The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

Welcome to "Still Life in Israel with Jessica Steinberg," a new weekly podcast in which The Times of Israel’s arts and culture editor explores what life in Israel looks and feels like right now, through conversations with the artists, writers, musicians and other voices helping us make sense of this moment.
For this first episode in the new series, we speak with former hostages Aviva and Keith Siegel.
Aviva Siegel was freed from captivity after 51 days and immediately turned to advocacy for her husband, Keith, who remained a hostage for 484 days.
The couple discusses the hours before October 7, when they went food shopping on the night of October 6, following a holiday evening with their family.
The pair talk about Keith's desire to return to their home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza, and Aviva's inability to do the same.
They talk about the need to tell the truth about what happened to them in captivity, as the couple's story was turned into a play that was recently performed at Tel Aviv's Habima National Theater on the third anniversary of October 7.
Aviva Siegel's book, "Survived to Tell: A Hostage’s True Story of October 7 and 51 Days in Captivity," was recently translated into English.
"Survived to Tell: A Hostage’s True Story of October 7 and 51 Days in Captivity," by Aviva Siegel is out now and available here.
Still Life in Israel podcast episodes are available for download 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.
Political correspondent Ariela Karmel joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot vowed Saturday to swiftly utilize the new Knesset’s parliamentary majority, declaring that Israelis had voted decisively against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in last week’s election.
Anti-Netanyahu parties won 67 of the 120 Knesset seats, but of those, Zionist anti-Netanyahu parties won only 48, with the other 19 going to two Arab parties. Karmel explains how Eisenkot will likely get the first shot at forming a government and how, from the Knesset's swearing-in on November 11, he vows to push forward his legislative aims -- regardless of the governing coalition.
Around 2,000 people demonstrated on Saturday evening in support of a Jewish-Arab government in Tel Aviv. Borschel-Dan and Karmel discuss the obstacles to a possible coexistence coalition, which would be Israel's second. Borschel-Dan points to the June 2022 legal gridlock over the continuation of the West Bank emergency regulations that led Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid to dissolve that short-lived government.
Check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Eisenkot vows to swiftly utilize Knesset majority ‘against Oct. 7 government’
Some 2,000 rally in Tel Aviv to demand Jewish-Arab government; counterprotesters rail at ‘stolen’ election
Senior Arab MK says Joint List ready to back anti-Netanyahu government from outside
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 Reel Schmooze with ToI film reviewer Jordan Hoffman and host Amanda Borschel-Dan, where we bring you all the entertainment news and film reviews a Jew can use.
Continuing in our decade-by-decade comedy viewing, this week's featured Schmooze film is 1982's "Tootsie."
Starring Dustin Hoffman as the gender-bending Michael Dorsey/ Dorothy Michaels, the supporting roles are equally star-studded, with 1980s greats Jessica Lange (who won an Oscar for her role), Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman, and Charles Durning.
Sydney Pollack directs -- and shares the spotlight in several scenes as the beleaguered agent. But the true scene stealer is a young Bill Murray, who plays Hoffman's playwright roommate.
Although set in a daytime drama (don't say "soap opera!") in the 1980s, the feminist questions raised are still all too relevant.
So put on your shoulder pads and let’s hear who gave this film an “oy,” “meh” or the prized “not bad” this week on The Reel Schmooze.
The Reel Schmooze is produced by Ari Schlacht and can be found wherever you get your podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to "A Mandatory Listen," a new weekly podcast in which The Times of Israel deputy editor Amanda Borschel-Dan asks the big questions facing Israel and the Jewish people.
For this sixth episode in the new series, we speak with historian Sir Simon Schama, who recently published a lengthy essay titled "Jew-Hatred: The Latest Edition."
In this cry from the heart, the professor of art history and history at Columbia University gives a broad-strokes history of antisemitism and delves into reasons why it is rising globally.
The award-winning author and cultural essayist for The New Yorker, who has written and presented more than 30 documentaries on topics including the Holocaust, brings forth recent examples from his own life in which Jews have experienced a new form of hatred, which he wryly labels "its latest edition."
In this free-flowing conversation, we learn about the haters' misperceptions and how bias is being transmitted virally today.
'Jew-Hatred: The Latest Edition' by Sir Simon Schama is out now and available here.
A Mandatory Listen podcast episodes are available for download 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 Lazar Focus. Each Friday, join host and diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman for a deep dive into what's behind the news that spins the globe.
On Tuesday, Israelis went to the polls for the first time since the Hamas invasion of October 7, 2023.
One might think the massacre and the subsequent wars would result in a massive political shake-up. But they did not. Israelis stuck to their voting patterns from four years ago, despite everything that has happened since.
Neither the Benjamin Netanyahu bloc nor the opposition Gadi Eisenkot bloc has a clear path to 61 seats and a government.
A major headline from the elections is the massive turnout in the Arab sector, driven by a desire to get Itamar Ben-Gvir out of office. That only complicates the math. Though the two Arab parties want Netanyahu out of power, most parties in the opposition bloc have said they won't sit with them.
Another round of elections is a possibility, but that is not an ideal outcome. It will cost the economy over $1 billion, will extend the political deadlock for months, and will bring in another period of irresponsible campaign rhetoric.
More and more voices are calling for a unity government, but that won't be easy to bring about. Netanyahu will want to lead it, but the Eisenkot bloc ran on ousting him.
There is an outside force that could make that happen, and that force sits in the White House. US President Donald Trump has every reason to push for it, besides the taboo against involvement in other countries' domestic politics.
But Trump clearly doesn't care about that, having twice endorsed Netanyahu in the lead-up to elections.
He wants a stable Israel with which he can partner in confronting Iran and making peace with Saudi Arabia. A rotational government with Netanyahu leading Israel for two years -- the remainder of Trump's term -- then contending for the role of Israel's president as Eisenkot takes over would make sense for Trump. It could also get rid of Ben Gvir, whom the Trump Administration sees as a troublemaker who harms both Israeli and US interests.
If President Isaac Herzog isn't able to get the sides together, then look out for an invitation to the White House for the party leaders.
That could be a good outcome for Trump, and might be the best chance that Israel has as well.
Lazar Focus is available on all podcast platforms. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and video edited by Yitzchak Ledee.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.