The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.
Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
US President Donald Trump reportedly told aides he is willing to end the military campaign against Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed and leave a complex operation to reopen it for a later date. At the same time, his administration is reportedly conducting negotiations based on a 15-point document presented to the Iranian regime. Berman attempts to unravel Trump's current strategic thinking, even as American troops are set to reach the region.
How do the Gulf states see this phase of the war? We hear who is on board with continuing the conflict, and who is working to end it.
As top Israeli leaders openly declare their intention to create another security zone in southern Lebanon, Berman reviews the Jewish state's historic trauma with a similar 18-year operation.
And finally, we learn about a now-resolved, but still damaging scandal that erupted this week as top Catholic clergy were barred from worshipping at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre for Palm Sunday.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Four soldiers killed, 2 wounded in south Lebanon clash with Hezbollah
Trump said to tell aides he’s willing to end Iran war without reopening Hormuz
Israel shifts to hitting Iran’s economy, as it enters ‘completion phase’ of war
Facing a resurgent Hezbollah, Israel slouches back to a security zone in Lebanon
Holy Sepulchre Easter services to go ahead as Church leaders reach deal with police
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yitzhak Ledee filmed and Ari Schlacht produced and edited this episode.
IMAGE: A woman prays in front of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem's Old City, April 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalia)
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Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.
Military correspondent Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
Like all Israelis, Fabian is experiencing the ongoing US-Israel war against Iran first-hand. We hear that his area of the country has been more battered of late, and about his onsite reporting from a crater caused by a several-hundred-kilogram warhead yesterday.
We turn to the IDF's airstrikes on Iran and what it is targeting now that the majority of military targets have been struck. Who turned out the lights in Iran yesterday?
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday that Israel would capture additional territory in southern Lebanon to expand a security zone on Israel’s northern border, as the Israel Defense Forces expanded its ground operation against the Hezbollah terror group. Fabian explains what this could look like.
We learn about the IDF's Alpinist Unit -- IDF soldiers on skis -- who conducted a rare border crossing in snowy mountains from Syria to Lebanon.
The IDF is pulling the Menashe Regional Brigade’s 941st “Netzah Israel” Battalion, a reserve unit made up mostly of former soldiers of the Kfir Brigade’s ultra-Orthodox Netzah Yehuda Battalion, out of the West Bank. We learn why.
And finally, we hear what is happening on the ground in Gaza as operations continue there.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Iranian missile attack sparks blaze in chemical plant, fears of hazardous leak
Blackouts hit parts of Tehran as Israel conducts strikes in Iran amid peace talks
PM says Israel to expand south Lebanon buffer zone as IDF pushes deeper into territory
IDF chief: Detention, alleged assault of CNN crew in West Bank ‘grave ethical incident’
IDF pulls entire battalion from West Bank action after alleged assault of CNN crew
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and edited by Ari Schlacht.
IMAGE: A poster shows former Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, at the site of a destroyed house that was hit in an Israeli airstrike in Sarafand village, south Lebanon, March 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

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Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.
Health editor Diana Bletter and environmental reporter Sue Surkes join host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.
With the northern city of Kiryat Shmona and surrounding towns facing constant fire from Hezbollah rockets, Bletter reports on the sense of desolation and concern from residents that the IDF won't finish the job in Lebanon, requiring them to go through another round of war in another six months' time.
Surkes discusses Israeli organizational efforts to help the Arab community in the north build emotional resilience during wartime, given concerns over a lack of adequate shelter in their communities and the terrible wave of internal violence.
After the Health Ministry budget was cut by $20 million, Bletter reports on fundraising efforts by Israeli hospitals, which are running their operations underground during the war.
Finally, Surkes briefly examines how birds struggle to breed in open spaces amid the noise pollution from nearby roads.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Northern residents concerned IDF won’t be allowed to ‘finish the job’ against Hezbollah
In mixed Haifa, weary residents face near-constant Iranian and Hezbollah missile fire
Facing violence on all fronts, Arab Israelis are unprecedentedly open to mental health help
As Iranian missiles rain down, hospitals scramble to raise funds for underground shelters
Road racket killing the mood for birds breeding in half of Israel’s open spaces – study
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.
IMAGE: Israeli security and rescue forces at the scene where a missile fired from Lebanon toward Israel caused damage in Kiryat Shmona, March 24, 2026. (Ayal Margolin/Flash90)
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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.
This week, the team takes our listeners -- and our boss -- up on their recommendations.
After Borschel-Dan asked listeners for their favorite stand-up comedians, we received a deluge of responses. We decided to launch our stand-up tour with "Modi: Know Your Audience," which is available freely on YouTube. While both had heard of the very Jewish performer, this was their first-time watching a full-length show.
Next, we discuss "The Rise of the Red Hot Chili Peppers: Our Brother, Hillel," which is now streaming on Netflix. The documentary sheds light on the origins of the still-hot band and focuses on its original guitarist Hillel Slovak. Born in Israel, gifted guitarist Slovak was the catalyst that brought both bassist Flea and lead singer Anthony Kiedis to the music world. For our duo of reviewers, it was a chance to revisit their high school soundtrack.
Stick around to see who got the "oy," the "meh" and the "not bad" marks in this week's The Reel Schmooze.
The Reel Schmooze is produced by Ari Schlacht and can be found wherever you get your podcasts.
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Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World, with host deputy editor Amanda Borschel-Dan speaking with Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, the head of Realign for Palestine, an Atlantic Council project that challenges entrenched narratives in the Israel and Palestine discourse.
This week, the Board of Peace’s top Gaza envoy Nickolay Mladenov revealed the principles of the disarmament proposal submitted to Hamas earlier this month. He urged the international community to pressure the Palestinian terror group to accept the offer in order to prevent another cycle of violence in the Gaza Strip.
But before diving into what these principles entail, we place Hamas and the Gaza Strip into the context of the current US-Israel war on Iran.
Hamas, argues Alkhatib, triggered this war -- and potentially the downfall of the Islamic Republic -- through its murderous onslaught on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Will it now be the last terror proxy standing?
And so this week, we ask Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, what matters now.
What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.
IMAGE: Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip, February 27, 2026. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)
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