October 23rd, 2023: Hostage Release, China's Warships, and Russia's Battlefield Setbacks
00:11It's Monday, October 23rd. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on what is currently a chaotic and tense world stage. Let's get briefed.On this Monday edition of the PDB, we'll start our program with the latest developments in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, including the release of two Americans kidnapped by Hamas this past week and Israel's recent airstrikes targeting two airports in Syria.A little later in the program, traffic's building up in the Eastern Med and Persian Gulf,and it's getting crowded, as the U.S. already has two carrier strike groups deployed to theMed, both to provide potential support to Israel and also as a show of force,to outside players who may consider taking advantage of Israel's situation.And now, China has dispatched six warships to the Middle East amidst the escalating Israel-Hamasconflict, sparking fears of a wider clash. We'll look at the reasoning behind China's actions.
01:13Also, the attacks on U.S. forces continue across the Middle East, with the latest rocketassault targeting an Iraqi base housing American troops. Finally, in today's back of the brief,we'll turn our gaze to the war in Europe, where a major offensive by Russia faces a staggeringblow, losing a significant number of armored vehicles and tanks over the course of just a fewdays. But first, let's get caught up on the latest from Israel. Since the initiation of the violence onOctober 7th, more than 1,400 people have been killed in Israel, the vast majority, being the civiliansand some soldiers killed during the initial brutal Hamas assault. Meanwhile, the Hamas-run healthministry in Gaza says that over 4,300 Palestinians have been killed. They have not revealed how many of
02:03those fatalities are Hamas terrorists. As the conflict continues, Israel's military is intensifyingits aerial assault on Gaza, signaling, possibly, preparation for the next stage in its battle againstHamas. The situation heated up yesterday, as Israeli troops and Hamas fighters clashed during araid within Gaza. We continue to anticipate the Israeli ground offensive into Gaza, but in aninteresting development, at least according to some reports, the U.S. is actually working behindthe scenes to delay the Israeli operation into Gaza, aiming, apparently, to rescue more hostagesand funnel more humanitarian aid into Palestinian-controlled territory. This comes after the releaseof two American hostages from Gaza. On Friday, Hamas released an Israeli-American mother-and-daughter
02:54duo, Judith and Natalie Ronan, who are from the Chicago area.The pair are just two of around 200 individuals believed to be in captivity.There's no clarity or explanation as to why the terrorists decided to release these to particular hostages,with U.S. authorities acknowledging that they are unclear as to the decision by Hamas.At the same time, U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Anthony Blinken,publicly thanked the government of Gutter for their role in the hostage release.amidst the diplomatic tightrope, American officials have maintained a close liaison with gutter acting as the bridge between the U.S. and Hamas.Now, it's worth noting that gutter is home for a number of senior Hamas officials, most of them residing in Doha.
03:44While Hamas's motives behind the release remaining question, leaders from the terror group said on Friday that they had decided to free the mother and daughter for, quote, humanitarian reasons.Now, call me cynical, but if you believe that Hamas does anything for humanitarian reasons,well, I have a timeshare offer for you in Gaza City, the only realistic reasons behind theirrelease of a couple of hostages would be that, A, they are looking to block and delay the anticipatedIsraeli ground invasion, likely to continue planning their own response, and B, they are scoringpropaganda points to continue feeding the narrative that the death and destruction is Israel's doing.Look, Hamas's PR department is smart enough to know that many people following this conflict,including international media and politicians, have attention deficit disorder.
04:37The further we get from the horrors of the 7 October slaughter committed by Hamas,the more attention will turn to the Israeli defense force's response,and the more likely the U.S. and allies will quietly pressure Israelto avoid acting on their initial promise to destroy Hamas.The Biden administration is a solid example of this.While the White House has been clear on its unequivocal support of Israel,they are spending an increasing amount of time focused on Palestinian aidand talking about the need for Israel to temper their response to Hamas' attacks.
05:12As we've discussed before here on the PDB,Hamas knew exactly how this would play out,and they know that if they can delay the anticipated Israeli ground offensive into Gaza,the likelihood is that the international pressure will continue to build on Israel to avoid an all-outeffort to take down Hamas. The irony here is that all those calling for temperance and ceasefireare promoting the status quo, which means nothing changes, which leads to more terrorism,more reprisals, continued instability, in which case, congratulations. The winner is Iran.Now, while Gaza remains in the crosshairs, Israel's military
05:53reach is also extending out to Syria now. Syrian media outlets reported Israel's air raidshitting Damascus and Aleppo airports, rendering them non-operational for the second time sincehostilities began a few weeks ago. These air raids aren't new, but the simultaneous strikes on bothairports marks a shift. The core of Israel's strategy is believed to be aimed at stopping the shipmentof advanced weaponry from Iran to its regional proxies, with Lebanon's Hezbollah,being its major concern. Now, I don't want to oversimplify by any means this incredibly complexMiddle East conundrum. But there will never be peace in the Middle East. There will never be a better futurefor the Palestinians, nor the ability for Israel to exist without constant threat, as long as the
06:43existing Iranian regime and its corrupt destabilizing Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps remain inpower. They successfully derailed, at least temporarily, the normalization of relations between Saudi Arabiaand Israel. They are the sponsor and puppet master for Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, and the Houthi rebels,and they continue their march towards a nuclear weapons program. There is no path to regional peacewithout somehow reigning in the Iranian regime. Coming up after the break, we'll dive into China'slatest move, deploying six warships to the Middle East amidst the escalating Israel-Hamas conflict.Plus, the attacks on U.S. forces continue with rockets targeting an Iraqi base housing Americantroops, a clear sign that Iran's proxies are turning up the heat. I'll be right back.
