Israel Story

It’s a sad Christmas Eve in Jesus’ homeland. The alleyways of Jerusalem’s Old City, the streets of Nazareth, the churches of Bethlehem - all usually bustling with countless pilgrims and tourists from all over the world - are largely empty. There are no trees, no stars, no sparkling lights. Christmas has essentially been canceled, and not just as a figure of speech: Back in November, the patriarchs...

More than 200,000 Israelis - from both the South and the North - have been forced to leave their homes since the start of the war. Some have relocated to hotels or kibbutzim, others have opted to move in with family or friends, or else even rent apartments in entirely new surroundings. In today's episode we get a glimpse of what that reality feels like. Shira Masami is one of nearly 30,000 residen...

Stories are the strongest way to connect. To understand. To care. Under normal circumstances we’d create some sort of polished appeal, but obviously these are not normal circumstances. If what we do has been helpful, or you think it is important, please support us and share our show with friends and family. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you. Stay connected with us on Facebook , Instagram ,...

Since the start of the military operation in Gaza, countless reports by journalists embedded with the IDF troops have appeared in the Israeli media. But there was one eight-and-a-half minute-long TV broadcast that aired on Kan - the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation - that stood out. In it, Riyad Ali, a 61-year-old Druze journalist from the town of Maghar in the Galilee, accompanied soldiers...

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 it...

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 w...

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 i...

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 wh...

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...

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 co...

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...

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...

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 dif...

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 ("Tra...

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 politica...

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 n...

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 Gio...

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...

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 ha...

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, member...

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...

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 conn...

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...

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...

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 F...