ToI’s weekly deep dive: Peculiar legacy of Herod the Great * Israeli cocoa plants to the rescue? * Inside Hulu’s Holocaust saga * Podcast: National and personal grief

[Times of Israel]( [Weekly Deep Dive]( Sunday, March 31, 2024 ToI in Gaza [As Rafah waiting game continues, 82nd Battalion expands long fight in Khan Younis]( By Lazar Berman The Times of Israel joins engineers demolishing homes as armored forces move into new neighborhoods; unit commander forced to retract statements about Gaza settlements Op-ed David Horovitz [Silver linings in an ongoing nightmare]( When a visiting group on a solidarity mission wondered if I had any good news [Op-Ed / US non-veto at UN, Netanyahu’s response reflect an alliance in crisis, a war slowed]( By David Horovitz Interview [The stunning rise, curious suspension and insistent return of Israel’s star spokesman]( By David Horovitz As Israel has struggled to make its case to the world since Oct. 7, Eylon Levy was a rare compelling English-speaking voice. So why was he pushed aside, and what is he doing about it? [Op-Ed / Netanyahu desperately seeks to strengthen his base, at the expense of US ties, hostages]( By Tal Schneider Analysis Amir Bar Shalom [While diplomatic efforts go on, IDF is bracing for short but devastating war in Lebanon]( As Defense Minister Gallant met with US envoy Amos Hochstein in DC, escalations by Hezbollah cast doubt on notion anything but a military solution will deter the terror group [Civilians in Israel’s north lobby world leaders to make Hezbollah keep UN truce lines]( By Diana Bletter Explainer [US ships head to Gaza for massive aid pier project — but enclave can’t afford to wait]( By Tal Schneider The complex operation off the Strip’s coast is set to start running in May; for now, Israel is facing intensifying pressure to greatly increase food delivery to civilians [Amid arms embargo calls, data shows 99% of Israeli weapon imports are from US, Germany]( By Tal Schneider Law [In ‘historic’ step, High Court orders halt to yeshiva funds for students eligible for draft]( By Jeremy Sharon Attorney General tells court army will be obligated to begin drafting Haredi men on April 1; judges shoot down PM’s request for 30 more days to settle matter [ToI podcast / Daily Briefing Mar. 29: Day 175 – Historic High Court ruling may propel Haredi draft]( By ToI Staff [Integrating PA into Gaza aid efforts offers pilot to post-war governance, say experts]( By Jacob Magid Report argues move would reduce bottlenecks, reliance on UNRWA while boosting West Bank economy; author says Israel, UN both responsible for hunger crisis, but former has more issues [Inside story / PA in final stages of talks with US to reform ‘pay-to-slay’ policy – sources]( By Jacob Magid [UNRWA textbooks were pivotal in radicalizing generations of Gazans — watchdog]( By Gianluca Pacchiani [ToI podcast / Daily Briefing Mar. 30: Day 176 – Palestinian Authority rebrands with White House help]( By ToI Staff [CRM]( Obituary [Nobel-winning behavioral economist Daniel Kahneman, who upended his field, dies at 90]( By Charlie Summers Top Ops Yitzhak Aharon Korff [IDF army service is a Halachic obligation]( The Zvhil-Mezbuz Rebbe of Boston: By Jewish law, every able-bodied Jewish male from the age of 20 is required to serve – period Dovid Kornreich [One Haredi man’s view on drafting yeshiva boys]( Jewish sovereignty is not a high priority for us, and it’s well below endangering a single Jewish life in order to maintain it Uri Goldflam [Lies, inversions and Israel]( Why is Western media embracing the most absurd libels about Israel while ignoring the genocidal aims of Hamas and Iran? Alexandria Fanjoy Silver [To AOC: You keep using that word]( Starvation can indeed be a feature of genocide – I just think you’ve forgotten who is the one generating that famine United States [Massachusetts parents say public school teachers union sowing