Welcome to Times Will Tell, the weekly podcast from The Times of Israel. 

This week, we're speaking to Samekh Zakout and Uriya Rosenman, the Arab rapper and Israeli educator who banded together in the last year to put their frustrations, thoughts and ideas into two raps so far, the first of which, “Bo Nedaber Dugri,” (Let’s Talk Straight), a six-minute, 28-second rap, went viral when released in May.

They had been working together for months, but the impetus for releasing the first rap in May were the riots that raged through Israel's mixed cities.

Now the two have released their second rap, "Munfas," and are on the road in Israel, speaking to Arabs and Jews, sometimes together, about what this country needs in order to find different solutions for future generations.

Times Will Tell podcasts are available for download on iTunes, TuneIn, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, PlayerFM or wherever you get your podcasts.

IMAGE: Samekh Zakout, left and Uriya Rosenman of Dugri, the straight-talking rap pair who aim to find a different narrative for young Arabs and Jews in Israel.

Welcome to Times Will Tell, the weekly podcast from The Times of Israel.&nbsp;
This week, we're speaking to Samekh Zakout and Uriya Rosenman, the Arab rapper and Israeli educator who banded together in the last year to put their frustrations, thoughts and ideas into two raps so far, the first of which, &ldquo;Bo Nedaber Dugri,&rdquo; (Let&rsquo;s Talk Straight), a six-minute, 28-second rap, went viral when released in May.
They had been working together for months, but the impetus for releasing the first rap in May were the riots that raged through Israel's mixed cities.
Now the two have released their second rap, "Munfas," and are on the road in Israel, speaking to Arabs and Jews, sometimes together, about what this country needs in order to find different solutions for future generations.
Times Will Tell podcasts are available for download on<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/il/podcast/the-times-of-israel/id1067953235?mt=2" aria-describedby="slack-kit-tooltip">&nbsp;iTunes</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://tunein.com/radio/Times-of-Israel-p819785/" aria-describedby="slack-kit-tooltip">TuneIn,</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://pca.st/XWZH" aria-describedby="slack-kit-tooltip">Pocket Casts</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-times-of-israel?refid=stpr" aria-describedby="slack-kit-tooltip">Stitcher,</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://player.fm/series/the-times-of-israel" aria-describedby="slack-kit-tooltip">PlayerFM&nbsp;</a>or wherever you get your podcasts.
IMAGE: Samekh Zakout, left and Uriya Rosenman of Dugri, the straight-talking rap pair who aim to find a different narrative for young Arabs and Jews in Israel.

A weekly exploration of one key issue shaping Israel and the Jewish World right now.

A weekly exploration of one key issue shaping Israel and the Jewish World right now.

What Matters Now

This Arab and Jew talk straight, in raps and in person

Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World, with host Amanda Borschel-Dan speaking with author and journalist Matti Friedman.

The first half of our episode is dedicated to an in-depth discussion of Friedman's newest book, "Out of the Sky," set for publication next week. The book is a deep dive into the meaning and myth surrounding a team of Jews living in British Mandate Palestine who -- after escaping the Holocaust -- parachute back into Nazi Europe in 1944.

The most famous of the unit is Hannah Senesh, whom readers will know as the tragic young woman who heroically attempted to save Jews and left behind Hebrew poetry, including "Eli, Eli." In his new book, Friedman busts myths surrounding the mission's participants and then tells their even more stunning real tales.

In the second half of the program, we draw upon Friedman's personal experiences in Lebanon, which he recounted in a previous book, "Pumpkin Flowers."

We discuss the crossroads Israel again finds itself as it contemplates a large ground maneuver on a road too well-traveled in southern Lebanon.

And so, this week, we ask Matti Friedman, what matters now.

What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and edited by Yitzhak Ledee.

Matti Friedman / Troops of the 300th 'Baram' Regional Brigade operate in southern Lebanon, in a handout photo issued by the military on March 18, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World, with host&nbsp;<a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/writers/amanda-borschel-dan/">Amanda Borschel-Dan</a> speaking with author and journalist Matti Friedman.
The first half of our episode is dedicated to an in-depth discussion of Friedman's newest book, "<a href="https://mattifriedman.com/out-of-the-sky/">Out of the Sky</a>," set for publication next week. The book is a deep dive into the meaning and myth surrounding a team of Jews living in British Mandate Palestine who -- after escaping the Holocaust -- parachute back into Nazi Europe in 1944.
The most famous of the unit is Hannah Senesh, whom readers will know as the tragic young woman who heroically attempted to save Jews and left behind Hebrew poetry, including "Eli, Eli." In his new book, Friedman busts myths surrounding the mission's participants and then tells their even more stunning real tales.
In the second half of the program, we draw upon Friedman's personal experiences in Lebanon, which he recounted in a previous book, "Pumpkin Flowers."
We discuss the crossroads Israel again finds itself as it contemplates a large ground maneuver on a road too well-traveled in southern Lebanon.
And so, this week, we ask Matti Friedman, what matters now.
What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/il/podcast/times-will-tell/id1067953235?mt=2">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5Hqgs4Cy5VkdXB51eW2jjd">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnR6FOcOvFdMHmmVLVJUNrE198zXKQWna">YouTube</a> or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and edited by Yitzhak Ledee.
Matti Friedman / Troops of the 300th 'Baram' Regional Brigade operate in southern Lebanon, in a handout photo issued by the military on March 18, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

Matti Friedman: Israel's forever wars in Lebanon

Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World, with host Amanda Borschel-Dan speaking with Bret Stephens, a The New York Times columnist and the editor-in-chief of Sapir magazine.

