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‘Bibi, What the F—k?’ New Book Reveals Details of Biden and Netanyahu’s Strained Relationship
US President Joe Biden, left, pauses during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, to discuss the war between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 18, 2023. Photo: Miriam Alster/Pool via REUTERS
Veteran journalist Bob Woodward reveals new details about the strained relationship between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s over the past year in a new book.
Woodward, a prominent investigative journalist, is coming out with a new book titled War on Oct. 15. In it, he reveals just how deep the fracture has become in the relationship between the current leaders of the US and Israel, according to CNN, which obtained an advanced copy of the work.
A striking moment came after Israel killed Fuad Shakr, a top Hezbollah terrorist who was also instrumental in killing hundreds of Americans in the Beirut bombing in 1983, in Lebanon in July. There was a bounty for millions of dollars put on him by the US.
“Bibi, what the f—k?” Biden yelled at Netanyahu after the strike, according to CNN’s reporting of Woodward’s book. “You know the perception of Israel around the world increasingly is that you’re a rogue state, a rogue actor.”
Netanyahu responded that the target of the strike was “one of the leading terrorists.”
“We saw an opportunity and took it,” Netanyahu said. “The harder you hit, the more successful you’re going to be in the negotiation.”
But the problems started well before July. After Biden pushed hard for Israel not to enter the southern Gaza city of Rafah to fight Hamas terrorists — and Israel conducted major ground operations there anyway — Biden reportedly exclaimed, “He’s a f—king liar,” speaking about Netanyahu.
When discussing the decision about whether to go into Rafah, Biden said to Netanyahu, “What’s your strategy, man?”
Netanyahu reportedly evaded giving specifics, opting instead to say, “We have to go into Rafah” — which prompted Biden to retort, “Bibi, you’ve got no strategy.”
Biden reportedly saw his job as reigning in Israeli responses to attacks from foreign terrorists and countries such as Iran. After Iran launched a large barrage of ballistic and cruise missiles — along with drones — at Israel in April, CNN reported that Biden told Israel: “You don’t need to make another move. Do nothing,” in response to the major attack.
Reflecting on his strategy, he told his advisers, according to Woodward, “I know he’s going to do something, but the way I limit it is tell him to ‘Do nothing.’”
A similar situation is arising again now, in the aftermath of Iran’s major ballistic missile attack on Israel last week, which featured 181 missiles and came in response to Israel assassinating major Hamas and Hezbollah terrorist leaders in Lebanon and Iran.
The United States is worried that Israel’s response could trigger a wider war — particularly if Israel targets Iran’s nuclear facilities. Consequently, Netanyahu and Biden spoke on the phone on Wednesday.
White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre called the call “direct and productive,” but did not give additional details.
This was the first time the two leaders spoke since August, underscoring the worsening relationship between them.
Netanyahu also spoke with former US President Donald Trump. Netanyahu’s team said Trump “congratulated him on the intense and determined operations that Israel carried out against Hezbollah.”
The post ‘Bibi, What the F—k?’ New Book Reveals Details of Biden and Netanyahu’s Strained Relationship first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Netflix Premieres Adult Animated Comedy Series About Jewish Family
A scene from “Long Story Short.” Photo: Screenshot
Netflix premiered on Friday an adult animated comedy series from “BoJack Horseman” creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg that follows a Jewish family over the course of several decades.
“Long Story Short” revolves around Naomi Schwartz (Lisa Edelstein), Elliot Cooper (Paul Reiser), and their three children – Avi (Ben Feldman), Shira (Abbi Jacobson), and Yoshi (Max Greenfield). The series jumps between time, and viewers follow the Schwooper siblings “from childhood to adulthood and back again, chronicling their triumphs, disappointments, joys, and compromises,” according to a synopsis provided by Netflix.
The extended cast includes Nicole Byer as Shira’s partner and Angelique Cabral. Dave Franco and Michaela Dietz are recurring guest stars. The first episode starts in 1996 and focuses on Avi bringing his girlfriend home to meet his family the same weekend as Yoshi’s bar mitzvah celebration. The episode also addresses Jewish-related topics such as the laws of kosher and the Holocaust.
