Day 668 - After Witkoff tours Gaza, Trump repeats there's no genocide

The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

The Times of Israel

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4.4 • 864 Ratings

🗓️ 4 August 2025

⏱️ 24 minutes

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Summary

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.

US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

A record 3,500-plus Jewish pilgrims were said to visit the Temple Mount over the course of the Tisha B’Av fast day. Among them was far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who led a group of Jewish worshipers in prayer. It was the first time that a government minister was recorded overtly worshipped at the flashpoint site in violation of the status quo. What has been the response so far?

US special envoy Steve Witkoff was finally deployed to the Mideast this past weekend. We hear an update on the current stalemate in the hostage release-ceasefire negotiations and discuss what Witkoff and US Ambassador Mike Huckabee tweeted after entering the Gaza Strip on Friday to tour one of the joint US-Israel humanitarian distribution sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. We also hear how US President Donald Trump currently views the situation on the ground in Gaza.

And finally, Magid relays portions of conversations held recently with three men living in different parts of Gaza about how they daily face life-threatening danger to find food for their families.

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

For further reading:

In first, Ben Gvir openly leads prayers on Temple Mount, in violation of status quo

Witkoff, Huckabee tour Gaza, assess humanitarian situation, to help Trump craft aid plan

PM said seeking ‘decisive military victory’ in Gaza, putting hostage families on edge

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

IMAGE: US special envoy Steve Witkoff (2nd left) and US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee (3rd left) tour a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation distribution site on August 1, 2025. (Mike Huckabee/X)

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Times of Israel's daily briefing.
0:06.4	Today is Monday, August 4th, Day 668 of the war.
0:11.6	Amanda Borchelle, Dan, here with our U.S. Bureau Chief Jacob Magid.
0:15.2	Hi, Jacob.
0:15.9	Thanks for joining me for another one of our late night for you, early morning for me talks.
0:22.3	They're always a pleasure. Hi, man. They're good to be with you again.
0:25.1	Such a pleasure. Now, even as National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvier,
0:30.5	controversially preyed on the Temple Mount yesterday for a Tishabaab. Israel's leadership is expected
0:37.4	to decide this week whether to widen
0:40.3	military operations in Gaza, even at the risk to the hostages, or to give more time for a potential
0:48.3	deal. So Jacob will fill us in on the results of U.S. Special Envoy Steve Whitkoff's trip to the region over the weekend and where things stand.
0:58.2	Whitkoff and U.S. ambassador, Mike Hacobie, entered the Gaza Strip on Friday to assess for themselves the humanitarian aid situation there.
1:07.2	So we'll hear what were their impressions, and Jacob also recently spoke with some
1:12.8	Gazans to get their take. We'll hear if they match. All of this and more when we're back.
1:25.3	In the wake of attacks against the Jewish community in Washington, D.C. and Boulder, Colorado,
1:30.3	the security environment for Jews in North America is more alarming than ever.
1:34.3	Jewish federations have long played a critical role in securing our community.
1:38.3	They advocated for the creation of the nonprofit security grant program in the wake of 9-11,
1:42.3	helped create the secure community network, and launched Live Secure, the $130 million initiative to ensure that every community has a
1:49.4	professional security program to help every Jewish institution secure itself. So what are we doing now?
1:55.2	On the latest episode of The Glue, with Jewish Federations of North America president and CEO Eric
2:00.2	Fingerhut, we hear from the
	...

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