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.

Today is Day 125 of the war. Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

Three press conferences were held Wednesday night with differing messages. We begin by looking at strong statements made by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who said among other things, "Israelis were dehumanized in the most horrific way on October 7th. The hostages have been dehumanized every day since. But that cannot be a license to dehumanize others."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's press conference was in response to a Hamas "ceasefire" proposal, which he called, “delusional.” He stated that Israel is “within touching distance of absolute victory,” and that Hamas’s defeat will be the “victory of the entire free world.”

And finally, five women released from captivity in Gaza during a weeklong truce in late November made an emotional plea, calling on the government to do everything necessary to secure the release of the remaining 136 hostages, saying only that would represent an “absolute victory” for Israel.

For the latest updates, please look at The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

Live blog February 8, 2024

Israel cannot use Oct. 7 as ‘license to dehumanize others,’ Blinken warns in Tel Aviv

Don’t ‘dehumanize others’: Full text of presser from Blinken’s 7th wartime Israel visit

PM: Absolute victory within reach; surrender to Hamas demands would bring disaster

Released hostages tell PM: Only saving remaining captives will be ‘absolute victory’

With IDF hamstrung and Hamas scenting a way out, Netanyahu dodges strategic decisions

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel

THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown

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Image: File - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken give a press statement after their meeting at the Prime Minister Office in Jerusalem, on January 30, 2023. (Yoav Ari Dudkevitch/POOL)

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