Daily Briefing May 22: Day 594 – Shock after 2 Israel embassy staffers killed in DC

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.

Political correspondent Tal Schneider and legal reporter Jeremy Sharon join host Jessica Steinberg for today’s episode.

Following the tragic shooting of two Israeli embassy staffers at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, Schneider reviews what we know about the victims and the shooter, as well as security at public Jewish institutions in the US.

This conversation can be viewed here:

Schneider also discusses the implications of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Wednesday night press conference, his first with the Israeli press in about half a year. The prime minister addressed key issues, including a new demand that Gazans be relocated as a condition for ending the war. Schneider points out that the hostage families strongly criticized the prime minister for his statements regarding the talks. Netanyahu was also taken to task for his erroneous remarks about what happened in one of the Gaza-envelope kibbutzim on October 7, as well as his downplaying of the Hamas terrorists who invaded Israel as wearing flip-flops and not heavily armed.

Following Wednesday’s High Court ruling that Netanyahu’s firing of Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar was improper, due, among other things, to a conflict of interest, Sharon discusses the immediate implications. He notes that the independence of the internal security agency is crucial for Israel’s democratic governance and says the government faces a potential constitutional crisis following the court’s ruling.

This conversation can be viewed here:

Check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Two Israeli Embassy staffers killed in shooting attack at Washington, DC, Jewish Museum

Netanyahu sets implementation of Trump’s Gaza relocation plan as new condition for ending war

High Court rules Shin Bet head’s dismissal ‘unlawful’, PM had ‘conflict of interest’

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves and video edited by Thomas Girsch.

Check out yesterday’s episode here: