The President's Daily Brief - April 6th, 2026: Inside the Daring U.S. Rescue Mission in Iran & ICE Detains Soleimani Relative

Episode Date: April 6, 2026

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: After a tense, multi-day search behind enemy lines, U.S. forces successfully rescue the second crew member of a downed F-15E Strike Eagle, denying Tehran what could have been a major propaganda victory and showcasing a complex, high-risk recovery operation. Fears are growing that Russia is testing a familiar destabilization strategy in Estonia, as pro-Kremlin actors push the idea of a separatist “Narva People’s Republic” inside a NATO member state. New reports suggest Kyiv may be opening another front against Russia, launching drone strikes from Libya targeting Moscow’s shadow fleet operating in the Mediterranean. U.S. immigration authorities detain the niece of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani after the Trump administration revokes her green card over alleged ties to Iran’s regime. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting https://PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. YouTube: youtube.com/@presidentsdailybrief StopBox: Get firearm security redesigned and save 10% off @StopBoxUSA with code PDB10 at https://stopboxusa.com/PDB10 #stopboxpod Acre Gold: Start building physical gold with simple monthly payments and enter to win two Ancient Collection gold bars at https://GetAcreGold.com/PDB  Goldbelly: Make Mother’s Day unforgettable with iconic foods delivered—get free shipping and 20% off your first order at https://GOLDBELLY.com with code PDB. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's Monday, the 6th of April. For those of you who celebrate, I hope you had a very happy Easter. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. First up, after a tense, multi-day search behind enemy lines, U.S. forces have successfully rescued the second crew member of that downed F-15E in Iran. I'll have the details.

Later in the show, fears are growing that Russia is testing a familiar playbook in Estonia as a pro-Kremlin campaign pushes the idea of a separatist Narva People's Republic inside, of course, a NATO member state. Plus, Kiev may be opening a new front against Russia, with reported drone strikes launched from Libya, targeting Moscow's shadow fleet in the Mediterranean. And it stays back of the brief. ICE detains the niece of Kassem Soleimani after the Trump administration revokes her green card over alleged ties to Iran's regime. But first, today's PDB spotlight.

The U.S. woke up to some exceedingly good news on Easter morning. The second crew member of that F-15E downed over Iran on Friday has been rescued. As we reported on Friday, the aircraft was shot down over southwestern Iran, marking a rare loss for the U.S. Air Force in this conflict. One of the two crew members, the pilot, was safely rescued shortly after the plane went down, but the second crew member, a weapons systems officer, couldn't be immediately located. And for the better part of the last two days, this became a race, a race between American forces trying to find and extract him, and Iranian forces trying to do the exact same thing. What we know is that the downed officer did exactly what he was trained to do, using survival of

invasion, resistance and escape, what's known as sear training, he moved away from the crash site, avoided detection, and made his way into mountainous terrain. At one point, officials say he climbed a higher ground, hiding along a ridge line, and later in a crevice, limiting his communications to avoid giving away his position. He was injured, and according to reporting, had only his sidearm to defend himself, while Iranian forces attempted to locate him. The governor of the region, where he was suspected to be located, put the word out to civilians, the government would pay a reward to anyone who could capture or kill the American. Iranian Revolutionary Guard units and affiliated militia were actively searching the area. Had

Iran gotten to him first, this would have, of course, been a major propaganda victory. A captured American airman undoubtedly paraded on state media, used as leverage, it could have changed the conflict overnight. Instead, the U.S. surged everything it had to prevent that from happening. And what followed appears, based on what we know so far, to have been an extremely complex combat search and rescue operation. It was an operation involving hundreds of personnel, special operations forces, Air Force pararescue teams, intelligence assets, and dozens of aircraft operating overhead. The CIA played a key role, not only helping to locate the airmen, but also running a deception campaign designed to confuse Iranian forces, pushing the idea that the pilot

had already been recovered and was being moved out of the country. At the same time, U.S. aircraft were actively shaping the battlefield, conducting strikes and using drones to keep Iranian units away from the area where the airmen was believed to be hiding. Eventually, American commandos, reportedly including members of SEAL Team 6, were able to reach him, treat his injuries, and begin the extraction. But that final phase unfolded under fire. We're now learning that multiple aircraft,

were damaged during the operation. Two rescue helicopters reportedly took enemy fire, with crew members wounded. At least 1-8-10 providing cover was lost during the broader mission, though its pilot ejected and was rescued safely. In addition, two U.S. aircraft on the ground had to be destroyed by American forces when they became unusable, simply to prevent them from falling into Iranian hands. In the end, additional aircraft were brought in and the entire rescue team, including, of course, the downed airmen was successfully extracted and flown out of Iran to safety with the officer

now receiving medical treatment in Kuwait. But based on what we do know, this was an extraordinary effort. It's a reminder of the level of coordination, capability, and the risk involved in bringing a single American home from behind enemy lines. All right, before we go to break, just a quick reminder that if you love the PDB, and hopefully you do, well, and you want to listen to it ad-free, just consider becoming a premium member. It's simple. Just go to PDB Premium.com. You'll also get access to my regular Ask Me Anything sessions, our weekly PDB newsletter, and other exclusive content. Again, that's PDB Premium.com to join. Coming up next, Russia may be testing its Ukraine playbook in Estonia, reminding us of

Vladimir Putin's often state of desire to rebuild the Soviet Union in some fashion. as Kiev reportedly opens a new front from Libya targeting Moscow's shadow fleet. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here with an important message for anyone who owns a handgun. Now, as you know, owning a handgun for self-defense comes with real responsibility. And you're always faced with the reality that any weapon has to be stored securely, but for home defense, needs to be accessible. The reality is, far too often people choose between

locking it away or leaving it exposed to kids or guests or intruders. Now, Stopbox USA addresses this with the Stopbox Pro. It's a 100% mechanical keyless battery-free lockbox that provides fast, controlled access without electronics, keys, or codes. It's patented five-buttoned system is intuitive and built for muscle memory, so you can react instantly. With Stopbox Pro, you get safety and readiness without compromise. And, of course, it's made in the USA,

Not to mention that it's TSA compliant. For a limited time, our listeners get 10% off at Stopbox when you use code PDB10 at checkout. Just head on over to StopboxUSA.com and use code PDB 10 for 10% off your entire order. And after your purchase, well, they'll ask where you heard about them. Do me a favor if you could. Tell them the PDB sent you. Welcome back to the PDB. I want to move now to Eastern Europe, where there are growing fears that Russia may be attempting

to replicate a strategy that it used to destabilize Ukraine, this time in neighboring Estonia, which of course is a NATO nation. At the center of those concerns is the city of Narva. It's a small but strategically sensitive border town of about 50,000 people, sitting right along Estonia's frontier with Russia. Now, on its face, nothing has changed on the ground, but online, a different picture is emerging, one that, well, looks increasingly familiar. In recent weeks, pro-Russian social media channels have begun pushing the idea of a so-called, quote, Narva People's Republic. Posts are calling for autonomy, encouraging residents to arm themselves and even urging acts of

sabotage against the Estonian state. Some feature flags and maps and mock government structures for this imagined breakaway region. Others include videos of masked individuals calling on supporters to, quote, act together. Now, Estonian authorities are moving quickly to tamp this down, calling it a coordinated disinformation campaign. Intelligence officials say there's no evidence of a genuine grassroots separatist movement. Instead, they see the hallmarks of something much more deliberate, an influence operation

designed to create confusion, stoke fear, and test the cohesion of Estonian society. And, of course, we've seen this playbook before. Back in 2014, in eastern Ukraine, Moscow. back to creation of so-called people's republics in Donetsk and Lhansk. What started as online narratives and local agitation quickly escalated. Armed groups emerged. Russian intelligence operatives moved in, and before long, those regions became the focal point of a broader conflict that ultimately drew in conventional Russian military forces.

The strategy Russia used is well-established. First, you amplify claims that the Russian-speaking populations are under threat. Then you introduce the idea of autonomy or outright independence. From there, you encourage unrest, build parallel structures of authority, and create a pretext for intervention under the guise of protection. Narva fits several key elements of that model. Roughly 90% of its population is Russian-speaking, making it an obvious target for this kind of messaging.