07:37Welcome back to the President's Daily Brief. There's a notable military buildup taking place inMiddle Eastern waters right now, and it's not just American ships joining the party. According toreports, China has deployed six warships to the region in recent days.Spearheading this move is the 44th Naval Escort Task Force from the People's Liberation ArmyEastern Theater. As of now, they've been engaging in routine operations. Last week, itspent several days on a visit to Oman, and it also took part in a joint exercise with that country'sNavy. The task force is rolling in with some heavy hitters, featuring the Zebo, a guidedmissile destroyer, along with the frigate Jean-Ju and others. These vessels are reportedly set to be
08:21stationed in the Middle East for the long term. This chess move by China follows on the heels of the U.S.sending its own formidable arsenal to the Middle East during the past couple of weeks.As we've talked about here on the PDB, the U.S. flexed its military muscle by dispatching two aircraftcarrier strike groups, the Gerald Ford and the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, to the eastern Mediterranean.and it doesn't stop there. The skies will see more action too, with additional planes,including squadrons of F-15 and F-16 fighter jets, being sent to U.S. military bases in the region.Now, last week, we reported that attacks had begun on U.S. bases and outposts across the MiddleEast, including in Iraq and Syria. Now, those attacks, they don't show any sign of letting up,
09:07and certainly not over this past weekend. Let's look into some of the recent assaults.We'll start in Iraq's western Anbar province.the Al-Assad Air Base, hosting U.S. Danish and Norwegian troops, among others.That was the target of at least two attacks.On Sunday, Kutusha rockets zeroed in on the airbase, causing a blast within the facility.A day earlier, defense systems at the base detected and shot down two drones lurking nearthe premises.There were no fatalities reported in either attack.
09:36For those who find the name Al-Assad Air Base ringing a bell, that's because it'sbeen a favorite target for Iran and its proxies.You may remember it was in the spotlight back in 2020 when Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corpslaunched 30 missiles at the base. This was in retaliation for the U.S. drone strike that killedGeneral Qasam Soleimani, the commander of Iran's Quds Force. There were also attacks in the Iraqicapital of Baghdad. On Friday, this past week, two rockets were launched targeting U.S. andallied troops at the Baghdad diplomatic support center. One was thwarted by a counter-rocketedsystem, while the other hidden empty storage facility, avoiding any casualties. Shifting the focus
10:17to the Northern Red Sea, the USS Carney found itself in a high-stakes situation on Thursday.Engaging with surface-to-air missiles, the vessel intercepted four cruise missiles and 15 drones,launched by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, aiming for Israel. The cruise missiles were knockedout over water, and at least with this incident were not targeting the U.S. warship itself.If you have the impression that the Iranian regime has its fingerprints over all the chaos,death and destruction currently taking place in the region, well, your instincts and common senseare sound. The various drone and missile attacks over the past week directed at U.S. andallied personnel and facilities are being initiated by Iranian proxies.
11:03Now, coming up at the back of the brief, some major developments out of Ukraine, as Russia reportedlysuffers a staggering blow in its latest offensive, losing a significant number of armored vehiclesand tanks. We'll examine the surging conflict and how Ukraine is holding the line. I'll be right back.Welcome back. In today's back of the brief, as you're probably well aware, the armed forces ofRussia have been on the defensive against Ukraine's somewhat slow-moving counter-offensive sincethis spring. But in at least one operation recently, the Russian military will,went back on the offensive. The focal point of this Russian attack has been the eastern front-linetown of Avdivka, a heavily fortified Ukrainian strongholds situated near the Russian-held capital
11:51of Dhenzsk province. Avdivka's strategic positioning, surrounded on three sides by enemypositions, makes it a critical area for control. This move by Russia represents one of itsmost significant pushes since last spring. However, reports and visual evidence from thefrom the ongoing offensive suggests that Russia is facing a very tough battle. Over just four dayslast week, Russia lost at least 68 armored vehicles, including eight tanks during its efforts. It'simportant to note that these 68 destroyed and abandoned vehicles only represent the lossesverified by open source intelligence analysts through photos and videos shared on social media.The actual extent of Russia's losses is believed to be far higher. As an example,
12:39The Ukrainian general staff is now claiming that they resulted in the destruction of a staggering175 Russian armored vehicles between just Thursday and Friday of this past week,inclusive of 55 tanks. Now, while these figures are likely inflated, as official figuresof both sides sometimes are, even a more conservative estimate would signify that Russiahas encountered seriously catastrophic losses in this latest offensive of theirs.Last week on the PDB, we highlighted the recent deployment and success of U.S. attackims by the Ukrainianmilitary missiles capable of reaching Russian military targets beyond the range of Ukraine's existingartillery. That development was concerning and damaging enough to the Russian forces to prompt
13:27disparaging comments from Putin during his visit this past week to Beijing.While the months-long counter-offensive by Ukraine to breach and push back Russian law,lines has moved slower than hoped by Ukraine and its allies, the deployment of the attackarms systems prior to the difficult winter months gives the Ukrainian military the ability tobetter target key Russian supply lines, stockpiles, and command centers, degrading Putin'sability to move, resupply, and direct his troops. And that, my friends, is the President'sdaily brief for Monday, 23 October. If you have any questions, comments or story ideas,that you'd like to see covered, reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com.
14:13I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed. Stay safe. Stay cool.
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