Daily Briefing Mar 2: Day 148 – Why US-airdropped aid to Gaza is a drop in the bucket
US bureau chief Jacob Magid on the Biden administration’s need for good optics after Tuesday’s Michigan primary, and how an EU official has modest hopes of hosting a peace summit
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.
Today is Day 148 of the war with Hamas. US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today’s episode.
US President Joe Biden announced on Friday plans to carry out a first US military airdrop of food and supplies into Gaza, a day after the reported deaths of dozens of Palestinians in a crowd crush as they rushed an aid convoy threw a spotlight on an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe in the war-torn coastal enclave. That US aid began reaching the Gaza Strip today, but the question is, is airdropping the most efficient method?
During the vote counting from Tuesday’s Michigan primary, over 101,000 people were found to have cast “uncommitted” ballots, most of them likely in protest of Biden’s Israel-Hamas war policies. What makes Michigan an especially watched primary and what do these votes represent?
The European Union is planning to host a “Preparatory Peace Conference” with regional stakeholders to advance a two-state solution. Magid, in conversation with EU Middle East peace envoy Sven Koopmans, heard about the official’s modest hopes.
For the latest updates, please look at The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.
Discussed articles include:
‘No excuses’: Biden announces US military to airdrop food, supplies into war-torn Gaza
Michigan’s Gaza protest votes below levels seen as requiring major Biden shift
EU envoy details plans for ‘preparatory’ conference to advance Israeli-Palestinian peace
Peace efforts can be advanced, even if parties not currently interested — EU envoy
THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas’s onslaught on Israel
THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown
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