Day 334 - School year starts in Sderot under shadow of war

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 correspondent Emanuel Fabian and reporter Sue Surkes join host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode. Fabian reports on the latest from the West Bank city of Jenin, where IDF troops have been operating in the major terror hotspot since last week, an operation dubbed Summer Camps by the IDF, ripping up explosive devices and enabling the army to be able to return to the area more easily in the future. He also discusses a strike that killed Hamas Nukhba force company commander Ahmed Fawzi Nasser Muhammad Wadiyya, who led the invasion of Netiv Ha’asara on October 7 that killed 22 people. Surkes speaks about the start of the school year in Sderot, where parents uneasily welcomed the return to their hometown. She also reports about Kibbutz Re'im, where families are slowly returning, unsure if they feel ready to return home yet. Surkes also relates some research about vultures, and the uncanny resemblance in some of the bird's personality traits to humans. For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog. Discussed articles include: In longest West Bank raid in 20 years, IDF aims to set stage for future, smaller ops IDF says it killed Hamas commander who murdered father in front of his kids on Oct. 7 While Israeli kids near Gaza rejoice at return to school, parents remain ambivalent While young vultures gad about, older ones prefer to stay home – study 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: Idit Dayan (center, wearing yellow), the principal of the Gil Rabin School in Sderot, southern Israel, welcomes children back for the new school year, on September 1, 2024. (Sue Surkes/Times of Israel)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.