E8. 'Fauda' Co-creator Avi Issacharoff Speaks Out: On PM Benjamin Netanyahu, Protests in Israel, Hamas, Hizballah and More

Avi Issacharoff has a lot to say these days. The co-creator of the Netflix hit series Fauda has been focused in recent years on his hugely successful career in television drama. On May 19, he debuts a new docu-drama on Showtime – a four part series about the notorious terrorist Imad Mughniyeh, who was killed in 2008 in a joint CIA-Mossad operation in Damascus. And then there’s the here and now.  Like so many Israelis, in recent months Avi has become deeply involved in the protest movement against the proposed legal reforms of the country’s hard – some say extreme – right wing government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And Avi has harsh words for the PM himself. He speaks openly about what he considers to be the racism of certain political leaders, looking down upon Mizrachi Jews - like him - with contempt. He minces no words, including Netanyahu and his Ashkenaz colleagues in a searing indictment. They posture as being the saviours of the Mizrachim, he charges, yet who are they to represent me? Man oh man, is he ever angry about that. And so much more. Mild-mannered by nature, Avi’s got that middle eastern “charif” quality – a hot streak - too and is not at all shy about expressing his strong views. This is a fascinating, no-holds-barred conversation, where the depth of the artist is on full display - as is his passion for life and Israel.

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