
Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2026-03-16 at 17:02
About this episode
IAF Smashes IRGC Naval HQ
Leaked Audio Mojtaba Khamenei Survives Tehran Strike
US Reopens Direct Channel With Iran
The time is now 5:02 PM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.
In Operation Lion's Roar, the IAF dismantled last week the IRGC Naval Headquarters used by senior naval commanders to manage operations and advance international maritime terrorist activities. The IRGC Navy is responsible for terror attacks on civilian vessels and for arming proxy terrorist groups by transferring weapons by sea.
In Direct Israel-Iran Clashes, a leaked audio recording describes Mojtaba Khamenei escaping death by moments in the February 28 strike on Tehran’s leadership compound, having stepped outside shortly before missiles hit; the account says he suffered a leg injury while his wife Zahra Haddad-Adel and their son were killed instantly, and it places the strike at about 9:32 a.m. local time, with the recording attributed to the office’s head of protocol. Separately, footage circulating online shows IDF soldiers in Tel Aviv cheering as an Iranian ballistic missile was intercepted overhead. Sirens sounded across central Israel during a missile attack from Iran, and the intercept was reported as successful with no injuries. There are reports of attacks now in Tehran.
In Regional Impacts, officials in Australia, France, and Japan said they currently have no plans to send warships to escort vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
In the Conflict with Iran and its Regional Proxies, MK Avigdor Liberman says Israel is mismanaging the war and missing a chance to end Hezbollah and topple the Iranian regime, calling for decisive military and diplomatic action. He outlines two objectives: the overthrow of the regime in Iran and the complete elimination of Hezbollah, arguing a Lebanon ground operation could not be avoided and urging a combined military and diplomatic approach. A senior Iran-backed Iraqi militia member, Haj Abu Ali al-Askari, was killed, and KH confirmed his martyrdom; he frequently criticized the US and Israel, and he served as a link between fighters on the ground and the group’s media platforms. Following the death announcement, Katyusha rockets were launched toward the US Embassy in Baghdad and drones were sent into the Green Zone, with Abu Mujahid al-Assaf set to take over as spokesperson.
In US Policy Concerning Israel, Iran and the US have been in direct contact in recent days, with a direct channel between a US envoy and Iran’s foreign minister reportedly reactivated. It is not clear how substantive the messages have been, and this marks the first known direct contact since the war began; Iranian officials are said to have sent text messages, while the US has said Washington is not talking to Tehran.
In Israeli Domestic Politics, ex-defense officials say the West Bank chief is failing to stop Jewish violence; Commanders for Israel's Security sent a letter to IDF Central Commander Major-General Avi Bluth warning of a rise in deadly Jewish violence against Palestinians and urging stronger action, arguing the issue risks national security and Israel’s diplomatic stature. The group notes prior meetings with Bluth and former leadership figures and calls for concrete measures to prevent and address the violence.
In Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, one in five UK university students would not have a Jewish roommate, a Union of Jewish Students poll finds, highlighting rising antisemitism in British higher education. The Time for Change survey reports that 23% have seen behavior targeting Jewish students, 26% say friendships with Jewish students have become more distanced or strained, and 36% of respondents at Russell Group universities report such dynamics. An Exeter University student recounted an incident at a party where a peer told others not to be friends with the student because they are Zionist, underscoring the challenges Jewish students face on campus.
Thank you for tuning in to this Israel Today: Ongoing War Report update.
I'm Noa Levi. Stay safe and informed.
Keep in mind that this AI-generated report may contain occasional inaccuracies, so consult multiple sources for a comprehensive view. Find the code and more details in the podcast description.
SOURCES
https://t.me/JewishNews24/51343
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-890173
https://t.me/JewishNews24/51346
https://t.me/selena_updates/58568
https://t.me/beholdisraelchannel/72849
https://worldisraelnews.com/european-allies-reject-trumps-call-to-help-protect-shipping-in-strait-of-hormuz/
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-890174
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-890170
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-890175
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-890171
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-890177
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Israel Today: Ongoing War Report — Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2026-03-16 at 17:02. Machine-transcribed; use the interactive transcript above to jump the player to any line.
