FDD Morning Brief

HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH, AND HTS HEADLINE 1: The Houthis are have resumed attacking ships in the Red Sea. HEADLINE 2: The Trump administration revoked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s designation as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. HEADLINE 3: Five Israeli soldiers were killed and 14 more were wounded in an ambush in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely updates and...

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely updates and expert analysis, followed by a conversation with Col. Richard Kemp, a retired British Army officer who has been on the ground in Israel and Gaza following the Hamas-led atrocities of October 7, 2023. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief

THE IRANIAN PEOPLE VERSUS THE REGIME HEADLINE 1: President Trump signed an executive order lifting sanctions on Syria. HEADLINE 2: Iranian threats against Donald Trump and his administration keep on coming. HEADLINE 3: While we’re on the topic of suspicious Iranian activity…Danish authorities arrested a man suspected of collecting intel on Jewish targets in Germany. -- FDD Senior Research Analyst...

THE STATE OF IRAN'S NUCLEAR PROGRAM, THE WAR IN GAZA, AND THE AXIS OF AGGRESSORS HEADLINE 1: Hamas issued fresh threats against aid workers in Gaza. HEADLINE 2: Over the last three months, the Shin Bet has arrested over 60 Hamas operatives in the West Bank. HEADLINE 3: Ireland is weighing legislation to ban imports from Israeli communities in the West Bank. BONUS HEADLINE 4: Iran’s Grand Ayato...

IRAN, GAZA, AND THE HOSTAGES FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Brigadier General (Res.) Professor Jacob Nagel, FDD senior fellow and former Israeli national security advisor. Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorningbrief -- Join our community to receive 24/7 updates on new and original insights into the latest development...

On this special SITREP episode of the FDD Morning Brief, Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer is joined by FDD Senior Fellow Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan Conricus and FDD CMPP Senior Director Bradley Bowman to assess the fallout from Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran with a ceasefire now in effect — and evaluate the current status of Tehran’s nuclear ambitions. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmor...

Tune in to the FDD Morning Brief for a special SITREP assessing the damage from the U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites. FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer is joined by RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery , Senior Director of FDD’s Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation; Bradley Bowman , Senior Director of FDD’s Center on Military and Political Power; and Behnam Ben Taleblu , Senior Director of...

ISRAEL'S SUCCESSES AND IRAN'S STRATEGY HEADLINE 1: Hackers stole approximately $90 million from Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. HEADLINE 2: Iran and Israel are slugging it out like two boxers in the 10th round of a heavyweight bout. HEADLINE 3: As Trump considers what to do next, polls are shedding light about what Americans think about Iran. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer...

THE REGIME IN IRAN'S ARSENAL, ISRAEL'S SUCCESSES AND SETBACKS, AND THE IRANIAN PEOPLE HEADLINE 1: 20 Arab and Islamic countries signed a statement calling on Israel to stop striking Iran. HEADLINE 2: The IDF took out Iranian Maj. Gen. Ali Shamdani. HEADLINE 3: Two Israeli soldiers were killed in Gaza. -- FDD Senior Research Analyst Natalie Ecanow fills in for Jonathan Schanzer, delivering...

ISRAEL, THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC, AND THE IRANIAN PEOPLE -- As tensions escalate following Israel’s strike on Iran, FDD’s Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan Conricus offers timely analysis and is joined by Iran expert Beni Sabti of The Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) to assess the fallout. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief

Israel has launched precision strikes against nuclear and military facilities in Iran — just days after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) formally declared Iran in violation of its nuclear nonproliferation commitments for the first time since 2005. The Islamic Republic — closer than ever to acquiring a nuclear weapon — had dismissed U.S. diplomatic overtures and accelerated its nuclear...

TURKEY'S NEO-OTTOMAN VISION HEADLINE 1: The U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on a network of sham charities that fund Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, or “PFLP.” HEADLINE 2: Israel carried out strikes against Yemen’s Hodeida port. HEADLINE 3: The IDF took out two Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situatio...

RUSSIA, UKRAINE, AND ... GRETA THUNBERG? HEADLINE 1: Iranian intelligence agencies say they’ve acquired a cache of sensitive Israeli documents. HEADLINE 2: Al Qaeda in Yemen is back in the spotlight. HEADLINE 3: The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon may soon be a thing of the past. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversa...

TURKEY'S INTERNAL CHALLENGES AND EXTERNAL INFLUENCE HEADLINE 1: Israel’s defense exports increased 13 percent in 2024. HEADLINE 2: Israel is arming jihadi criminals in Gaza. HEADLINE 3: The Syrian government agreed to give the International Atomic Energy Agency access to former Assad regime nuclear sites. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis,...

