Israel Story

As has been said many times in the past, identity is like an onion: There are layers of family and country, religion and political persuasions, favorite sports teams, musical preferences and on and on. But for many, such as 23-year-old Adam Ben Shabath, it is their hometown which stands at the center of it all. And now, as a result of the war, Adam's village of Neve Shalom/Wahat as-Salam - with its unique population and delicate equilibrium - is being torn at the seams. Residents are questioning long-held truths - some have shifted their views, while others continue to hold firm or have even doubled down. Adam shares his own private take on the matter.The end song is Ahava Kazu ("Love Like This") by Amir Abu and Tzlil Shakuri.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As of today, more than 400 Israeli soldiers have been killed in the war. Each one of those deaths, of course, not only marks the end of a life, but also shatters a family, a community, a tribe. And that ripple effect, that communal grieving, was palpable following the death of reservist Yossi Hershkovitz, the 44-year-old Principal of the Religious Zionist Pelech School for Boys in Jerusalem, who was killed on Friday, November 10th. Like Yossi, his dear friend and colleague Shalom Weil, has devoted his life to education. Over the years Shalom has taught, founded schools and served as a principal. And ever since the war broke out he’s been working tirelessly to build educational frameworks for those impacted by it most - the families of victims, survivors, evacuees. We however asked him to come into the studio not to talk about his own admirable work, but rather about his soulmate, Yossi, who had replaced him as the Principal of the Pelech School for Boys.The end song is Blues Cnaani ("Canaanite Blues") by Ehud Banai.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Many of you have probably heard, or read about, Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin, the parents of 23-year-old Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was kidnapped from the Nova Party. In many ways they’ve emerged as the face of the hostage families - they’ve met with Biden and the Pope, they were on the cover of Time Magazine, Rachel has spoken at the UN and at the ‘March for Israel’ Rally in Washington D.C. And in all those places, as well as in countless other interviews, speeches and meetings, they’ve told the heartbreaking tale of the two text messages Hersh sent on the morning of October 7th, one saying “I love you” and the other “I’m sorry.” He wrote those messages from within a shelter, where he was hiding with 28 other partygoers. Eighteen of them were killed, and Hersh - whose left arm was blown off - was badly wounded. Shortly thereafter, Hersh and three others from the shelter were loaded onto Hamas pickup trucks and taken into Gaza. It has now been 55 days.The end song is Tefilat Haderech ("The Traveler's Prayer") by Shai Tsabari.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last week, our host Mishy Harman was interviewed by Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove for the Park Avenue Synagogue Podcast. And as this is, in a way, Mishy's wartime diary, we decided to share it with our listeners too. Today is Giving Tuesday, and we really need your support. As you probably know, almost as soon as the war began, we pivoted our entire operation and launched our Wartime Diaries series, in which we bring you voices that try to capture slivers of life right now. These episodes reach the largest number of listeners we’ve ever known, and we are extremely touched by the outpouring of love coming our way. If you feel that - in some small way - we have helped you get through these terrible weeks, if our episodes have given you some comfort, or hope, or understanding, please go to our website - www.israelstory.org - and help us continue doing what we do. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, and may we all know quiet and calm days to come. The end song is Abba Sipur ("Story Father") by Miki Gavrielov.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This war is a humbling experience for us all. People — no matter who they are or what they normally do — are simply trying to pitch in wherever they can. We’ve thus seen ex-generals jump into their private cars and go save civilians from the carnage of October 7th, former ministers and senior politicians volunteer to pick cherry tomatoes on farms near Gaza, and rock stars jam for a single soldier on an army base.Likewise, Doron Krakow — the President and CEO of the JCC Association of North America, who in normal times runs an organization that employs tens of thousands of professionals — immediately got on a plane and came to Israel in order to do one thing: Be a grandpa.The end song is "America" by Berry Sakharof and Rami Fortis.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Almost immediately after the start of the attack of October 7th, as rockets were being launched at Jerusalem, and sirens sent the city’s one million residents into shelters, the heads of the Israel Museum initiated an emergency protocol for the first time since the Gulf War in 1991.The idea was to protect the nation’s most priceless cultural and historical treasures, the building blocks of our collective identity. The very first step of that protocol was to secure the Museum’s most prized possession, its indisputable star, its “Mona Lisa” – the Dead Sea Scrolls.Of all the estimated 500,000 treasured items in the Museum’s collections, from Monets to Picassos, from the Chalcolithic hoard of Nahal Mishmar to the House of David inscription from Tel Dan, it was the 2200-year-old scrolls that were packed up and rushed into the museum’s most protected safe. And it was Hagit Maoz, the Curator of the Shrine of the Book where the scrolls are normally housed, who was tasked with this delicate operation.The end song is Imperiot Noflot Le'at ("Empires Fall Slowly") by Dan Toren and Hemi Rudner.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the summer of 2005, the government of Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza. The roughly 8,000 residents of the 21 Jewish settlements within the Gaza Strip were forced to leave their homes and their communities, which – for decades – they had actually been encouraged and incentivized to inhabit.The move brought the country to the brink of a civil war. This was especially palpable in the tense relations between the residents of Gush Katif (as the main block of Gaza settlements was known) and their neighbors from the other side of the fence — the largely left-leaning residents of the kibbutzim of Otef Azza, all the same kibbutzim that — eighteen years later — suffered most in the Hamas attack of October 7th.Now, many of the former residents of the Gaza settlements who never stopped dreaming of returning to the sand dunes of the Strip feel at least partially vindicated. Had their communities not been dismantled back in 2005, they claim, the army would have still been in Gaza, and none of this calamity would have occurred. One such voice is that of 63-year-old Datya Itzhaki, who used to live in the Gush Katif settlement of Kfar Yam.The end song is Imma Im Hayiti ("Mom, If I Could") by Hanan Ben Ari.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

53-year-old Hai Ashkenazi from Tel Aviv is an archeologist, but never imagined he would find himself excavating a 21st-century Kibbutz. Yet in the insane reality that has become our life since October 7th, archeologists too are part of the war effort, and the term “destruction layer” has accrued a contemporary and chilling meaning.The end song is She'eriot shel Hachaim ("Residue of Life") by The Idan Raichel Project.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Normally Chavat Ronit – or Ronit Farm – is a high-end event venue north of Herzliya. Ra’anan Arizon’s seventy dunams are full of quaffed lawns, picturesque trees, instagramable gazebos, a gorgeous pond and a lot of peaceful nature. All of that makes the farm an idyllic setting for upscale weddings and parties. Now, however, it has been converted into an “emotional” emergency room. With all its different stations and activities, it feels like a summer camp for adults, except for the fact that all the campers are survivors of the Nova party at Re’im. The end song is Lirot et Ha'or ("To See The Light") by Efrat Gosh.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chaya Gilboa is a Talmud teacher, an activist, a flaming redhead, and was – for the last three years – the CEO of the Jerusalem Philanthropic Initiatives, which works with local civil society. On October 11th, Chaya turned 40, but instead of any kind of celebration, she was leading a team at the Jerusalem Chamal – the epicenter of the city’s volunteer efforts.The end song is Anashim Shkufim ("Transparent People") by May Zamosh.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Over the last five weeks we’ve spoken to many families of hostages. That’s how we met Faiz Abu Sabehan, whose 53-year-old brother-in-law, Farhan al-Qadi – a father of eleven – has been kidnapped into Gaza. Faiz is a Bedouin politician, and has twice served as mayor of Rahat, the largest Arab city in Israel. He’s also an educator – a teacher, a principal and an administrator. Much like his political patron, Mansour Abbas, Faiz holds a complex position – he’s in favor of fully integrating into Israeli society on the one hand, but remains steadfast and uncompromising when it comes to central tenets of Islam on the other.Being the mayor of Rahat is one of the most difficult jobs in the country – the city is poor, under-policed and sees more than its share of violence. In fact, Faiz himself has survived multiple assassination attempts. Some of what he says is challenging and might make certain listeners feel uncomfortable. But nevertheless we felt that it’s important to bring his voice too, as an Israeli, as a Bedouin leader and as a family member of a hostage.The end song is Shir Ahava Bedoui (“Bedouin Love Song”) by Tzlil Mechuvan.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mishka Ben-David might seem – at first – like a harmless and cuddly grandpa, but the truth is that he’s lived many secret lives. He has somehow managed to seamlessly transition from community organizing to academia to horse breeding to an illustrious career as a senior Mossad agent. Today, however, he spends most of his time writing. Over the years he has authored 21 books – a combination of spy novels, love stories, philosophy treaties, and literary criticism. Many of them are local best-sellers and have been translated into surprising languages such as Turkish and Korean. In 2017 he published “The Shark,” a dystopian tale which begins with a Hamas attack on Kibbutz Kfar Azza that is eerily similar to — and in fact almost exactly predicts — the horrors of October 7th.The end song is Halo Noda (“Isn’t It Known?”) by Danny Sanderson.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

77-year-old Agi Mishol is one of Israel’s most prominent, beloved and widely-read poets. Over the years she’s won practically every literary prize here, and Amos Oz once said that her poems “know how to tell a tale, to sing a song and also dance.” Her poetry is colorful and playful, full of nature and a love of the land. And that makes sense since – in addition to writing – Agi and her husband Giora are also farmers, who grow peaches, pomegranates and persimmons.The end song is “Kalipso” by Dotan Malach.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we’ll hear from Sahar Vardi, a Jewish-Israeli peace activist who lost a dear friend, Khalil Abu Yahia, in Gaza.The end song is Tamaly Maak (“I Am With You”) by Tzachi Halevy.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Among the thousands of people who had the terrible misfortune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time on October 7th, there were also – as we now all know – many foreigners. People who had little, or no, connection to the long history of violence between Jews and Arabs, Israel and Hamas. Among them were Filipino caregivers, Thai agricultural workers and also a group of Nepali students who had been accepted to an 11-month-long internship at the Sedot Negev Agricultural Training Center.The end song is Sathi by Sushant KC.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The nature of the attacks on October 7th, together with certain subsequent reactions around the world, have blurred the lines between Jews in Israel and Jews in the diaspora. Last week, the UJA Federation of New York brought over a delegation of 28 Jewish leaders – mainly rabbis and educators – on a jam-packed 48-hour-long whirlwind of a trip to Israel. We sat down with two, very different, members of the delegation – Reform Rabbi Angela Buchdahl and Orthodox Rabbi Shlomo Nisanov – to hear what it feels like to visit Israel in the middle of a war.The end song is Am Echad Shir Echad (“One People One Song”) by Selected Israeli Artists.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There’s a lot of Holocaust rhetoric in the air. ‘Never Again’ slogans have resurfaced, Netanyahu has said – on several occasions – that Hamas militants are worse than the Nazis, and just this week the Israeli delegation to the UN wore yellow stars at the Security Council. All of this is, of course, controversial, and many people – including many Holocaust survivors – have different feelings on the matter.Gidon Lev from Ramat Gan probably isn’t exactly what you imagine when you think of a Holocaust survivor. For many years he lived in Kibbutz Zikim on the Gaza border, where he milked some 200 cows a day. Nowadays, he’s a veritable TikTok celebrity, with nearly half a million followers, and – quite accurately – refers to himself as a “rascal.” When the war broke out he experienced a lot of trauma, and took shelter in Ein Gedi, on the shores of the Dead Sea.The end song is Pachot Aval Ko’ev (“Less, But It Hurts”) by Yehuda Poliker.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

45-year-old Ido Rosenthal from Moshav Ben Shemen served in an elite commando unit and was killed on the first day of the war. His wife, Noga, a sociology doctoral student at Ben Gurion University, has since been sharing her feelings on Facebook. She gave us permission to translate and record one of her posts. The end song is Rikma Enoshit (“Human Tissue”) performed by Roni Dalumi.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The war caught everyone by surprise, of course, and since it broke out at the tail end of the chagim, many Israelis were abroad. What do you do in that case? Do you rush home? Do you continue your trip? Do you wait it out somewhere safe and far away? As it happens, on October 7th, our producer Mitch Ginsburg was hiking across the Scottish Highlands with his buddy – author, journalist and friend of the show, Matti Friedman. This is their story. The end song is “San Francisco” by Arik Einstein.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Many people sprung into action since October 7th. And yet, at the very same time, many Israelis feel… lost. Not everyone knows what to do, nor does everyone feel useful, capable or relevant. And that feeling resonates with Alon Shalev from Zur Hadassah. The end song is Avot U’Banim (“Fathers and Sons”) by Eviatar Banai.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

During normal times Tomer Oshri – a 48-year-old history teacher from Jerusalem – works at JDC-Israel and runs an educational non-profit. Nowadays, however, he’s the man in charge of building and operating 17 different makeshift schools for survivors and displaced residents of the communities around the Gaza Border.The end song is Kol Od (“As Long As”) by Yoni Rechter.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Even today, nearly three weeks after the devastating attacks of October 7th, there are still hundreds of people who are considered “missing,” which means that they haven’t been confirmed dead, but – at the same time – there’s no definitive proof that they’ve been kidnapped into Gaza. One of those missing is Tamar Gutman, who was at the Nova Party in Re’im. Her sister Adva Gutman Tirosh talks about the difficulties of coping with uncertainty.This piece was produced by Yochai Maital.The end song is Yoter Mi’zeh Anachnu Lo Tzrichim (“We Don’t Need More Than This”) by Shlomo Artzi.