“I think the show in some ways is about Jewish joy, and I think a lot of Jews will enjoy having a place for the Jews, and I think a lot of antisemites might learn a thing or two,” Bob-Waksberg told Variety on Monday at the show’s premiere at the Tudum Theater in Hollywood, California.
“Long Story Short” – which is Bob-Waksberg’s fourth animated show (“BoJack Horseman,” “Undone,” and “Tuca & Bertie”) and his third with Netflix – was renewed for a second season ahead of its season one premiere. The showrunner told The Hollywood Reporter that “Long Story Short” is “absolutely the most explicitly Jewish thing by a wide margin.”
The show is already facing antisemitic criticism.
“We’ve never not had antisemitism,” he told Variety. “The harassment is already there. I don’t think there’s a Jew in Hollywood, a public, a visible person that doesn’t get constantly harassed on Instagram all day long. An article came out this morning, it was a profile of the show, and I stupidly skimmed the first few comments and they were all … just nothing I want to repeat. But it’s just a buzzkill.”
“People are going to want to talk about the greater global geopolitical issues that are happening around this show, but this show is not about that,” he added.
“Long Story Short” is also from “Samurai Jack” creator Genndy Tartakovsky and “Rick and Morty” writer Matt Roller. Bob-Waksberg is an executive producer alongside Noel Bright and Steven A. Cohen. Corey Campodonico and Alex Bulkley are co-executive producers.
Watch the trailer for “Long Story Short” below.
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Iran, European Powers Agree to Resume Nuclear, Sanctions Talks Next Week
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi speaks during a meeting with foreign ambassadors in Tehran, Iran, July 12, 2025. Photo: Hamid Forootan/Iranian Foreign Ministry/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and his French, British, and German counterparts agreed on Friday to resume talks next week on nuclear and sanctions issues, Iranian state media reported.
The three major European powers have threatened to re-activate United Nations sanctions on Iran under a “snapback” mechanism if Tehran does not return to negotiations on a deal to curb its disputed uranium enrichment program.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul confirmed talks next week and warned Iran that sanctions would snap back into effect unless it reached a verifiable and durable deal to defuse concerns about its nuclear ambitions. He reiterated that time was very short and Iran needed to engage substantively.
Iranian state media said Araqchi and the British, French, and German foreign ministers agreed during a phone call for deputy foreign ministers to continue the talks on Tuesday.
During the call, Araqchi “emphasized the legal and moral incompetence of these countries to resort to the [snapback] mechanism, and warned of the consequences of such an action,” Iranian media reported.
The European trio, along with the US, contend that Iran is using the nuclear energy program to potentially develop weapons capability in violation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Iran says it seeks only civilian nuclear power.
The Islamic Republic suspended nuclear negotiations with the United States, which were aimed at curbing its accelerating enrichment program, after the US and Israel bombed its nuclear sites during a 12-day war in June.
Since then, inspectors for the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, have been unable to access Iran‘s nuclear installations, despite IAEA chief Rafael Grossi stating that inspections remain essential.
Iran and the three European powers last convened in Geneva on June 20, while the war was still raging, and there were few signs of progress.
Iran‘s state broadcaster said an Iranian delegation was due to travel to Vienna on Friday to meet with IAEA officials. It gave no further details.
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German Government Calls Recognition of Palestinian State ‘Counterproductive’
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a joint press conference with Finnish Prime Minister in Turku, Finland, on May 27, 2025. Photo: Lehtikuva/Roni Rekomaa via REUTERS
A German government spokesman said on Friday that Berlin has no current plans to recognize a Palestinian state because that would undermine any efforts to reach a negotiated two-state solution with Israel.
“A negotiated two-state solution remains our goal, even if it seems a long way off today … The recognition of Palestine is more likely to come at the end of such a process, and such decisions would now be rather counterproductive,” the spokesperson said during a press conference.
Countries including Australia, United Kingdom, France, and Canada have recently said they would recognize a Palestinian state under different conditions.
Israel has responded that such recognition would be a “reward” for terrorism following the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel. During the ensuing war in Gaza, Hamas has embedded its weapons and military operation centers among civilian sites, a strategy that critics have decried as employing the use of “human shields” against Israel.