Pay-to-slay is here to stay?

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.

US President Donald Trump says the US will be pausing the operation Project Freedom that it launched on Monday to assist vessels stuck in the Strait of Hormuz due to progress made in talks toward a permanent ceasefire with Iran. Magid parses Trump's Truth Social post announcement and updates us on statements made earlier in the day by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

The US-led Board of Peace, the newly formed body tasked with overseeing the postwar management of Gaza, does not intend to hold Israel to the terms of the October 2025 Gaza ceasefire if Hamas does not accept the international panel’s framework for the terror group’s disarmament, a document obtained by Magid shows. We hear the potential implications of this new approach.

And finally, we turn to a new report on a recurring issue: The US State Department informed Congress last month that the Palestinian Authority has not ceased making payments to the families of security prisoners and slain attackers, despite reforming, and ostensibly ending, its system of cash transfers awarded in accordance with the amount of time served behind Israeli bars. Magid unravels this knotty issue.

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

For further reading:

Iran threatens Hormuz shipping, as Trump said to shelve strikes amid diplomacy

Iran ceasefire ‘not over,’ US ‘not looking for a fight,’ Hegseth says after Tehran fires on Gulf

Draft UN resolution threatens sanctions on Iran unless it opens Strait of Hormuz

Board of Peace won’t hold Israel to truce terms if Hamas doesn’t okay disarmament offer

US says PA continuing to pay security prisoners despite reformed welfare criteria

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

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