

Ya’akov and I get right into the only issue. The hostage deal. Now that Yahya Sinwar is the leader of Hamas (since the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh almost three weeks ago) he holds the cards. And whether he wants a deal remains somewhat unclear. There are so many contradictory signals. But the deal links everything, it seems. And the U.S. is pushing …

In this episode, I continue my discussion with British barrister Natasha Hausdorff, who specializes in international law and human rights. We focus today on the role of the International Committee of the Red Cross – which has done little, if anything, to assist the Israeli hostages held by Hamas. We then move on to the complex issue of hospitals and schools, which have a special protected status under international laws of conflict; that is, until they are used as military headquarters and operational bases. This is the classic modus operandi of Hamas, and the world – particularly NGOs like the United Nations and UNRWA – look away. Rather than pounding Hamas and its supporters for such immoral conduct and using civilians as human shields, these institutions and individuals instead pile on Israel. Curiously, they also say nothing – they are silent – in the face of clear and overwhelming evidence of the weaponization of sexual crimes by Hamas. In effect, they applaud Hamas’ barbaric conduct. Which, really, is exactly what these organizations are doing. Silence is not just complicity – it is also encouragement. We discuss the unbearable hypocrisy of this axis of pro-Hamas savagery. #BelieveAllWomen. Unless they are Jewish or Israeli women. We bring this discussion right up to the moment, commenting on the recent Israeli attack on a school in Gaza which was a robust Hamas military base. Why is the global community not criticizing Hamas? We can’t explain the insanity but we do expose the double standard. Another superb chat with the brilliant Natasha Hausdorff.

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Today Ya’akov and I wonder what’s going on with Iran and their much anticipated retaliatory attack on Israel, following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. We speculate on the role of the newly elected Iranian president in possibly restraining the Supreme Leader’s threat to avenge, ongoing hostage negotiations, and the potential ceasefire…

In this episode, I speak with an extraordinary woman, lawyer and legal advocate for Israel - British barrister Natasha Hausdorff - who specializes in international law and human rights. We explore some of the key issues facing Israel, including its “legitimacy” as a state, the legal validity of recent accusations of genocide, and the doctrine of proportionality in military responses under international law. Hausdorff shares insights from her recent appearance with Douglas Murray at the Munk Debate in Toronto -which went viral globally- and discusses the broader implications of anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism worldwide. The episode highlights Hausdorff's role in defending Israel's actions under international law and her efforts to educate and inform on these critical topics. Her deep knowledge, experience and brilliance in explaining complex issues straightforwardly is an opportunity not to be missed.

Podcast Notes

* JNS “The Quad” episode featuring an interview with Natasha Hausdorff, in studio

* Natasha Hausdorff’s online biography

* Munk Debate, DATE, featuring Natasha Hausdorff, Douglas Murray, Mehdi Hassan and Gideon Levy

* UK Lawyers for Israel Charitable Trust

* UKLFI upcoming webinar entitled “Unravelling the ICJ Advisory Opinions” with Natasha Hausdorff and Olivia Flasch on Thursday 22 August at 6 pm (UK), 8 pm (IST) and 1 pm (EST)

* Article by Iran International reporter Negar Mojtahedi exposing Iran’s financing of University of Toronto pro-Hamas encampment

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In this episode, I discuss the heightened tensions in Israel amid fears of an imminent attack from Iran and its regional allies, a situation compounded by the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. With co-host Yaakov Katz on vacation in Europe, I sought out two pundits familiar to State of Tel Aviv listeners: Amir Tibon, diplomatic correspondent for Haaretz and author of the forthcoming book “Gates of Gaza”, and Lieutenant Colonel (Res.) Jonathan Conricus. Amir discusses the current threat environment and the influential role of the United States, while Jonathan explores the strategic implications of Israel's potential shift in dealing with Iran. The episode highlights the deep concern within Israel and debates around a potential hostage deal with Hamas, reflecting the complex geopolitical dynamics at play. The Sunday podcast, usually paywalled, is made accessible to all this week due to the critical nature of the situation. It really is existential. We get into everything. Don’t miss it.

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It’s wonderful to have my podcast pal, Ya’akov Katz, back from all his busy travels and work and speaking to us about one of the hot issues today: Lebanon. In this “lame duck” period, President Biden’s special envoy for all matters Lebanon and Israel, Amos Hochstein, has been working hard to close a ceasefire deal between Lebanon and Israel. But he’s closer than ever now, and that is likely due to the Trump Effect (which I have elevated to being a proper noun) and how he is regarded in the Middle East. Trump is highly respected—by the good guys and the bad guys. And in this region, that means he is feared. He does what he says he will do. And he has been unequivocal in his hardline position on Iran: sanctions, sanctions, and more sanctions. No more carrots. All sticks. And his appointees named to date reinforce that approach. President-elect Trump has even put Israeli PM Netanyahu on notice and said that he expects all the wars involving Israel to be finished by the time he takes office. And Bibi is not taking that warning lightly. Nor is Iran. Or Lebanon. Word has been swirling for two weeks now that a deal is imminent. But as always, the devil is in the details. Ya’akov and I get deep into Lebanon to understand how Israel can get out of there. We finish up with a brief discussion of Israel’s new Minister of Defense, Yisrael Katz and, as always, the desperate plight of the 101 hostages—eight Thai nationals and 93 Israelis (with many holding dual citizenships) still in Hamas captivity.

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