S2 E46. Sundays with Ya’akov: Bibi Goes to D.C., Hostages and Drones

Tension has spiked again in Israel. The sustained war of attrition in the north is intense and wildly destructive. People are dying and a large swath of the country has been not just rendered uninhabitable but basically, destroyed. Everything. Homes, businesses, infrastructure. As expected, the hostage families are advocating constantly and in full force for the negotiation of an agreement for the release of their loved ones from Hamas captivity. We know so little of their last nine and a half months as Hamas hostages. But we do know that they have been abused and tortured physically, psychologically and, many, sexually. And then there’s the trip Bibi is taking to America to address Congress. The dissonance between his actions and the emotional despair of the people is profound. That he can place a speech ahead of the importance of being present and at least making an effort to appear to care about the exhaustion and depletion of the people – is not going down well in Israel. At such a critical moment in the nation’s history, the Prime Minister should be here. Period. Full Stop.

You may wish to have a look at an op-ed piece I wrote for the National Post newspaper (Canada) on Saturday.

Also, Ya’akov’s Friday column in the Jerusalem Post – which we mention in our conversation – is here. A great read, as always.

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