Unholy: Two Jews on the News
Yonit Levi of Israel's Channel 12 News and Jonathan Freedland of The Guardian are two of the most prominent journalists in the world today. They are also Jews. Each week, join what MSNBC's Rachel Maddow calls "two great, smart smart smart hosts" as they dissect and debate current events shaping Israel, Jewish life - and the wider world. Their blend of nuanced discussion and sparkling conversation, featuring a dazzling range of guests, is why New Yorker editor David Remnick calls himself a “proud, avid listener," why Ira Glass says he "completely enjoys this show" and why Malcolm Gladwell calls it an "incr...
Israel Election whispers, Iran Negotiations and "Lashon Hara, Babe"
The Iran war may be over — or it may not. In the space of a few hours this week, Washington ordered warships into the Strait of Hormuz, paused the operation, threatened to resume bombing at higher intensity, and then declared peace was near.
Yonit and Jonathan cut through the chaos — and ask the question the ceasefire deal still hasn't answered: what happened to Iran's nuclear stockpile?
Also this week: Bezalel Smotrich calls October 7th "a tactical failure" and says including Arab parties in government would be a thousand times worse. Gadi Eisenkot and former Shin Bet ch...
Iran War: What Comes Next - with Dr Suzanne Maloney
Forty days of war with Iran. Four weeks of an uneasy ceasefire. And one verdict that nobody in Washington wants to say out loud: the Islamic Republic came out of this stronger.
Dr. Suzanne Maloney, Vice President of the Brookings Institution's foreign policy program and one of America's most trusted voices on Iran, joins Yonit and Jonathan as US warships attempt to escort vessels through a Strait of Hormuz that Iran still effectively controls. They get into whether the ceasefire can hold, why the nuclear threat was never really addressed, who is actually making decisions inside Tehran...
Stabbings in London, a political marriage in Israel
As stabbing against Jews in Golders Green rises up, again, the question of security of Jewish communities around the world, Israel starts the countdown: 6 months to the elections. Yonit and Jonathan discuss the Golders Green knife attack and the wave of antisemitism hitting Britain since October 7th; the Bennett–Lapid merger and what it means for Israel's October elections; whether the Iran–Israel war is on pause or simply reloading; Jake Sullivan's bombshell statement on arms sales to Israel; and — in the awards — Israeli police cutting a Palestinian flag from a Jewish man's kippah, and King Charles delivering a Magna Car...
Howard Jacobson - Unholy Conversations
Howard Jacobson has screamed "liar" at the BBC, lost friends over a newspaper article, and started asking his wife whether it's still safe to live in London. Now he's written a novel about all of it.
*Howl* is the story of Ferdinand Draxler — Jewish headmaster, reluctant marcher, man on the edge — who watches the world he believed in applaud the October 7th massacre and descends into a rage that may or may not be madness. Jacobson says he borrowed quite a lot from the last two years of his life.
In this Unholy Conversations episode, Jaco...
Independence, food and a response to Ezra Klein - with special guest Adeena Sussman
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Israel's 78th Independence Day arrives in the shadow of a three-year war — and a nation more divided than ever. As US-Iran talks st...
Rachel Goldberg-Polin - Unholy Conversations
Watch us on Youtube: https://youtu.be/HFowIpBxqKs
Rachel Goldberg-Polin has stood before the UN, met with presidents, and worn a number on her chest every single day until there were no more hostages in Hamas captivity. Now, months after Hersh was murderd, she sat down and wrote a book.
When We See You Again is not a hostage story and not a political reckoning. It is, as Rachel describes it, a painful love story — a grief memoir written "with one finger from underneath a truck," with no distance, no perspective, and no pretense that any...
Lebanon ceasefire, Senate Showdown, Orban out
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As Israel marks one week out of 40 days of missiles from Iran, Yonit and Jonathan take apart the week's impossible contradictions: Netanyahu delivering a triumphalist Yom HaShoah speech while 400 kilograms of enriched uranium remain intact in Iran; a fragile Lebanon ceasefire that almost no one trusts; 40 Democratic senators voting against arms transfers; and Italy's far-right prime minister — until now Israel's last ally in Europe — quietly moving toward the exit.
