State of Tel Aviv, Israel Podcast Vivian Bercovici

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Never a slow week in these parts. This week the focus was, yet again, on Rafah, the city in the southern Gaza Strip that PM Netanyahu is adamant must be attacked in order to destroy Hamas as a military force and power that can ever dream of repeating October 7th. The Biden administration is vigorously opposed to this operation, to the point that it has …

The only thing that Israelis are focused on is ending this agony. From October 8th I have been a broken record. Until the fate of the hostages is settled, for better or worse, israel is stuck on October 7th. This country cannot move ahead without closure, which is, agonizingly, always just a wee bit out of reach. We know that hostages are dying in captivity. They are kept in horrific conditions. Will Hamas release the hostages? We discuss the only thing that matters to most Israelis.
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Carmel Gat, 39 and held in Hamas captivity since October 7th, is part of a big, loving family with deep roots on Kibbutz Be’eri. Her younger cousin, Shay Dickmann, spoke with State of Tel Aviv one week ago, on the morning after the Passover seder. Her extended family has suffered terribly for almost seven months and they continue to grieve. For her murdered grandmother and for Carmel. Imprisoned. Shay tells us about the Kibbutz Be’eri seder in Hostage Square, Tel Aviv, which her family attended this year. So many empty chairs. So much despair and, still, so much hope. In today’s short podcast we focus on the seder night and, of course, the morning after. In a few days we will have a lengthier podcast about the dark journey this family has been on and that we all hope comes to as happy an ending as possible. As soon as possible.
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This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

In my weekly chat with Ya’akov Katz we focus on the hostages. That’s pretty much the main and only thing on everyone’s mind. This focus was heightened and manipulated masterfully by Hamas during the Passover holiday by the release of two separate videos of Israeli men still in captivity. Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Keith Siegel and Omri Miran, all appeared to be in reasonable physical condition. But, who knows. Hersh lifted the stump of his left arm, having had his dominant hand blown off by a grenade below the elbow. They spoke about how much they missed their loved ones and just want to come home. The whole country wants them home. This war? We were told that it would accomplish two things: destroy Hamas’ military capability and return the hostages. Sadly, it has done neither one. It is time to bring them home. Take a pause. And restore some sanity and accountability to this country.
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This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

In Part II of this podcast of my interview with Columbia University Professor Shai Davidai on April 5th, we discuss the similarities between the reluctance of German and Austrian Jews to see the looming crisis almost one hundred years ago and the same tendencies among American and Canadian Jews today. Davidai discusses the ongoing investigation into his conduct that has been launched by the Columbia University administration. He sees it as being little more than an effort to intimidate him into silence. Meanwhile, Columbia has literally become a battleground in recent days. The crisis shows no signs of subsiding. That Columbia leadership has taken such a daft and irresponsible approach to such extreme antisemitism is as disturbing as the Jew hatred itself. But – we do end on a somewhat positive note, with Davidai encouraging everyone to step up so we can save ourselves. “We invented Superman!” he exults. “We can save ourselves!”
State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Shai Davidai is an Israeli Professor at Columbia Business School. He moved to the United States in 2010 to pursue a PhD in Social Psychology from Cornell University and has worked at Princeton University and The New School for Social Research. Ever since October 7, Shai has been devoting his time and energy to battle support for terrorism and the rise in antisemitism at Columbia University and colleges all across the country.


This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

On April 5th State of Tel Aviv spoke at length with Columbia University Professor Shai Davidai about his overnight evolution from low-key academic to high profile activist. The catalyst? The October 7th Hamas massacre in southern Israel which galvanized extreme Islamist sympathizers and hard left “progressives.” Literally overnight, Jews and Israel were vilified on campuses, in media, in massive street protests throughout North America and Europe. Davidai was horrified by what he saw happening on the Columbia University campus and began to speak out and speak up. In this episode we go back to October 7th and get into the university administration’s abdication of responsibility to its community and why and how Shai Davidai became the reluctant activist with a national profile. We also dive into the very dramatic events that have occurred on Columbia’s campus since October 7th, climaxing in anarchy this past week.
State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.


Shai Davidai is an Israeli Professor at Columbia Business School. He moved to the United States in 2010 to pursue a PhD in Social Psychology from Cornell University and has worked at Princeton University and The New School for Social Research. Ever since October 7, Shai has been devoting his time and energy to battle support for terrorism and the rise in antisemitism at Columbia University and colleges all across the country.


This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe