State of Tel Aviv, Israel Podcast

Just back from a quick trip to Canada and the U.S., Ya’akov tells us he was struck by the insecurity and anxiety he encountered among Jewish groups he met with in Toronto, Detroit, New York, Chicago and Florida. (He sure covers a lot of ground in less than a week.) Their concerns are not much different from those that preoccupy Israelis: Hostages. Civilian casualties and humanitarian suffering in the Gaza Strip. Israel’s disunity, which is becoming more apparent as the immediate shock factor of October 7th recedes. And the escalating tension in Israel over the continuing exemption for ultra-orthodox men from serving in the army. There has been much talk in Israel in recent weeks and it is becoming louder. As Israeli war casualties mount there are growing cries of “Enough”! We get into all that and more. Have a listen.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

Ya’akov Katz is in Detroit today so we recorded a little later than usual, meaning we drop later. But. You’re probably distracted by the Super Bowl and all that goes with it. Among the ads running on TV is one sponsored by the government of Israel and it’s brilliant. Reminding all those dads watching the game of the Israeli fathers held hostage for almost 130 days. As always, we discuss the hostages, the snowballing UNRWA fiasco, heightened by Israel’s disclosure Saturday night of its recent discovery of a massive Hamas server farm located right underneath the UNRWA HQ in Rafah. And even still, UNRWA pretends that it had no idea. Whether this outrage finally causes the west to agree to bury UNRWA and start anew will likely play out in the coming weeks. As will the final Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip, on Rafah, where Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar is holed up with many of the hostages. Will he take the coward’s way out and flee to Yemen, as he is rumored to be interested in doing, or will he go down fighting? To the end?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

In our weekly chat Ya’akov and I get into the hostage dilemma that continues to tear apart the nation. It corrodes everything and Hamas understands this fully and leverages Israel’s psychic suffering brilliantly. But it feels like we are getting to a point where no victory is more important than bringing them home. Now. We then look at the spectacle of UNRWA imploding. Multiple exposures of UNRWA employees taking active roles in the murder and violence of October 7th and celebrating it since, have been made public and sparked outrage among many large donor countries. The weird part is – there is nothing new here. We’ve seen variations on this level of Hamas-UNRWA comingling for years, and no one really seemed terribly fussed by any of it. It’s hard to know what caused this mass response this time. But the end of UNRWA could be a very positive development, if tied to deradicalization of the population and reconstruction of the Strip.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

Because she represents the future of Israel. Now sitting with the New Hope party (merged with Benny Gantz’s Blue and White party several years ago). Haskel entered the Knesset in 2015, young, bright and firmly in the back bench. In the years since she has distinguished herself for being principled, focused and whip smart. A mother of three very young daughters, she is consistently a top performer and strong voice for democracy, women and ethical government. We get into the tough stuff in this conversation: that horrible Black Shabbat of October 7th; the persistent nightmare ever since; the abandonment of Israeli women by the global “sisterhood” that is silent, or worse, in the face of overwhelming evidence of Hamas gang rape of women and men; our personal family legacies from the Holocaust and how we try to integrate and understand it all. Sharren is warm, open, thoughtful and pulls no punches. A fascinating discussion with a woman who will be shaping Israeli political life for many years to come.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

Ya’akov Katz is back from his brief trip to London where he lunched with the Prime Minister and then some. But, now it's back to reality and the constant crisis in Israel. Last Friday Israel was on tenterhooks as the International Court of Justice read its preliminary ruling at 2 pm local time. This pertains to the case brought by South Africa accusing Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. As we say in Hebrew, the Court “walked between the teacups”; delicately avoiding any hard findings but also not foreclosing that possibility down the road. We then touch on the scandal plaguing UNRWA. Which one, you ask? Well, listen in to find out. And we finish up discussing the ongoing captivity of the hostages, whose plight may now be tied to a three point peace plan being floated by the U.S. On the latter point, I sure hope not. Even the ICJ called for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. And so begins another week in Israel.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