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Israel has, of course, branded itself as the Start-Up Nation. And in many ways, Raz Newman is the classic Israeli tech entrepreneur. He’s 32, lives in Rishon Le’Zion, has two daughters, and spends most of his time researching AI and meeting with potential angel investors. On October 7th, as people began thinking how to best contribute, Raz immediately opened up his laptop and began building the AI Ezra Bot.This piece was produced by Yochai Maital.The end song is Kol Hadvarim Hayafim Be’emet (“All The Really Beautiful Things”) by Daniela Spector.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For months Sivan Avnery – a physical therapist from Kfar Shmaryahu – was active in the demonstrations against the judicial reforms. Like hundreds of thousands of other Israelis, he felt he was fighting for his home, for the very nature of his country. But he had no idea how true that was about to become.On Saturday morning, October 7, Sivan received a message which is every parent’s worst nightmare: His 18-year-old son Tal was – unbeknownst to him – at the Nova party in Re’im, and was now fleeing for his life. Without a second of hesitation, Sivan knew exactly what he needed to do.This piece was produced by Adina Karpuj.The end song is Yeled Shel Abba (“A Father’s Son”) by Mooki.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There’s a long tradition of musicians and entertainers performing on the frontlines during times of war. And, indeed, almost immediately, Israel’s leading artists began crisscrossing the country in a joint effort to lift morale.For David Broza, this kind of work isn’t, unfortunately, new. He’s been performing for troops since the mid-seventies, and for the last two weeks hasn’t stopped for a minute. Broza has given more than fifty concerts since the start of the war — in hotel lobbies, army bases, bomb shelters, kibbutz lawns and even at the bris of a baby from Kfar Aza. Basically wherever his talent can bring some joy and offer a temporary escape from reality, Broza has performed. We joined him at Kibbutz Gal’ed in the north, where he was performing for families evacuated from their homes.The end song is Yihiye Tov (“It Will Be Good”) by David Broza.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Wars are often told through numbers – of the dead, the wounded, the missing, the misplaced. But behind each one of those numbers, there is – of course – a person, a family, a community whose life has been altered forever.For two weeks now we’ve been hearing survival stories, the likes of which we never imagined we’d hear again, at least not on this scale. This is one such story. The story of Yarnin Peled from Kibbutz Be’eri, who survived the carnage of October 7th.The end song is a community effort from 2019 by Kibbut Be’eri.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This war has forced many people to reevaluate their identities and political sensibilities—not an easy task during these shocking and painful days. Mor Maisel’s opinions are complicated and don’t conform to the norm, which may be challenging for some listeners, and reassuring for others.The end song is Anachnu Me’oto Hakfar (“We Are From The Same Village”) by Lehakat Pikud Merkaz.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

During this dark time, Israeli civil society has risen to the occasion. Hedai Offaim – a chef, farmer and social entrepreneur – has transformed his café into a relief kitchen where 750 volunteers prepare more than 10,000 nutritious meals a day for evacuated communities, families in mourning, families of hostages and reservists.Donors from Israel can use this link: https://payboxapp.page.link/gj55cdBQMNV81qmU7 - "ארוחות ללוחמים ולמפונים - משק עפאים"Donors who wish to make their gift to a USA public charity and receive a charitable tax deduction for the full amount of gifts to public charities as allowed by law can give to Impact Cubed (tax ID 83-2215503) through cash, credit card or other options for transfer. More information is at https://impactcubed.org/give/.In the designating section please choose "other" and add "Ofaimme - Arava spirit initiative".The end song is Hora He’achzut (“Hold On Hora”) by Kaveret.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After the entire team of Kibbutz Kissufim’s dairy farm was murdered, Ofer Tamir from Nahalal rushed down south to rescue the local cows.The end song is Kissufim by Etti Ankri.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 1956, Moshe Dayan – then the IDF’s Chief of Staff – delivered a eulogy for a fallen member of Kibbutz Nahal Oz. That eulogy had a tremendous impact on Israeli society and is just as poignant today as it was sixty-seven years ago.The end song is Shir Eres Negbi (“A Southern Lullaby”) performed by Shoshana Damari.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Despite everything, life continues amid the horror. For Katherine Leff, this meant going ahead with the day she’d been dreaming about for so long — her wedding day.The end song is Od Yishma (“Again It Will Be Heard”) by Ishay Ribo.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode includes graphic descriptions of violence.At age 50, Itai Kramer is no longer obligated to serve in the reserve forces, yet he volunteered anyway. Itai tells us about what went through his mind when he decided to drop everything and put on his uniform.The end song is Machar Ani Babayit (“Tomorrow I’ll Be Home”) by Ethnix.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis have been called up to reserve duty. But what about the families they leave behind?Episode artwork courtesy of Noa Kelner.The end song is Ima (“Mother”) by Yehuda Levi and Ninet Tayeb.