Recent polling indicates that only roughly half of Americans support the US-Israel war against Iran's Islamist regime. Stephens weighs in on why the current conflict can be both "Trump's war" and a just war. 

Far from feeling that Israel dragged the US into this war, he says that for the first time in recent history, the US has a partner with whom to wage a war. "This war is different, not because it's a war for Israel. It's a war with Israel," says Stephens.

But is the American public capable of internalizing the Iranian regime as an existential threat? In answer, Stephens asks whether a patient with stage II cancer should be advised to wait to treat it until it develops into stage IV. "Thank goodness we're acting now rather than just waiting on events," says Stephens.

Assessing today's global dynamics and the authoritarian axis of Iran, Russia, North Korea and China, he turns to the 1930s, when the world was experiencing a series of conflicts that eventually led to World War II. He warns there is no Hollywood ending in sight.

And so this week, we ask Bret Stephens, what matters now.

What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and edited by Ari Schlacht.

IMAGE: New York Times columnist Bret Stephens (YouTube screenshot) / Beirut, Lebanon, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World, with host <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/writers/amanda-borschel-dan/">Amanda Borschel-Dan</a> speaking with Bret Stephens, a The New York Times columnist and the editor-in-chief of Sapir magazine.
Recent polling indicates that only roughly half of Americans support the US-Israel war against Iran's Islamist regime. Stephens weighs in on why the current conflict can be both "Trump's war" and a just war.&nbsp;
Far from feeling that Israel dragged the US into this war, he says that for the first time in recent history, the US has a partner with whom to wage a war. "This war is different, not because it's a war for Israel. It's a war with Israel," says Stephens.
But is the American public capable of internalizing the Iranian regime as an existential threat? In answer, Stephens asks whether a patient with stage II cancer should be advised to wait to treat it until it develops into stage IV. "Thank goodness we're acting now rather than just waiting on events," says Stephens.
Assessing today's global dynamics and the authoritarian axis of Iran, Russia, North Korea and China, he turns to the 1930s, when the world was experiencing a series of conflicts that eventually led to World War II. He warns there is no Hollywood ending in sight.
And so this week, we ask Bret Stephens, what matters now.
What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/il/podcast/times-will-tell/id1067953235?mt=2">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5Hqgs4Cy5VkdXB51eW2jjd">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnR6FOcOvFdMHmmVLVJUNrE198zXKQWna">YouTube</a> or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and edited by Ari Schlacht.
IMAGE: New York Times columnist Bret Stephens (YouTube screenshot) / Beirut, Lebanon, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Bret Stephens: America and Israel are engaged in a common fight for civilization

Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World, with host Amanda Borschel-Dan speaking with Einat Wilf, a former MK, author and CEO of the newly formed Oz party.

Wilf describes the potential fall of the Iranian Islamic Republic's regime as a shift in the magnitude of the fall of the Soviet Union.

We discuss the seismic ripple effects on Gaza and the Palestinian Authority. Wilf proposes that this moment is a window of opportunity for Israel to end the ideology of "Palestinianism" -- the end to the Jewish state -- that could quickly shut again.

She talks through Israel's need to create firm civil borders of its control in the West Bank and to maintain military control of the remaining areas and have what she calls, "an active occupation."  

And in the final portion of our conversation, we hear why Wilf formed her new party at this time and what it stands for.

And so this week, we ask Einat Wilf, what matters now.

What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and edited by Ari Schlacht.

IMAGE: Motorbikes drive past a billboard depicting Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, center, handing the country’s flag to his son and successor Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, right, as the late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini stands at left, in a square in downtown Tehran, Iran, March 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World, with host <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/writers/amanda-borschel-dan/">Amanda Borschel-Dan</a> speaking with Einat Wilf, a former MK, author and CEO of the newly formed Oz party.
Wilf describes the potential fall of the Iranian Islamic Republic's regime as a shift in the magnitude of the fall of the Soviet Union.
We discuss the seismic ripple effects on Gaza and the Palestinian Authority. Wilf proposes that this moment is a window of opportunity for Israel to end the ideology of "Palestinianism" -- the end to the Jewish state -- that could quickly shut again.
She talks through Israel's need to create firm civil borders of its control in the West Bank and to maintain military control of the remaining areas and have what she calls, "an active occupation."&nbsp;&nbsp;
And in the final portion of our conversation, we hear why Wilf formed her new party at this time and what it stands for.
And so this week, we ask Einat Wilf, what matters now.
What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/il/podcast/times-will-tell/id1067953235?mt=2">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5Hqgs4Cy5VkdXB51eW2jjd">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnR6FOcOvFdMHmmVLVJUNrE198zXKQWna">YouTube</a> or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and edited by Ari Schlacht.
IMAGE: Motorbikes drive past a billboard depicting Iran&rsquo;s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, center, handing the country&rsquo;s flag to his son and successor Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, right, as the late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini stands at left, in a square in downtown Tehran, Iran, March 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

This Arab and Jew talk straight, in raps and in person

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