In-depth analysis and commentary on Israeli and Middle Eastern affairs from Haaretz journalists. Episodes are written and edited by Haaretz and narrated using AI-generated voice technology. Read the full articles at haaretz.com.
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Trump's hesitation over expanding the war with Iran highlights a strategic dilemma facing Washington and Jerusalem: missile defenses are being consumed faster than they can be replaced. As interceptor stocks shrink, the price of a prolonged conflict is becoming harder to ignore
Iran Is Redefining the Conflict and the Role of Its Proxies. Its Response to Israel's Strike on Hezbollah in Beirut Was Part of a Broader Effort to Portray the U.S. and Israel as One Big 'Satan' Arrayed Against a Defiant Iran
From Israeli Dramas to HBO Hits, Female Characters Are Still Punished for Traits Men Are Celebrated For
There Seems to Be a Gap Between Benjamin Netanyahu's Declarations on a Possible Peace Agreement With Lebanon and the Circumstances Under Which They Were Made: American and International Pressure to Halt Strikes in Lebanon to Allow Talks Between the United States and Iran to Move Forward
With the IDF Stretched Thin, Israelis Exhausted, Southern Lebanon Destroyed, and the U.S. Admitting That It Was Not Ready for Such a Long Campaign, It Seems That Iran and Its Proxy Hezbollah Are the Only Ones Prepared for a Long and Costly War
It didn't take long for the support of the Israeli public in the Iran war to begin fading. And although Israelis refuse to award Netanyahu a wartime boost in the polls, the Iran war could still dramatically sway the next elections
Several Left-wing Jewish Groups Joined a March Against the Far-right on Saturday, but Mainstream Jewish Bodies Stayed Away, Struggling to Find a Place as the British Political Landscape Becomes Polarized to the Extremes
The West Bank District Police Are Not Part of the Equation, the Shin Bet Has Become Irrelevant and the Boundaries Between Israeli Citizens and the Army Have Completely Blurred in the West Bank. The Project of Cleansing the Occupied Territories of Arabs Is Gaining Momentum - and No One Is Stopping It. 'Even When There Are Reports That Something Is Going to Happen,' Says One Reserve Soldier, 'We Get There After the Fact'
Israel has failed in the past to change the map of the Middle East. Netanyahu is gambling that this time, he can succeed
When Iran retaliated with a strike on Qatari energy assets after Israel targeted the South Pars gas field, an angry Trump was quick to tell out Netanyahu to serve his first attempt at de-escalation
While Trump Acts as if Time Is on His Side, the War in Iran Needs to End Before Israelis and Gulf States Run Out of Patience – and Interceptor Stockpiles
A French Initiative Offering Lebanese Recognition of Israel in Exchange for a Cease-fire and Limited IDF Withdrawal Is Under Review in Jerusalem, With Washington's Support Seen as Key to Advancing Direct Negotiations
In the U.S. President's Vision for the Middle East, His Goal for Iran Mirrors His Approach to Venezuela: Installing a Compliant Regime That Aligns With American Economic Interests. Democracy Is Not Part of the Plan, and Neither Are Israel's Long-term Interests
Analysts Say Damage to Regional Production Facilities – Not a Closure of the Strait of Hormuz – Poses the Greatest Risk to Global Supply, Though Prices May Fall if the Conflict Is Contained
Khamenei Prepared for His Death Since the June War With Israel, While Iran's Capacity to Replace Him and Fight a Prolonged War of Attrition May Push Trump to Make Do With Tangible Military Achievements. But as a Vacuum Forms, Different Groups Are Vying for Power – Which May Put the Regime in Danger
Netanyahu (With On-off Support From Trump) Is Now Explicitly Pushing for Regime Change in Iran, and His Government Has Fixated on the Controversial, Though Galvanizing, Son of the Last Shah as Their post-Islamic Republic Contender. Just Don't Mention His Father's Brutality
Conversations With Foreign Diplomats Suggest Many Recognize Israel's Concrete Steps to Displace Palestinians and Annex Their Land. But With Their Main Priority Being to Keep Netanyahu Moving Forward With Trump's Gaza Plan, They Are Less Inclined to Press Him Over the West Bank
From Demanding Israel's President Grant the Prime Minister a Pardon, to a Potential Escalation With Iran, How Much Harder Can Trump Campaign for Netanyahu to Win Israel's Elections, Due Later This Year? But Despite the Trajectory, a Kerfuffle or Worse Could Change the Script
Just as Observers Do Not Know What Trump Will Decide or When, in Iran Too, Working Assumptions Are Mixed With Speculation, With All Scenarios Considered. While a Limited American Strike Might Provoke a Tit-for-tat Response, It Could Also Spark Chaos Across the Middle East
The U.S. Is Approaching the Precipice of War Without Articulating Even the Vaguest Vision for What Follows and With Few Forces, Domestic or International, Able or Willing to Challenge Trump or His Administration. Netanyahu, With His First Gamble Against Iran Having Paid Off Last June, Is Prepared to Go All In
Even Without the Human Headline-generator of UN Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, the Volume of Published News on Israel and Palestine Dwarfs Other Conflicts. Why Is This – and Will It Ever End?
Even Without the Human Headline-generator of UN Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, the Volume of Published News on Israel and Palestine Dwarfs Other Conflicts. Why Is This – and Will It Ever End?
As a New Round of U.S.-Iran Talks Gets Under Way, Trump's Hardening Rhetoric and His New Demand for Zero Uranium Enrichment, as Well as Intensifying Military Posturing on Both Sides, Indicate Low Chances of Success. That Makes War – Favored by Netanyahu – More Likely
Theoretically, Countries Trading With Tehran Could Be Slapped With the Sanctions Promised by Trump's New Presidential Order. But Will Permanent Membership in the Board of Peace and a Willingness to Invest in Gaza Exempt Them From These Measures?
For Trump, Netanyahu and Their Loyal Plutocrats, Dismantling the Media Is a Shared Effort to Seed Fear and Enforce Self-censorship Among Journalists