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Everything in this corner of the world has changed since Saturday, October 7. All around us, friends, family, colleagues, people have died. People are missing. People have been kidnapped. There’s a lot of uncertainty and we’re all involved in dozens of initiatives but we’re also going to bring you some voices and testimonies that try to paint a picture of these devastating times.The end song is Nekuda Tova (“Good Point”), by Shuli Rand with Ehud Banai.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s been fifty years since the Yom Kippur War. And as such, we want to share our Tell Saki project, which first came out in 2021. Over the course of two episodes, we go back to the horrors of the war, and specifically to one small hill in the Southern Golan Heights where - over the course of thirty-six hours - a group of young IDF soldiers went to hell and back.Stay connected with us on Facebook, the platform formally known as Twitter, Instagram, Tik Tok, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s been fifty years since the Yom Kippur War. And as such, we want to share our Tell Saki project, which first came out in 2021. Over the course of two episodes, we go back to the horrors of the war, and specifically to one small hill in the Southern Golan Heights where - over the course of thirty-six hours - a group of young IDF soldiers went to hell and back.Stay connected with us on Facebook, the platform formally known as Twitter, Instagram, Tik Tok,  and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In part two of “A Life After Death,” Gal describes the days and months following Noah’s death - the funeral, the grief and the hope of creating a new life. Stay connected with us on Facebook, the platform formally known as Twitter, Instagram, Tik Tok,  and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On a warm winter day in February 2018, Gal Zaychner’s worst nightmare came true: Her 11-month-old son, Noah, didn’t wake up from his nap time.Our episode tells the tragic story of a victim of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Please take that into account when deciding whether to continue listening.Stay connected with us on Facebook, the platform formally known as Twitter, Instagram, Tik Tok,  and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our series continues with Meir Argov (Grabovsky), a World War II veteran and a Petach Tikvah-based labor organizer who loved chazanut, or cantorial music, and was Israel’s first - and longest serving - chairman of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our series continues with Herzl Rosenblum (AKA Herzl Vardi), a Revisionist and prize-winning journalist who stood at the helm of the Yedioth Ahronoth daily for 38 years and penned no less than 11,400 editorials. Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our series continues with Yitzhak Meir (“Itche Meiyer”) Levin, the foremost Haredi rabbi to have signed the Declaration of Independence.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our series continues with Moshe Kol (Kolodny), who - for nearly two decades - headed the Jewish Agency’s Youth Immigration Division, and was responsible for bringing more than 100,000 unaccompanied minors from 85 different countries to Israel. Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our series continues with Pinchas Rosen - a lover of classical music, an enthusiastic chess player, an avid reader of Goethe, and Israel’s first Justice Minister. A quintessential yekke, or German-born Jew, he was - more than any other signatory of the Israeli Declaration of Independence - the true ideological heir of Theodore Herzl.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Released exactly 114 years after he left his native village of Khubesh, Yemen, and set out for Jerusalem, our series continues with Sa’adia Kobashi - a rabbi, a licensed poultry slaughterer, an educator and the lone representative - among the signatories of the Declaration of Independence - of Yemenite Jewry.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On “Jerusalem Day,” our exploration of the signatories of Megillat Ha’Atzmaut, or the Israeli Declaration of Independence, continues with Daniel Auster, the first Jew to be appointed Mayor of Jerusalem since Byzantine times.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our deep dive into Megillat Ha’Atzmaut, or the Declaration of Independence, continues with a man known for his linguistic flair, his love of organized labor and, of course, his oversized autograph - David Remez.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Immediately following the Yom HaZikaron (Memorial Day) siren, six of Israel Story’s producers entered the studio to discuss their (very different) perspectives on the day.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mishy Harman and Mitch Ginsburg take us behind the scenes of “Signed, Sealed, Delivered?” on the Times of Israel’s “The Daily Briefing” podcast, with Amanda Borschel-Dan.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Declaration of Independence on May 14, 1948, was not only the birth of a state, it was also the birth of Israeli radio.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since the earliest days of the State, women have been severely underrepresented in the Israeli parliament. But no one knows more about the trailblazing female legislators who did make it than Shavit Ben-Arie. Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel.Stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and by signing up for our newsletter at israelstory.org/newsletter/. For more, head to our site or The Times of Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.