And while there's little indication that residents feel oppressed, that hasn't stopped Kremlin-aligned narratives from pushing exactly that claim for years. Now, to be clear, there are no signs of an imminent Russian military move into Estonia. Most analysts agree that Moscow is unlikely to open a second front while its war in Ukraine continues. But that doesn't mean that this situation should be dismissed. What we may be seeing instead is the early stage of a longer-term pressure campaign, a way to probe NATO's defense is not just militarily, but psychologically. Because Estableness, is in Ukraine. It's a member of NATO. Any escalation here carries far greater risk. And that raises a difficult question. If a crisis were to erupt in a place like Narva, would NATO be prepared

to respond decisively, or would hesitation create an opening? There are already forces positioned nearby. A German brigade stationed to Lithuania, roughly 400 kilometers away, is part of NATO's broader effort to maintain a presence. In the event of a conflict, Those units could be called in quickly, but whether they would be, then how far that response would go, well, that remains an open question. Timing matters here, too. Estonian officials have noted that this campaign is ramping up, as global attention, of course, has shifted elsewhere, particularly toward the ongoing war with Iran.

Now, as Russia leans into a familiar playbook in Estonia, we may be seeing Ukraine adopt a page from an entirely different playbook. Kiev has opened a new front against Moscow, and it's nowhere near Eastern Europe. It's in Libya. According to multiple reports, Ukrainian military personnel are now operating inside Western Libya, more than 200 officers and specialists working with the internationally recognized government in Tripoli. The Ukrainian troops are reportedly spread across several sites, including a military air base in Mizrata, a drone facility near Key Energy Infrastructure and a coordination hub in the capital. Now, neither Kiev nor Libyan officials have confirmed any of this publicly,

but if the reporting holds, well, it points to something much bigger than a quiet partnership. It suggests that Ukraine is expanding its fight with Russia far beyond its own borders. And here's where it gets more interesting. Some of these Ukrainian units are reportedly involved in launching naval drone attacks in the Mediterranean Sea. One incident in early March targeted a Russian-linked liquefied natural gas tanker, part of Moscow's shadow fleet. That's the network of vessels, of course, used to skirt sanctions and keep energy revenues flowing. The strike reportedly damaged the ship's engine room, leaving it dead in the water. If true, well, that's a significant shift. Ukraine isn't just defending territory anymore.

It's going after Russian economic targets wherever they operate. and Libya, as it turns out, is the perfect place to do it. The country remains fractured, split between rival governments in the east and west, each backed by different foreign powers. Russia has long supported strongman Khalifa Haftar in eastern Libya, while the Tripoli-based government maintains ties with Western and regional allies, add in the presence of Turkish forces, U.S. Africa command and various European actors, and you've got a crowded, volatile environment where a denial operation

can thrive. In other words, a classic proxy battleground. From Ukraine's perspective, this kind of move makes strategic sense. By operating out of Libya, Keev can extend its reach into the Mediterranean, targeting Russian ships and forcing Moscow to defend its assets far from the front lines. It's a way of raising the cost of the war without escalating directly inside Russia itself. But, of course, as you might imagine, it also carries risk. Libya is already unstable, introducing another layer of competition, especially one, tied to an ongoing war, raises the chances of miscalculation. And while these operations may be deniable, there's always the possibility that things spill

over in ways that neither side can fully control. Okay, coming up in the back of the brief, the federal agents arrest a relative of deceased former senior Iranian commander, Kassam Soleimani, in Los Angeles, as Washington moves to expel foreign nationals linked to hostile regimes. We'll have the details. Hey, Mike Baker here. Let me take a moment to talk about personal finances and the importance of diversifying your assets. So here's the question, do you own physical gold? Well, in today's world, with its ups and downs and general instability, and I think there's some general instability out there right now, owning gold is something that everyone should consider. And here's a top tip.

Acre gold makes it simple. That's Acre, A-C-R-E. With acre gold, you pick a plan that fits your budget, you make monthly payments, and when you've accumulated enough, they'll ship you up beautifully designed 24-carat Swiss gold bar. Gold is up 70% year-over-year, and central banks, well, they're still buying it at record levels. The reality is, smart money has been moving into hard assets for a reason. An acre gold makes investing and owning gold easier than ever. And if I might say, once you hold a physical asset like gold in your hands, well, you understand the difference between owning something real, something physical,

as compared to investments that are just numbers on the screen. Right now, they're giving away over 18 grams of gold in their acre declassified sweepstakes. enter for free and subscribe to gold at getacregold.com slash PDB. Once again, that's getacregold.com slash PDB. Hey, Mike Baker here. Now, you have probably heard me talk about Goldbelly, right? That's the amazing company that brings iconic foods from America's greatest chefs straight to your doorstep.

