Podcast appearances and mentions of Naftali Bennett

It has been a five-day blitz of attacks by the Israeli Air Force over Iran. The IDF has taken out many key Iranian military and other strategic sites and capabilities. Civilians are very deliberately not targeted. In recent days Tehran has been evacuated—responding to IDF warnings. Based on photos we have seen, it is a ghost town. And now we are waiting to see what happens next. The nuclear centrifuges—located deep underground in a mountain bunker at Fordow, Iran—must be destroyed to truly end the country's nuclear ambitions. State of Tel Aviv and Beyond regular (and military expert) Ya'akov Katz gets into the details of what may be the next move in this critical military operation. Will the U.S. step in and finish off Fordow? Or will Israel continue to bear the burden, largely alone?For those of you continuing to enjoy our podcasts and articles—if you have not yet done so—please consider supporting our work with a paid subscription. We're going 24/7 here, getting very little sleep and continuing to bring you reports. Because we believe it is important to get quality information out there. And if you're here, then you agree. We are independent and supported by our listeners and readers. Please show your appreciation today. Many thanks.Also, there are some good visuals in the YouTube version of this podcast that you shouldn't miss. So consider watching/listening there—in particular, today. Podcast NotesState of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.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.”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.Find Yaakov Katz on X @yaakovkatz This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

Israel's allies have been rapidly losing patience with Netanyahu's government over the increasingly aimless brutality of the war in Gaza - but the strikes on Iran have drawn a markedly different response, with unanimous agreement that they cannot be allowed to develop nuclear weapons. But when does defense become attack? Piers Morgan speaks to the former Prime Minister of Israel, Naftali Bennett, who many consider to be the frontrunner to replace Netanyahu. Then Piers tries a discussion with George Galloway - but what ensues is a war of words and slew of accusations, before the former MP walks out of the interview. Editor's Note: Professor Marandi was not inside the Iranian State TV building, as his own social media posts make clear. This was posted more than an hour before Mr Galloway's interview: https://x.com/s_m_marandi/status/1934647062173274204/history Piers Morgan Uncensored is proudly independent and supported by:Ridge Wallet: Upgrade your wallet today! Get 10% Off @Ridge with code PIERS at https://www.Ridge.com/PIERS #Ridgepod Tax Network USA: Call 1-800-958-1000 or visit https://TNUSA.com/PIERS to meet with a strategist today for FREE Beam: Visit https://shopbeam.com/PIERS and use code PIERS to get our exclusive discount of up to 30% off. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dave Rubin of “The Rubin Report” talks to former Israeli PM Naftali Bennett about why the government of Iran is a house of cards that could collapse at any moment; his time as Israeli Prime Minister; leading a diverse unity government of right, left, religious, secular, and Arab parties; the need for political unity in Israel and globally; confronting Iran through sanctions and supporting opposition movements; boosting Israel's economy through tech and innovation; integrating ultra-Orthodox Jews into the workforce; promoting regional alliances and international diplomacy; and calling for moderate, pragmatic leadership to secure Israel's future; and much more.

In the early hours of Friday morning, Israel pulled off a historic strike on Iran. As I record these lines, Iran is reporting a “massive explosion” in Isfahan, in a province that is home to several nuclear facilities. In Israel, where Shabbat has begun, the government has ordered all synagogues to shut down—and for citizens to remain close to bomb shelters as they brace for a retaliatory strike. It is hard to overstate the magnitude of this operation. Israel has taken out much of Iran's military leadership and some of its top nuclear scientists and hit nuclear facilities across the country. And it is still going. Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to do whatever it takes in order to prevent a nuclear holocaust. Meanwhile, the X account for Iran's military  has threatened that “our response will be lethal.” And the country's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, has tweeted: “The Zionist regime has prepared for itself a bitter, painful fate, which it will definitely see.” Donald Trump, for his part, is using this as an opening to push Iran into a nuclear deal. This is a historic juncture for the region—not just for the state of Israel, but for the West. So last night, just as the news of these attacks broke, I sat down with former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren and former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett to discuss all of it: the strikes, what they accomplished, how Israel defied conventional wisdom and seemed to pull off the impossible, what we can expect in the days ahead, and—perhaps most importantly to many of our listeners—whether or not America is supporting Israel in its efforts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In recent days Hamas has shifted all of its attention to controlling the food supply for civilians in the Gaza Strip. They continue to hoard aid meant for the needy and then resell it at extortionate prices. The last two weeks have been especially chaotic as the food supply diminishes, and people are living meal to meal. Concerns regarding famine are real and the involvement of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is intended to address the food scarcity. But the rollout of this new initiative has been a mess. Shootings. Chaos. People walking 20k to arrive at one of the few distribution centers to find that there is no food left. State of Tel Aviv regular guest, Ya'akov Katz, joins us to get into the detail of what is going on in the Gaza Strip and why everything seems to be going so wrong. We discuss Hamas, criminal clans, hostages and more. Before wrapping we touch on the surge of Jewish vigilantism in the West Bank and why this seems to continue, uninterrupted.And you will probably be relieved to know we don't even mention Greta. I'll leave that to Piers Morgan.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Podcast NotesYaakov 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.”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.Find Yaakov Katz on X @yaakovkatz This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

On this week's episode, Israel Policy Forum Policy Advisor and Tel Aviv-based journalist Neri Zilber hosts Tal Shalev, political correspondent at Walla News. They discuss Benjamin Netanyahu's rather unsuccessful meeting with Donald Trump in Washington this week, the Israeli government's war against the so-called “deep state,” the Qatargate scandal, the Netanyahu government's priorities after Passover, the political fortunes of Yair Golan and Naftali Bennett, and more. Support the showFollow us on Instagram, Twitter/X, and Bluesky, and subscribe to our email list here.

Today, we take you inside Wharton professor Adam Grant's Lecture on Leadership, protests at Former Prime Minister of Israel Naftali Bennett's speaker event, and the announcement of this year's class day speaker Jay Shetty.

Today, we take you inside the Hands Off! protest in town, hear a story about how a student discovered their bartending passion, and cover the controversy around Naftali Bennett's presence on campus.**https://www.dailyprincetonian.com/section/news

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who is widely believed to be preparing to run in the next national election, announced on Monday evening the registration of a new political party under the temporary name “Bennett 2026.” A poll published last night by Kan showed that if elections were held today, a new party headed by Naftali Bennett would be the biggest party with 27 seats, as compared to only 20 for the Likud in second place. KAN's Mark Weiss spoke with pollster Jeremy Saltan. (Photo: Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A video from an ultra-orthodox wedding last week went viral and stoked fresh rage targeting the ultra-orthodox population.In his column in the Jerusalem Post last Friday (see the Podcast Notes for the link), State of Tel Aviv regular, Ya'akov Katz, gave voice to the growing anger that many Israelis feel towards the ultra-orthodox population in Israel. This time, it was triggered by the wedding video, showing a prominent Rabbi leading what looked to be many hundreds, maybe more than a thousand, men in a frenzied song and dance. As they rocked to the beat, they referred to the nation of Israel as a country of heretics and celebrated their continued refusal to serve in the IDF. Well… hell hath no fury like a population that has given its all to the war effort for 17 months now, being scorned and mocked so openly. This same ultra-orthodox population also receives tens of millions of shekels in funding for their educational institutions annually from this nation of heretics. And they use this funding to provide an education that further demonizes the Israelis who serve and work, entrenching this insane cycle of entitlement, dependence, and exploitation. Ya'akov Katz is hopping mad, and rightly so. We discuss the policies, the gutter political reality, and how this very broken paradigm cannot continue. The IDF has a severe shortage of soldiers—in the draft and reserve armies. This Haredi holiday is over. Ya'akov and I get into it. And pull no punches. You can listen to the podcast on the State of Tel Aviv site or, if you prefer, click on YouTube and have the full AV experience. Please like and subscribe. Ring the bell on YouTube. We're working hard to build our YouTube presence and really appreciate your support.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Podcast Notes:1) Column by Ya'akov Katz published in The Jerusalem Post, Friday March 14: “The IDF needs soldiers but Israel is paying yeshivas to dodge the draft—opinion”This might have been possible to tolerate before October 7, but definitely not now, at a time when the IDF is missing over 10,000 soldiers to fulfill the missions it already has.2) Column By Ya'akov Katz published in the Jewish Chronicle, Tuesday March 11, 2025: “Dismissing Israel's Attorney-General is a distraction from government's failures.”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.”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.Find Yaakov Katz on X @yaakovkatz This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

The pace of events here is impossible. I'm keen to keep you updated and for now that means more podcasts than usual. Today I was lucky to catch a regular State of Tel Aviv guest and a man with deep knowledge of security and military issues… politics too…Ya'akov Katz. My head has been spinning from the pace of reports being made public by the IDF into the total failure of October 7 and I turned to Ya'akov to make it make sense. He did his best. We discuss the reports, which confirm what we already knew – but in writing. And then there was the unseemly brawl that broke out in the Knesset halls yesterday when bereaved family members were banned from entering the Visitor's Gallery for a plenary session of Parliament. This was done at the direction of the Knesset Speaker, Likud MK Amir Ohana. Finally, we touch on the breakdown of the ceasefire with Hamas and the uncertain fate of the remaining hostages. Thanks for being here. As always, we'd love your feedback. Have a listen.You can listen to the podcast on the State of Tel Aviv site or, if you prefer, click on YouTube and have the full AV experience. Please like and subscribe. Ring the bell on YouTube. We're working hard to build our YouTube presence and really appreciate your support.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.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.”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.Find Yaakov Katz on X @yaakovkatz This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

Ya'akov Katz and I pick up where President Trump left off. The horrific images of skeletal hostages released from Hamas captivity last Thursday were reminiscent of survivors of concentration camps during the Holocaust. President Trump and so many people reacted. Strongly. This insanity must stop. Release them all by noon on Saturday, he said... or else...And that's where PM Netanyahu and the Israeli government come in. Or else…what?We get into the possibilities... and try to unravel what seems to be a tangled mess at the moment... if only Hamas would release the hostages remaining. If only…You can listen to the podcast on the State of Tel Aviv site or, if you prefer, click on YouTube and have the full AV experience. The Viv and Ya'akov Show. Please like and subscribe. We're working hard to build our YouTube presence and really appreciate your support.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.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.”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.Find Yaakov Katz on X @yaakovkatz This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

Ya'akov Katz is back to discuss the wild week we've had here. I caught up with him on Wednesday evening, Israel time, and had intended to focus on the resignation the day before of IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi. But, of course, we spent more than half our time discussing the terrible hostage deal that we agree was absolutely necessary. And we get into how the deal might unfold in the coming weeks. Then, we got into the Halevi thing. Herzi Halevi was in office on October 7, and shortly after the disaster, he said he was responsible and would resign. Soon. More recently he had indicated he'd step down in June, but that was suddenly moved up. It's no secret that PM Netanyahu wants Halevi gone—and he has made it very clear that he assigns blame for October 7 to the IDF and Shin Bet. When it comes to his own government and the fact that he is the man at the top of the pyramid, Netanyahu balks. So. Halevi is going—but not until the first stage of this hostage deal is done. Minister of Defense, Yisrael Katz, is regarded as Bibi's guy. He is also not taken terribly seriously by the defense establishment. That may or may not be fair, but it is a fact. The replacement for Halevi will be chosen by Netanyahu. Not Katz. And that person faces an unenviable challenge: restore public trust in the IDF and take a hard look at the army's entrenched bureaucracy and how that needs to be revamped. As always, Yaakov and I spare no one and seem to agree on pretty much everything this week! Listen to the podcast here or watch on YouTube….link below.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.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.”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. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

It's wonderful to have Ya'akov Katz back to discuss domestic Israeli politics and leadership. We jump into the discussion using his superb piece published last Friday in The Jewish Chronicle. (The link is set out in podcast notes, below.) On the one hand, Ya'akov writes, we have a very Machiavellian leader who is constantly calculating where and how to achieve an advantage, which, I suppose, is the mark of any successful politician. With Bibi, though, it's about degree. And then there is the Bibi who has led Israel through these dreadful 15 months since October 7 and is taking credit for having redrawn the map of the Middle East. That's where it gets complicated. How much is because of Bibi, how much is because of a strong collective effort, and how much is, well, just serendipitous? You can listen to the podcast version—link at the top of this note—or check out our YouTube channel, where you get to watch us too!As you may be aware, we launched our YouTube channel last week with a long interview with Professor Gad Sa'ad, author international bestseller, The Parasitic Mind, and among the most influential public intellectuals. I'm working hard to put the finishing touches on a long, in-depth podcast about the virulent antisemitism that has gripped Canada and is now the focus of a lot of negative international attention. And we've got some more excellent holiday content coming. Thanks, as always, for being here.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Podcast Notes:Link to article published in Jewish Chronicle on Friday, December 20, by Ya'akov Katz.Link to Weekend Interview article by Elliot Kaufman in Wall Street Journal, published Saturday, December 21.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.”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.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

Join America's Roundtable (https://americasrt.com/) radio co-hosts Natasha Srdoc and Joel Anand Samy with Yaakov Katz, bestselling author of “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. Yaakov's forthcoming books – tentatively titled “Precision Strike” and "While Israel Slept: How Hamas Surprised the Most Powerful Military in the Middle East" are scheduled for publication by St. Martin's Press in 2025. Yaakov Katz is the senior fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute, as well as columnist and former editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post. Key topics on America's Roundtable with Yaakov Katz: — Update on the collapse of Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria and its potential fallout - impacting Israel, the region and the United States. — Yaakov Katz's op-ed via Newsweek: "Israel Can Save the World From a Nuclear Iran. It Must Strike Now." (https://www.newsweek.com/israel-can-save-world-nuclear-iran-it-must-strike-now-opinion-1999951) — How will the incoming Trump administration's policies impact the Middle East and US-Israel relations. — The future of the Abraham Accords. Will Saudi Arabia take the historic step and officially recognize the Jewish state of Israel? — ICC's arrest warrants for Israeli leaders, its assault on Israel and the US, and how it adversely affects the West's rule of law nations. Yaakov served for close to a decade as the Jerusalem Report'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. americasrt.com (https://americasrt.com/) https://ileaderssummit.org/ | https://jerusalemleaderssummit.com/ America's Roundtable on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/americas-roundtable/id1518878472 X: @yaakovkatz @ileaderssummit @NatashaSrdoc @JoelAnandUSA @supertalk America's Roundtable is co-hosted by Natasha Srdoc and Joel Anand Samy, co-founders of International Leaders Summit and the Jerusalem Leaders Summit. America's Roundtable (https://americasrt.com/) radio program - a strategic initiative of International Leaders Summit, focuses on America's economy, healthcare reform, rule of law, security and trade, and its strategic partnership with rule of law nations around the world. The radio program features high-ranking US administration officials, cabinet members, members of Congress, state government officials, distinguished diplomats, business and media leaders and influential thinkers from around the world. Tune into America's Roundtable Radio program from Washington, DC via live streaming on Saturday mornings via 65 radio stations at 7:30 A.M. (ET) on Lanser Broadcasting Corporation covering the Michigan and the Midwest market, and at 7:30 A.M. (CT) on SuperTalk Mississippi — SuperTalk.FM reaching listeners in every county within the State of Mississippi, and neighboring states in the South including Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee. Listen to America's Roundtable on digital platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon, Google and other key online platforms. Listen live, Saturdays at 7:30 A.M. (CT) on SuperTalk | https://www.supertalk.fm

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.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.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. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

Vic and Ken talk with Capt. Elkana (Kuno) Cohen, LIVE from Israel.author of OCT 7: The War Against Hamas Through the Eyes of an Israeli Commando Officer.A shocking, detailed account of present-day war as told by an Israeli commando officerHamas Calls for 'Immediate' End to War After Trump Election WinThe persona of the Israeli officer who strives for absolute victory is well reflected in Capt. Elkana Cohen's new book—Prime Minister Benjamin NetanyahuElkana Cohen tells the story of thousands of young reservists who dropped everything on 10/7 and went out to defend our nation—Naftali Bennett, thirteenth Prime Minister of IsraelOn the morning of October 7, 2023, Israelis awoke to a harrowing reality. Not only were hundreds of rockets being launched from Gaza into Israeli population centers, but the security border between Gaza and Israel had also been breached by several thousand Hamas terrorists.Carnage, not seen since the Second World War, ensued. Elkana Cohen, Captain of an Elite Commando Unit was called, along with thousands of other reservists, to prepare for war. One that will have to ensure nothing less than Israel's survival.In notebooks he found on the ground in the streets of Gaza, Cohen began writing a diary.Every day, he candidly documented the sights of the war. From an honest, precise and fluid first-person perspective, Cohen presents the feeling and story of the war from the eyes of the heroes who were there: the dust, the sweat, the brotherhood, the longing, and the awful smell of death and destruction. Cohen's writing poignantly describes his relationships with his fellow comrades, the mass arrests of terrorists, the homes of Hamas members, the story of the fallen soldiers, and the desperate hope to bring the hundreds of Israeli hostages home.Why did the prisoner from Jabaliya reveal to IDF soldiers that he had millions of shekels hidden in his house?What's on the Hamas terrorists' GoPro cameras?Why did the author feel sick every time he ate meat?How did the soldiers behave when the terrorist they were following went up to the roof of a building with a baby in his arms?OCT 7 is not only the story of one Israeli officer, but it is also the narrative of an entire nation. A nation that stepped up without a moment's hesitation to face an existential challenge with a sense of purpose and mission.Hamas Calls for 'Immediate' End to War After Trump Election WinBy Tom O'Connor NEWSWEEKAsenior Hamas official has called for an immediate end to Israel's war against the group in the Gaza Strip and a plan to achieve Palestinian statehood in remarks shared with Newsweek in the wake of former President Donald Trump's election victory."The election of Trump as the 47th president of the USA is a private matter for the Americans," Hamas Political Bureau member and spokesperson Basem Naim told Newsweek, "but Palestinians look forward to an immediate cessation of the aggression against our people, especially in Gaza, and look for assistance in achieving their legitimate rights of freedom, independence, and the establishment of their independent self-sovereign state with Jerusalem as its capital.""The blind support for the Zionist entity 'Israel' and its fascist government, at the expense of the future of our people and the security and stability of the region, must stop immediately," he added.When previously in office, Trump forged a close relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is today engaged in a multifront war against the Iran-aligned Axis of Resistance that began with a large-scale Hamas-led attack against Israel in October 2023. However, Trump has also expressed criticism of Netanyahu's wartime leadership and has called for a timely end to the conflict.Reached for comment, an Israeli official told Newsweek that "maintaining and building upon the special relationship between the U.S. and Israel has been a bipartisan feature of American politics since the founding of the Jewish state."See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Will the death of Yahya Sinwar prove a turning point in Israel's war with Hamas? Could it even mark the beginning of the end of the conflict that started just over a year ago? In this special update episode, Yonit and Jonathan speak with Shimrit Meir, onetime adviser to former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett and a leading expert on the man who was the architect of October 7.   Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unholypodcast/X: https://x.com/2jewsonthenews Join our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1150578065793142 Subscribe to our blog: https://unholypodcast.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees warns that food supplies in Gaza are diminishing. One quarter of Lebanon is now covered by evacuation orders, and around 1.2 million people are displaced as Israel attempts to cripple Hezbollah. It comes as US President Joe Biden holds his first phone call with Benjamin Netanyahu in months. We'll hear from Naftali Bennett, Israel's former Prime Minister, about Israel's options for its proposed retaliation against Iran. Also on the programme: We hear from a Florida resident choosing to stay put as what could be the biggest storm in a century approaches; and our science correspondent chats with Nobel Chemistry Laureate Sir Demis Hassabis about his prize.(Picture: Displaced Palestinians make their way as they flee areas in northern Gaza Strip following an Israeli evacuation order, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Jabalia, October 6, 2024. Credit: REUTERS/Hussam Al-Zaanin TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

