Daily Briefing May 5: Day 577 – IDF prepares to conquer and occupy Gaza

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.

Late last night, Israel approved a plan to significantly broaden the military offensive against the Hamas terror group in the Gaza Strip. The plan provides for the “conquering of Gaza” and retaining the territory. One voice was heard above all in warning, that of IDFChief of Staff Eyal Zamir, who reportedly warned ministers that this could endanger the hostages held there. Fabian briefs us on what he knows about this plan and what else is happening on the ground in Gaza.

Yesterday morning, a Houthi ballistic missile struck the Ben Gurion Airport compound. Fabian relays the initial conclusions about the failure and discusses Israel’s anti-missile array, including a Patriot air-defense system that will be refurbished and sent to Ukraine.

Finally, we learn of conclusions from the IDF’s probe into the October 7, 2023, battles at Zikim Beach and hear that a squad of Israeli soldiers stationed near the border with the Gaza Strip abandoned civilians sheltering on the beach as Hamas terrorists invaded the coast.

The conversation can also be viewed here:

Check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

Israel okays ‘conquering Gaza, holding the territories,’ as IDF chief said to warn ‘we could lose’ the hostages

IDF planning major shift in Gaza aid delivery in bid to thwart Hamas diversion

UN humanitarian agency rejects new Israeli plan for Gaza aid deliveries

Netanyahu threatens Houthis, and Iran, as cabinet convenes after missile hits airport

Patriot air-defense system based in Israel to be refurbished, sent to Ukraine – NYT

Most foreign airlines halt flights to Tel Aviv after Houthi missile hits airport

In ‘massive failure,’ troops abandoned civilians at Zikim Beach on Oct. 7, IDF probe finds

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 and video edited by Thomas Girsch.

Check out yesterday’s Daily Briefing episode here: