The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

Welcome to The Reel Schmooze with ToI film reviewer Jordan Hoffman and host Amanda Borschel-Dan, where we bring you all the entertainment news and film reviews a Jew can use.
This week's featured Schmooze film is a rollicking Holocaust-themed documentary called "The Stamp Thief."
“Seinfeld” producer Gary Gilbert leads a gang of curious individuals on the trail of a trove of stamps stolen from Jews in the Holocaust and reportedly buried in a small town in Poland.
Gilbert's neighbor, documentary film director Dan Sturman first serves as the voice of reason, but is soon caught up in the saga and begins plotting alongside his neighbor.
Eventually, the team hatches a surreal plan to make a fake movie to get into the basement that they believe the stamp stash is stored in.
Let’s hear who gave this film an “oy,” “meh” or the prized “not bad” this week on The Reel Schmooze.
The Reel Schmooze is produced by Ari Schlacht and can be found wherever you get your podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to "A Mandatory Listen," a new weekly podcast in which The Times of Israel deputy editor Amanda Borschel-Dan asks the big questions facing Israel and the Jewish people.
For this third episode in the new series, we speak with The New York Times columnist Bret Stephens -- also the editor of the SAPIR Journal -- who was in the country for a lightning reporting trip ahead of the Israeli election on October 27.
Stephens, who both supports and criticizes Israel, is increasingly the minority voice at the Gray Lady, where the Jewish state has decidedly lost the battle for public opinion.
But he thinks Israel shouldn't really care what others think about it.
"Let me put it this way: Would you rather have won the battle for public opinion and lost the war -- or vice versa? If that's the choice, I would say that Israel was better off losing the battle for public opinion," Stephens says.
Find out why he believes Israel couldn't have won both wars.
We discuss why the United States, until now, has been judged on its wartime operations through a different lens.
But has the Iran war changed all that?
A Mandatory Listen podcast episodes are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Yitzchak Ledee.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Lazar Focus. Each Friday, join host diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman for a deep dive into what's behind the news that spins the globe.
Israel and Jews around the world marked three years since the October 7 attacks this week.
It was a time to remember the fallen and the survivors. It was also an opportunity to take stock of Israel's conflicts and what Israel should do next.
Elizabeth Tsurkov, a PhD student at Princeton and Middle East scholar, says that Israel's approach to Syria and Lebanon needs to be recalibrated.
Israel thinks it has a "panacea" in its buffer zones in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza, she argues. But it's not clear how that solves Israel's challenges, and at least in Syria, it is making Israel less safe.
She notes that Hezbollah is a badly weakened force and has lost a lot of legitimacy inside Lebanon. But the Joseph Aoun government is not about to risk domestic tension and even civil war by actually trying to disarm Hezbollah. Israel remaining in Lebanon only weakens the Aoun government further, Tsurkov argues.
In Syria, she says, decisions are made by a group of five people, led by President Ahmed Al-Sharaa. They are "deeply, deeply pragmatic," says Tsurkov. They have sacrificed much to reach a position of power, and are not about to throw it away by picking a fight with Israel.
However, she warns, Israel is making a major mistake with its buffer zone in Syria. Instead of making the border safer, the IDF presence is antagonizing the locals and will eventually push some toward guerrilla warfare against Israel.
Lazar Focus is available on all podcast platforms. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and video edited by Yitzchak Ledee.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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.
News editor Ben Sales joins host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.
Following the various memorial ceremonies held this week to mark the third anniversary of October 7, Sales and Steinberg discuss the ongoing polarization in Israeli society, extending to the different days on which the Hamas massacre is commemorated.
Looking ahead to the October 27 election, Sales talks about the democratic expectation of having a mandate once the votes are in, yet knowing it will only be the day after the election when the political maneuvering will start.
As details about the lack of monitoring of foreign pilots continue to build after the flydubai attack, Sales reviews how the political opposition is using the opportunity to attack Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of the election.
Finally, Sales briefly discusses some of the unexpected reactions to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's statements about October 7 during a coexistence event.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
A place ‘soaked with their dances, music and blood’: Nova victims remembered at scene of massacre
‘It’s bad’: In a polarized Israel, the likeliest election result is more uncertainty
Will the flydubai attack save Netanyahu’s struggling campaign?
‘Traitor’: Anti-Zionist protesters rage at Mamdani at Oct. 7 coexistence event
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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.
Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
The country is marking the passage of three years since the onset of the multifront war on October 7, 2023. We speak about the concept of memorializing what one is living through and why this third anniversary is different.
Moving from border to border, Berman speaks about the military's operations on all fronts and whether the status on the ground is a stalemate or a new normal.
We discuss Israel's geopolitical status, comparing what we thought we knew on October 6, 2023, to what we believe is true today.
Next, we turn to the unresolved Iran arena and hear about recent Saudi alliance efforts to push back the Iran-backed Houthis from strategic ports in Yemen.
And finally, we learn about Cpt. Amir Zur, who fell in battle at Kibbutz Kfar Aza three years ago today.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
3 years of war: Data shows IDF hit 100,000 targets as 31,500 projectiles fired at Israel
Saudi-backed Yemeni forces expel Houthis from areas around key strait: officials
Cpt. Amir Zur, 23: ‘You will always be our guardian angel’
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yitzhak Ledee filmed and edited this episode.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.