The Israel Podcast

Netanyahu can't seem to get a coalition together. This is a quick explainer on why, and what might happen now.

Political developments in Israel have been coming in hard and fast, with the last two weeks spelling major developments in PM Netanyahu's investigations as well as a crisis that will likely lead to elections in a few months. Tune in to hear all about these issues and a few others for good measure.

Over the weekend a series of events on Israel's northern border escalated quickly, and was closer than any other time in the last few years to the breakout of a war between Israel, Syria and possibly also Hezbollah and Iran. I explain what happened and why tensions that caused this are unlikely to go away soon.

Today’s episode is about the new leader of the Labor party, Avi Gabbay who’s been stirring a lot of controversy and conversation since he was elected in July. So if you’re interest in the newcomer who is hoping to become Israel’s next prime minister stick around. Besides a basic acquaintance with Gabbay, I hope to leave you with two more takeaways today: An insider view of what he’s trying to do politically, for which I’ve spoken to people on his campaign, and my tempered criticism on unorthodox comments he’s been making on issues such as the settlements, the political place of Arab Israelis, and the Israeli left’s relationship with Judaism.

As PM Netanyahu and President Trump get ready to discuss the future of the Iran Deal, I explain what the deal did, and why scrapping it would be bad for Israel, and the US.

I return to the Netanyahu investigations to discuss recent developments, what their political fallout might look like, and what the law has to say about Netanyahu's continued Premiership.

Making sense of all of the different criminal cases being discussed in relation to Netanyahu and his closest advisors.

Israel’s government is facing its largest crisis in years regarding its relationship with the Jewish community in the US as a result of two government decisions on Church and State matters. In this episode, I explain what's going on and why.

Three years after the last Gaza War, and it seems like events are repeating themselves and Israel and Hamas are preparing for another showdown. How did we get here, what does it have to do with electricity, and hoe come the crisis in the Arab world affects any of this?

this week’s episode comes to you as part of the Anti Defamation League’s project “50 voices, 50 years” marking the 50th anniversary of the Six Day war that’s happening these days. The project is a collection of 50 diverse voices featuring contributions that reflect on the implications of this anniversary, its legacy for Israel and the Middle East, its meaning for Zionism and the Jewish state’s prospects for peace. You can find the entire project at www.50voices50years.com and besides yours truly you can see what people like President Reuven Rivlin, Zipi Livni, Ambassador Michael Oren, Professor Michael Walzer, Amos Oz, Ambassador Dan Shapiro and many others had to say on this occasion.

Why is the Knesset all of a sudden discussing a law that would declare Israel to be the nation state of the Jewish people? What does it have to do with the fact that Israel doesn't have a constitution? How might it affect American Jewry? and what are some of the pros and cons of the law?

Ever wondered why God isn't mentioned in the Israeli Declaration of Independence? Or how was the Israeli declaration inspired by the American one? Or who was the Conservative Rabbi that had a hand in making the first draft of Declaration? All of these questions and more get answered in a special episode of the podcast for Israel's 69th independence day.

People often wonder how come Israel's military as well as the rest of its security establishment, more moderate than its politicians. In this episode of The Israel Podcast I explore this question and some of the possible answers.

With recent legislative and policy moves in Israel targeting the BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions)movement I discuss the movement and its effects on Israeli policy and politics. I am joined by Shimon Mercer-Wood, Spokesperson and Consul for Media Affairs at the Consulate General of Israel in New York for a conversation on their response to BDS and attempts to delegitimize Israel.

In recent weeks we've been hearing talk of Netanyahu possibly calling early elections in Israel. In the first episode of the As-Yet Unnamed Israel Podcast, Avishay Ben Sasson-Gordis makes sense of the crisis and why it might be happening.