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.

Arab Affairs correspondent Gianluca Pacchiani and Tech Editor Sharon Wrobel join host Jessica Steinberg on today's show.

Pacchiani discusses the latest with the Hamas list of proposed hostages that would include some 34 living captives out of the remaining 100 hostages left in Gaza, as Hamas asks for greater numbers of prisoners in a hostage exchange.

Pacchiani also reviews the status of Hezbollah in Lebanon as the 60-day ceasefire with Israel draws to an end, the opportunity for Hezbollah to rest and prepare for a possible renewal of fighting and what it all means for the balance of power in Lebanon's complicated political mosaic.

Wrobel talks about comments made by the Bank of Israel governor at the start of the new year, with some cautious optimism for the Israeli economy and a look at the costs borne by the country for the ongoing war.

She also discusses the emergency grants offered to evacuated families from Israel's north. To take advantage of the financial packages, families must return home by March 2025.

Wrobel dives into consumer legislation being considered by the government to cancel flight compensation for passengers, as part of an effort to ease the financial costs to airlines and help bring foreign airlines back to Israeli skies.

For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Israeli negotiators head to Qatar amid some reported progress in hostage talks

Central bank sees economy improving but warns of continued geopolitical uncertainty

Israel lays out NIS 3.4 billion plan to get northerners back home in March

Israel to cut travelers’ flight cancellation compensation to woo back foreign airlines

Who’s afraid of the Houthis? Iran’s last proxy standing is proving no pushover for Israel

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Nomi Studios.

IMAGE:  Watching planes take off at Ben Gurion International Airport, August 26, 2024. (Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.