They also clock a historic elect...
Ceasefire on day 40 - with Bret Stephens and Amir Fuchs
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Day 40 of the US-Israel war on Iran — and it's ceasefire. But the relief is complicated: Israeli bombardment of Hezbollah in Lebanon has already shifted the world's anger from Washington back to Jerusalem.
Bret Stephens, opinion columnist at the New York Times and one of the conflict's most prominent intellectual defenders, joins Yonit and Jonathan to take stock — was it worth it, what was actually achieved, and what does...
Books special: conversations with Daniel Taub and Yardena Schwartz
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Day 39 of the war. Pesach. Instead of news, we brought you books — two of them, both essential.
Jonathan speaks with Daniel Taub, former Israeli ambassador to the UK and author of Beyond Dispute: Rediscovering the Jewish Art of Constructive Disagreement — about why Jewish argument culture might be the most relevant thing in the world right now, and how families torn apart over Gaza might actually talk to each other.
Yonit speaks with Yardena Schwartz, award-winning journalist and Emmy-nominated producer, auth...
Middle East Past and Present: A deep dive into history with Tom Holland
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In this special Pesach episode, Yonit and Jonathan discuss seder traditions and those who had to change due to the war. They are joined by Tom Holland — historian and co-host of The Rest Is History and author of landmark books on Rome, Persia, and the roots of Western civilization — to explain why the Romans were wrong about the Jews, why the West fundamentally misunderstands Iran, and why secularism is itself a religious inheritance. From Cyrus the Great to the Iranian Revolution to Donald Trump, this is the e...
Talking peace, making war - with Jake Sullivan
Please note that an (authentic!) alert sound is heard twice throughout the episode.
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The fourth week of the war with Iran finds both sides insisting—loudly and contradictorily—that peace talks are either underway or nowhere in sight. In the meantime, Iranian missiles continue to hit civilian neighbourhoods across Israel, while rolling news blurs day into night, tracking both the war itself and the political manoeuvres that show little sign of slowing down. And...
War with Iran Update: Trump Hits the Pause Button
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This morning, Donald Trump posted something that might — or might not — mean the US-Israeli war on Iran is coming to an end.
A five-day pause on strikes. Secret talks via Pakistan and Turkey. Kushner and Witkoff on the American side. A shadowy Iranian speaker being cast as the pragmatist the US has been searching for. This is a special emergency episode of Unholy, recorded on 23 March 2026, as events were...
Day 20 of the Iran war - with Amos Harel. Plus: Shelter Q&A
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Day 20 of the US-Israeli war on Iran — and it's becoming a war of attrition. In the meantime, Europe refuses to lend its ships, daylight emerges between Trump and Netanyahu, and Joe Kent's antisemitic conspiracy theory gets the full debunking it deserves.
Amos Harel, Haaretz's military affairs correspondent, joins Yonit and Jonathan for a deep dive. What does the assassination of Ali Larijani — Khamenei's right-hand man — actually achieve? Is the...
Iran with General David Petraeus, Oscars with Naomi Alderman - plus: can Jewish life thrive under fire?
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Naomi Alderman on Substack: look at me. I’m here. I’m the ultimate product of Hitler’s defeat: https://naomialderman.substack.com/p/look-at-me-im-here-im-the-ultimate
Day 13 of the war with Iran — and the conflict just got bigger. Overnight, 200 rockets were fired at Israel from Lebanon. Hezbollah, which many believed had been neutered, is back.
This week, Yonit and Jonat...
War with Iran Week II: can the regime actually fall? With Ali Ansari
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As the war between Israel and Iran enters its second week, daily life in Israel has settled into a strange and exhausting rhythm.
Yonit describe what it means to live under constant missile alerts: sleepless nights, families moving between shelters, and a country running on collective exhaustion. They also unpack two major developments shaping the conflict. First, the mixed and sometimes contradictory signals...