Four years ago Visegrad24 started out as a Twitter account intending to provide a version of current events in Poland and the region that offered a different perspective; one that did not parrot what its founders considered to be an overly left-wing point of view that they felt was pervasive in news coverage. The initial focus of these two young brothers – repatriated Polish lads from an émigré family that had settled in London post WWII – was central and eastern Europe. With the Russian invasion of Ukraine they attracted significant online attention, which has continued since. But the real surge in their online popularity came with October 7th and the Israel Hamas war. Their immediate understanding of this seminal event as being a turning point in history led them to focus on this moment unceasingly. And they have not let up. During the last two weeks they have been in Israel and the West Bank, speaking with ordinary people in an effort to develop a real-time understanding as to how the people who live here are managing and understanding these momentous events. In the coming weeks and months Visegrad24 will be releasing content in various formats. For now, I invite you to listen to this fascinating interview I did last week with Stefan Tompson (and, no, there is no “h” in his surname), one of the founders of Visegrad24. We get into it all, including comments over the years that he’s really a “front” for right wing Polish government interests which, as he confirms, is bollocks.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

Ya’akov and I discuss a few of the hot issues that dominated the last week in Israel. Today marks 100 days since the 139 hostages still in Hamas captivity were taken. Their survival is so imperiled, having been held in horrific conditions, denied medical care, starved and subjected to all manner of abuse and torture. The crisis is absolutely gutting Israel and leadership seems resistant to understand how dire this is. For the hostages themselves and the health of the nation. We then move on to the hearing that began on Thursday at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, brought by South Africa, which levels the charge that Israel is committing genocide. And from there we wrap up by taking a look at PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to sideline repeated, dire warnings from the Shin Bet domestic security force regarding the imminent danger of increased violence in the West Bank. Surreal times. Even for Israel.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

For 96 days now, Eitan Gonen has been in constant agony as he waits, and waits, for his beautiful, effervescent, 23-year-old daughter, Romi, to be freed from Hamas captivity. Last Saturday, we dropped a podcast episode focusing on our conversation with Romi’s mother, Meirav Leshem Gonen. Previously married to Eitan, the couple has five children together, ranging in age from 16 to 30. Romi, her father likes to say, is the sandwich. Right in the middle. Like Meirav, Eitan was on the phone with Romi for much of the time – four and a half interminable hours – when she and her best friend, Gaia, tried desperately to escape the Hamas savages on October 7th. At one point, Eitan told Romi to try to get to Be’eri, unaware that the kibbutz was overrun with terrorists who totally destroyed the community. Ultimately, Romi was captured and as far as the family knows is alive with a seriously wounded hand and kept in the tunnels. Eitan shares his fears, hopes and refusal to despair. This baring of their darkest moments in life by Romi’s father and mother is extraordinary and the two podcasts really should be listened to as companion narratives of a family navigating the unimaginable. A testament to life, love and hope. Eitan tells us about the restaurant in Tel Aviv where Romi works as a waitress. It’s called “Chez Vivie” and a table has been set on the patio for Romi, with her photo, waiting for her return. We all wait for Romi’s return, along with all 139 hostages still in Hamas hell.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

We cover a lot of ground in our chat today with Ya’akov Katz. Starting in Gaza, we discuss the change in military strategy that the IDF is using there. Meanwhile, the northern front heats up and concern is rising that war could erupt there any moment. And we finally get into the extreme societal fissures that have been left to fester in the name of “unity.” But the lid is blowing off the pot. And the politicking is getting very ugly. Very quickly. A tour de force with Yaakov’s always brilliant insights. 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

We speak at length today with Meirav Leshem Gonen, whose 23-year-old daughter, Romi, has been held hostage by Hamas for three months. Romi’s four siblings and parents know little of her condition or treatment and have had no sign of life for almost 40 days. They do know that when captured she was badly injured. Reports from hostages released at Day 57 confirmed that her condition had deteriorated and that she was not receiving medical care. Until then, Romi had been kept deep underground, in the dark, dank, airless tunnel system and her family is deeply worried that time is running out, for her and all the hostages. Raw and searingly honest, Meirav has spent every moment since the nightmare began advocating for the release of all captives. For the last half hour of Romi’s freedom, Meirav was on the phone with her, hearing the carnage and violence, live. Romi’s near escape ended just before 11 am on October 7th. It’s a journey of impossible faith, distress and hope. No one is prepared for such an incomprehensible ordeal. Meirav’s strength of character and is remarkable. And heartbreaking. We will soon bring you a podcast interview with Romi’s father, Eitan Gonen.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