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.
Today is Day 115 of the war. Diplomatic reporter Lazar Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
We begin with what we know about ongoing talks to reach another hostage release deal after the Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that a four-way meeting between the US, Israel, Qatar and Egypt took place “in Europe” to discuss a potential deal to free all Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a two-month ceasefire.
According to a report published late Sunday, employees of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees kidnapped Israelis, transported ammunition and the body of a dead soldier, and took part in a murderous assault on a kibbutz on October 7. We hear more specifics of these cases.
According to a NYT report on Sunday, Hamas steals a “significant number” of its weapons from Israel, and much of its material for explosives from IDF duds. Berman explains how these duds are reused.
US President Joe Biden said yesterday that the United States will respond to a weekend attack that killed three US service members in northeastern Jordan near the Syrian border. Could this be the tipping point for an all-out regional war?
Washington is reportedly weighing using weapons supplies as leverage to pressure Israel to reduce the intensity of its operations in the Gaza Strip, according to a Sunday report by US television network NBC. The IDF announced this morning that operations will be ramping up throughout the Strip. Berman discusses the push-pull on the Biden administration in this election year.
For the latest updates, please look at The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.
Discussed articles include:
Live blog January 29, 2024
Israel says Paris talks on hostage deal were ‘constructive,’ will continue this week
UNRWA workers accused of kidnapping woman, taking part in kibbutz massacre – report
Much of Hamas’s explosives comes from IDF fire that failed to detonate — report
US says 3 troops killed, 25 hurt in drone attack in Jordan; Biden: ‘We shall respond’
White House reportedly looking into holding up weapons supplies to pressure Israel
US support is firm, but Biden and Netanyahu play dangerous game with two-state fight
THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel
THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown
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Illustrative image: Israeli artillery unit firing shells towards Lebanon near the Israeli border with Lebanon, January 15, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.