War with Iran Day 6: The Gulf Under Fire, Tough Questions for Trump - With Gideon Rachman
Watch us on Youtube: https://youtu.be/zNwIQcrIMDs
Recent update episodes:
War with Iran day 4 - Living under fire (March 3)
Khamenei Is Dead. What Now for Iran? - with Dr. Suzanne Maloney (March 1)
US and Israel strike Iran; Khamenei reported dead - with Amos Harel (Feb 28)
America and Israel are at war with Iran. non-stop sirens in Tel Aviv, the Gulf states are under fire, and the Trump administration is hit by a barrage of tough questions in Washington.
This week, Yonit and Jonathan take stock of...
War with Iran - Day 4 - Living Under Fire
Watch us on Youtube: https://youtu.be/hcbffED7ISw
Recent update episodes:
Khamenei Is Dead. What Now for Iran? - with Dr. Suzanne Maloney (March 1)
US and Israel strike Iran; Khamenei reported dead - with Amos Harel (Feb 28)
Day 4 of the Israel–Iran war: What does life look like inside Israel right now?
Yonit and Jonathan reconnect for the first time since the beginning of the war with Iran.
What does war feel like minute-by-minute?
What does it mean when sirens sound every hou...
Emergency update: Khamenei Is Dead. What Now for Iran? - with Dr. Suzanne Maloney
As reports confirm that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is dead, Yonit is joined by Dr. Suzanne Maloney for a searching conversation about what this moment means for Iran and the wider Middle East. They examine Khamenei’s worldview in the years leading up to his death, the ideological roots of the regime’s hostility toward the West, and the deep divisions within Iranian society. The discussion turns to the question now confronting Tehran — who can succeed a figure so central to the system — and to the profound uncertainty facing Iran as it enters a post-Khamenei era with no clear path forward...
Emergency update: US and Israel strike Iran; Khamenei reported dead - with Amos Harel
Jonathan is joined by military analyst Amos Harel to assess the latest Israeli and US strikes against Iran — and what may come next. Together they examine the logic behind the operations, the degree of coordination between Jerusalem and Washington, and how Iran is likely to respond next. They also ask the harder questions now hanging over the region: whether this marks a turning point for the Iranian regime itself, how far escalation could go, and what the strikes reveal about the shifting balance of power in the Middle East.
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Modi's Big Visit, Iran Tensions and a Republican Clash over Israel - with Matti Friedman and Alon Ushpiz
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As the US–Iran talks in Geneva keep the region on edge, Yonit is joined by journalist Matti Friedman, to make sense of Israel’s uneasy calm — daily life continuing under the knowledge that everything could change in minutes. They reflect on Purim anxiety, old antisemitic tropes resurfacing, and Narendra Modi’s unusually warm visit to Israel, set against Knesset infighting.
They also d...
Trump on the Brink of War and Work in the AI Age - with Barak Ravid and Noreena Hertz
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Catch Jonathan on tour in Australia
As the Middle East enters another moment of acute tension — with one of Trump’s advisers saying there is a “90% chance we see kinetic action in the next few weeks” — Yonit speaks with Barak Ravid, diplomatic correspondent for Axios and Channel 12, about what is happening now and what Donald Trump may be weighing as events continue to unfold.
From geopolitics to technology, Yonit is then joined by Noreena Hertz — academic, economist, and bestselling author — for a conversation about the future of jobs...
Gen Z in Iran and violence in the West Bank - with Holly Dagres and Amos Harel
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As Benjamin Netanyahu boards a flight to meet President Trump, his government is attempting to rewrite the memory of October 7, removing the word “massacre” from its proposed memorial day bill. Yonit and Jonathan are joined by military analyst Amos Harel, who examines rising tensions in the West Bank...
US-Iran talks, women in the Israeli military and antisemitism in America - with Coleman Hughes
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As the world waits to see the outcome of talks between Washington and Tehran, Israel finds itself grappling with upheaval at home.
This week on Unholy, Yonit and Jonathan focus on two starkly different fault lines in Israeli society. First, rising violence in the Arab community: more than 30 Palestinian citizens of Israel have been murdered since the start of the year, as organised crime tightens i...
