S4 E10. Iran: Death Throes or Digging In?

Melissa Lantsman is the Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and a Member of Parliament for the riding of Thornhill, just north of the city of Toronto. She is a fierce and tireless activist for her constituents, many of whom are Jewish as well as Iranian Canadians. I spoke with her days after multiple Toronto area synagogues were attacked with gunfire. One of the synagogues was in her riding.She is outraged by the apparent disinterest of Prime Minister Mark Carney and his government regarding the extreme and worsening threats in Canada targeting Jews and Iranians in particular. As we discuss in this podcast, Canada has become a haven for IRGC operatives who are very active in their new country. And then there is the thriving and growing population of Islamists who target Jewish institutions, neighborhoods, schools and business with violence and harassment. This has been unceasing since October 7. Many police forces (like Toronto’s) do nothing meaningful to deal with this threat. In fact - they tend to encourage the violence through inaction. Same for the federal government and most - but not all - municipal and provincial governments. Lantsman is always sharp and articulate. In this podcast - she let her fury out. And it’s high time that PM Carney paid attention to this madness proliferating on his watch. Show your support for STLV at buymeacoffee.com/stateoftelavivPodcast NotesMelissa Lantsman is the Member of Parliament for Thornhill and Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. Elected in 2021, she previously served as the Shadow Minister for Transport and as a Senior Advisor to leading Canadian political figures.Melissa believes in breaking the mold and in bringing new ideas and energy to Ottawa. She represents the next generation in Canadian politics.Born and raised in the community she now serves, Melissa was taught by her immigrant parents to work hard and to stand up for what’s right. Those are values that have guided her in all points of her life and career. Melissa is an award-winning communicator and was amongst Canada’s most sought-after public affairs executives. She has served on various boards of directors, was a regular TV commentator and hosted her own radio show. Her writing has been featured in Canada’s largest circulation publications.Melissa is not afraid to speak out for the things that matter, and she doesn’t back down from holding the government to account.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

The Hon. Pierre Poilievre, leader of the Canadian Conservative Party and the Official Parliamentary Opposition, popped into Austin, Texas and had the Joe Rogan experience. I cannot wait to hear that episode and reliable sources say that it will be out before the weekend. In the meantime, I thought I’d whet your appetite with this classic Poilievre moment - when he spoke with State of Tel Aviv and Beyond on Thursday March 12, just days after three Toronto area synagogues had been shot up with gunfire in middle-of-the-night attacks. The day before Pierre and I spoke, the U.S. Consulate in Toronto was also shot up. Again, in the middle of the night. Canada has become a lawless country, generally.But for Jews? It’s surreal. Antisemitism is violent and rampant and neither the federal, provincial, or municipal governments seem terribly concerned about it - with very few exceptions. Law enforcement? Nowhere to be seen. They do nothing. This has been going on since October 7. And it is getting worse by the day. Pierre Poilievre has always been clear, consistent and fearless in articulating his strong support for Israel and he has stood by the Jewish community in Canada unfailingly. In this conversation he does what he does best: speaks the truth and calls out those in power for forsaking the Canadian Jewish community. We discuss these issues and more - including the surreal fact that IRGC operatives live and conduct “business” in Canada openly. As I often post on my “X” account, Canada has become an Islamist’s paradise. Meaning - it has also become somewhat hellish for Jews. Pierre and I had a really informative and meaningful discussion. And if you watch to the end I serve up a real treat……the famous “apple video” that went viral in October 2023. Remember? When Pierre was asked questions by a very befuddled reporter. And as he casually munched on his apple in the orchard, well, it’s classic Pierre Poilievre.Show your support for STLV at buymeacoffee.com/stateoftelavivPodcast Notes: Pierre Poilievre grew up in Alberta as the adopted son of two schoolteachers. He lives in Ottawa with his wife Anaida and their children, Valentina and Cruz.As a Member of Parliament and former Minister, he helped the previous Conservative government cut taxes, balance budgets, deliver affordable homes and crack down on crime and corruption.He shepherded the Accountability Act through the House of Commons to protect taxpayers from waste, fraud and corruption. When he was Housing Minister, the average home cost $450,000 and the average one-bedroom rent was just $970. People could afford homes in safe neighbourhoods and good food on their table.As Vice-Chair of the Commons Finance Committee, he was the first major voice in Parliament to warn that massive money-printing deficits would lead to inflation, while Mark Carney wrongly predicted prices would go down. Pierre also led the charge against the carbon tax, toughening laws to fight crime, banning drugs and unlocking resources. Liberals who demonized him for these principled stands have now all agreed he was right and claim to agree with him.In the most recent election, he got more votes than any Conservative leader in our history, the largest share of votes since 1988, adding 2.5 million more votes and 25 more seats than the prior election, all with major gains among youth and working people.But he has only begun. After Liberals doubled housing costs, inflated food prices and unleashed crime on our streets, Pierre is fighting back. His purpose is a Canada with strong take-home pay, safe streets and secure borders in a self-reliant country.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

On Sunday March 8, State of Tel Aviv and Beyond interviewed “Major G”, a 25-year veteran of the Israeli Air Force who has been working around the clock since Operation Roaring Lion was launched on February 28. Major G commands drone crews operating over Iran. Their mission is to identify the location of missile launchers and neutralize or destroy them. Working in very tight co-ordination with the U.S. Air Force, Israel has severely hindered Iranian launch capabilities and missile supply. I was unable to photograph Major G for security reasons, but we do show some videos and photographs in this podcast - some with audio and some are silent and playing during relevant parts of our conversation. Just a “head’s up” for those of you listening…..you may wish to have a peek at the video later.Please consider supporting our work. We are independent and rely on you, our viewers and listeners, to keep the lights on. In this very challenging period we have increased our content production in order to ensure that reliable and interesting information is being disseminated. If you can, please subscribe on our substack site or make a contribution - whatever you can or would like - at buymeacoffee.com/stateoftelavivThanks to all of you for stopping by.how your support for STLV at buymeacoffee.com/stateoftelavivState of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

Perhaps the biggest surprise of this war with Iran is how viciously the country is attacking its Arab neighbors. The UAE has been hammered, actually targeted with more missiles than were directed at Israel. Senior FDD fellow and regular State of Tel Aviv and Beyond guest, Lt. Col. (Res.) Jonathan Conricus gets into this bizarre development that no one anticipated. Initially, some pundits were assuming there was a brilliant Iranian plan behind these attacks. But as we discuss in this episode, it is now clear that Iran lashing out at its neighbors is the result of chaos in the government and military. We also zoom out to look at the broad waves of attacks on Iran by America and Israel and what they have accomplished; what remains to be done. If the murderous regime in Iran falls the geopolitical fallout will be huge; the most extensive and far reaching since WWII. We also take a hard look at the conduct of unprincipled western leadership - like that of UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. Great video clips in this episode and some awesome retro photos from the 70s. Who remembers the OPEC oil embargo after the 1973 Arab Israeli war, also known as the Yom Kippur War? And, of course - we discuss the very real possibility of boots on the ground in Iran. Whose boots?Show your support for STLV at buymeacoffee.com/stateoftelavivPodcast Notes:* Link to FDD report on Iran’s Ballistic Missile Program, referred to in the podcast by Jonathan Conricus.* IDF video released on International Women’s Day highlighting the extraordinary contribution of women in the Israeli Air Force, referred to in the podcast by Jonathan Conricus.Jonathan Conricus is a senior fellow with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington D.C.-based think tank. He served in the IDF for 24 years, four of them as spokesman during the intense 11 days of the Guardian of the Walls Operation between Israel and Hamas. Now a reserve officer with the rank of Lt. Col., he is a sought-after speaker internationally and is frequently seen on major television news shows. Jonathan was born in Jerusalem to a Swedish father and an Israeli mother and spent his formative years in Sweden.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

On Thursday I spoke with Andrew Fox, military veteran, scholar, man of diverse and deep expertise. I wanted to zoom out a bit from the focus on the Israel-Iran aspect of the war and place it in a larger context, where it rightly belongs. America is leading this war effort for many reasons. One is to put an end to Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Also - America is seizing an opportunity to quell China’s long-term planning towards global economic dominance. Andrew and I get into it all and at the end, just for kicks, we discuss the astonishingly vapid leadership prevailing in this critical moment in certain western countries. Guess which ones? Yup! PM Sir Keir Starmer of the U.K. and Canada’s feckless Prime Minister, Mark Carney. It has become impossible to keep up with their rudderless principles and statements. Shocking, really.We include great video clips and I’m so proud of my team. We’re closing out the first week of the war and managed to put out a full AV podcast. This is it - until today it was just audio. So much quicker and easier.We have really gone flat out this week - in spite of sirens and missiles - to bring you current information about the real, in-the-moment experience in Israel. Please consider supporting our work with a paid subscription here or, perhaps, a contribution to Buy Me a Coffee.Podcast NotesAndrew Fox is a former British Army Major and frontline conflict researcher specialising in modern warfare. A former senior lecturer at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, he is now a senior associate fellow at several international think tanks and a regular media commentator on global conflicts. He writes the Fox on War Substack and co-hosts The Brink podcast, bringing field reporting and strategic analysis from conflicts including Gaza and Ukraine.State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

We had hoped to drop this yesterday but wartime exigencies got in the way. The message is just as relevant today - the holiday of Purim was on Tuesday, March 3. It commemorates a miracle - when the Jews in ancient Persia were ordered by a King’s decree to be murdered. Every last one. And yet, by a series of coincidences, they were spared. That was thousands of years ago. Since that time Jews have faced many tyrants who were determined to end their existence. The most recent and current one was Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He led a regime obsessed with destroying Israel and Jews. The historical arc is fascinating. And real. The decree in ancient Persia was real. Hitler was real. And Khamenei - until a few days ago - was real.I thought we’d take a breather from missiles and bomb shelters and reflect on the historical arc into which this wild war fits. Neatly.I spoke with two fabulous rabbis: my old friend from London, Ontario, Ephraim Shore.....and a new friend from Boston, Mass., Rabbi Bill Hamilton. An interesting and very pertinent podcast.Tomorrow we will be back with more hardcore straight up war-talk.We are going flat out. If you have not done so already please consider supporting us with a paid subscription - either on our website or at Buy me a Coffee. It makes a huge difference….allowing us to continue our work and, even more so, knowing that you appreciate what we do. State of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Our guests today:Rabbi Ephraim Shore/Tour Guide Extraordinaire:Insta: @ephraimshore Rabbi William G. Hamilton has led Kehillath Israel since 1995. He strives to activate Torah in the service of meaningful living – nourishing growth, solacing grief, and deepening joy.Empowering learners is at the heart of his leadership approach. Lay-leaders, Jews-by-choice, and rabbinic interns, all take responsibility for creating community and celebrating Judaism. A commitment to inclusion is also central to Rabbi Hamilton. His deep involvement with the Ruderman Foundation’s work for disability inclusion alongside his Board leadership with New England Yachad, complements a principled commitment to gender, ideological, and diversified practice inclusion at KI.Rabbi Hamilton’s vision for partnership practice now shapes a new century at Kehillath Israel. Establishing a campus that hosts five prayer-communities and several other agencies under his leadership has made KI the subject of a Harvard Business School Case-Study. His impact and influence are strengthened by exceptionally strong engagement with Israel. As a founder of The David Project (Campus advocacy) and the New England Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces, Rabbi Hamilton regularly brings groups on specialized tours of Israel. He sees resourcing Israel as essential to deepening Jewish commitments and furnishing richer inner-lives.His leadership in civic settings also distinguishes his voice throughout our region. For twenty years he has served as Chaplain of the Massachusetts State Police, on the Board of ADL, and on Harvard University’s Board of Ministry.He enjoys playing sports and rooting for local teams. His wife, Debbie Block, an accomplished historian and educator, gathered, produced and edited Kehillath Israel: The First 100 Years. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

Map showing one of many waves of missile attacks overnight in Israel:I’m back today with the amazing Ya’akov Katz, a regular commentator on State of Tel Aviv and Beyond. We get into life in wartime, and then cover the key events of the last 24 hours: Hezballah attacks Israel and opens the northern front; Iran continues to slam Israel hard with waves of ballistic missiles; Iran also attacks most countries in the region - which has many scratching their heads. Iranian missile slams into a shelter in Israel; the first mass casualty event. Are our shelters adequate? How long will this go on? Give it a listen.We are making every effort to put out an audio only pod every day during this period. The focus is on getting the information out. Not quality of production. Adn for that reason we are also not doing AV. For one thing, we’re all looking a little haggard. But it just takes more time to edit AV and time, in my view, is of the essence. Please consider supporting our work. State of Tel Aviv and Beyond is independent and we rely on you, our subscribers, to put gas in our tank.Especially at a time like this. We are going flat out. We will be publishing longer dispatches which will be available in full to premium subscribers only. You can either subscribe on our site - www.stateoftelaviv.com……just follow the prompts from the SUBSCRIBE tab.Or - make a contribution to Buy Me a Coffee……Yaakov Katz is an Israeli-American author and journalist. Between 2016 and 2023, Yaakov was editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post where he continues to write a popular weekly column.He is the author of three books: “Shadow Strike – Inside Israel’s Secret Mission to Eliminate Syrian Nuclear Power”, “Weapon Wizards—How Israel Became a High-Tech Military Superpower” and “Israel vs. Iran: The Shadow War.”Prior to taking up the role of editor-in-chief, Yaakov served for two years as a senior policy adviser to Naftali Bennett during his tenure as Israel’s Minister of Economy and Minister of Diaspora Affairs.In 2013, Yaakov was one of 12 international fellows to spend a year at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University.Originally from Chicago, Yaakov has a law degree from Bar Ilan University. He lives in Jerusalem with his wife Chaya and their four children.Find Yaakov Katz on X. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

Lightly edited video recording from an hour ago with Jonathan Conricus on developments in Israel and the Middle East. Have a listen. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.stateoftelaviv.comToday’s episode begins with an extraordinary interview that was aired recently on Iran International television. Vancouver-based journalist, Negar Mojtahedi, speaks with the father of a 17-year-old youth who was badly injured by the regime and then taken from his hospital bed to be executed. The story is surreal but is one of tens of thousands. Many Ira…

I’d like to begin by thanking Andrea Marcus, a dear friend and long-time supporter of State of Tel Aviv and Beyond, for sponsoring this episode. Andrea is a Toronto resident, proud Jewish woman and spectacularly talented artist. She is deeply troubled by what has been happening in Toronto and Canada since October 7, 2023.This episode was to have been published on Sunday December 14, 2025. And then the Bondi Beach Chanukah massacre happened. Hours later, a Chanukah candle lighting began in Toronto, Canada. What ensued was appalling. As Toronto police watched.....Part I of this mini-series dropped in early December and focused on the violent attack on an IDF reserve soldier on November 5 in downtown Toronto. Jonathan Karten. Nothing about that attack was surprising. Since October 7, Toronto has become one of the most hostile cities in the western world for Jewish life. All things Jewish are targeted regularly. And the response of the police? Well, that’s what we take a hard look at in today’s podcast. Why is Toronto such a cesspit of antisemitic violence? Incitement. Hatred. Why is it tolerated? I have lived and studied this disturbing situation since October 7, carefully, and the reality of Toronto - Canada - and beyond - must be seen. And seen clearly. I have sifted through many hours of video, photographs and media coverage in order to document the broad and specific observations made. Toronto Chief of Police Myron Demkiw declined an opportunity to be interviewed to discuss these rather pressing issues.And the political leadership in Canada? With very few exceptions, they are complicit. Municipally. Provincially. Federally.This episode has shifted shape since December 14. We do address aspects of the Karten assault on November 5, in particular the arrest of six individuals connected with that incident. But we spend more time zooming out to look at the bigger picture, to try to understand why Toronto has become such fertile ground for Jew hatred. Many of the incidents we discuss took place after the assault on Jonathan Karten on November 5. And after Bondi. In the podcast notes we include links to Episode I of this series, as well as two-part series on antisemitism in Toronto that I put out a year ago. Extreme antisemitism in Toronto? It’s neither new nor going to miraculously resolve. In th podcast notes, we set out other podcasts we have produced that are directly relevant to the issues raised in this episode, including Part 1 of this 2-part series.Certain archive material may be available to premium subcribers only. No time like the present to join the State of Tel Aviv and Beyond club!If you would like to inquire about sponsorship opportunities, please contact me directly. [email protected] your support for STLV at buymeacoffee.com/stateoftelavivPodcast NotesState of Tel Aviv is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscrib This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.stateoftelaviv.com/subscribe