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.

News editor Ben Sales joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

The Iran-backed Houthis struck two Saudi oil tankers on Thursday that they accused of violating a naval blockade imposed by the group. These attacks signal a potential new front in the US-Iran conflict, as the US military struck Iran for the 12th successive night and Iran lashed out at its neighbors.

Arguably related to stymying Iran and its ambitions, the United States and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday forged a new agreement that could potentially provide the kingdom with uranium enrichment capability for its civilian nuclear program. We hear why Israel is worried.

Overnight, the US House of Representatives narrowly passed its version of a massive defense policy bill, despite Democrats’ concerns about its huge price tag, the Iran war and a provision that would boost Pentagon ties to Israel. The NDAA includes several provisions that allocate hundreds of millions of dollars to US-Israel joint military projects. Sales explains the political considerations in voting for Israel aid right now.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday acknowledged that he cannot actually arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, despite his past pledges to do so. Most legal experts had come to that conclusion years ago. Why is this in the news right now?

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

For further reading:

Yemen’s Houthis hit tankers in Red Sea as US strikes Iran for 12th consecutive night

US confirms signing a nuclear cooperation pact with Saudi Arabia, to Israel’s alarm

Mamdani’s vision of NY as ‘a city of international law’ runs up against reality

Mamdani admits he lacks power to arrest Netanyahu, after repeated pledges to do so

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.