Last hostage returned, Bibi vs Biden, Trump vs Iran — and Listeners’ Therapy 2 with Dr. Orna Guralnik
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As Israel receives the body of Rani Gvilli, the last remaining hostage held in Gaza since October 7, a painful chapter closes — and a new, uncertain one begins: for the first time since 2014, there are no Israeli hostages held in Gaza. Meanwhile, the world looks to Washington, waiting to see when, where and whether Donald Trump will order a strike against Iran.
Yonit and J...
Trump's Board of Peace - and Unholy Listeners' Therapy with Dr. Orna Guralnik
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Catch Jonathan on tour in Australia
Greenland, Gaza and the brand-new “Board of Peace”: Donald Trump goes to Davos to unveil his gold-plated rival to the UN and ambitious new blueprint for post-war Gaza. Yonit and Jonathan unpick what it means in practice, how Qatar and Turkey’s involvement is unsettling for Israelis - and why Benjamin Netanyahu may find that being in the hands of Donald Trump is no more comfortable than being in the hands of the UN.
Plus, Dr. Orna Gu...
Iran burns, the world waits - with Suzanne Maloney
Unholy turns 5 - watch Yonit and Jonathan here> https://youtu.be/JKcUuratqm4
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Iran is burning, the world is watching – and, as ever, everyone is waiting to see what Donald Trump does next. As mass protests face a ferocious crackdown that may already rank among the bloodiest in the region’s modern history, Yonit and...
Trump vs. the world, Protests in Iran and the Draft bill - with Amos Hochstein
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As President Trump scrambles what used to be known as the international order, abducting a foreign dictator and threatening to invade an ally’s territory, Iranians take to the streets, driven by deepening economic despair. Back in Israel, a very different kind of unrest is unfolding, as tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox protesters mobilise against a draft bill that strikes at the heart of a long-standing social contract.
...Welcome to 2026: From Mar-a-Lago to Qatargate
If you have a relationship in your life that’s been strained by the events of the last two years, why not let celebrated therapist Orna Guralnik see if she can help? unholy@unholy-media.com
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Benjamin Netanyahu gets a hero’s welcome at Mar-a-Lago from Donald Trump, even as his far right ministers continue their assault on Israel’s High Court of Justice. Yonit and Jonatha...
Two Jews take on Christmas
Yonit and Jonathan explore the intersection of Jewish identity and Christmas traditions, discussing how Jews navigate the holiday season, the cultural significance of Christmas in Israel, and the impact of Christmas films on perceptions of the holiday. They delve into the complexities of assimilation, the evolution of Jewish customs around Christmas, and the portrayal of Christmas in popular culture.
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<...After Sydney, how can Jews feel safe in the world - With Rabbi David Wolpe
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Jews Are Being Sent Back Into Hiding https://www.thefp.com/p/jews-are-being-sent-back-into-hiding
The song at the end of the episode: Zamba de Jeruslaen https://www.youtube.com/@RoniKripper
As the traditional joy of Hanukkah combines with fear and grief after the horrific attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Yonit and Jonathan are joined by Rabbi David Wolpe for a searching conversation about loss, faith and how—if at all—to find sparks of light in the darkness. We also invited listeners to send...
Emergency update: Terror attack in Sydney - with Nomi Kaltmann
At least 11 people were murdered, including Chabad emissary Rabbi Eli Schlanger, and several more were wounded, after a mass shooting targeted a Hanukkah celebration in Bondi Beach, in southeastern Australia.
Yonit and Jonathan are joined by Nomi Kaltmann, a journalist, a lawyer, and a Rabbanit from Australia.
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The Battle Among Republicans over Jews and Israel — with J. Oliver Conroy
A new bonus episode for premium subscribers is out! Find it in your feed.
If you have a relationship in your life that’s been strained by the events of the last two years, why not let celebrated therapist Orna Guralnik see if she can help? unholy@unholy-media.com
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Yonit and Jonathan are joined by journalist J Oliver Conroy for a no-holds-barred examination of sur...
Netanyahu wants a pardon, hostages reunite and a farewell to Tom Stoppard—With Yair Ettinger
Watch us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/RnHcr0Q6PUQ
Benjamin Netanyahu edges closer to Donald Trump’s extraordinary call for a presidential pardon, filing an official request with President Herzog and setting off another political storm.