US officials are warning Hurricane Milton, which is scheduled to make landfall on Florida's western coast within hours, could be "deadly and catastrophic". Millions of citizens have fled those areas in the storm's path, but others have decided to stay. We spoke to one man preparing to bunker down with his girlfriend and dog.US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have spoken on the phone. The pair discussed Israel's response to an Iranian missile attack last week and pledged to remain in "close contact" in the coming days. The BBC's International Editor Jeremy Bowen has spoken to former Israeli leader Naftali Bennett, who believes Israel should target Iran's nuclear programme.And a much maligned south coast town has inspired a piece of classical music. The Bognor Regis Suite was composed by local jeweller and musician Roger Clayden, inspired by his daily routine in the town.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Editor David Horovitz and culture editor Jessica Steinberg join host Amanda Borschel-Dan on today's episode. The UN special coordinator for Lebanon and the head of the peacekeeping force deployed along the border with Israel said this morning that a negotiated solution is the only way to restore stability. They added that Hezbollah's attacks starting on October 8, 2023, were in violation of the UN Security Council resolution that ended the 34-day Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006. Horovitz weighs in on whether Israel currently believes the path of diplomacy is still viable. This morning, former prime minister Naftali Bennett called for Israel to strike the Iranian nuclear program which, he said, “casts a dark shadow over our futures,” amid reports military or intelligence targets could be hit in response to Tehran's ballistic missile attack last week. Horovitz explores Bennett's motivations and discusses the current window of opportunity.  Steinberg reports on yesterday's commemoration ceremonies and discusses what the "alternative" and "official" productions show about Israeli society and its healing process.  For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog. Discussed articles include: On anniversary of start of Hezbollah attacks on Israel, UN officials call for diplomatic solution Bennett urges Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear program: ‘A one-time window of opportunity' At separate memorials, families demand accountability as PM touts Israeli ‘strength' ‘We will rise from the ruins': A bereaved audience pays homage on Oct. 7 anniversary Still under fire, Israel remembers Oct. 7 victims while grappling with ongoing nightmare Paramedic Amit Mann, 22: Sacrificed herself to protect patients Guy Illouz, 26: Soundman for Hayehudim with ‘a huge heart' Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Yoel Sigel. IMAGE: Kibbutz Beeri residents take part in a march and a ceremony marking one year since Hamas's October 7 massacre in Kibbutz Beeri and other locations in southern Israel, October 7, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Jordan B. Peterson sits down with the 13th Prime Minister of Israel, Naftali Bennett. They discuss the internal divisions of Israel, how October 7th refocused the nation, the means by which the Islamic Republic of Iran operates its industry of terror, the victim/victimizer narrative, and what victory might actually look like. Naftali Bennett is an Israeli politician who entered politics in 2006 as the Chief of Staff for Benjamin Netanyahu. From 2018 to 2022 he served as the leader of the New Right party. Then from June 2021 to June 2022, he served as the 13th prime minister of Israel. He retired after one term, becoming the 3rd alternate Prime Minister. He then resigned from this position and re-entered the private sphere as a board member of the Israeli tech company Quantum Source.  - Links - For Naftali Bennett: On X https://x.com/naftalibennett?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

One year ago today, Hamas terrorists burst through the barriers walling off Israel from Gaza and massacred more than 1,100 innocent people, taking 250 more as hostages. The sheer scale of the atrocity, and the animalistic barbarism of the killers, shocked the world.It was just the latest in a conflict spanning decades - and still, Israelis and Palestinians continue to live side-by-side no nearer to peace. What will happen next?Piers Morgan is joined by former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett before hosting a debate between political scientist and activist, Norman Finkelstein, Egyptian journalist Rahma Zein, Israeli-American commentator Emily Shrader and former British Army Officer and board member of Friends of Israel Initiative, Colonel Richard Kemp. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What are the implications of the death of Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah? Welcome to this special episode of "Inside the Epicenter." In this special episode of "Inside the Epicenter," the focus is on the recent Israeli airstrike that eliminated Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah. This significant move marks a major victory for Israel and disrupts the Iranian terror network. Jonathan Conricus, former IDF chief international spokesman and now a senior fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, joins host Joel Rosenberg to discuss the implications of Nasrallah's death. They explore Israel's advanced military tactics, the broader impact on Middle Eastern stability, and the potential responses from Iran. Listeners will also hear about the humanitarian impact, including the displacement of Israelis and the need for support for the Joshua Fund. For more information, visit joshuafund.com and allisrael.com. Join us for a compelling analysis of these developments on "Inside the Epicenter."   (00:02) Israel's precise intelligence successes despite past failures.(04:36) Israel has persistently undermined Hezbollah with intelligence.(07:57) Israel assassinated top Hezbollah and Hamas leaders.(12:37) Gratitude for Jonathan's participation and analysis question.(13:15) Hezbollah's leadership lost; Iran's response is uncertain.(19:21) Middle East peace requires countering Iranian aggression.(23:19) Top Hezbollah leader Nasrallah was assassinated by unknown attackers.(24:59) Epicenter briefing's pivotal update amid Nasrallah's death.(28:24) Israeli-Lebanon conflict: civilians affected, Hezbollah leaders killed.(35:15) Naftali Bennett keynote on October 7th events.(37:20) Invitation-only, intimate event for Joshua Fund partners.(39:24) Need support: Financial aid, prayer. Visit joshuafund.com.   Learn more about The Joshua Fund. Make a tax-deductible donation. The Joshua Fund Stock provided by DimmySad/Pond5   Verse of the Day: Psalm 37:35-40 - I have seen a wicked, violent man spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil. And then he passed away, and low, he was no more. I sought for him, but he he could not be found. Mark the blameless man and behold the upright, for the man of peace will have a posterity, but transgressors will be altogether destroyed. The posterity of the wicked will be cut off, but the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord. He is their strength in times of trouble. The lord the Lord helps them and delivers them who are virtuous. He delivers them from the wicked and saves them because they take refuge in him. PrayerPray that the Lord would liberate Lebanon from the reign of terror of Hezbollah.Pray that Israel herself is liberated from this threat of Hezbollah. Related Episodes:Israel Awaits Crucial Reply on Hamas Hostage Deal #217Israeli Intelligence or Hand of God? #214Rising Tensions and Targeted Assassinations #203Jonathan Conricus on Israel's Strategic Challenges #192 https://allisrael.com/operation-new-order-everything-known-about-the-strike-that-killed-hezbollah-leader-hassan-nasrallahhttps://www.fdd.org/team/lt-col-ret-jonathan-conricus/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Breaking news out of the Middle East: Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has been killed in Beirut. We're joined by Shimrit Meir, a top expert on Nasrallah and the Arab world, and former senior diplomatic advisor to Naftali Bennett, to give her expert analysis on this major development. You can watch the full episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVIdt9mlNEI Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unholypodcast/X: https://x.com/2jewsonthenews Join our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1150578065793142 Subscribe to our blog: https://unholypodcast.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's been almost a year since Oct. 7. More than 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza are dead. The hostages are not all home, and it doesn't look like there will be a cease-fire deal that brings them home anytime soon. Israeli politics is deeply divided, and the country's international reputation is in tatters. The Palestinian Authority is weak. A war may break out in Lebanon soon. There is no vision for the day after and no theory of what comes next.So I wanted to talk to David Remnick, the editor of The New Yorker. Remnick has been reporting from Israel for decades and has a deep familiarity and history with both the region and the politics and the people who are driving it. He first profiled Benjamin Netanyahu back in 1998. In 2013, he profiled Naftali Bennett, the politician leading Netanyahu in polls of who Israelis think is best suited to be prime minister. And he recently profiled Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas in Gaza.In this conversation, we talk about what Remnick learned profiling Netanyahu, Bennett and Sinwar, as well as where Israel's overlapping conflicts with Hamas, the Palestinian Authority, Hezbollah and Iran sit after nearly a year of war. Remnick and I were both recently in Israel and the West Bank, as well as near Israel's border with Lebanon, and we discuss our impressions from those trips.Mentioned:“Notes from Underground” by David Remnick“The Party Faithful” by David Remnick“The Outsider” by David RemnickThe Bibi FilesBook Recommendations:Hope Against Hope by Nadezhda MandelstamThese Truths by Jill LeporeCosmopolitanism by Kwame Anthony AppiahThoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Elias Isquith. Fact-checking by Michelle Harris, with Kate Sinclair. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld, with additional mixing by Aman Sahota and Isaac Jones. Our senior editor is Claire Gordon. The show's production team also includes Annie Galvin, Rollin Hu and Kristin Lin. Original music by Isaac Jones. Audience strategy by Kristina Samulewski and Shannon Busta. The executive producer of New York Times Opinion Audio is Annie-Rose Strasser.

