Day 485 - Pulling out of Gaza, IDF trains its sights on West Bank
The Times of Israel Daily Briefing
The Times of Israel
4.5 • 1.1K Ratings
🗓️ 2 February 2025
⏱️ 21 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
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 episode.
The Israeli military on Saturday carried out three drone strikes on terror operatives in the northern West Bank. The strikes came as the Israel Defense Forces expanded an ongoing counterterrorism operation in the northern West Bank, now in its 13th day. What has been the scope of the operation so far?
On Friday, IDF troops operating in a buffer zone in southern Syria came under fire in the first such incident since Israeli forces deployed to the buffer zone on the border between Israel and Syria. The IDF said soldiers returned fire toward the source of the shooting. Who was shooting at the IDF soldiers?
Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Zamir, the Defense Ministry director general, was tapped by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz on Saturday to become the next chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces. We learn about a previous case in which a reserves officer is pulled back into the army to head it and what Zamir may bring to the role.
The Israel-Egypt border has been largely peaceful since the two countries signed a peace agreement in 1979, Israel’s first with an Arab state. Increasingly in addition to drug smuggling, the IDF border forces are attempting to prevent weapons smuggling as well. Fabian was there a few weeks ago and reports back.
Defense Minister Israel Katz on Saturday threatened the released Palestinian prisoner and former terror chief Zakaria Zubeidi, two days after Zubeidi was freed as part of the hostage-ceasefire agreement with Hamas. Why was this terrorist mastermind singled out?
For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.
Discussed articles include:
IDF carries out 3 drone strikes in Jenin area; Palestinians say 4 dead, including teen
IDF troops operating in Syria buffer zone come under fire in 1st such incident
Eyal Zamir named next IDF chief, set to take over from Herzi Halevi in March
On Egypt border, senior IDF officer warns quietest ‘front’ has potential to erupt
Defense minister warns freed terrorist Zubeidi: ‘One mistake and you’ll meet old friends’
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IMAGE: IDF troops operate in the West Bank city of Jenin on January 31, 2025, in this handout photo. (IDF)
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the Times of Israel's daily briefing. |
| 0:10.6 | Today is Sunday, February 2nd, day 485 of the war. |
| 0:15.6 | Amanda Borsel, Dan, here with our military reporter, Emmanuel Fabian. |
| 0:18.9 | Hi, Manny. Thanks for joining me today. |
| 0:21.2 | Hi, Amanda. Today we'll learn what is happening on the ongoing counterterrorism operation in the |
| 0:27.9 | Northern West Bank, now in its 13th day. And IDF troops operating in a buffer zone in southern |
| 0:34.9 | Syria came under fire on Friday. Is this just a one-off? |
| 0:39.5 | Ael Zemir has been named the next IDF chief of staff and is set to take over from March. |
| 0:45.2 | We'll learn who he is and what his nomination represents. |
| 0:49.1 | We'll hear why the defense minister is threatening one specific freed Palestinian security prisoner and whether |
| 0:55.7 | all is quiet on the Egyptian border. All this and much, much more when we're back. |
| 1:05.8 | During this period of upheaval in Israel, across the Middle East and in U.S.-Israel relations, it's always tough to |
| 1:12.4 | see through the fog of war and get clarity about what's really happening and what's really |
| 1:16.9 | important on the ground. These days, too, can be really difficult to talk about, let alone envision |
| 1:23.4 | a better way forward and a better future for everyone living in the region. |
| 1:28.6 | Join me, Tel Aviv-based journalist and Israel Policy Forum Policy Advisor Neri Zilber, |
| 1:33.8 | as I host the very top analysts, journalists, policymakers, and other experts for in-depth conversations |
| 1:39.9 | to keep you informed on the most critical issues challenging Israel's future as secure, Jewish, and democratic. |
| 1:48.1 | Find Israel Policy Pod wherever you get your podcasts, and let's get into it. Amid the excitement of yesterday's release of three Israeli hostages from the Gaza Strip and |
| 2:16.4 | 183 Palestinian prisoners to Gaza in the West Bank. |
| 2:20.7 | The Israeli military on Saturday carried out three drone strikes on terror operatives in the northern West Bank. |
| 2:28.0 | The Palestinians are reporting four people killed and several others wounded. |
... |
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