It's that simple. And, well, as you may be aware, when you look at the calendar, Mother's Day is fast approaching. And what better way to make Mum feel special than to order up food that she's going to love. Goldbelly celebrates the best of America by shipping the country's most celebrated foods from legendary eateries straight to your door. And they'll ship anywhere across the country for free in time for Mother's Day. So come on, get busy. Everything I've ordered from Goldbelly shows up perfectly packed and delicious. Celebrate your mom with, well,

let's say, Ina Garton's coconut cupcakes. Look, I've had them. They are amazing. Or how about the Loveless Cafe's Southern Biscuit brunch, right, from Goldbelly? Come on, make mom's feel special. So if you're looking to make Mother's Day perfect, or whatever, just want to impress your friends and family with an epic meal next time you host, go to goldbelly.com. It's that simple and get free shipping and 20% off

your first order with promo code PDB. That's goldbelly.com code PDB for free shipping and 20% off your first order. In today's back of the brief, federal agents have arrested the niece of slain Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in the U.S.

after the Trump administration revoked her legal status over alleged ties to the regime in Tecrane. According to the State Department, Hamiday Soleimani Afshar, who had been living in Los Angeles, was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or known as ICE, along with her daughter, and they're now facing removal from the country. The move came after Secretary of State Marker Rubio personally revoked their green cards, citing national security concerns. officials alleged that Afshar wasn't just a relative of a high-profile Iranian figure, but an active supporter of the regime itself.

According to the State Department, she promoted Iranian government propaganda, praised attacks against American forces, and openly supported the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC, which the U.S. has designated as a terrorist organization. Secretary of State Rubio said Afshar had, quote, celebrated attacks on Americans, while living what officials described as a comfortable life inside the U.S. Afshar reportedly entered the country on a tourist visa in 2015, was granted asylum in 2019, and later obtained a green card in 2021. But according to the Department of Homeland Security,

she traveled back to Iran multiple times after receiving that status, raising serious questions about the legitimacy of her asylum claim in the first place. And given the exalted status that her uncle, Kassam Soleimani, had within the IRGC, one could argue that her claim for asylum was completely bogus. And that's a key point, because asylum is granted based on a credible fear of persecution. If someone is voluntarily returning to the country they claim to be fleeing, well, it tends to undermine that case. And in this instance, officials say it may have been fraudulent.

Really? You think so? her daughter followed a similar path, entering on a student visa, receiving asylum, and eventually becoming a lawful permanent resident. Now, if one were churlish, one could point out how this might be an indication of just how screwed up U.S. immigration policies are. Now, both are now in ICE custody, and they're not alone. The State Department says it has recently revoked a legal status of other individuals tied to senior Iranian officials, including the daughter of a former regime figure who has already left the U.S. and is now barred from returning. This appears to be part of a wider effort by the Trump administration to tighten security on

foreign nationals with ties, direct or indirect, to adversarial regimes, particularly those designated as state sponsors of terrorism. The message appears to be relatively straightforward. Legal status in the U.S. is a privilege. It's not a human right. and if officials believe that privilege is being used to support hostile actors, they're willing to revoke it. And that, my friends, is the president's daily brief for Monday, the 6th of April. Now, if you have any questions or comments, and I hope you do, please reach out to me at pdb at thefirsttv.com.

And I hope you had time over the weekend to catch the latest episode of our extended weekend show that, of course, is the PDB Situation Report. If not, you can find it and past episodes on our YouTube. channel, just go on over to YouTube and search up at President's Daily Brief, and of course, on podcast platforms all over podcast land. This weekend, we have great guests, including Ben-Talablu from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies to provide insight into the Iran conflict, as well as Gordon Chang, providing important analysis of the relationship between China and Iran. I hope you'll tune in. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin.

Stay informed. Stay safe. Stay cool.