Best Shmuel Rosner Podcasts (2025)

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Episode 21: Why won’t Haredim serve in the IDF? A deep dive with Shmuel Rosner 59:32

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6d ago59:32

59:32

Haredi Israelis make up some 13% of the population but have extremely low rates of workforce participation and military service. The growing welfare subsidies that sustain their communities have increasingly become a source of tensions and frustration for other Israelis, and the multi-front war that began on October 7 has now made their exemptions …

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Episode 24: With Iran down, Turkey steps into the breach - a conversation with Dr. Hay Eytan Cohen Yanarocak. 1:04:17

1d ago1:04:17

1:04:17

Turkey was the first Muslim country to recognize Israel. I was an ally and vital trading partner for decades -- until the rise of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, head of the Islamist AKP party, who began pursuing a "neo-Ottomanist" foreign policy of Turkish influence and expansionism in the region, and specifically identified Israel as a long-term ideologica…

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Episode 23: Iran bows out 46:12

1d ago46:12

46:12

There's now a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. Who won the war? And what happens now? We offer some preliminary conclusions as the dust settles. This episode is sponsored by the Peters family, Tom, Shevi, Daniel, Ethan, Arielle, Yoni and David, in honor of BeLev Echad, an organization devoted to helping wounded Israeli veterans recover physically…

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Episode 22: A new dawn in the Middle East? 47:18

4d ago47:18

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The United States has struck the Iranian nuclear program, marking a watershed moment for the region. It will take days to determine the scale of the damage and many years to understand the implications of President Trump’s decision. But a few things are already clear. A new relationship was established between the US and its ally Israel that define…

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Episode 20: Regime change in Iran? What the 1979 revolution can teach us. 35:44

10d ago35:44

35:44

Twenty-four people have been killed in Israel since the outbreak of the direct Israel-Iran war. The Air Force is busy hunting launchers inside Iran to constrain Iran's ability to fire missiles at Israeli cities. Parts of Tehran are being evacuated as Israel continues to hunt down the IRGC leadership and demolish the country's nuclear program. But e…

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Episode 19: Iran faces a humbler, more dangerous Israel 36:15

13d ago36:15

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The astonishing Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear program was the inevitable result of October 7, a day that convinced Israelis they do not actually understand their Islamist foes, cannot deter these foes and therefore cannot allow them to develop the capacity to destroy the Jewish state, no matter the cost. Israel woke up on October 7. Its enemies …

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Episode 18: Taking on the ayatollahs with Mark Dubowitz 54:21

14d ago54:21

54:21

The Trump administration has been trying to hammer out a deal to dismantle Iran's nuclear program. In the last 24 hours, the rhetoric has ratcheted up on both sides, as both Iranian and US officials have warned about impending military action. A week ago, we recorded a conversation with Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracie…

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Episode 17: The Gaza war began 25 years ago, a conversation with Matti Friedman 52:36

17d ago52:36

52:36

Last month marked the 25th anniversary of the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon after an 18-year guerrilla war that presaged everything we now think of as 21st-century warfare. I spoke to Matti Friedman, veteran of Lebanon and bestselling author of a memoir from that long war, Pumpkinflowers, about the history, the lessons drawn from it and how we're…

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Episode 16: Hamas and the broken promise of 150 years of Islamic reform 56:26

28d ago56:26

56:26

Hamas's rule in Gaza is a theocratic dictatorship. But its roots lie in the 19th-century movement for Islamic reform that believes modernization, science and even political liberalization. How did the great liberalizing theologians of the late 19th century, from Al-Afghani to Abduh to Rida, become Hamas? Join us for a story that raises the startlin…

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Episode 15: Jerusalem Day, a modern redemption story 20:01

1M ago20:01

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Jerusalem Day falls on May 25th this year. It is the day of Jerusalem's unification in the 1967 Six Day War, and so a symbol of both Jewish rescue from the genocidal plans of its enemies, a palpable experience of strength and redemption just two decades after Auschwitz, and also a symbol of the perils and moral problems of Jewish power, the day Isr…

