David’s Japan Observations

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.

Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Dozens of world leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin, received an invitation over the past week to sit on US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace. The US is aiming to hold the board’s first meeting on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. In the meantime, various countries have reacted to their invitations to Thursday’s signing ceremony in Davos, including France’s President Emmanuel Macron. Horovitz fills us in on international responses, including shades of daylight between Netanyahu and Trump.

In the hours after two babies lost their lives in an unlicensed and massively overcrowded daycare in the ultra-Orthodox Romema neighborhood of Jerusalem on Monday, Haredi leaders blamed the tragedy on the state and the legislative efforts to draft young men of the community. Two infants died and 53 babies and toddlers were injured to varying degrees in the incident. We speak about the avoidable nature of the tragedy, which, because of the prevalence of unsupervised daycare, could occur in any Israeli community at any time.

And finally, regular listeners of The Daily Briefing will have missed their weekly dose of David Horovitz, who is just back from a three-week trip in Japan. We hear observations.

Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Trump to hold Board of Peace signing ceremony in Davos, but participants may be limited

PM vows no Qatari, Turkish troops in Gaza after countries given role on oversight body

Smotrich calls to shutter US-led Gaza coordination center, resettle Strip

Netanyahu invited to Trump’s Gaza Board of Peace alongside European, Mideast leaders

Haredi leaders blame babies’ deaths on state’s push to draft ultra-Orthodox men

2 babies die in incident at unlicensed Jerusalem daycare; 3 caregivers detained

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IMAGE: Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men block a road and clash with police during a protest sparked by the deaths of two babies in an unauthorized daycare in Jerusalem, January 19, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

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