QATAR'S MALIGN INFLUENCE AND ANTI-ISRAEL PROPAGANDA HEADLINE 1: The Trump administration okay-ed the integration of foreign fighters into the Syrian army. HEADLINE 2: Rumors are swirling about who will replace Muhammed Sinwar as Hamas’s commander-in-chief. OK, maybe not swirling. We think we know who it is. HEADLINE 3: Chaos is festering on the Gaza aid front. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Sch...

GAZA AID, HAMAS, AND THE 'DAY AFTER' HEADLINE 1: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam is talking about normalization with Israel. HEADLINE 2: The United States, Britain, France, and Germany, are planning to submit a resolution to the International Atomic Energy Agency board declaring Iran non-compliant with its non-proliferation obligations. Because it is. HEADLINE 3: A Saudi-led delegation...

U.S.-ISRAEL TIES, INTERNAL ISRAELI POLITICS, AND THE HOSTAGE NEGOTIATIONS HEADLINE 1: The IDF announced that it has successfully used lasers to shoot down enemy projectiles. HEADLINE 2: The Lebanese Armed Forces reportedly dismantled most of Hezbollah’s infrastructure in south Lebanon. HEADLINE 3: After 13 years, the stars and stripes are flying again in Damascus. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Sch...

WHAT'S THE STORY WITH HUMANITARIAN AID TO GAZA? HEADLINE 1: Israel and Syria are holding direct talks. HEADLINE 2: Germany is starting to change its tone on Israel. HEADLINE 3: The Palestinian flag is about to fly at the World Health Organization. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely updates and sharp analysis, followed by a conversation with FDD Distinguished Fellow Scooter...

FOREIGN INFLUENCE IN K-12 SCHOOLS AND BEYOND HEADLINE 1: Israel and Turkey reportedly established a new mechanism to help prevent unwanted military incidents in Syria. HEADLINE 2: Two more Houthi missile attacks were recorded. HEADLINE 3: France is working with Saudi Arabia on a proposal for Gaza that would require Hamas to disarm. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational...

EGYPT, CHINA, AND THE HORN OF AFRICA HEADLINE 1: The Israeli cabinet approved plans to build a security barrier along Israel’s border with Jordan. HEADLINE 2: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is traveling to Lebanon this week. And the corrupt alta cocker might actually notch a legitimate win. HEADLINE 3: The U.S. State Department announced a reward of up to $10 million for information...

IS SYRIA'S NEW REGIME MALIGN OR MODERATE? HEADLINE 1: Israel is working on a plan to relocate civilians in Gaza if a ceasefire doesn’t materialize soon. HEADLINE 2: It’s official: Hamas’s October 7th attack was designed to derail Saudi-Israel normalization. HEADLINE 3: Another day, another Israeli caught spying for Iran. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational update...

TRUMP'S GULF TRIP AND THE IMPLICATIONS FOR THE REGION HEADLINE 1: President Trump’s whirlwind Middle East tour was rife with record-breaking deals. HEADLINE 2: Congressional Republicans have reiterated their support for full Iranian nuclear dismantlement. HEADLINE 3: Trump’s sharp policy reversal on U.S. sanctions against Syria during his Gulf tour was coupled with a major request: that Syria...

THE REGIONAL RAMIFICATIONS OF U.S.-SAUDI NUCLEAR COOPERATION HEADLINE 1: Tehran’s oil-for-missiles pipeline to Beijing just got sanctioned. HEADLINE 2: Israel targeted Muhammad Sinwar in a strike yesterday HEADLINE 3: Yesterday, President Trump announced that he’s lifting sanctions on Syria to — quote — “give them a chance at greatness” — end quote. -- FDD Senior Research Analyst Natalie Ecanow pr...

NUCLEAR TALKS, CONGRESS, AND MAXIMUM SUPPORT FOR THE IRANIAN PEOPLE HEADLINE 1: The IDF is closing in on victory in the Hamas stronghold of Rafah in southern Gaza, with heavy fighting now focused on the neighborhood of Janina. HEADLINE 2: After 43 years, Israel brought home the body of a fallen soldier—Sgt. First Class Zvi Feldman—from deep inside Syria. HEADLINE 3: The IDF almost attacked Yemen....

IRAN, SYRIA, THE HOUTHIS ... AND MORE HEADLINE 1: The United States dropped the demand for normalization with Israel as a condition for advancing civil nuclear cooperation discussions with Saudi Arabia. HEADLINE 2: A mob at Columbia University disseminated pamphlets praising a Palestinian terrorist. There’s a reason people call this school Birzeit on the Hudson. HEADLINE 3: Israel’s ‘Qatargate’ sc...