PM Bennett breaks Shabbat for peace & ToI prays in tense Lviv

Welcome to The Times of Israel’s Daily Briefing, your 15-minute audio update on what’s happening in Israel, the Middle East, and the Jewish world, from Sunday through Thursday. Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman joins us from Lviv, along with The Times of Israel Editor David Horovitz and host Amanda Borschel-Dan. Berman, as a religiously observant journalist, shares his experiences attending services in Lviv for Rosh Hodesh (the new month) and Shabbat. He explains how the Jewish community is now a sanctuary for Jews and non-Jews seeking refuge. Late last week, Berman visited Lviv's National Art Gallery, Ukraine’s leading art museum, which is now being used as a volunteer center for distributing medical supplies. We’ll hear a clip of a conversation he had with Mark Fetsych, head of oncology at a local hospital before the invasion. Berman also spoke with the governor of the Lviv region, Maksym Kozytskyy. He is a civilian with no military experience but is now in charge of his region’s defenses. We hear about a very specific request he has for Israel. Finally, Horovitz appraises our listeners of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's past few days of travel -- to Moscow and Berlin -- and other conversations he is having with world leaders including France's Emanuel Macron and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky. Israel is now in the spotlight as a potential peacemaker, but is that actually a good spot for the Jewish state to be in? Discussed articles include: Live Blog March 6, 200 Ukraine’s leading art museum transforms into busy volunteer hub We need air defenses from Israel, not goodwill statements, Lviv commander tells ToI With trip to Kremlin, Bennett flies Israel into the eye of the Russia-Ukraine storm Zelensky aide says purpose of Bennett’s trip to meet Putin is unclear to Kyiv Bennett returns to Israel after whirlwind trip to meet Putin, Germany’s Scholz Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on iTunes, Spotify, PlayerFM, Google Play, or wherever you get your podcasts. IMAGE: Tsori Gilod Synagogue (also known as Beis Aharon V'Israel Synagogue) in Lviv, Ukraine, March 4, 2022. (Lazar Berman/Times of Israel) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.