Former Prime Minister of Israel, Naftali Bennet, shares his opinion on why a two-state solution just won't work and you'll also hear from author Jonathan Schanzer on the significant increase in antisemitic incidents on US college campus. All this and more awaits you on this week's Third Opinion Podcast. Thank you for listening, subscribing, and sharing the program!

Linda Gradstein, Allison Kaplan Sommer and Noah Efron discuss two topics of incomparable importance and end with an anecdote about something in Israel that made them smile this week. Hear the Extra-Special, Special Extra Segment on Patreon   —Bennett, Done That— Israel's next prime minister will be … Naftali Bennett? —Jewish Life During Wartime— Why does war make more-secular Israelis more secular, and less-secular Israelis less secular? —Our Flights Are Cancelled— For our most unreasonably generous Patreon supporters, in our extra-special, special extra discussion: What happens when every airline stops flying to Israel? Plus, a reflection on how time itself has stopped working, and music by women we've loved for decades, speaking now to our present moment.

Today we sit down with one of the most interesting figures in Israeli public life, former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who served as Israel's 13th Prime Minister (2021-22), and previously, in a Netanyahu-led government as Defense Minister (2019-20), and earlier on as Economy Minister. When he himself was prime minister, Naftali Bennett's government was comprised of 8 political parties from across the ideological spectrum - from his own Yamina Party and the New Hope party on the Right, through Yair Lapid's party in the center, to the Labor and Meretz parties on the Left. And then – for the first time in an Israeli Government – there was the Arab Muslim party, Ra'am. In his business career, Prime Minister Bennett was a successful start-up entrepreneur. And he served in Israel's elite Sayaret Mechtel special forces. In this long-form interview, we try to better understand Naftali Bennett's worldview on a range of issues in Israel's post-10/07 reality – its strategic situation as it faces multiple war fronts or possible war fronts, and we wanted to better understand his vision for addressing the growing internal Israeli tensions – within the Israeli public..

Today we sit down with one of the most interesting figures in Israeli public life, former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who served as Israel's 13th Prime Minister (2021-22), and previously, in a Netanyahu-led government as Defense Minister (2019-20), and earlier on as Economy Minister. When he himself was prime minister, Naftali Bennett’s government was comprised […]

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. ToI senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's special episode of What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring one key issue currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World. Ultra-Orthodox men of military age have been able to avoid being conscripted to the IDF for decades by enrolling in yeshivas for Torah study and obtaining repeated one-year service deferrals until they reach the age of military exemption. This week, a historic High Court ruling — which found that there is no legal basis for excluding Haredi men from the military draft -- brought the need for a true Haredi draft law into focus.  So when Likud MK and Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman Yuli Edelstein delayed a vote on a Defense Ministry-backed “draft Security Service Law” due to what he said was a failure to reach a “broad consensus” on the matter, political pundits paid attention. Likewise, polls indicated this week that a "fantasy" political party of former prime minister Naftali Bennett, Yisrael Beytenu party leader Avigdor Liberman, New Hope head Gideon Sa'ar and former Mossad director Yossi Cohen would be the largest faction in the Knesset if elections were held today, winning 25 seats. Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Illustrative image: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu waves to his supporters after the first exit poll results for the Israeli parliamentary elections at his Likud party's headquarters in Jerusalem, March. 24, 2021. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Does a nation have the right to defend itself? How should a country deal with a constant terrorist threat? And what does international response reveal about the prejudices of those nations? Former Israel Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett, candidly takes on these pressing questions as more and more nations seek to deter and even suppress Israel as the IDF nears a decisive defeat of Hamas in Gaza. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Haviv Rettig Gur returns for a regular check-in, in which we analyze the emerging political scenarios that might emerge from the moves being made by Yoav Gallant, Benny Gantz and Naftali Bennett. We also discuss the implications of the crash of the helicopter transporting Iran's president -- what does it mean for Israel and other stakeholders OUTSIDE Iran and what does it mean INSIDE Iran?

Haviv Rettig Gur returns for a regular check-in, in which we analyze the emerging political scenarios that might emerge from the moves being made by Yoav Gallant, Benny Gantz and Naftali Bennett. We also discuss the implications of the crash of the helicopter transporting Iran’s president — what does it mean for Israel and other […]

Former Israeli Ambassador to the United States Dr. Michael Oren joined Hugh to review the options in front of PM Netanyahu and the War Cabinet, the return of Naftali Bennett, and more. Plus, Senator Marsha Blackburn and Congressman Mike Garcia on the aid bills the House will vote on Saturday, and the state of the 2024 presidential race with Noah Rothman, former Senator Jim Talent, and Josh Kraushaar.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on the show, Fareed speaks with former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett about the war in Gaza, and whether Israel's current strategy can eradicate Hamas. They also discuss Prime Minister Netanyahu's political position, and whether Bennett might run to be Israel's next prime minister.  Then, Finland's new president Alexander Stubb joins the show to discuss his recent trip to Kyiv, the potential impact of a second Trump term on NATO, and why peace negotiations in Ukraine are still a long way off.  Finally, Assistant Editor of The Spectator, Cindy Yu, talks to Fareed about the social media backlash against China's richest man.   GUESTS: Naftali Bennett (@naftalibennett), Alexander Stubb (@alexstubb), Cindy Yu (@CindyXiaodanYu)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

SEASON 2024 EPISODE 9: Yishai and Malkah Fleisher discuss the Blood Libel of foreign media and the Narrative War for educating young Arabs. Then, Ben Bresky on the history of the Tomb of Rachel. And then, Naftali Bennett is a guest on Piers Morgan's show - with Yishai commentary. Finally, Table Torah on Parshat Ki Tisa and God's eternal loving justice.SPONSOR LINKS:The Israel Bible https://theisraelbible.com/Prohibition Pickle https://www.facebook.com/Prohibitionpickle/Hebron Fund https://hebronfund.org/The Jewish Press https://www.jewishpress.com/JNS https://www.jns.org/Kosher Cycle Tours http://www.KosherCycleTours.comPODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://yishaifleisher.com/podcast/ Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3mIsdfU Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3oP2Reo4JYnfIJdDUrQS2c RSS: https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/1271258.rss YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/YishaiFleisherTV SUPPORT & CONNECT:Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcastSupport on Givecloud: https://kumah.givecloud.co/Twitter: https://twitter.com/YishaiFleisherInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/yishaifleisherLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yishaifleisher/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YishaiFleisherSupport the show

Yishai and Malkah Fleisher discuss the Blood Libel of foriegn media and the Narrative War for educating young Arabs. Then, Ben Bresky on the history of the Tomb of Rachel. And then, Naftali Bennett is a guest on Piers Morgan's show - with Yishai commentary. Finally, Table Torah on Parshat Ki Tisa and God's eternal loving justice.