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Episode 14: Should Israel give up on international law ? A conversation with a former IDF lawyer 48:09

1M ago48:09

48:09

If the requirements of international law mean that Israel is effectively prohibited from defeating its enemies or protecting its borders, should Israelis turn their backs on international law? Why do we need "law?" Isn't it enough to just do our best to be as moral as possible? After all, the institutions of international law seem so unfair to Isra…

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Episode 13: John Spencer on war, morality, politics and the fight for the future. 1:19:57

2M ago1:19:57

1:19:57

After a delay (Haviv got a bad flu), we're happy to share a great panel with Haviv and Prof. John Spencer that took place at the Woodbury Jewish Center in Woodbury, New York on May 7.Thank you to Rabbi Jason Fruithandler and Rob Dwek for hosting, and to the Malin family for sponsoring the speaker series this event was part of. Haviv and John talked…

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Episode 12: How Qatar gets a free pass for Islamist radicalism, a conversation with Dr. Jonathan Schanzer 1:02:06

2M ago1:02:06

1:02:06

Qatar has just 330,000 citizens but controls vast wealth due to its plentiful natural gas. It has used that wealth to support radical and violent terrorist groups and regimes throughout the Middle East and to wield enormous influence in the West, including among American politicians and universities.In today's episode, I asked Dr. Jonathan Schanzer…

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Episode 11: Iran is imploding - A conversation with Dr. Sharona Mazalian Levi 50:51

2M ago50:51

50:51

As the Trump administration tries to strike a deal curtailing Iran's nuclear program, I turned to Dr. Sharona Mazalian Levi, an Iran expert and proud Persian Jew, to try to take us past the headlines and political elites to the conditions and hopes of ordinary Iranians. Dr. Mazalian paints a dire picture. Desperate shortages of clean water, electri…

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Episode 10: Thirty years of traumatic peacemaking - what do Israelis really think? 1:02:38

2M ago1:02:38

1:02:38

Palestinian advocates like to quip that the current war "didn't begin on October 7." That's true, of course, though unhelpful. It didn't begin in any one specific place. There are no singular first causes in history. When we choose the beginning of the story, we choose its framing and meaning.For most Israeli Jews, the story of the current war migh…

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Bonus episode: This Passover, we find our freedom 16:43

3M ago16:43

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Passover is upon us, the seder is Saturday night.Freedom, the Sages teach, is not an end, it is a path; no mere escape from Pharaoh's tyranny but a becoming, filled with substance and responsibility and devotion; no one-off achievement but a ceaseless struggle to secure and deepen who and what we are.This bonus episode offers a few short thoughts t…

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Episode 9: Did Biden derail Saudi normalization? Breaking down the Abraham Accords with ex-NSC expert Shiri Fein 48:47

3M ago48:47

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The Abraham Accords have the potential to transform the Middle East. The very fact that they survived the Gaza war proves their resilience. Indeed, trade between Israel and its Abraham Accords partners has risen dramatically and stayed high through the war.And now the “kit” of dozens of agreements drafted between Israel and the UAE, from the overar…

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Episode 8: Prof. Alexander Yakobson on what it means to "decolonize Palestine" 52:49

3M ago52:49

52:49

Is Zionism colonialism? Are Jews an authentic people, or merely a religion? What about Palestinians? What are Zionism’s moral costs, and what are those of opposing Zionism? I asked one of my teachers, Hebrew University historian Prof. Alexander Yakobson, some of the great questions now being advanced in Western academic and progressive discourses a…

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Episode 7 - Judicial Reform: Is tribalism eating Israeli democracy alive? 57:25

3M ago57:25

57:25

What if everybody is right on judicial reform? Israel's highest court is immensely and unreasonably powerful. But if it is weakened, what other checks stand in the way of the tyranny of the majority, that great Achilles' heel of democracy since the dawn of Western civilization? This question is especially urgent for Israel, whose politics are more …

