Netanyahu arrives in US, IDF targets terror infrastructure in Jenin

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu departed for Washington on Sunday, where he is set to meet with senior US officials and US President Donald Trump in a high-level diplomatic visit.

I’m leaving for a very important meeting with @realDonaldTrump in Washington.

The fact that this would be President Trump’s first meeting with a foreign leader since his inauguration is telling.

I think it’s a testimony to the strength of the Israeli-American alliance. It’s… pic.twitter.com/wWYrC7mYrF

— Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) February 2, 2025

Before boarding his flight, Netanyahu emphasized the importance of the meeting, stating:

“I am now heading to Washington for a very important meeting with President Trump.
The fact that this will be his first meeting with a foreign leader since his inauguration holds great significance for the State of Israel."

"There is no, one emotion that we [the hostage families] feel,” Gall Gilboa-Dalal, whose brother Guy Gilboa-Dalal is still being held in Hamas captivity, said on Wednesday, discussing his expectations for the second stage of the hostage-ceasefire deal. 

Gilboa-Dalal spoke of how complicated the situation is at the moment for the hostage families who are not part of the first stage.

"On one hand, seeing the people that we fought for being released gives us tremendous hope and great strength." However, he also stressed that "there are so many things that could happen" before the second phase. "It makes a lot of us very worried, especially when we're speaking about the next phase."

Three airstrikes were carried out within hours overnight on Saturday, targeting terrorist cells in the Jenin and Kabatiya areas as part of an ongoing counterterrorism operation in the West Bank, the IDF and Shin Bet (ISA) announced on Sunday.

In Kabatiya, an IAF aircraft, guided by Shin Bet intelligence, struck and killed a terrorist cell that was en route to carry out an imminent attack.

Following the strike, secondary explosions were observed, indicating the presence of explosives in the terrorists’ vehicle. The attack killed Salah Zakarneh and Abd al-Hadi Kamil, both residents of Kabatiya.

Retired Israeli Navy commander Maj.-Gen. (res.) Eliezer "Chayni" Marom, who served until recently as Israel's Northern Project Coordinator, raised his concerns over Israel's current ceasefire and hostage deal with Hamas, fearing hidden concessions, a Friday Maariv report revealed. 

Marom spoke to Ron Kofman and Aryeh Eldad on 103FM Radio. The conversation also included a discussion about recent remarks made by US President Donald Trump and the ceasefire agreement with Lebanon.

Defense Minister Israel Katz and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday announced Defense Ministry Director-General Maj.-Gen. (res.) Eyal Zamir as their pick to replace IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz have agreed on the appointment of Maj.-Gen. (Res.) Eyal Zamir as the next IDF Chief-of-Staff.

— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) February 1, 2025

Besides having the number one non-political role at the Defense Ministry, which has put him in control of much of Israel’s international defense relations and force buildup over the last two years, Zamir has been deputy IDF chief, Southern Command chief, and military secretary of the prime minister, three of the most prominent positions in the IDF high command.

Security forces in the West Bank are on high alert on Saturday after the IDF's West Bank division and the Civil Administration conducted an operation to disperse celebratory gatherings for the released Palestinian prisoners.

The IDF's West Bank division and the Civil Administration conducted a joint operation with the Shin Bet, Israel Prison Service, and the Border Police to disperse celebratory gatherings for the Palestinian prisoners who are being released as part of the hostage, ceasefire agreement, the IDF announced in a joint Saturday statement.

The second phase of negotiations for the next stage of the hostage deal will begin on Monday as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to arrive in Washington, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) announced on Saturday.

Netanyahu will be the first national leader that US President Trump will meet with following his inauguration, and, according to the PMO, the two are set to discuss Gaza and the hostages, dealing with all components of the Iranian axis and other main issues.

A Hamas source shared similar news with Arabic news outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed on Saturday, reporting that the group had been informed by mediators that the second phase of negotiations would commence in Doha on Monday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is slated to depart for Washington, DC, on Sunday to attend a series of meetings with senior US officials, including a meeting with US President Donald Trump.

Although Netanyahu is officially scheduled to remain in Washington until Thursday, the visit is expected to be extended, and he is now anticipated to depart on Saturday night, after Shabbat.

Netanyahu is set to meet with Trump on Tuesday, with discussions expected to focus on the ongoing hostage negotiations, the Iranian threat, normalization efforts with Saudi Arabia, and the situation in Syria and Lebanon.

Three hostages returned to Israel Saturday, as Keith Siegel, Yarden Bibas, and Ofer Kalderon were released from Hamas captivity after 484 days. Siegel arrived at the main reception point on the Re'im base in Israel shortly before noon, the military confirmed, hours after Kalderon and Bibas.

Bibas and Kalderon were both released from captivity around 8:30 a.m. from Khan Yunis, near the home of the eliminated Yahya Sinwar, while Siegel was released nearly two hours later from the Gaza Port.

"Yarden is home, but the home is missing," Bibas family members said in a statement following the father's release.