The President's Daily Brief - PDB Afternoon Bulletin | February 16th, 2026: U.S. Troops Raid Sanctioned Tanker After Ocean Chase & Airstrikes in Syria

Episode Date: February 16, 2026

In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin: First up — a sanctioned oil tanker is tracked from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean and boarded by U.S. troops, marking another aggressive move in Washington’s maritime sanctions campaign.  Later in the show — U.S. forces in Syria conduct ten coordinated strikes targeting more than 30 ISIS positions, as American commanders work to prevent the terror group from regrouping and reestablishing a foothold in the region. 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 Cozy Earth: Visit https://www.CozyEarth.com/PDB & Use code PDB for up to 20% off Ultra Pouches: Don’t sleep on @ultrapouches. New customers get 15% Off with code PDB at https://takeultra.com! #UltraPouches #ad HomeServe: Protect your home systems from costly repairs with HomeServe—plans start at $4.99/month at https://HomeServe.com.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. First up, a sanctioned oil tanker is tracked from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean and boarded by U.S. troops, while protests erupt in Venezuela. I'll have the details. Later in the show, American forces hit more than 30 ISIS targets in Syria as part of ongoing efforts to prevent the group's resurgence. But first, today's afternoon spotlight. In what's becoming a bit of a familiar tale, U.S. military forces have boarded another sanctioned oil tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking it all the way from the Caribbean.

The vessel was identified as the Veronica 3, and it departed Venezuela on the 3rd of January, carrying crude oil and fuel products. U.S. officials say the ship attempted to evade a quarantine order tied to sanctions enforcement imposed in late 2025. A video of the action posted by the Department of War, formerly known as the Department of Defense, shows the operation unfolding from multiple angles. In the footage, U.S. troops have seen departing a U.S. vessel by helicopter. The visuals then cut to personnel aboard the Veronica III, securing the ship.

The Pentagon described the action as a right-of-visit maritime interdiction. U.S. forces boarded the vessel without incident. Officials say the ship had been operating in violation of U.S. sanctions, connected to Venezuela's energy sector. According to maritime tracking analysts, the Veronica 3 has been linked to transporting sanctioned Venezuelan, Iranian, and Russian oil since 2003. The ship reportedly altered its tracking data and used evasive routes while at sea. This boarding follows a similar operation that we reported on last week, involving another sanctioned tanker, the Akila 2, also intercepted in the Indian Ocean.

U.S. officials say these actions are part of an ongoing effort to disrupt oil shipments tied to sanctions networks. The quarantine order was designed to block illicit Venezuelan exports and prevent sanctioned vessels from accessing international markets. Defense officials have emphasized that operating in international waters does not exempt vessels from enforcement when they violate U.S. sanctions authorities. It remains unclear whether the Veronica III will be formally seized or detained pending legal proceedings. No injuries were reported during the boarding, and officials say the crew did comply. Multiple tankers have been tracked, aborted, or seized since the sanctions were put into place. Meanwhile, as the Trump administration turns the screws on sanctions evaders,

Venezuela's interim leader, Delci Rodriguez, is facing her first major test at home, with the first significant protests breaking out since the capture of Nicholas Maduro. Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in Caracas and other cities this week during Youth Day rallies. The protests were peaceful, and, as the name might imply, largely student-led. Participants called for the release of political prisoners and asserted their right to demonstrate after years of repression. Banners reading Amnesty Now were displayed at university campuses, including the Central University of Venezuela. The rallies marked the first major public protests since U.S. forces captured Maduro on the 3rd of January and transferred him to New York to face narco-terrorism charges.

His removal followed stolen elections, of course, in 2024, and a wide-ranging crackdown on opposition to Maduro that led to thousands of arrests. Venezuelan lawmakers are now debating a mass amnesty for political prisoners, under pressure from Washington hundreds have already been released, though many do remain in detention. Students attending the protests who were interviewed by the Washington Post described a sense of cautious optimism, saying that political landscape has shifted since Maduro's removal.

Security forces monitored the gatherings, cordoning off protest areas, but allowing demonstrations to proceed. At the same time, Maduro loyalists held their own Youth Day events in downtown Caracas, calling for his return and denouncing his capture as illegitimate. The demonstrations come as Rodriguez works to consolidate authority while navigating negotiations with Washington over Venezuela's oil sector and the future of political. reforms. For now, protests remain peaceful, but the coming weeks will test whether Rodriguez is able to govern through this transition period. Coming up next, Washington continues its counterterrorist campaign in Syria, hitting more than 30 ISIS targets. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here. Now, you likely know me

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These target sites represented the logistical backbone that allows a terrorist network to move weapons and communicate and plan attacks. According to U.S. Central Command, the strikes were delivered via fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and unmanned systems in a surgical multi-platform effort to dismantle the group's remaining operational capacity. And as we've been tracking, weeks earlier, U.S. forces struck an ISIS communication site, a key logistics node and multiple weapons facilities. The objective, of course, is simple.

Deny ISIS the ability to reorganize and reestablish any safe havens inside Syria. Seccom commander Admiral Brad Cooper reinforced that objective, warning terrorists in Syria that there is, quote, no safe place for those who conduct, plot, or inspire attacks on American citizens and are war fighters. We will find you, end quote. The latest strikes are part of Operation Hawkeye's story. which was launched after a 13 December ambush in Palmyra, Syria, wherein ISIS gunmen killed two U.S. service members and an interpreter.

The fallen servicemen were from the Iowa National Guard. Several others were wounded in that attack. That ambush made clear that while ISIS has lost its territorial caliphate, which it had controlled years ago, its remnants still pose a threat. Ever since, Washington has responded with sustained force. Under Operation Hawkeye Strike, more than 50 ISIS fighters have been killed or captured, and over 100 infrastructure targets struck

with precision munitions. At the same time, there has been diplomatic engagement between the U.S. and the relatively new government of Syria. On 27 January, President Trump spoke with Syrian President President Ahmed al-Shira, expressing confidence that developments in Syria are moving in a more secure direction. The Trump administration has paired military pressure with diplomatic coordination. It's a strategy designed to maintain stability while preventing extremist groups from exploiting any vacuum as the Syrian government continues to restructure. And that brings us to another key development. CENTCOM confirms that American forces completed their withdrawal from the Altamf military outpost in Syria last week. The move signals a shift in American posture within the country,

but not a full departure. The shift reflects the Trump administration's vision for Syria, consolidating forces following ISIS's territorial defeat and moving toward a more flexible conditions-based presence. Al-Tomph, which is near the Syrian Jordan-Iraq border, had long served as a hub for U.S. partner coordination and monitoring extremist activity at the center of it all is a campaign that began more than a decade ago. Operation Inherent Resolve remains the overarching framework for Washington and its allies in their efforts to monitor and mitigate potential risks from what remains of ISIS. And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bulletin for Monday the 16th of February.

Now, 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, well, you can do that. It is very simple, as I've mentioned before. Just become a premium member of the president's daily brief by visiting PDB premium.com. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed. Stay safe. Stay cool.

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