JERUSALEM: Israel’s military on Sunday announced the appointment of a new spokesman to replace Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, who became the face of the country’s war effort and is due to step down.
A military statement said that the newly sworn-in chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, “has appointed (Brig. General) Effie Defrin as the IDF spokesperson.”
As a tank battalion commander, Defrin “fought and was wounded in the Second Lebanon War” in 2006, the statement said, adding that he went on to serve in “key roles,” most recently as head of the International Cooperation Division.
Defrin’s predecessor, Hagari, became a household name after the war with Hamas erupted in October 2023, briefing the media and the general public almost daily — and sometimes several times a day.
The army announced on Friday that Hagari would be stepping down at the end of his term in March.
According to the Israeli media, he had decided to leave the army because the new chief of staff refused him a promotion.
Some statements Hagari made during the war triggered criticism from the government.
In December, Hagari apologized for publicly criticizing a bill that would protect soldiers who disclose classified information to the prime minister.
He also prompted a knee-jerk reaction from the government in June when he said that Hamas cannot be eliminated.
“To say that we are going to make Hamas disappear is to throw sand in people’s eyes,” Hagari told Israel’s Channel 13 broadcaster, adding: “Hamas is an ideology, we cannot eliminate an ideology.”
His comments were quickly rebuffed by the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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Israel military appoints new top spokesman
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Israel military appoints new top spokesman
- The army announced on Friday that Hagari would be stepping down at the end of his term in March
- According to the Israeli media, he had decided to leave the army because the new chief of staff refused him a promotion
Hundreds mourn in Syria’s Homs after deadly mosque bombing
HOMS: Hundreds of mourners gathered Saturday despite rain and cold outside of a mosque in the Syrian city of Homs where a bombing the day before killed eight people and wounded 18.
The crowd gathered next to the Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi Al-Dhahab neighborhood, where the population is predominantly from the Alawite minority, before driving in convoys to bury the victims.
Officials have said the preliminary investigations indicate explosive devices were planted inside the mosque but have not yet publicly identified a suspect.
A little-known group calling itself Saraya Ansar Al-Sunna claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on its Telegram channel, in which it indicated that the attack intended to target members of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shia Islam whom hard-line Islamists consider to be apostates.
The same group had previously claimed a suicide attack in June in which a gunman opened fire and then detonated an explosive vest inside a Greek Orthodox church in Dweil’a, on the outskirts of Damascus, killing 25 people as worshippers prayed on a Sunday.
A neighbor of the mosque, who asked to be identified only by the honorific Abu Ahmad (“father of Ahmad“) out of security concerns, said he was at home when he heard the sound of a “very very strong explosion.”
He and other neighbors went to the mosque and saw terrified people running out of it, he said. They entered and began trying to help the wounded, amid blood and scattered body parts on the floor.
While the neighborhood is primarily Alawite, he said the mosque had always been open to members of all sects to pray.
“It’s the house of God,” he said. “The mosque’s door is open to everyone. No one ever asked questions. Whoever wants to enter can enter.”
Mourners were unable to enter the mosque to pray Saturday because the crime scene remained cordoned off, so they prayed outside.
Some then marched through the streets chanting “Ya Ali,” in reference to the Prophet Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law whom Shiite Muslims consider to be his rightful successor.
The crowd gathered next to the Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi Al-Dhahab neighborhood, where the population is predominantly from the Alawite minority, before driving in convoys to bury the victims.
Officials have said the preliminary investigations indicate explosive devices were planted inside the mosque but have not yet publicly identified a suspect.
A little-known group calling itself Saraya Ansar Al-Sunna claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on its Telegram channel, in which it indicated that the attack intended to target members of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shia Islam whom hard-line Islamists consider to be apostates.
The same group had previously claimed a suicide attack in June in which a gunman opened fire and then detonated an explosive vest inside a Greek Orthodox church in Dweil’a, on the outskirts of Damascus, killing 25 people as worshippers prayed on a Sunday.
A neighbor of the mosque, who asked to be identified only by the honorific Abu Ahmad (“father of Ahmad“) out of security concerns, said he was at home when he heard the sound of a “very very strong explosion.”
He and other neighbors went to the mosque and saw terrified people running out of it, he said. They entered and began trying to help the wounded, amid blood and scattered body parts on the floor.
While the neighborhood is primarily Alawite, he said the mosque had always been open to members of all sects to pray.
“It’s the house of God,” he said. “The mosque’s door is open to everyone. No one ever asked questions. Whoever wants to enter can enter.”
Mourners were unable to enter the mosque to pray Saturday because the crime scene remained cordoned off, so they prayed outside.
Some then marched through the streets chanting “Ya Ali,” in reference to the Prophet Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law whom Shiite Muslims consider to be his rightful successor.
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