This week our guest is the incomparable Mark Sleboda! You can find me and the show on social media by searching the handle @DrWilmerLeon on X (Twitter), Instagram, and YouTube. Our Facebook page is www.facebook.com/Drwilmerleonctd All our episodes can be found at CTDpodcast.com.   Transcript: Dr Wilmer Leon (00:48): Welcome to the Connecting the Dots podcast with Dr. Wilmer Leon. I'm Wilmer Leon. Here's the point. We have a tendency to view current events as though they occur in a vacuum, failing to understand the broader historical context in which most events take place. During each episode of this podcast, my guests and I will have probing, provocative, and in-depth discussions that connect the dots between current events and the broader historic context in which they occur. This will enable you to better understand and analyze the events that impact the global village in which we live. On today's episode, we will discuss the recent belt and road form for international cooperation. Recently, over 500 people were killed as a result of an Al Ali Arab Hospital bombing in Gaza. And the US has provided Ukraine long range attack s missiles for insight into this. Let's turn to my guest. He's a Moscow based international relations and security analyst, mark Sloboda. Mark, let's connect some dots. Mark Sleboda (01:58): Pleasure to on connecting the dots. Dr Wilmer Leon (02:02): So Russian President Putin recently went to Beijing to participate in the third Belt and Road forum for international cooperation. Mark, how significant was this meeting? Mark Sleboda (02:17): Yeah, so I think that this meeting was significant for a number of reasons. First, for President Putin on a personal situation, it is the first time that he has left Russia since the Wess pushed international criminal court charged Vladimir Putin with the crime of helping families and caretakers in East Ukraine move their own children out of the range of Kiev regime artillery that had been bombing them for the last 10 years, also known as abducting children, which evidently is a crime when Russia does it in a time of conflict, but is not a crime when the US does it, when they move thousands of children out of Afghanistan and many thousands of children out of Vietnam in a previous generation of conflict. But besides that, the Russian Chinese relationship bilaterally, I think is probably the most important bilateral relationship for both countries. And both presidents seem to have a good working relationship, often described as a friendship and a deep understanding with each other. (03:47) And each time one of the others has been reelected to their positions. The first country that they go to is each other's, and I think that is a symbolic sign of the relationship, how important it is with each other's countries. But in a wider perspective, this Belt and Road Forum summit, it is actually the 10th anniversary of China's launching of the Belt and Road Project with the goal of which is to build deep infrastructure all along certain geographic pathways along a lot of what could have been considered the old Silk Road to facilitate trade and connections between the countries of this part of the world. And this is something that China does wherever it goes and does business is build infrastructure because it considers that as a long-term investment, not only in the process of conducting trade, but of helping their trade partner develop to a level where they can better trade with each other. (05:09) So physical infrastructure, but also schools, hospitals, things like this. Now a lot of Russian and Chinese and many other countries, leaders have done a lot about talking about the construction of a new, more multipolar, fairer and more equitable world order. And this would stand, I think, in contradiction and an obvious opposition to the current rules based orders. We make the rules, we give the orders of US led Western global hegemony, but in this emerging, shall we say, nascent being born multipolar world order, there are several countries that come to the fore as the first among equals, but certainly China and Russia, our foremost political drivers amongst that. And China stands of course head above the rest if only in terms of their population and their economic strength, which by many measures already exceeds that of the United States. And if there is a meeting and a display of this alternate world order of which China is playing such an important part, a China centric world order, if you want to call it, that was on display in this Belt and road summit. (07:00) It was a bringing together of all the countries participating in this physical implementation of a more multipolar world order. The only Western leader in attendance, very interestingly is the right wing prime minister of Hungary, the foreign policy black sheep, victor or Bond who has refused to participate in the West's proxy war in Ukraine. And its existential economic war of sanctions weaponizing its control of the global financial and economic architecture against Russia, primarily from a Hungarian national interest perspective rather than any great love of Russia or the Russian president, which is I think a position that most people would agree is something that should be something that every world leader should aspire to, that they put their own nation's interest and people above all others. Although in the current world that's not even specific. It's not, we know that it's not the case. Dr Wilmer Leon (08:25): Just asked Olaf Schultz in Germany that question you mentioned each time gee and Putin get elected, we keep hearing from Western narrative, particularly from Biden authoritarians, authoritarians G is an authoritarian, Putin is an authoritarian, can just briefly explain the fact that they're elected, they don't control their elections. They have different electoral processes than we do. They have different democratic constructs than we have, but that doesn't mean that they're authoritarian. Mark Sleboda (09:14): Yeah, I mean this is a label that is tapped on essentially to any country now that lies outside of US-led western global hegemony that does not align itself and does not meet the West's self-reflective standard of what democracy looks like. And it really, it is a way of exerting moral superiority. The idea that we are both morally and systemically superior than those people over there who are our adversaries in a different time. It was communists of course, and there have been other labels in history and certainly labels are applied to the Western countries. They are imperialists. They are hegemons. This is a standard othering device. I live in Russia, I immigrated to Russia from the United States, and I have lived here for most of two decades. And I have to be honest, after having some experience as a volunteer for the US Democratic Party, I find that politics in Russia on a whole is no more or less substantive than the democratic nature beneath the sheets of politics in the United States. I don't want to go out of the way to make it seem like it's a democratic utopia or anything like that far from it. But on a whole, knowing the warts inside and out of political systems in US and Europe and now Russia, I think that over in a general context that they're expressed themselves roughly equally. There is Dr Wilmer Leon (11:18): Politics plus they also reflect the intricacies of their cultures. And so I was having a conversation with some folks a couple of days ago and I said they were, oh, well G is an authoritarian. And I said, well, I've seen polls from Harvard and Princeton and some other western universities that show like 96% of Chinese people like their government. And I think it was 87% of Russians polled like their government support government. So if it's working for them, then who in the world am I to say that it's not good, it's not right, or what we have is better. I know Joe Biden would love to see 60% approval rating, let alone 96% approval rating. Mark Sleboda (12:15): Yeah, I think not only approval of the current government, but I've seen similar polls that asking peoples of different countries whether they think they live in a democracy and quite overwhelmingly, certainly over the 50% margin, the people of Russia feel they live in a democracy and certainly the people in China do as well to an even greater degree. Again, it doesn't look like western liberal democracy, but perhaps you could consider it of a more technocratic bureaucratic nature. But as you point out, there is a thousand multi-thousand year history of Chinese bureaucratic constructs that they are laying their future and their choices on top of. Meanwhile, in the United States, people generally feel that they don't live in a democratic system, that their government is not responsive to their needs and interests. And you could say that that is, oh, I mean all the people in Russia and China are ignorant. (13:35) They don't know the real situation of what they live and what we live in. And I got to tell you, Russian people, even Chinese people, despite the great Chinese firewall, their coordinate of the internet generally have a far higher degree of reading and understanding western media than the other way around. That is they hear our perspective and thoughts, but as Westerners, you quite often don't hear at least on your own media unless you go actively looking for it, the opinions and perspectives of other countries. So I think that assumption that all the people over in that other part of the world, they don't live in a real democracy and that they think they do is only a sign of how brainwashed and ignorant they are compared to us enlightened people on the shining city on the hill. That is a hallmark of the supremacist ideology of exceptionalism that unfortunately has come to dominate not American political culture, but I think far more important, the American political elite, the ruling class. And that has disastrous consequences for us foreign policy and the world. Dr Wilmer Leon (15:05): You are absolutely right. I've been to Iran twice and was very blessed to lecture at probably somewhere between 10 and 15 universities throughout the country. And as I traveled throughout Iran, I was amazed at how well informed the questions that these students asked me. They were right on it, man, in terms of an understanding of the politics of the moment. And again, the questions that they asked me were spot on. It indicated that they were going beyond the rhetoric, they were going beyond the talking points. And it was shocking to me how well-informed in spite of the wall that you talk about in terms of the internet, they were on point, man. Mark Sleboda (16:11): Yeah, I think it's interesting that this label is applied to adversaries like Russia and China, Russia, which has opposition parties and elections. They don't do very good right now because since the economic catastrophe of the nineties, I think the Russian population has been more united in their political vision of a path out of that and forward and retaking what they see as their place in the world after the self dissolution of the Soviet Union. That will not last forever. And a lot of people question whether it will last after Putin at all. But there is opposition political structures. The biggest opposition political party in Russia is the communist party of the Russian Federation, which polls generally somewhere around 15% of the population. And in foreign policy, it must be said, they largely agree with the current government of Vladimir Putin, but in domestic issues, they constantly fight for the Duma for things that leftist parties always fight for, more social benefits, more spending on education and medicine and other things. And if anything, I think probably the communists would probably, if they were leading the country, would probably take a more hard line foreign policy position than the current government. I think that when the US Dr Wilmer Leon (18:02): Speak to that, because a lot of people listening this will say, wait a minute, a harder line than Vladimir Putin. Oh my God. You can't get a harder line than that when the people making those observations have never listened to the man, have never read any of the speeches that he's given. And so they, again, he's evil, he's insane, all of these, he's a dictator, all of these kinds of things. Mark Sleboda (18:36): Yeah. Again, the fact that they don't hear what Vladimir Putin has to say for himself because the western media specifically does not reproduce it for them. And I have to say that Russian media does this. I mean, there are still government funded projects in Somi that translate word for word western articles in print media and televised and put it out there for Russians to listen to, not only from the United States and Europe, but from all over the world. That tradition doesn't exist on the west. It's not that it is banned, although in some cases in Europe, Artie and Sputnik are banned, aren't they? Or everything is done to take them off the airwaves as is done in the United States, and of course not just with RT and Sputnik, but now with press TV from Iran. And there are calls of course to do the same to the Chinese CCTV and now even Al Jazeera in the current climate because as the state media arm of Qatar, they are now seen as being anti-Israeli. (19:55) So a very similar phenomenon is now taking place. And in a previous conflict, there was very much the same argument being made about Al Jazeera over the situation in Iraq. So this rears its head regularly, but why is the authoritarian label not linked to actual authoritarian countries? That is dictatorships, that are politically geopolitically allied with the United States, right? Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, these are states that are starting to diversify their foreign policy. Saudi joining Brix and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a dialogue partner and identifying China as their most important trade partner, but still they are very much linked to the United States, and certainly they have been for decades. Qatar has a giant US army base, similarly in Kuwait, the UAE. Why are the actual monarchic oligarchic dictators of these countries not referred to as authoritarian? Because the label is more about oppositional geopolitical alignment than it is in domestic, Dr Wilmer Leon (21:27): Domestic government leadership, Mark Sleboda (21:29): Any real assessment of their domestic political system. And I have to Dr Wilmer Leon (21:34): Say mbss is chopping heads. I mean Mark Sleboda (21:38): Literally as a chopping more than heads, these bones aren't sorry. Right. As a veteran, well, I'm both a military, a US military veteran and shall we say a veteran of the US political system with all the warts that the US political system has with its systemic suppression of third party movements. And I'm talking, I mean Americans don't even know this for the most part, but their own two parties of power, the Republicans and Democrats regularly sue third parties to keep them off the ballot, right? I mean, they regularly go to court every election cycle to keep them off the ballot and the whole structure of 50 separate elections and the intricacies run by the party in power, either the Republicans or the Democrats in the state does everything possible to prevent the emergence of any other voice than those two and the electoral college and the eternal problems with campaign finance and lobbying. But Americans somehow feel their political systemic superiority so strongly that they don't even think when their political and media elites judge the political system of another country. And as far as most Americans reflexively are concerned, they think they are the only democratic country on earth and the only good people, which is really kind of another iteration of we are the chosen people of God, political meme throughout history. Dr Wilmer Leon (23:35): What is more authoritarian than not having a presidential primary in a system that is based on primaries? What is more of a dictatorship than imposing Joe Biden upon Democrats instead of holding a primary look at what the Democrats did to Bernie Sanders during the Hillary Clinton campaign, hence Julian Assange's email leaks, which demonstrated all the machinations that the Clinton campaign went through to see to it that Bernie Sanders could not become the Democrat nominee. What is more authoritarian than that? Mark Sleboda (24:28): I got to tell you. Dr Wilmer Leon (24:31): Am I right? Mark Sleboda (24:32): Yeah, you're absolutely right. And I don't want to go too much myself into US domestic politics because Dr Wilmer Leon (24:40): I just raised that Mark Sleboda (24:40): As examples myself from that. I don't want to cast stones. I don't necessarily feel that it's my place to, but I'm actually a confession. I'm originally from Scranton, Wilkesboro, Pennsylvania. That's where I was born. Anyway, that's also Joe Biden's hometown, where he was born. And I distinctly remember the video. I mean, I was too young at the time to remember it politically, of course, but I've seen the videos of Joe Biden running for Congress admitting open, right, that the system is corrupt, that corrupt people are elected to office, and that at the time, the only reason he wasn't corrupt is because he wasn't given the money by the oligarchs, by the rich of the country that he had asked for because he was too untested of yet, but that if he was, he would've taken, I mean, I think there is no greater condemnation of the US political system than admissions like that coming from the very seat of the president, or I mean, shall we take the words of prior presidents Jimmy Carter coming right out and saying, America is no longer a democracy. It is an oligarchy. Dr Wilmer Leon (26:11): You mentioned that President Putin went to China for the conference and that this was the first time that he had left the country in quite a while. That to me speaks volumes in how comfortable he must be in the midst of the Russia, Ukraine conflict. His country is at war, and he feels comfortable enough to leave his go to China for a couple of days. That to me says that he's comfortable not only in his position domestically, but he's also comfortable in his country's position internationally. Mark Sleboda (26:59): Yeah, I don't think Putin does. He perfectly understands, I think as a leader what he knows and what he doesn't know. And he has made it quite clear that he does not micromanage his generals in the conflict and in the intervention, the special military operation as they call it in Ukraine, the intervention in the Ukrainian civil conflict that has been going on for a decade. Also, of course, neither Russia nor China, nor it must be said, or the United States or India, are signatories to the Rome statute of the international criminal court. So that is not an issue on the trip. In fact, when the international criminal court tried to bring charges against the US, US leaders and military leaders for crimes, alleged crimes, yeah, committed in Afghanistan, in Iraq, they sanctioned the court, they sanctioned the judges, they sanctioned the prosecutor, they threatened to remove funding from the United Nations. They put arrest warrants out for the judges and the prosecutor until the issue was withdrawn. From my understanding is there were even threats made against the families and lives of Dr Wilmer Leon (28:44): SDA was the judge. Yes. I don't remember her first name, but her last name is sda, and her family was sanctioned and threatened. Mark Sleboda (28:54): Yes. So I don't place any credits to that. And one of the reasons I don't place any credits on these charges is anything more than an instance of geopolitical capture of a un institution, which unfortunately happens far more often than it should. But my full disclosure, my wife is from Crimea, which is considered, at least according to the us, to still be part of Ukraine. And we have family all over East Ukraine, and there are some 5 million Ukrainians living and working in Russia. And that is a side of that conflict. The fact that there has been a civil conflict in that country since the openly US backed overthrow of the government there in 2014 is the internal divide in that country. And again, I know Americans think that through their propaganda bubble of the New York Times, the Washington Post, the ancient three networks and Fox and CNN, that they have a better idea what is going on in Ukraine than most Russians do. No, they don't because there are 5 million Ukrainians living in Russia who tell them all the time on tv, in media and in person because of how much families are interrelated on both sides of the border, they know far, far more about what is happening and has been happening politically in that country, not only for the last year or two, but of course going back decades. And it is the height of hubris, I think, to think otherwise. Dr Wilmer Leon (30:48): Switching gears a bit, recently, over 500 people were killed as a result of the Al Ali Arab Hospital bombing in Gaza. And we are seeing this escalation of the conflict in occupied Palestine. As I've been listening to President Xi, as I've been listening to President Putin, they have been trying to find a way to first of all bring about a ceasefire and second of all, negotiate a settlement. I listened to Joe Biden talk about peace, but all he really seems to say is we back Israel a hundred percent. We'll provide more weapons into the region, but we need to have peace. So Mark Sleboda (31:44): Go ahead. Joe Biden has also said, you don't need to be Jewish to be a Zionist. And I think Dr Wilmer Leon (31:49): And has said very clearly that he is a Zionist Mark Sleboda (31:52): And has said that if Israel did not exist, then the United States would have to create it to pursue its interests in the Middle East because it serves such as a convenient platform for the US projection of power into the Middle East. Dr Wilmer Leon (32:11): Wait a minute, lemme throw one more in there. Tony Blinken said the last time that he was in the region, he said, I am not only here as a Secretary of state, I am here as a Jew. So forget independent thinking. Forget being a neutral arbiter here in a Jewish state. That sounds more like imperialism and Mark Sleboda (32:38): Neocolonialism than anything. Mark Sabota. Yeah. Tony Blinken also by the way, mentioned that his family were originally from Russia and that they left the country, his grandfather because of pilgrims in Russia. And I'm really interested in the timing of pilgrims and his grandfather because certainly in the distant past there were pilgrims against Jews in Russia as there were many countries, but within the lifespan of his grandfather, it would make me really seriously question that characterization and feel he's inflating his family's political disagreements within the country. But that certainly also says in the current tensions with Russia in Ukraine and the proxy war there, that he also has a personal ax to grind as do so many people driving US foreign policy on the region like Victoria Newland, whose own family is originally from Ukraine, so there is that as well. But Putin, the Russia has already put forward at the UN Security Council a resolution calling for immediate ceasefire, and this was shot down by the US and Western countries with the US saying that the resolution could not, they couldn't vote for it because it did not criticize Hamas enough, which is obviously the most important thing when you're trying to craft a ceasefire to stop people from actively killing each other. (34:24) Russia and China have been in lockstep on their calls from this. They to a certain extent have been trying to be neutral in the sense that they are refraining from, I think overt criticism of one side or the other in the interest of attaining that ceasefire. Brazil, by the way, also put forward a UN security council resolution calling at least then for humanitarian ceasefires. And that was actually vetoed by the United States as well as France and the UK in lockstep there. Russia and China have been clear, while they don't support the tactics of Hamas, they feel that this is just the latest consequence of a long-term policy of a pretense of a peace process while backed by to the hilt by the us. Israel goes about its process of what it calls settlers, which is a policy of ethnic cleansing and colonization of Palestine, of the Palestine. (35:41) America, of course, does not recognize the state of Palestine, Russia and China both do, and they think they've made it clear that this is a result of the West, the world, but most importantly the West because they're not do it, not recognizing the Palestinian state, not granting its sovereignty and its own borders, and its right, of course, to defend its own country and borders and people a right that they extend to Israelis, but not to Palestinians. Because you'll hear from multiple US politicians and political elite that they don't believe that the Palestinians are a people to, which I would say you really, really need to go visit Gaza or the West Bank then. And Americans also seem to not understand, and I'm not so sure it would make a difference, maybe it would that a third of the Palestinians are actually Christians. I mean, would that help their perception, help them get past the inherent Islamophobia involved in the issue? (36:54) I don't know, but maybe people should point that out to them that it might help the situation some. But yeah, Russia and China have been quite clear net. Putin has talked to Netanyahu. He has also of course talked to the Palestinian leader, ABAs in the West Bank, and his government has been in contact with Hamas and the other political factions in Gaza. He's also been nonstop on the phone with every major Arab and other world leader that has interests in this conflict, Iran, Hezbollah the like. And he has been trying to do his best towards trying to come to some kind of sane cessation of hostilities. But instead, what we get obviously from the Biden administration, from the eu, the Western countries in general, is they have obviously given a green light to Israel to do a ground operation in Gaza. And Israel has demanded of the, it's a city of some more than 2 million people that has been rightly called the world's largest concentration camp or an open air prison with walls built around it. The real solution is the recognition of the Palestinian state, and that's the only way to relieve the pressure of the people in Gaza. Dr Wilmer Leon (38:59): One of the things that I found incredibly telling and quite a contrast was as Tony Blinken was on his Middle Eastern tour talking to US allies, the foreign minister of Iran was on his tour of the region talking to Iranian allies. In fact, lemme take a step back. When Trump assassinated Qem soleimani, the revered Iran in general, Iran said, we will retaliate. And a lot of people thought that that meant, oh my goodness, well, over the next few days, Iran's going to do something and Iran didn't do anything. Now we've got Tony Blinken, he was on his trip. Joe Biden was there on his trip, and at the same time, the Iranian foreign minister was talking to Iranian allies, and now the Iranian foreign minister has come out and said, Israel, your time is up. Talk about what an even height, another escalation of this conflict could mean in the region and what it could mean in the world. Mark Sleboda (40:21): Yeah, there was an interesting article out yesterday in the Financial Times where an anonymous US official acknowledged that as a result of the US and the rest of the West, so wholeheartedly backing Israel in this to the degree that they have, and this obvious green light for the ground operation, which is a ethnic