The President's Daily Brief - May 8th, 2024: Help for Haiti, Rafah Operations, & North Korean Duds

Episode Date: May 8, 2024

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: We start in the Caribbean as Haiti's new interim government grapples with rampant violence in the capital. A multinational force has begun arriving to assist in stabilizing the situation. From Gaza, we report on the precarious state of hostage negotiations, threatened by ongoing Israeli operations in Rafah. We also examine the performance of North Korean missiles used by Russian forces, as Ukrainian officials question their effectiveness. In today's Back of the Brief, TikTok takes on the U.S. government, challenging potential bans through legal action. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. Email: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker. Your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. We begin today in the Caribbean, where Haiti's new interim government struggles to contain escalating violence in the capital. Meanwhile, a multinational force will soon arrive on the island in an effort to restore order. Later in the show, we'll bring in the latest from Gaza, where the ongoing Israeli operations in Rafa put fragile hostage negotiations at risk.

Plus, Ukrainian officials continue to scrutinize the effectiveness of North Korean missiles deployed by Russian forces. And I'll give you a hint, Kim's missiles may not be meeting Moscow's expectations. Finally, in today's back of the brief, TikTok strikes back. The Beijing-based company behind the popular video sharing app is now taking legal action against the U.S. government in the hopes of preventing a future ban. But first, today's PDB spotlight.

I want to begin with a major update regarding the deteriorating situation in Haiti, where violent gangs plunged the country into a state of total anarchy in early March. Now, as we recently discussed, a new provisional government was installed in Haiti in late April amid the chaos following the former resignation of exiled prime minister Ariel Holmri. The country's former sports minister, Fritz de Belizier, a complete unknown in Haiti, even among his peers, has since been given the reins as prime minister. It appears, however, that things aren't getting any better under the new leadership. Local police and other officials describe a climate of terror on the ground as gangs launched

new waves of violent attacks throughout the country. Now, the violence has been particularly bad in Port-au-Prince, where gangs are thought to control 90% of the city, with groups indiscriminately killing civilians in the streets and burning down everything in sight from homes to businesses. Thousands are believed to have been killed in the violence, while more than 350,000 people have been forced from their homes. The chaos has upended all aspects of life in the country, with some 1.4 million Haitians now said to be on the verge of famine.

An unnamed journalist in Port-au-Prince explained the situation to the Daily Express, saying, quote, the level of violence is unprecedented. The gangs seemingly want to kill as many people as they can. They are in a fear campaign where they want to appear as murderous and as violent as possible. We have seen images of gang leaders eating people they've killed. The goal here is not just to ensure fear, but to paralyze people mentally, end quote. In a particularly grisly example of the fear campaign being waged by Haiti's gangs,

reports have emerged that they're engaging in the brutal slaughter of police, mutilating their bodies, and then leaving them on the streets for the locals to see. The new transitional government is already coming under fire for doing nothing to quell the violence, though they don't appear to have many options at their disposal. They're hoping to stabilize the situation with the aid of the international community with an eye on 2025 for holding new elections. On that score, the New York Times reported Tuesday that preparations are ramping up to deploy a seven-nation security mission led by Kenya

to help restore some semblance of order in Haiti. U.S. officials said that American military planes carrying civilian contractors and supplies have already begun landing in the country. They've reportedly worked to secure the international airport in Port-au-Prince and build a base of operations for the coming security mission. As a reminder, the U.S. and a coalition of Caribbean and African nations agreed in March to send a Kenyan-led multinational UN security mission to Haiti to help the heavily outnumbered Haitian police force fight off the gang. While the deployment was delayed by disagreements among Kenyan lawmakers, officials told the New York Times on Tuesday that the final hurdles have been cleared.

The plans include a 2,500 member security force led by 1,000 police officers from Kenya. Now, the hope is that the security mission can hit the ground running, as the Haitian National Police have reportedly already outlined plans on how to retake areas currently controlled by gangs. One potential roadblock has been the question of funding. The U.S. pledged to contribute some $300 million to the security mission in March, but oversight concerns within Congress have made it difficult to cobble together the funds. To get around Congress, the Biden administration, approved a $60 million military aid package for Haiti last week, mostly made up of small arms and armored vehicles, which will also go towards nations supporting the multinational security mission.

While no firm date has been given for the operation, many expect it will begin ahead of a state visit to the U.S. by Kenya's president at the end of May. All right, coming up after the break. We've got the latest from Gaza with a look at Israel's limited offensive in Hamas's final stronghold of Rafa. And Russian armed forces continue their use of North Korean missiles with mixed results. I'll be right back. Not loving your AT&T or T-Mobile bill? Yeah, we've been hearing that a lot. Good news.

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and that's the last stronghold of Hamas. As we reported yesterday, an IDF tank brigade has taken operational control of the Rafah crossing along Gaza's border with Egypt, raising the Israeli flag over the border gate. The Israeli military stated that it seized the crossing after receiving intelligence it was being used for terrorist purposes. The scope of Israel's current operations in Rafah remains to be seen, with the Israeli military continuing to insist that it's limited meant to kill fighters and dismantle infrastructure used by Hamas. However, that was contradicted by the U.S. State Department on Tuesday.

During a press briefing, Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters that the seizure of the Rafa crossing appeared to be the prelude to a major military operation. Now, Miller later walked that back, saying, quote, this appears to be a limited operation, but of course, much of that depends on what comes next, end quote. Well, there's a statement of the obvious. Miller added that the U.S. continues to make it clear that they oppose any major military operation in the city. Israeli defense minister Yovgalant said Israel's operation in Gaza will continue until Hamas is eliminated in Rafa and the entire Gaza Strip, or until the hostages are returned. At least 27 people are reported to have died in Rafa since Monday evening when the IDF's military operations began. Meanwhile, negotiations have resumed between Israel and Hamas after Hamas's acceptance of an offer on Monday that Israel was never informed of. As of right now, one of the main sticking points appears to be the number of Israeli hostages that would be released in the first phase of any ceasefire. and whether or not the terror group even has enough living hostages to fulfill any potential obligation. The first tranche of hostages is supposed to include 33 women, children, the elderly, and ill people.

But in Hamas' latest written response, the group said that it intends to offer the remains of dead hostages, in addition to hostages who are still alive during the first phase of the truce. Speaking to CNN, one Israeli source claimed that Israel will not agree to include corpses, in the first category of hostages to be released, since this would be like, quote, giving license to kill the remaining living hostages. All right, shifting gears. We're learning more about the extent of support

that Moscow is receiving from their allies in Pyongyang, as fears mount regarding the still blossoming romance between Russia and North Korea. The state prosecutors in Ukraine have been pouring through reports and examining debris from 21 of the estimated 50 North Korea, ballistic missiles launched by Russian forces between December and February in an effort to gain a better understanding of the Kim regime's involvement in the conflict, according to an

exclusive report from Reuters. While the investigation is ongoing, officials say their tally of North Korean-made missiles is in line with intelligence showing the Kim regime had delivered roughly 50 ballistic missiles to Russia. They said the last confirmed use of these missiles was on February 27th. Notably, the investigation is seemingly confirmed that the missiles being provided to Russia are highly unreliable. Andre Koston, Ukraine's senior prosecutor, told Reuters, quote, about half of the North Korean missiles lost their programmed trajectories and exploded in the air, end quote. As we've discussed on the PDB, past reports have suggested that the North Korean missiles are prone to malfunction. Alarmingly, however, reports have recently emerged

that North Korea has also been providing some of its more advanced weapons to Russia. As we covered earlier this week on the PDB, weapons inspectors analyzing the debris from a ballistic missile strike in the city of Kharkiv discovered that most of the electronic parts for the missile had been manufactured in the U.S. and Europe over the past few years. This means that the Kim regime has been illegally obtaining Western components to incorporate into their missiles before secretly shipping them to Russia. Ukrainian officials said that debris from 21 cases reviewed by prosecutors shows North Korean missiles

have been used to strike targets inside the capital city of Kiev, as well as other regions, including Kharkiv and Dhenksk. The attacks in which Ukraine can confirm the use of North Korean missiles have killed 24 people and wounded 115, while also causing significant damage. We should note, however, that North Korean missiles only represent a small portion of the missiles Russian forces have used against Ukraine. Still, the aid has alarmed the international community, as it appears to herald the end of the UN sanctions regime against North Korea, which obviously relied on the cooperation of Russia. It's clear that the Putin regime has been flagrantly violating these sanctions as the war in Ukraine drags on. A report in late March revealed that Russia has

begun shipping oil directly to North Korea, and that's dealing a major blow to the West's ability to squeeze Russian and North Korean interests with further sanctions. The shipments are expected to help stabilize the North's troubled economy and, of course, will free up resources that can be redirected towards the regime's weapons programs. All right, coming up next in today's back of the brief, Bight Dance, the company behind TikTok, is taking the U.S. federal government to court over the proposed ban that could put them out of business in America.

I'll be right back. In today's back of the brief, TikTok strikes back. The Beijing-based parent company of the video sharing app, Bight Dance, has launched a lawsuit against the U.S. government in response to the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, Boy, D.C. loves to name things, which mandates the company either sell TikTok or face a ban. The lawsuit alleges that the legislation infringes on constitutional rights, specifically violating the First Amendment by targeting a single platform for a nationwide ban. They called the law a, quote, unprecedented violation of free speech, adding that no prior law

has subjected a specific online platform to such severe restrictions. The company contends that the national security concerns cited by the government, including potential access of user data by the Chinese Communist Party, did not justify the sweeping limitations imposed, and argument. that the government has failed to demonstrate that any of the restrictions are necessary. The lawsuit also challenges the constitutionality of the Act on grounds of due process under the Fifth Amendment and as a bill of attainder, which is a fancy legal speak for a law that punishes an individual or entity without a proper trial. The response from politicians has been mixed, with some supporting the government's stance on national security, while others

view the legislation is overly harsh. The Biden Department of Justice has so far declined to comment on the lawsuit. Now, this latest episode adds to the ongoing saga between TikTok and the U.S. government, which has been trying to restrict the app since 2020 under both the Trump and Biden administrations. Despite TikTok's efforts to enhance data security through their initiatives like Project Texas, many remain skeptical of its data practices and the potential for communist influence. And that, my friends, is the President's Daily Breast. for Wednesday, 8 May.

If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com. And to listen to the show ad-free, remember, become a premium member of the president's daily brief by visiting pdb premium.com. I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool. Some follow the noise. Bloomberg follows the money.

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