Trump plays chicken with Iran over Strait of Hormuz
The Times of Israel Daily Briefing
The Times of Israel
4.5 • 1.1K Ratings
🗓️ 13 April 2026
⏱️ 24 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
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.
Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
The IDF is reportedly gearing up for renewed conflict with Iran as the ceasefire talks between the United States and the Islamic Republic collapsed over the weekend and US President Donald Trump issued an ultimatum that Iran open the Strait of Hormuz by 5 p.m. Israel time today.
Berman tells us where things stand now and takes us through some possible scenarios for the near, and farther future. We hear how China has responded to the war so far and whether the Gulf States are keen for it to restart.
We turn to the planned Lebanon talks set for Washington, DC, on Tuesday. Can Lebanon really broker a deal to rein in the Iranian terror proxy Hezbollah?
And finally, in a major shift in European politics, long-time leader Viktor Orban conceded defeat on Sunday after a landslide election victory by the upstart opposition Tisza party. What could this mean for the country's relationship with Israel -- and the European Union's stance on the Jewish state.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
After talks fail, IDF planning for return to war, Trump mulls strikes on Iran — reports
Trump declares US Navy to begin blockading Strait of Hormuz ‘effective immediately’
Post-Orban Hungary would not expose Israel to more EU pain, though support may ebb
After 16 years in power, Hungary’s Orban concedes defeat to center-right opposition
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yitzhak Ledee filmed and edited this episode.
IMAGE: An anti-US billboard depicting American aircraft caught in a fishing net with signs that read in Farsi: 'The Strait of Hormuz will remain closed, The entire Persian Gulf is our hunting ground,' at the Eqelab-e-Eslami, or Islamic Revolution square in downtown Tehran, Iran, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the Times of Israel's daily briefing. |
| 0:06.6 | Today is Monday, April 13th. |
| 0:08.5 | I'm Amanda Borsel, Dan, here in our Jerusalem studio with diplomatic correspondent, Laser Bearman. |
| 0:13.7 | Laser, thank you so much for joining me today. |
| 0:15.4 | Happy to be here, as always. |
| 0:16.9 | It's always a pleasure to host you as well. |
| 0:19.6 | We are currently in a fragile ceasefire in which we are in a period between talks. |
| 0:25.7 | Yesterday, the high-level talks in Pakistan fell apart. |
| 0:29.5 | And we're looking forward to tomorrow's talks in which Lebanon and Hezbollah are on the table. |
| 0:36.4 | So, Laser will take us through these two sets of talks |
| 0:39.1 | and what we could expect from each one. And then at the end of the program, we're going to |
| 0:43.8 | take a look at the stunning defeat of Hungary's longtime leader, Victor Orban. All of this and more, |
| 0:50.8 | when we're back. |
| 0:55.5 | This episode is brought to you by Jewish Communal Fund, |
| 0:58.9 | the preferred donor-advised fund of the Jewish community for over 50 years. |
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