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Episode 6: Why won't Israel fight for the Democrats? With Rep. Ritchie Torres 40:34

3M ago40:34

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Abandoning the Democrats is a losing strategy for Israel, says Rep. Ritchie Torres, perhaps the most outspoken supporter of Israel in the US House of Representatives. The fight over Israel inside American politics is a proxy for a much larger battle over the future of the Democratic Party and the character of America, he argues. Those who don't lik…

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Extra Episode: Back to war in Gaza 25:00

3M ago25:00

25:00

Warfighting has resumed in Gaza. Israel's message is clear: Gaza's future depends on Hamas releasing hostages and surrendering its control of the territory. But there is a larger pivot underway, a regional strategic realignment. Hamas once hoped its attack on Israel would trigger a broader regional war. In a sense, it succeeded, relegating Gaza to …

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Episode 5: When your family is taken hostage 1:27:01

4M ago1:27:01

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This is a podcast about history, but also about this moment in history. Today's episode is a special one. Many of you asked about the hostages, about the activism of their families, about their shattering experiences on October 7 and how they have worked to piece their lives back together since. I can think of no better way to begin to answer these…

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Episode 4 - Last Jew Standing: The story of Israeli Jews 58:31

4M ago58:31

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Israeli Jews are the last surviving remnant of dozens of devastated Jewish communities across three continents. How did this history shape them? What do they understand about the world that few others see? Join Haviv Rettig Gur for a deep dive into the historical experience that shaped this largest community of Jews ever. Thank you to Joe and Shira…

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Episode 3: John Spencer on why Israel hasn't yet won the war in Gaza 54:21

4M ago54:21

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In our first interview episode, Haviv Rettig Gur sits down (virtually) with Prof. John Spencer of West Point, one of the foremost experts in urban warfare who has made a special study of Israeli warfighting tactics and strategy. Many subscribers to this podcast have asked us why Israel doesn’t seem to have won this war, why Hamas is still standing …

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Comment: We will protect our own 20:46

4M ago20:46

20:46

Recorded Thursday, February 20th Israelis watched horrified on Thursday, as Hamas gunmen conducted a ceremony handing over four coffins, two of them with the bodies of Kfir and Ariel Bibas, aged 1 and 4, when they were murdered in Gaza, along with their mother Shiri. Oded Lifshitz, 83, was the fourth body handed over to Israel. Around the ceremony,…

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Episode 2: The lost history of American Jews 43:49

4M ago43:49

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American Jews constitute the biggest, wealthiest, most influential and safest Jewish diaspora community in Jewish history, and also among the most Jewishly illiterate and profoundly anxious about their future. There's a good reason this immense and powerful community is also culturally weak and unsure of itself. There is deep history behind its ill…

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Episode 1: The Untold Story of Herzl's Journey to Zionism 50:44

4M ago50:44

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It’s hard for a modern Jew to grasp the depth of marginalization and ostracism that even the most assimilated of Austrian Jews experienced in the 1890s. Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern political Zionism, began his journey as a passionate assimilationist, a deep believer in European modernity and Germanic culture. It was only when these hopes w…

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Extra: Hamas holds Gaza's future hostage 21:40

5M ago21:40

21:40

*Recorded Saturday night, February 8, 2025*First reflections in response to Hamas's hostage release ceremony in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza on Saturday, when Israelis discovered the extent to which the hostages had been tormented and starved. Episode first aired Sunday on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/AskHavivAnything).…

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Episode 0: History That Matters 28:23

5M ago28:23

28:23

"Ask Haviv Anything" is a podcast about history, a podcast you, dear listener, will help to shape and direct, focusing not just on what I want to talk about but on what you want to learn and discuss. Nothing is off limits. We're going to talk about big and painful things, and also beautiful and fascinating things, wars and identities and painful hi…

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Catherine Wolff: Beyond 29:59

3y ago29:59

29:59

Shmuel Rosner chats with Catherine Wolff about her book: "Beyond: How Humankind Thinks About Heaven." Catherine Wolff is a writer, editor, and former director of The Arrupe Center for Community Based Learning at Santa Clara University. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.By Shmuel Rosner

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Sarah Ifft Decker: Jewish Women in the Medieval World 22:39

3y ago22:39

22:39

Shmuel Rosner and Sarah Ifft Decker discuss her book: "Jewish Women in the Medieval World: : 500–1500 CE (Seminar Studies)". Sarah Ifft Decker is an Assistant Professor of History at Rhodes College. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.By Shmuel Rosner

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Ben-Tsiyon Klibansky: The Golden Age of the Lithuanian Yeshivas 38:02

3y ago38:02

38:02

Shmuel Rosner and Ben-Tsiyon Klibansky discuss his book: The Golden Age of the Lithuanian Yeshivas. Ben-Tsiyon Klibansky is a lecturer at Efrata College in Jerusalem. A native of Lithuania, a senior electronics engineer, and formerly an innovative technology–intensive projects manager, he is an editor and researcher in the history of the Lithuanian…

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Maren Niehoff: Philo of Alexandria 30:50

3y ago30:50

30:50

Shmuel Rosner and Maren Niehoff talk about her book: "Philo of Alexandria: An Intellectual Biography". Maren R. Niehoff is Max Cooper Professor of Jewish Thought at the Hebrew University, and member of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.By Shmuel Rosner

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Ohad Leslau: Operation Defensive Shield 36:01

3y ago36:01

36:01

Shmuel Rosner and guest Ohad Leslau discuss his new hebrew book about Operation Defensive Shield. Ohad Leslau is a researcher in the history department -IDF. He published books on the South Lebanon security belt, the relationship between politicians and the intelligence community. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.…

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Jeffrey Bloom and Rabbi Gil Student: Orthodox Judaism and Modern Questions of Faith 36:41

3y ago36:41

36:41

Jeffrey Bloom and Rabbi Gil Student speak with Shmuel Rosner about their new book: "Strauss, Spinoza & Sinai: Orthodox Judaism and Modern Questions of Faith". Rabbi Gil Student is the Editor of TorahMusings.com. He writes frequently in Jewish newspapers and magazines, serving as a regular contributor to Jewish Action, The Jewish Link of New Jersey,…

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Avivah Zornberg: The book of Leviticus 27:59

3+ y ago27:59

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Shmuel Rosner chats with Avivah Zornberg about her upcoming book: "The Hidden Order of Intimacy." Avivah Zornberg is a Scottish contemporary Torah scholar and author. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.By Shmuel Rosner

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Carolina Lopez-Ruiz: Phoenicians and the Making of the Mediterranean 30:23

3+ y ago30:23

30:23

Shmuel Rosner and Carolina Lopez - Ruiz discuss her new book: Phoenicians and the Making of the Mediterranean. Carolina López-Ruiz is Professor of Classics at The Ohio State University. Her work focuses on cross-cultural interactions in the ancient Mediterranean world. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.…

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Jonathan Feiner: Mindfulness 25:22

3+ y ago25:22

25:22

Shmuel Rosner and Jonathan Feiner discuss his book: "Mindfulness: A Jewish Approach." Dr. Jonathan Feiner is the clinical director of Rockland CBT, a psychology practice group specializing in mood and anxiety disorders. In addition to his work as a clinical psychologist, he has taught courses and provided workshops on topics related to Judaism, psy…

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Prof. Abraham Sion: To Whom Was The Promised Land Promised? 29:59

3+ y ago29:59

29:59

Shmuel Rosner and Prof. Abraham Sion discuss his book: "To Whom Was The Promised Land Promised?: Some Fundamental Truths About The Arab-Israeli Conflict". Abraham A. Sion is Professor Emeritus at Ariel University where for over a decade he chaired the Center for Law and Mass Media. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.…

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Ori Z. Soltes: Growing Up Jewish in India 30:00

3+ y ago30:00

30:00

Shmuel Rosner and Ori Z. Soltes discuss his book: "Growing up Jewish in India." Ori Z. Soltes teaches at Georgetown University across a range of disciplines, from theology and art history to philosophy and political history. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.By Shmuel Rosner

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Leah and Menachem Gottesman: Not At Risk 31:40

3+ y ago31:40

31:40

Shmuel Rosner chats with Leah and Menachem Gottesman about their book: "Not at Risk: Education as a Work of Heart." Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.By Shmuel Rosner

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Julian E. Zelizer: Abraham Joshua Heschel 29:41

3+ y ago29:41

29:41

Shmuel Rosner and Julian E. Zelizer discuss his latest book: "Abraham Joshua Heschel: A Life of Radical Amazement." Julian Emanuel Zelizer is a professor of political history and an author in the United States at Princeton University. Zelizer has authored or co-authored several books about American political history; his focuses of study are the se…

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Hal Taussig and Brandon Scott: After Jesus Before Christianity 28:27

3+ y ago28:27

28:27

Shmuel Rosner chats with Hal Taussig and Brandon Scott about their latest book: "After Jesus Before Christianity: A Historical Exploration of the First Two Centuries of Jesus Movements" Hal Taussig is Visiting Professor of New Testament at Union Theological Seminary in New York and co-pastor at Chestnut Hill United Methodist Church and the author a…

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Andrew Lawler: Under Jerusalem 33:00

3+ y ago33:00

33:00

Shmuel Rosner and Andrew Lawler discuss his latest book: "Under Jerusalem: The buried history of the world`s most contested city". Andrew Lawert is author of the bestselling The Secret Token: Myth, Obsession, and the Search for the Lost Colony of Roanoke, and the acclaimed Why Did the Chicken Cross the World?: The Epic Saga of the Bird that Powers …

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Harry Freedman: "Leonard Cohen - The Mystical Roots of Genius" 26:18

3+ y ago26:18

26:18

Shmuel Rosner and Harry Freedman discuss his latest book "Leonard Cohen: The Mystical Roots of Genius". Harry Freedman is a British author who writes on history, religion and culture. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.By Shmuel Rosner

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Eliezer Tauber: The Massacre That Never Was 27:01

3+ y ago27:01

27:01

Shmuel Rosner and Eliezer Tauber discuss his book: "The Massacre That Never Was: The Myth of Deir Yassin and the Creation of the Palestinian Refugee Problem." Eliezer Tauber is the Director of the Menachem Begin Institute for the Study of Underground and Resistance Movements. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.…

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Yossi Shain: The Israeli Century 33:07

3+ y ago33:07

33:07

Shmuel Rosner and Yossi Shain discuss his controversial new book: "The Israeli Century: How the Zionist Revolution Changed History and Reinvented Judaism" . Yossi Shain is currently a member of the Knesset for Yisrael Beiteinu. He is also the Romulo Betancourt Professor of Political Science at Tel Aviv University where he also serves as Head of TAU…

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Maya Sarfaty: Love It Was Not 25:17

3+ y ago25:17

25:17

Shmuel Rosner and Maya Sarfaty discuss her new film "love it was not", out now in select cinemas. In this astonishing but true story, a Nazi officer falls in love with a Jewish concentration camp prisoner, a taboo romance with decades-long repercussions. Maya Sarfaty is a film director from Tel Aviv. Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.…

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Mark Oppenheimer: Squirrel Hill 34:56

3+ y ago34:56

34:56

Shmuel Rosner and Mark Oppenheimer discuss his book - "Squirrel Hill: The Tree of Life Synagogue Shooting and the Soul of a Neighborhood." Mark Oppenheimer is a freelance writer. He is a staff writer for the Christian Century and has written for many publications, including Harper's, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Boston Globe, th…

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Peter Fritzsche: Hitler's First Hundred Days 28:50

3+ y ago28:50

28:50

Shmuel Rosner and Peter Fritzsche discuss his book: "Hitler's First Hundred Days: When Germans Embraced the Third Reich." Follow Shmuel Rosner on Twitter.By Shanni Suissa