Generation Jihad FDD's Long War Journal

Bill and Joe catch up on top Israel headlines, including this weekend’s attack by Hamas that killed four IDF soldiers and in which the Iron Dome was curiously not activated to intercept the rocket fire; the issues of humanitarian aid, pier, and port; the anticipated Rafah operation; the concept of a permanent ceasefire; the cycle of civilians being kidnapped and held hostage by armed Palestinian groups; reports of the U.S. withholding a shipment of military aid to Israel; an update on the eerily quiet West Bank; and Joe’s visit to his local “pro-Palestine protest.”

Bill is joined again by his FDD colleague and show regular David Daoud to unpack issues raised in David’s latest piece for The Wall Street Journal, “Hezbollah Stumbles Into a War of Attrition.” They also catch up on adjacent matters concerning Israel’s ground war in Gaza and the dumpster fire engulfing American "institutions of higher education.” 

Is anything more on-brand than seismic geopolitical events co-occurring with Bill’s family vacation? No.
Bill is back and leaning on co-host Joe Truzman to help him piece together the events of last week. He doesn’t want it to be “a what-the-hell-happened episode,” so we won’t call it that.
They revisit Iran’s historic strike on Israel and Israel’s retaliatory strike in Isfahan, Iran — including what targets they hit, what message they wanted to send by hitting them, and whether this was the right move. They contemplate whether Israel’s relatively tempered response is indicative of U.S. restraint and if Israel will continue to go after IRGC-QF targets.
They also discuss reports of an attack on an Iranian-backed militia outside of Baghdad as well as allegations of Hezbollah Brigade forces launching an attack on U.S. forces in Syria.

Another co-host takeover ("Freaky Friday edition"): Behnam is joined by his friend, former FDD colleague, and top expert on Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Ali Alfoneh, now with The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. They discuss this week's historic conflagration between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Israel.

In a special co-host takeover, Behnam and Joe discuss the Islamic Republic's unprecedented attack on Israel this weekend.

Bill is joined by LWJ’s Seth Frantzman just after the six-month mark of Israel’s defensive war in Gaza resulting from the October 7 attack by Hamas. They discuss Seth’s latest visit to border communities in Israel and whether there’s a realistic timeline for still-evacuated citizens to return, disturbing reports that Hamas has apparently lost track of which hostages are dead or alive, and Tehran’s possible response to Israel’s April 1 assassination of an IRGC-QF commander in Damascus as we enter day ~seven of bracing for an imminent Iranian attack against Israel within 24-48 hours.