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.

It is day 216 of the war with Hamas. Times of Israel founding editor David Horovitz joins host Jessica Steinberg for today’s episode.

Horovitz discusses US President Joe Biden’s “bombshell” series of comments regarding withholding weaponry for Israel to attack Rafah in Gaza, and how Israeli politicians are reacting.

He talks about Israeli dependence on American arms and how Israel and the US need to find a way to resolve this latest crisis.

Horovitz then tackles Hamas’s counter-proposal for a hostage-ceasefire deal, calling it a “deceitful” offer that will not bring home most of the hostages and that aims to free many of its high-level security prisoners and return some of them to the West Bank, in order to inflame the region and open a second front.

For the latest updates, please see The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Biden accused of helping Hamas as Israel outraged by threatened weapons freeze

Biden: I won’t give Israel offensive weapons to attack in populated parts of Rafah

Sinister Hamas terms would let it keep most hostages, win the war, inflame the West Bank

Visiting CIA chief said to tell Netanyahu he still sees chance for deal with Hamas

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

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.