I - On Defense Podcast

For review: 1. US DoD: No Plans to Relinquish NATO SACEUR Post.  The Pentagon does not have plans to relinquish the post of NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), said Katherine Thompson, assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs. 2.  Suspected US airstrikes pounded the area around Yemen’s Red Sea port city of Hodeida on Tuesday night. 3. US and Iran Nuclear Talks...

For review: 1. Iran willing to engage in dialogue with US as equals.  Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian:  “The Islamic Republic of Iran wants dialogue on equal footing.” 2.  US Sends 2d THAAD Battery to Israel. The THAAD, or Terminal High Altitude Area Defense System, is an advanced anti-missile system- capable of hitting targets at ranges of 150-200 kilometers (93-124 miles).  3.  Norway plans...

For review: 1. US CENTCOM Commander Visits Israel.  General Michael Erik Kurilla, head of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), held an assessment with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the IDF said Thursday.  2. UK Telegraph Newspaper Report:  Iran has reportedly ordered its military personnel to leave Yemen and is pulling back its support for the Houthis amid extensive US airstrikes on the reb...

For review: 1. US Army identifies the four Dogface Soldiers (3d Infantry Division) who perished during training exercise in Lithuania. All assigned to the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, they were identified as: Staff Sgt. Jose Duenez; Staff Sgt. Edvin F. Franco; Pfc. Dante D. Taitano; and Staff Sgt. Troy S. Knutson-Collins. 2.  US Sends More F-35s to CENTCOM. Defense Secre...

For review: 1. US President Trump threatens Iran with bombing and tariffs over nuclear program. If they (Iran) don’t make a deal, there will be bombing,” President Trump said in a telephone interview. “It will be bombing the likes of which they have never seen before.” 2. In response to US President Trump's threat of bombing and tariffs, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Mo...

For review: 1. US Continues Strikes Against Houthis.  Suspected U.S. airstrikes pounded Yemen overnight into Saturday, as the American military acknowledged earlier bombing a major military site in the heart of Sanaa controlled by the Houthi rebels.  2. Israel receives Hamas Hostage proposal from mediators and returns counterproposal. The Israeli statement came after media reports on Saturday said...

For review: 1. Hamas open to negotiate release of small number of Hostages for a truce during Eid al-Fitr holiday period. The Kan public broadcaster acknowledged that it was still unclear what Hamas will ask in return for those it releases, though it did say that the freed hostages would include American-Israeli IDF lone soldier Edan Alexander. 2. Iran: US Bases not safe if Americans attack. Tehra...

For review: 1. US Airstrikes on Houthi Rebels Continue. The Houthis described American airstrikes targeting sites around the city of Saada, a Houthi stronghold, the Red Sea port city of Hodeida, and Marib province, home to oil and gas fields still under the control of allies to Yemen’s exiled central government. 2. IDF strikes over 100 white pickup trucks used by Hamas during the 07 October attack...

For review: 1. Senior Hamas Political Official killed during IDF Gaza Strike. Ismail Barhoum, a senior member of Hamas’s political bureau, was killed on Sunday evening in a targeted Israeli airstrike on a hospital in the southern Gaza Strip. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz in a statement hailed the killing of Barhoum, saying he was “the new Hamas prime minister in Gaza, who replaced Issam Da&...

For review: 1. Boeing Wins USAF Next-Gen Air Dominance Fighter (F-47).  Boeing has won the contract to develop the first ever sixth-generation fighter, dubbed the F-47, President Donald Trump announced today. The fighter will be expected to operate with the service’s forthcoming fleet of drone wingmen known as Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA). General Atomics Aeronautical Systems and Anduril ar...

For review" 1. IDF Starts Ground Operations in Gaza.  The IDF said Wednesday it had launched “pinpoint” ground operations in the central and southern Gaza Strip. The IDF said its operations were aimed at expanding the security zone near the border and creating a partial buffer between northern and southern Gaza.  2. Captured documents from Gaza show that in the years leading up to 07 October...

For review: 1. The Houthi rebels launched a ballistic missile at Israel from Yemen Tuesday evening, marking the first attack from the Iran-backed group since the ceasefire came into effect in the Gaza Strip two months ago.  2. IDF Aerial Offensive in Gaza.  The Israeli PM- Benjamin Netanyahu- said that the military campaign was launched on the recommendation of Israel’s intelligence services and t...

For review: 1. US CENTCOM Campaign Against Houthis.  More airstrikes are planned in the coming days.  USAF LTG Alexus G. Grynkewich, director for operations for the Joint Staff: "US CENTCOM began precision strike operations against the Houthis to restore freedom of navigation and American deterrence. The initial wave of strikes hit over 30 targets at multiple locations, degrading a variety of...