cleansing of Gaza, of the Palestinian population, ordering 1 million people to get out of the way. Of course it's an impossibility, where would they go is the most obvious question, even if you were able to order a million people at a time to leave their houses. But there is an alignment of global sentiment and forces, political forces going on the financial Times. This US official and the Financial Times laments that as a result of this, that this is incredibly damaging to us influence in what the US usually likes to call the global south, where if you think of the West, you think of the rest and he says they will never listen to us again. I mean, if they were already, then we've lost them, not just the Islamic world, but more broadly. And because of the recent reproach month between Saudi Arabia and Iran, the normalization of diplomatic relations, thank Dr Wilmer Leon (42:18): You, China. Mark Sleboda (42:19): Yeah. It's brokered by China and not all peaches and cream. But the last week saw the first direct phone call between the president of Iran and the Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman, and they both agreed, they expressed a common position on what is happening in Palestine, in Gaza, and is what Israel is doing and how unacceptable it is. And that is already an amazing geopolitical change. Like the world has shifted, and I have to constantly ask myself, is this real right that the world has changed so much? And there's a saying attributed to Lenin that decades pass and nothing changes. And then at other times in weeks, decades pass decades of change ensue. And we're I think, living in one of those periods, one of those latter periods now where things are changing so fast and we Dr Wilmer Leon (43:37): Minute, wait a minute, a minute. Because to that point again, China helped to broker the reproach mon between the Saudis and the Iranians and the United States was in the process of brokering a reproach mon between the Saudis and Israel, and then Hamas attacks Israel and the Saudis say out Israel, that conversation we were about to have, let's put that on hold because that decade of change has taken place in the matter of a day. Mark Sleboda (44:17): Yeah, Saudi Arabia was really looking for under, shall we say, a newly foreign policy mature Moham bin Salman, who has obviously changed himself a lot in recent years from what he was when he first came into power as the heir to the ailing king who has really been running the country. He is looking for a multi-vector foreign policy with a minimal amount of conflict. So he wanted to have the foreign policy options with bricks, with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, but it doesn't mean that he wanted a complete severance of relations with the United States either. And since the Trump administration, the US has been pushing very, very hard on their policy of trying to get Arab countries to recognize in Israel and to normalize relations, diplomatic relations, and others, which would also be tantamount to accepting Israeli occupation of large parts of Palestine and ever increasingly more so, you can see where the Palestinians probably regarded a normalization deal being pushed by the US between Saudi Arabia and Israel as an existential issue for them. (45:55) Because as by many standards, the most important Sunni Islamic country, because of its holding not only of world's energy reserves with oil, but also the two holy mosques, the way Saudi Arabia goes, the rest of the SUNY Arab world would inevitably follow, and that would end any hope of Arab support for them if this deal went through. It. Also, by the way, the sweetener is a security guaranteed deal with Saudi Arabia, which would effectively elevate Saudi Arabia in security technical terms to the status of the relationship between the US and Israel, IE preferential deals on weapons systems, access to more advanced military technology, full access to intelligence training. Everything that the US provides now to Israel would also be provided at the same level, the same prices and so forth, more or less to Saudi Arabia. That was the sweetener of the deal, and I believe that Hamas' motivation in the, they killed civilians. I mean, there's been a lot of, I think, obvious beheading of babies. That's Kuwaiti incubator, baby type disinformation ized to, but that's not to excuse that they use terrorist tactics. They killed civilians. On the Dr Wilmer Leon (47:36): Other hand, wait a minute, and don't forget the Russian killing of babies in the Ukraine, the women's hospital that wasn't a women's hospital. Mark Sleboda (47:48): That is I think, a case for the point, again, for the way the US wages information war mostly against its own people, which is another fascinating at a rabbit hole to go down. But I mean, it's not to say that Israel doesn't routinely kill, I mean, on an essentially daily basis, Palestinian civilians through its process of settling, ethnic cleansing, political Dr Wilmer Leon (48:18): Oppression, it bulldozers, villages, indiscriminately arrests, detains people without charge, and basically Mark Sleboda (48:29): Regularly summarily executes people who resist that, Dr Wilmer Leon (48:34): Right? Mark Sleboda (48:35): So anyway, I believe that Hamas' primary motivation in launching this attack, a wasting military resources that they had spent years building in secret plans that they had. The timing of this tells me that it was to prevent that Saudi Israeli reproach month deal being pushed by the US from going through, because they saw it as existential for them. And if that was the goal, then it has been successful because as a result of Saudi's disproportionate response to, if Israel had said, we are going to do a targeted anti-terrorist operation in Gaza against the Hamas and the Islamic Jihad leadership who were responsible for this, and the people who carried it out, I think there would've been a very different global reaction to this. If instead we didn't have Israeli leaders saying that we're going to destroy Gaza, that we're going to wipe Gaza off the face of turn it to Dr Wilmer Leon (49:54): Dust, Mark Sleboda (49:54): Dust, and that all Palestinians civilians are the enemy. We heard that from Naftali Bennett. That would've been a very different situation. And there is, I think a much more substantial reaction, not only from the usual suspects, we've heard that from Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, the Sufi, sorry, the Shia organization there. That is demonized wrongly in this particular case because it doesn't use terrorist tactics by the US and Israel, and no country in the world really outside the West as a terrorist organization that if Israel goes a ground operation and begins cleansing Gaza, then Hezbollah will open up a second front war on the Israeli north, and then there will be a two. Iran has voiced very similar that prospects that if the Israeli government's atrocities against the Palestinian people, which as a result right now are approaching 4,000 dead, which by the way is almost four times the number of people that the Hamas' operational s of flood attacks killed four times. (51:35) So obviously proportionality is not an issue when it comes to Israel, but that Iran would feel the need to intervene. We've heard even further, surprisingly, from the government of Jordan and the king of Jordan, right? Not called authoritarian by the way, but because he was educated in Oxford, I mean, he's largely regarded across the Arab world as a western puppet, as a western aligned Arab leader with a very large Palestinian refugee population, and a people who feel very close to that situation. Jordan has come out and said that if Israel looks set to drive the Palestinians out of Gaza as they appear to be planning to do, then Jordan would consider it an act of war. Which I mean, that totally surprised me coming from the modern. Now, a lot of it is probably motivated out of self-interest of the Jordanian king. If I don't react the way my people want me to, they will overthrow me in order to be able to do something. (52:53) But regardless of his personal motivations for it, it is certainly something I did not expect. And if Jordan does, so other countries around will become involved, and then there's the prospect of other countries or say Hezbollah as an organization becomes involved, that the US becomes involved. The US has two aircraft carriers. Well, the second one's steaming on its way to the Israeli coast right now, as well as a marine amphibious expedition ships with some at least 2000 Marines. And Joe Biden has kind of, I don't know on some type of idiotic loop reel, been saying about Hezbollah and Iran don't even, as it shovels tens of billions of dollars of emergency military support of crucial military supplies into Israel. And Biden is calling for 10 billion in military emergency, military or financial aid, sorry to be transferred as well. Russia is sitting there. Russia has military bases in Syria, naval base, several other military bases where it helped prevent a US backed jihadi overthrow of the Syrian government there with the us it must be said, still illegally occupying eastern Syria, east of the river, Syria's oil fields and wheat fields, and Turkey still sitting in northern Syria with a hundred thousand Jihadists still on its payroll. (54:46) But Russia has these military bases in Syria, and it sees the US just down the coast a little bit with two aircraft carriers. And Putin has asked the question, what are you going to do with those two aircraft carriers? And they're resulting fleets, Hezbollah seriously. And Putin was obviously expressing that he doesn't believe that. So Putin ordered that Russian jet fighters, they're most modern variants, fifth gen fighters will now be patrolling the Black Sea, the extent of it with al hypersonic long range missiles that have a range of a thousand kilometers. And he very directly pointed out that fired from the Black Sea that those missiles can hit US aircraft carriers where they're sitting in the Eastern Mediterranean and again, hypersonic. Hypersonic, yeah. So very, very hard to shoot down, if not impossible. And he said, this is not a threat. This is a response. (56:03) And basically he is saying, if you attack Syria, and it has to be said that Israel has already bombed Damascus airport very heavily again, and they've been shelling Southern Lebanon, if you attack our military bases in Syria, then will take out your aircraft carriers, right? I mean, you see where this spiral of escalation is leading, right? Israel goes into Gaza, Hezbollah, maybe Iran go in, Israel conducts cleansing operations in Gaza and Jordan and probably half of the rest of the Arab world join in. They join in, and the US joins in the US attacks Syria as part of this, because Iran power projects through Syria, Russia has bases in Syria. Russia bases get attacked. Russia attacks the US boom. We're in World War III in another conflict, right, that is going on simultaneously with ripple effects from the geopolitical tension and the conflict going on in Ukraine. So all of this has me feeling very much as my used to say, as a long tailed cat in a room full of Dr Wilmer Leon (57:22): Rocks, rocking chairs, and I want to reiterate hypersonic missiles. That means that Joe Biden has basically sent two targets for Russia to attack. Mark Sleboda (57:40): Now, Russia is not going to just attack American aircraft carriers Dr Wilmer Leon (57:45): World Mark Sleboda (57:46): War ii realize. No, I realize that it's meant as a deterrent, Dr Wilmer Leon (57:50): Which, so what is a deterrent that does not deter? Mark Sleboda (57:55): That's a good question. Unfortunately, I think Russia has seen several red lines be crossed in the recent years with the US escalation in Ukraine and hasn't responded, which has led numerous White House officials to say outright, we don't believe in Russian red lines. That means that we can keep poking the bear. And no matter what they do, they won't respond because they fear a nuclear conflict more than we do. That is, well, it's more than madness. It is the death of mad. It is the death of mutually assured destruction, which takes us back to a very early Cold War era that we should all be afraid of. Dr Wilmer Leon (58:44): Just really quickly, we have just about two minutes left, and I'm glad you made that point, because whether it's Ukraine, whether it's Syria, whether it is the Black Sea, the United States seems to continue to believe a, when Vladimir Putin or when Xi Jinping says something, they don't mean it. And when they make a commitment, they will not honor it. And what I have come to see over the years is they don't bluff. They don't play, they don't joke. We got a minute. Mark Sleboda (59:22): Yeah. So how to mesh that difference between, I think demonstrable reality and what the US ruling administration as seeing as their politicized reading of their opponents, that does not match up with reality. That's a recipe for disaster, Dr Wilmer Leon (59:46): Really. Wow. Well, I want to thank my guest, mark Sloboda. Mark, thank you for joining me today. Mark Sleboda (59:54): Thanks for having me, Dr. Leon. It's been an honor and a pleasure to be on the show. Dr Wilmer Leon (59:58): Thank you, mark. Big shout out to my producer, melody McKinley. Thank you so much for joining the Connecting the Dots podcast with me, Dr. Wimer Leon. This is where the analysis of politics, culture, and history, converge talk without analysis is just chatter, and we don't chatter on connecting the dots. Stay tuned for new episodes every week. Also, please follow and subscribe. Leave a review, share my show, follow me on social media. You can find all the links below in the show description. I'll see you next time. Until then, treat each day like it's your last, because one day you'll be right. I'm Dr. Wier Leon. Peace and Blessings. I'm out.