President Barack Obama. Virginia, we are counting on you. Republicans want to steal enough seats in Congress to raid the next election and wield unchecked power for two more years. But you can stop them by voting yes by April 21st. Help put our elections back on a level playing field and let voters decide not politicians. Vote yes by April 21st. Paid for by Virginians for fair elections. The time is now 5.02 pm in New York. I'm Noah Levi and this is the latest Israel today, ongoing war report. In Operation Lions Raw, the IAF dismantled last week the IRGC naval headquarters used by senior naval commanders to manage operations and advance international maritime terrorist activities. The IRGC Navy is responsible for terror attacks on civilian vessels and for arming proxy terrorist
groups by transferring weapons by sea. In direct Israel-Iran clashes, a leaked audio recording describes Magetaba-Carmenay escaping death by moments in the February 28 strike on Terran's leadership compound, having stepped outside shortly before missiles hit. The account says he suffered a leg injury while his wife Zara had had a dull and their son were killed instantly. And it places the strike at about 9.32 pm local time, with the recording attributed to the office's head of protocol. Separately footage circulating online shows IDF soldiers in Tel Aviv cheering as an Iranian ballistic missile was intercepted overhead. Sirens sounded across central Israel during a missile attack from Iran and the intercept was reported as successful with no injuries. There are reports of attacks now in Terran. In regional impacts, officials in Australia, France and Japan said they currently have no plans to send warships to escort vessels passing through the strait of hormones. In the conflict with Iran and its regional proxies, MK Avigdor Libamans says Israel is mismanaging the war and
missing a chance to end Hezbollah and topple the Iranian regime, calling for decisive military and diplomatic action. He outlines two objectives. The overthrow of the regime in Iran and the complete elimination of Hezbollah, arguing a Lebanon ground operation, could not be avoided and urging a combined military and diplomatic approach. A senior Iran-backed Iraqi militia member Haj Abu Ali Alaskari was killed and KH confirmed his martyrdom. He frequently criticized the U.S. and Israel and he served as a link between fighters on the ground and the group's media platforms. Following the death announcement, Katusha rockets were launched toward the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and drones were sent into the green zone, with Abu Mujahid Al-Assaf set to take over as spokesperson. In U.S. policy concerning Israel, Iran and the U.S. have been in direct contact in recent days. With a direct channel between a U.S. envoy and Iran's foreign minister, reportedly reactivated. It is not clear how substantive the messages have been,
and this marks the first known direct contact since the war began. Iranian officials are said to have sent text messages, while the U.S. has said Washington is not talking to Tehran. In Israeli domestic politics, ex-defense officials say the West Bank chief is failing to stop Jewish violence. Commanders for Israel's security sent a letter to IDF Central, commander Major General Avi Bluth warning, of a rise in deadly Jewish violence against Palestinians and urging stronger action. Arguing the issue risks national security and Israel's diplomatic stature, the group notes prior meetings with Bluth and former leadership figures and calls for concrete measures to prevent and address the violence. In antisemitism and anti-Jewish hate, one in five UK university students would not have a Jewish roommate, a union of Jewish students' poll fines, highlighting rising antisemitism in British higher education. The time for change survey reports that 23% have seen behavior targeting Jewish students. 26% say friendships with Jewish students have become more distanced or strained,
and 36% of respondents at Russell Group Universities report such dynamics. An Exeter University student recounted an incident at a party where a peer told others not to be friends with the student because they are Zionist, underscoring the challenges Jewish students face on campus. Thank you for tuning into this Israel today, ongoing war report update. I'm Noah Levi, stay safe and informed. Keep in mind that this AI-generated report may contain occasional inaccuracies, so consult multiple sources for a comprehensive view. Find the code and more details in the podcast description. President Barack Obama Virginia, we are counting on you. Republicans want to steal enough seats in Congress to raid the next election and wield unchecked power for two more years, but you can stop them. By voting yes, by April 21st. Help put our elections back on a level playing field and let voters
decide not politicians. Vote yes, by April 21st. Paid for by Virginians for fair elections. Hi, this is Alex Cantrowitz. I'm the host of Big Technology podcast, a longtime reporter and an on-air contributor to CNBC. And if you're like me, you're trying to figure out how artificial intelligence is changing the business world and our lives. So each week on Big Technology, I bring on key actors from companies building AI tech and outsiders trying to influence it, asking where this is all going to come from places like Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon, and plenty more. So if you want to be smart with your wallet, your career choices, and meetings with your colleagues and at dinner parties, listen to Big Technology podcast wherever you get your podcasts.
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