Day 520 - As Gaza ceasefire reaches day 50, no sign of IDF pullout

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)


See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.