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, as Borschel-Dan continues to read Hoffman's recommendation -- "My Name Is Barbra," Barbra Streisand's verrrrry long biography -- we turn to an audience favorite, the 1972 screwball comedy, "What's Up, Doc?"
Directed by Peter Bogdanovich, the film is a cleverly stylized updated homage to the golden era of Hollywood. It features Streisand playing a wacky vagabond and hunky Ryan O'Neal as a nerdy musicology prof, plus a slew of then-unknown Jewish stars, including Madeline Kahn. But the real star of the show is the 1970s fashions and cars.
Let's hear who gave it 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.
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Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World.
This week, we hear from former prime minister Naftali Bennett in conversation with founding editor David Horovitz and political correspondent Tal Schneider.
Speaking with ToI on June 11 at the campaign headquarters of Together, the new, merged party he now leads with former prime minister Yair Lapid, Bennett said Israel is facing “an existential moment,” and warned that another term under the current government would leave the country without a functioning economy, society or international position.
“Another four years with this government, we won’t have an economy, we won’t have a society,” he charged. “The Haredi issue will just crash us all. We won’t have an international standing anywhere. We have to act now.”
And so, this week, we ask Naftali Bennett, what matters now.
For further reading:
Bennett to ToI: ‘We’re at an existential moment. Another four years with this government, we won’t have a society’
What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was edited by Yitzchak Ledee.
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett (ToI) / Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men scuffle with police during a protest against military recruitment and call for the release of detained draft resisters outside a military prison near Kfar Yona, Israel, June 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
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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.
US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a deal Wednesday meant to end the Middle East war, causing it to go into effect two days earlier than originally envisioned, with Tehran agreeing to dilute its enriched uranium in return for large-scale economic relief. Magid takes us through the points of primary concern for Israel, including its right of self-defense against Hezbollah attacks.
In a lengthy press conference at the G7 summit in France yesterday, Trump claimed Iran should be allowed to keep some of its ballistic missiles. He also repeatedly castigated Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, including stating he is less justified in criticizing the memorandum of understanding that Trump signed with Iran because the Israeli premier purportedly pulled out of a joint operation to kill top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in 2020. We hear other sharp criticisms of Netanyahu, including accusations of disproportionate force.
In the second half of the program, Magid brings his exclusive scoop that the US is in talks with the Palestinian Authority about boosting what has been a strained bilateral relationship, as Washington seeks Ramallah’s cooperation to advance its landmark policy initiatives in the region. And who is chaperoning the reforms DC is seeking? Enter Saudi Arabia.
And finally, Magid explains how former UK prime minister Tony Blair is taking on a larger role in the Board of Peace, where he will be tasked with managing the various mechanisms that are meant to oversee the postwar management of Gaza.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
US, Iran sign war-ending deal, which enters into effect 2 days earlier than planned
‘Shall not develop nuclear weapons’: The 14-point memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran
As deal takes force, Trump says ‘it’s okay’ for Iran to have some ballistic missiles
Trump suggests Israel in no place to criticize Iran deal since it backed out of 2020 strike on Soleimani
US weighs boosting ties with PA as it seeks to advance Gaza plan and Abraham Accords
Tony Blair takes on larger role as US-led Board of Peace struggles to advance Gaza plan
Gaza mediators glum on chances for breakthrough before Israeli elections in the fall
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.
Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
During the course of the G7 summit of global leaders in France on Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said that Syria should replace Israel in the fight against Lebanon’s Hezbollah. He argued that the Jewish state’s war on the Iran-backed terror group has been too prolonged and indiscriminate, adding that Israel would have been “blown off the face of the earth” if not for him. Horovitz unpacks the multilayered concerns plaguing Israel in the wake of Trump's statements.
The US-Iran memorandum of understanding, expected to be signed at an in-person gathering on Friday, reportedly provides for a full cessation of hostilities by Iran, the United States and their allies — including in Lebanon, where Israel has been battling Tehran’s proxy Hezbollah. This comes as Israel and Lebanon are nearing a US-mediated lasting ceasefire agreement, according to a Tuesday report. If the IDF were to withdraw from southern Lebanon, are Lebanese forces really strong enough to face Hezbollah?
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich claimed on Tuesday to have “abolished” components of the 1997 Hebron agreement that gave the Palestinian municipal council of Hebron authority over planning, zoning and construction in the H2 zone of the West Bank city, where the Jewish settlement of Hebron is located along with the Tomb of the Patriarchs. Can this effort be isolated from the looming elections? Horovitz weighs in on this and the current ultra-Orthodox move in the Knesset to pass Basic Law: Torah Study.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Trump: Israel’s war on Hezbollah is too long, too deadly; Syria should fight the group instead
US-Iran deal said set to halt regional hostilities, including in Lebanon, lift blockade
Israel-Lebanon talks said close to yielding lasting ceasefire deal
Smotrich says he’s ‘abolished Hebron agreement,’ given Israel more power in flashpoint city
Netanyahu denounces ‘police state’ trial as his cross-examination ends after over a year
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing 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 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.
Iran and the US will start a new round of negotiations on Friday in Switzerland to reach a final agreement, after the official start of an interim agreement that day, Iran’s foreign minister says. This announcement comes after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a rare press conference last night, outlining his narrative of Israel's stance in Lebanon following the memorandum of understanding.
Israel was sidelined entirely throughout the negotiating process, a fact that was highlighted when Netanyahu informed a reporter that Israel does not yet know the details of the deal, which is to be formally signed in Switzerland on Friday after a digital signing on Sunday night. Berman unpicks this knotty issue.
US Vice President JD Vance and a pair of top officials in Trump’s administration shed some light on how the deal will be implemented and what it contains. Berman discusses how their version differs from the narrative being pushed out by Iran.
And finally, after Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar opened Somaliland’s embassy in Jerusalem on Monday -- the eighth top-level diplomatic mission in the capital -- Berman assesses Israel's standing on the global diplomatic stage.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Netanyahu avoids criticizing US-Iran deal, claims war’s main goals have been achieved
Ministers say Israel won’t be bound by Iran deal, as opposition castigates Netanyahu’s ‘absolute failure’
US says Trump, Vance and Iran’s Ghalibaf ‘digitally’ signed Iran deal on Sunday
Visiting Somaliland president opens embassy in Jerusalem
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.