In this episode of “Israel Undiplomatic,” former Israeli ambassador to the United Kingdom Mark Regev and senior JNS editor Ruthie Blum—both former advisers at the Prime Minister’s Office—break down Israel’s dramatic ground incursion into Gaza City, Hamas’s last stronghold in the coastal enclave. With Israeli forces advancing, civilians fleeing and Hamas reportedly firing on its own people to keep them in place, the war enters a deadly and decisive phase.

At the same time, the diplomatic front is just as volatile. Following controversy over Israel’s covert strike on Hamas leaders in Doha, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives in Israel to signal strong American support. His visit includes a symbolic moment at the Western Wall with Prime Minister Netanyahu and Ambassador Mike Huckabee, and a sharp rebuke of Hamas’ hostage tactics.

Regev and Blum dig into the geopolitical fallout: Is the U.S.-Israel alliance as strong as ever, or are cracks beginning to show? What message did the Qatar strike send to terrorist sponsors worldwide? And is the West, especially leftist governments and media, fueling extremism through appeasement?