All this as Israel tears itself apart once again over the draft bill. Will the ultra-Orthodox secure a formal exemption from service, and what does that mean for the rest of the country?
Yonit and Jonathan unpack the battle lines with Yair Ettinger of Kan News, one of the clearest voices on the Haredi world and it...
Army and politicians at war - and Inside Trump’s mind with Barak Ravid
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Tensions at the top of Israel’s security establishment escalate, as a public rift between the chief of staff and the defence minister deepens — raising questions about leadership and accountability in a time of war. Yonit and Jonathan break down what this clash reveals about Israel’s security apparatus. In New York, protests outside a synagogue leave local Jews unsettled and anxious about the city’s new mayor.
Plus: Barak Ravid, one of Washington’s most connected reporters and a leading interpreter of Donald Trump’s pol...
Arms Deals, UN Decisions and Israel’s Press Under Threat - with Alex Edelman live from NYC
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After Donald Trump warmly welcomed Mohammed bin Salman to the White House, Yonit and Jonathan explore what enhanced US military sales to the kingdom mean for Israel’s security - and how the changing relationship between Washington and Riyadh is reshaping Israeli politics. They examine the UN Security Council’s adoption of Trump’s Gaza plan, the fragile ceasefire on the ground and the growing threats facing journa...
Exclusive: Listen to "The Traitors Circle" - Author’s Note and Prologue
Get an exclusive peek into Jonathan’s new book, The Traitors Circle, including the Author’s Note and Prologue.
You can order your copy here: https://linktr.ee/JonathanFreedland
Berlin, 1943: A group of high society anti-Nazi dissenters meet for a tea party one late summer’s afternoon. They do not know that, sitting around the table, is someone poised to betray them all to the Gestapo.
They form a circle of unlikely rebels, drawn from the German elite: two countesses, a diplomat, an intelligence officer, an ambassador’s widow and a pioneerin...
Power, Press and Pardons - with special guests Yonit Levi and Bianna Golodryga
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Donald Trump is pressing for a pardon for Benjamin Netanyahu, injecting fresh volatility into an already fraught political moment. In Israel, arguments over the scope and timing of a commission of inquiry continue to intensify, while between London and Washington the scandal over alleged BBC bias gathers pace. All this comes as the Israeli defence minister moves to shut down Galei Zahal, the army-run radio station that has been broadcasting since 1950.
Exclusive: Listen to "Don't Feed the Lion", Chapter #1
Exclusive for Unholy listeners:
Listen to the first chapter of Don’t Feed the Lion, Yonit’s new book co-written with CNN’s Bianna Golodryga.
Get your copy here: https://amzn.to/3JH4iwe
Annie and Theo Kaplan have a family ritual: every Friday night, they celebrate Shabbat with their lively immigrant grandparents. But this Shabbat — which also happens to be Annie’s eleventh birthday — isn’t like the others. Thirteen-year-old Theo’s soccer hero, Wes Mitchell, has posted an antisemitic message that quickly goes viral, leaving his parents disgusted, his sister enraged, and Theo himself...
Mamdani Takes NYC and the Scandal of Israel's Chief Military Advocate - with Yair Rosenberg and Amos Harel
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A seismic week on both sides of the Atlantic: in New York, Zohran Mamdani was elected the city’s next mayor — a result that’s caused unease in parts of the city's Jewish community and beyond. Yonit and Jonathan are joined by The Atlantic’s Yair Rosenberg to unpack the reaction and what this political shift could mean...
Unholy Live NYC - A conversation with Hillary Rodham Clinton and Dr. Keren Yarhi-Milo
Watch us on Youtube: https://youtu.be/PdPskPBd_78
Unholy Live arrived in New York City on October 29th for a special evening featuring former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Dr. Keren Yarhi Milo the Dean of the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University. Yonit and Jonathan delved into the current political landscape of the Democratic Party, Donald Trump and Netanyahu, the ongoing protests at Columbia University against Israel, the upcoming mayoral election in New York City, and the significant role of Zohran Mamdani in shaping the city’s future. They also discussed th...
