Episode description

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.

Military reporter Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's Daily Briefing.

Tomorrow marks day 50 of the ceasefire agreement. Fabian explains where the IDF is currently operating in the Gaza Strip and how quickly it could reassemble into war footing.

A Syria war monitor reported on Saturday that over 745 civilians from the Alawite minority had been killed in recent days by security forces and their allies, as authorities clash with militants loyal to the former government of Bashar al-Assad. Coincidentally or not, the IDF said troops captured and destroyed numerous weapons during missions in southern Syria. Is this publication of the IDF's Syria mission a message to the new government there?

Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox Jews were escorted by the military on Friday to the traditionally considered burial place of a Babylonian scholar on the Lebanon border, after weeks of illegal attempts to reach the site. Later on Friday, the IDF carried out airstrikes in southern Lebanon, saying it targeted Hezbollah military sites. We learn about the IDF's current operations in Lebanon during the ceasefire.

The Israel Defense Force’s chief spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, is to end his role in the coming weeks and retire from the military, the IDF announced on Friday. Many have seen this step as a de facto dismissal, as Hagari was not given a promotion for his work as IDF spokesman during the war. Fabian weighs in.

Marking International Women's Day, Fabian and Borschel-Dan have a brief conversation about the role of women in IDF leadership. As women are slowly rising in the ranks in combat roles, could we see a female chief of staff in the next 20 years?

Please see today's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

745 civilians killed in clashes between Syrian regime and pro-Assad forces, says watchdog

IDF says it seized, destroyed weapons in ‘targeted raids’ in southern Syria

IDF says it struck terror targets in Lebanon and Gaza amid ceasefires

IDF escorts hundreds of ultra-Orthodox Jews to pray at tomb straddling Lebanon border

IDF spokesman Hagari to retire from military, in move widely seen as dismissal

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

IMAGE: Israeli soldiers operating inside the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, on February 9, 2025. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)

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