For review: 1. US and Israeli Officials reach out to Sudan, Somalia, & Somaliland to discuss Palestinian resettlement during US proposed Gaza reconstruction plan. Officials from Sudan and Somalia said they had rejected overtures from the US, while officials Somaliland told The AP that they were not aware of any contacts. 2. US President Donald Trump has praised talks held with Russian Presiden...

For review: 1. Interim Syrian President Signs Temporary Constitution. The temporary constitution leaves the country under Islamist rule while promising to protect the rights of all Syrians for five years during a transitional phase. 2. A group of around 100 senior figures from among Syria’s Druze are expected to visit the Israeli Golan Heights on Friday, and meet Sheikh Muafak Tarif, spiritual lea...

For review: 1. Ukraine Will Agree to a 30 Day Ceasefire with Russia - US to Restart Military Aid and Intel Sharing. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio:  "We'll take this offer now to the Russians. And we hope that they'll say yes, that they'll say yes to peace. The President's objective here is, number one, above everything else, he wants the war to end, and I think today U...

For review: 1. Iran Supreme Leader Not Interested in Talks with "Bullying" Countries. Iran's Supreme leader has criticized "bullying" countries in an apparent response to US President Donald Trump's letter demanding negotiations over its nuclear program. 2. Israel on Sunday prepared to send a delegation to Doha for further talks on the Gaza truce. 3. Israel’s Energy M...

For review: 1. President Trump Sends Letter to Iran Supreme Leader.  US President Donald Trump said he wants to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran and sent a letter to its leadership this week suggesting talks with the Islamic Republic. 2. New Syrian government consolidating security against Pro-Assad forces in the Alawite Minority.  A Syria war monitor reported on Saturday that over 530 civilians...

For review: 1. New IDF Chief of Staff: 2025 - A Year of War. New IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir stated that 2025 would be “a year of war” with a focus on the Gaza Strip and Iran. 2. US Unfreezes $95 Million Aid Package to Lebanese Armed Forces. 3. US Pauses Intelligence Sharing with Ukraine. Comments from top Trump administration officials suggest the decision is part of the broa...

For review: 1. Arab Leaders Adopt Egypt's Gaza Reconstruction Plan.  The Egyptian plan, called “Early Recovery, Reconstruction, Development of Gaza,” is based on “preserving the rights, dignity and humanity of the Palestinian people, and on the horizon of a two-state solution.”  2. Ukraine President Proposes Partial Ceasefire. Ukraine is proposing to Russia a “truce in the sky” – that is, a h...

For review: 1. Israel PM thanks US for recent Foreign Military Sales of weapons to "finish the job" against Iran and their terror proxies. On Saturday, US Secretary of State Rubio said he had signed a declaration to expedite around $4 billion in military assistance to Israel, adding that a partial arms embargo imposed under former administration had been reversed.  2.  Egypt Prepares Pla...

For review: 1. US Foreign Military Sale to Israel Worth $3 Billion- includes $295 million for Armored D9 Caterpillar bulldozers and related equipment. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2027.  2. President Trump & President Zelensky Oval Office Meeting. (You have to listen to the whole meeting.) 3. European Leaders react to the President Trump & President Zelensky Oval Office Meeting.  It...

For review: 1. IDF Probe on 7 Oct Hamas Attack. Israeli reporters were presented with the investigations conducted by the Southern Command, Operations Division, Israeli Air Force, and Israeli Navy.  2.  US & Russian Diplomats Meet in Istanbul. A U.S. Embassy official in Ankara confirmed that the Istanbul talks focused on the issues affecting the operation of respective diplomatic missions. 3....

For review: 1. Israel & Hamas Agree on Hostage - Prisoner Release as Phase I of Deal Closes. The first phase of the deal, which includes the ongoing ceasefire, ends on Saturday.  2. French President Macron visits White House- "feasible" to talk about a truce in the war and the start of negotiations for a sustainable peace within weeks.  3. Ukraine President Zelenskyy to visit Washing...

For review: 1. Israeli Forensic Doctor Reports Bibas Family Murdered by Terrorists - Not Killed by Airstrike. 2. Israel to delay freeing of 600 Palestinian Prisoners after humiliating release ceremony of six Israeli Hostages. 3. IDF Warplanes conduct flyover of former top Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah's funeral ceremony in Beirut. Defense Minister Israel Katz: “You will specialize in fune...