Stephen Sackur speaks to Israel's former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. He is a staunch supporter of Israel's military assault in Gaza. But in responding to Hamas's murderous October 7th attack, has Israel deployed wisdom as well as military might?

Become a Daily Wire member to access the full conversation with Naftali Bennett: https://bit.ly/3F4CsoU In the wake of the devastating Hamas attacks on October 7th, we were joined by a figure central to Israeli politics and international diplomacy, Naftali Bennett. Bennett has been a dynamic figure in Israeli politics. His journey is marked by a transition from a high-achieving soldier in the Israel Defense Forces' elite Sayeret Matkal and Maglan units, to a successful tech entrepreneur. As the 13th Prime Minister of Israel, and later the Alternate Prime Minister, Bennett navigated through tumultuous times, marking his tenure with significant decisions on domestic and international fronts. In this episode, we discussed the events of October 7th and the ongoing war in an attempt to understand their implications on the future of Israel and the Middle East. - - -  Today's Sponsors: ZipRecruiter - Try ZipRecruiter for FREE: https://www.ziprecruiter.com/benguest IFCJ - Donate today at https://BenforTheFellowship.org

It's over! Frankly, it was over before it even started! As Zelensky goes into full dictator mode, indefinitely suspending all elections, NBC News is reporting that US and European officials are calling on Zelensky to end the war and negotiate a peace, which of course, is going to require him to give up 20% of Ukraine that has now been officially annexed into Russia.   Highlights:  “Israel's former prime minister Naftali Bennett, claimed the United States and the UK "blocked" an agreement last year to end the war in Ukraine. There was a peace deal that was being brokered by President Erdogan of Turkey, and Zelensky looked like he was going to go along with it. And that, according to Colonel Douglas Macgregor's analysis, that's all Putin ever wanted all along.” “The Russian frontlines in Ukraine are, according to our good friend Col. Douglas MacGregor, the single most fortified areas on the planet. There is and there has never been any way for Ukraine's already radically depleted and spent forces to break through those lines!” “With NATO officials admitting that the Ukraine war is lost, they are, however inadvertently admitting, that they have lost the liberal world order as well.” Timestamps: [00:49] How the US and the UK "blocked" an agreement last year to end the war in Ukraine [02:39] Why the Ukraine-Russia conflict was over before it even started [06:25] What Zelenskyy is doing in response to all of this     Resources:  Help Mike beat the deep state and get the comfiest products on the market for the lowest prices yet with CODE: TURLEY! HERE: https://www.mypillow.com/turley The Left is doing everything they can to stop former President Trump from winning in 2024. Now is the time to show our support. Go to https://offers.conservativecollection.com Do you own a 401k or IRA? Are you worried inflation is slowly eating away at your retirement nest egg? Convert your savings to a Gold IRA by going to https://www.gcjdjhs3e.com/TurleyTalks_digital_dollar=Podcast The Courageous Patriot Community is inviting YOU! Join the movement now and build the parallel economy at https://join.turleytalks.com/insiders-club=podcast Get a HUGE DISCOUNT on your ticket to TEXITCON at my link HERE: https://texitconference.com/turley/ Thank you for taking the time to listen to this episode.  If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and/or leave a review. Sick and tired of Big Tech, censorship, and endless propaganda? Join my Insiders Club with a FREE TRIAL today at: https://insidersclub.turleytalks.com Make sure to FOLLOW me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrTurleyTalks BOLDLY stand up for TRUTH in Turley Merch! Browse our new designs right now at: https://store.turleytalks.com/ Do you want to be a part of the podcast and be our sponsor? Click here to partner with us and defy liberal culture! https://advertising.turleytalks.com/sponsorship If you want to get lots of articles on conservative trends, sign up for the 'New Conservative Age Rising' Email Alerts: https://turleytalks.com/subscribe/. 

In this episode of Inside The Epicenter, Joel discusses his exclusive interview with Israel's former Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett. Joel gives some background on Bennett, who served as Israel's Defense Minister and commander of Israel's most elite special forces unit, and shares some of the questions from the interview. Hear some of the insights Bennett shared with Joel on questions regarding Israel's current situation and the future and learn what the former Prime minister considers to be a victory in this situation. (04:20) Ceasefire will not work in this current situation. (17:40) Israel is not at war with Palestinians, regular citizens of Gaza, or the Arab world. (18:05) The world is turning against Israel. (20:12) The UN General Assembly passed a resolution condemning Israel and not Hamas. (27:45) Where does the U.S. fit in as the war situation is ongoing? (32:45) This could go to World War Three quickly. (41:10) 2 Chronicles 7:14 Is the Gaza War part of End Times prophecy? | ALL ISRAEL NEWS Israel-Gaza War: Is The War in Gaza Part of End Times Bible Prophecy? | The Rosenberg Report Help families impacted by the Israel-Hamas War   Learn more about The Joshua Fund: JoshuaFund.com.    Related Episodes:Is Psalm 83 about the War in Gaza? #134Israel War the Early Stages of Bible Prophecy? #133Joel's Terrifying Experience and the Power of God's Protection #132Special Update: Israel at War #127 Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

My new book Reframe Your Brain, available now on Amazon https://tinyurl.com/3bwr9fm8 Find my "extra" content on Locals: https://ScottAdams.Locals.com Content: Politics, Scott Galloway Forgiveness, Jetson One Flying Car, Maricopa Election Audit, Lewiston Shooter Rumors, Israel Hamas War, Dearborn Michigan Terrorist Concerns, ESG Funds Closing, Elon Musk, Gaza Starlink, Sponge Bomb, Naftali Bennett, Gaza Siege Plan, Scott Adams ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you would like to enjoy this same content plus bonus content from Scott Adams, including micro-lessons on lots of useful topics to build your talent stack, please see scottadams.locals.com for full access to that secret treasure. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/scott-adams00/support

Three weeks into Israel's war against Hamas, Yonit and Jonathan talk to Shimrit Meir, a former adviser to Naftali Bennett, about the next steps in the conflict - and the international players making crucial moves behind the scenes, starting with Hamas's patron, Qatar. They ask her how Benjamin Netanyahu will respond to mounting global pressure to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza - and rising domestic pressure to free the hostages held by Hamas. Plus: with antisemitism surging across the world, is anywhere truly safe for Jewish life? Follow us on Instagram and Facebook: Unholy Podcast.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Piers Morgan Uncensored, Piers is joined by Former Israeli Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett and Mosab Hassan Yousef, the son of the man who created Hamas joins Piers.Watch Piers Morgan Uncensored at 8 pm on TalkTV on Sky 522, Virgin Media 606, Freeview 237 and Freesat 217. Listen on DAB+ and the app. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Isabel Hardman presents highlights from this week's political shows.  Some aid has been allowed into Gaza, but the situation is still dire. We hear from immigration minister Robert Jenrick on what the UK is doing to help. Naftali Bennett says Israel are not responsible for Gaza, Hanan Ashrawi gives us the Palestinian point of view, and Labour clarifies their own position. Plus the Tory slide continues as they lose another two seats in the by-elections. 

Today's show covers the unprecedented attack on Israel by Hamas and Israel's subsequent retaliation on Gaza. First, Fareed talks with CNN reporter Nic Robertson, who gives a live update of the situation on the ground from Sderot, Israel. Next, he speaks to former Israeli Justice Minister and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, then former Palestinian Minister of Information Mustafa Barghouti. Fareed also speaks with Naftali Bennett, the former Israeli Prime Minister, about the brutality taking place against Israeli citizens as well as the intelligence failure that allowed an attack of this magnitude to take place. Plus, Fareed asks NYT columnist and former Jerusalem bureau chief Tom Friedman about the implications of this attack for the Israeli government, the broader Middle East region, and beyond. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Teachers across England have walked out for their seventh nationwide strike action since February. Plus: Johnny Mercer has a terrible time trying to defend the Tories on the NHS; and the BBC apologies for a combative interview with former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett. With Michael Walker and Aaron Bastani.

Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University joins the show to discuss the war in Ukraine. First, Scott asks him about his extensive experience telling the truth about American foreign policy on national television. They then take a look back at the important developments that led to this war over Ukraine. They discuss the talks after the fall of the USSR, the Russian interest in the port at Sevastopol, the true beginning of the current war in 2014 and more.  Discussed on the show: Naftali Bennett interview “NATO Expansion: What Gorbachev Heard” (National Security Archive) Jeffrey David Sachs is an American economist, academic, public policy analyst, and former director of The Earth Institute at Columbia University, where he is currently a Professor.  This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Tom Woods' Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott. Get Scott's interviews before anyone else! Subscribe to the Substack. Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjY Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices