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.

Diplomatic reporter Lazar Berman and US bureau chief Jacob Magid join host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

US Vice President Kamala Harris just accepted the presidential nomination and she addressed the war in Gaza very directly and clearly in her speech from the podium. Magid reports from Chicago on this and other aspects of Jewish or Israeli interest, including the moving speech by Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, parents of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, at the Democratic National Convention.

Chances for an immediate breakthrough appear increasingly remote even as Israel sends a team headed by Mossad chief David Barnea, and including Maj. Gen. Eliezer Toledano, head of the IDF General Staff Strategy and Third-Circle Directorate. Berman assesses the status of the talks and weighs in on the role the US has played in bringing them to this point.

The bodies of the six hostages recovered by the IDF from southern Gaza’s Khan Younis this week all have signs of gunshot wounds, according to initial autopsy findings released Thursday. What does it potentially mean that Alex Dancyg, Yagev Buchshtav, Chaim Peri, Yoram Metzger, Nadav Popplewell, and Avraham Munder were killed by gunfire?

Sgt. Ori Ashkenazi Nechemya, 19, was killed during fighting in southern Gaza on Thursday, the Israel Defense Forces announced, as troops pressed on with operations across the Strip. Berman lays out where the fighting is currently, and where it may be going.

For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Israeli negotiators fly to Cairo amid deep disagreements over Philadelphi Corridor

Bullet wounds in bodies of all 6 hostages from Gaza suggest they were killed by captors

Soldier killed by anti-tank fire in Rafah, as IDF presses on with operations in Gaza

Emhoff pledges to continue fighting against antisemitism ‘when I’m first gentleman’

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

IMAGE: US Vice President and 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her husband US Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff wave from the stage on the fourth and last day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 22, 2024. (Charly Triballeau / AFP)

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