anti-Israel bias]( By Cathryn J. Prince Rhetoric during a webinar last week on ‘The Struggle Against Anti-Palestinian Racism’ was the last straw for many who say students are being ‘indoctrinated’ in the wake of Oct. 7 [Interview / Cancer doc speaks out on suit against NYU Langone for termination over anti-Hamas posts]( By Cathryn J. Prince [ADL partners with NCSY to help US Jewish teens deal with post-Oct. 7 antisemitism]( By Cathryn J. Prince Diaspora [Amid hostility and kosher restrictions, Canadian Jews fear their ‘golden age’ is over]( By Canaan Lidor The community is mounting a legal fight against restrictions that coincide with Israel-skeptic policies and expressions of antisemitism [Russian rabbi: Moscow terror attack ‘an unquestionable imitation of Oct. 7 in Israel’]( By Canaan Lidor [Those We Have Lost]( [Those We Have Lost]( [Stories of civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel]( [Read Here]( ToI podcast [What Matters Now to mourning mother Hannah Wacholder Katsman: Personal & national grief]( By Amanda Borschel-Dan On October 7, Hayim Katsman was killed by terrorists from Gaza at Kibbutz Holit as he shielded a neighbor with his body. Knowing her son is a hero doesn’t help, says his mother [Reporter's notebook / Evacuated by rocket fire, iconic Kiryat Shmona bar temporarily transplants to Tel Aviv]( By Canaan Lidor Behind the scenes [‘How many miracles can we get?’: Holocaust saga comes to life in new Hulu miniseries]( By Amy Spiro Stars Joey King and Logan Lerman are joined by many Israeli cast members, including Lior Ashkenazi, Hadas Yaron and Michael Aloni, in ‘We Were the Lucky Ones,’ set in WWII Poland [Before Hamas filmed Oct. 7 attacks, Nazis recorded Holocaust massacres in Ukraine]( By Matt Lebovic [Israel Museum opens new exhibit, an elegy for October 7]( By Jessica Steinberg Using contemporary works from its extensive archives, the country’s largest art institution reflects the national mood in ‘The Dawn of Darkness: Elegy in Contemporary Art’ [Capital showcase / Exhibit looks at 100 years of Jerusalem through the eyes of its artists]( By Jessica Steinberg Science [After surviving October 7, Israeli cocoa plants could help stave off world shortage]( By Sue Surkes Chocolate-loving Ellen Graber’s ‘superhero’ seedlings, forced to fend for themselves after Hamas attack, survived 3.5 months without water or fertilizer, suggesting high resilience [Those We Are Missing]( [The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown]( [Read Here]( Health [COVID protocols pave new way of detecting common congenital viral infection in newborns]( By Renee Ghert-Zand Hebrew University and Hadassah Medical Center researchers prove the efficiency and accuracy of pooled saliva PCR testing for congenital cytomegalovirus [Study assesses half a million Israelis at risk of developing PTSD due to Oct. 7 and war]( By Renee Ghert-Zand Israel Travels [An Easter visit to Mount Precipice and Jesus’s hometown of Nazareth]( By Aviva and Shmuel Bar-Am Despite wartime drop in tourism, the churches, basilica, White Mosque and charming old town, with spice shops, fashion and superb eateries, bustle with locals, are stunning as ever [Interview / Temples, tantrums and tyranny: The peculiar legacy of Judean king Herod the Great]( By Rich Tenorio [A river runs through it / Tzippori Festival to mark stream restoration with music and more]( By Jessica Steinberg From the blogs [Sledding: A reflection on October 7th]( By Sara Y. Sapadin In a world where everything we know can shift irrevocably in an instant, let’s hold tight to the blessings in our midst [Weekly Deep Dive]( [facebook]( [twitter]( [instagram]( [View in browser]( [Contact support](mailto:support@timesofisrael.com) [Advertise with us](mailto:advertise@timesofisrael.com) Were you forwarded this email? [Subscribe here]( [Unsubscribe]( from this List © 2024 The Times Of Israel, All Rights Reserved