The President's Daily Brief - PDB Afternoon Bulletin | March 2nd, 2026: Iran’s Allies Turn Their Back on Tehran & Hezbollah Strikes

Episode Date: March 2, 2026

In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin: First up — Day Three of Operation Epic Fury, and the cost of war for the United States has risen. We bring you the latest from the battlefield as American casualties climb and examine why, even as the fighting intensifies, Tehran appears increasingly isolated diplomatically on the world stage. Later in the show — Israel opens another front, launching strikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon after the terror group fires missiles across the border. We break down what this expansion means for regional stability and the risk of a broader conflict. 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 Ethos Life Insurance: Protect your family’s future with fast, online life insurance from Ethos—get your free quote in minutes at https://Ethos.com/PDB  American Financing: Call American Financing today to find out how customers are saving an avg of $800/mo. NMLS 182334, http://nmlsconsumeraccess.org -. APR for rates in the 5s start at 6.196% for well qualified borrowers. Call 866-885-1881 for details about credit costs and terms. Visit http://www.AmericanFinancing.net/PDB DeleteMe: Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to https://joindeleteme.com/PDB and use promocode PDB at checkout. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's Monday the 2nd of March. Welcome to the PDB afternoon bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. First up, day three of Operation Epic Fury and the cost of the war for the U.S. has climbed. We'll have the latest from the battlefield, and we'll take a closer look at how and why the Iranian regime is finding itself increasingly isolated on the world's stage. Later in the show, Israel opens another front in the war, launching strikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon after the terror group fires missiles across the border into Israel. But first, today's afternoon spotlight. The U.S. death toll on Operation Epic Fury has now climbed to four. U.S. Central Command announced this morning that one of the service members who had been injured critically on Sunday has died. In addition to those fatalities, 18 American personnel were seriously injured in that same incident. We're also learning a bit more about what happened. The casualties occurred when an Iranian missile

struck Camp Arifjan in Kuwait. That base is not a frontline combat outpost, but it's a critical logistics and command hub for U.S. Army operations across the Middle East. It houses pre-positioned equipment and key regional headquarters elements, making it central to sustaining and coordinating American forces across the theater. That, of course, also makes it a significant target for Iran. There was another serious development today, a major friendly fire incident. Three U.S. Air Force fighter jets were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses. All six personnel ejected safely, were recovered, and are reported to be in stable condition. Kuwait has acknowledged the incident and the cause remains under investigation. Now, there's another facet of this conflict that I want to look at this

afternoon, and that's Iran's alliances, because, as you know, wars aren't just fought on the battlefield. They're also fought in diplomatic back rooms and energy markets and in the quiet calculations of world leaders, deciding just how much risk they're actually willing to accept. Now, on paper, Iran is not alone. It's spent years cultivating what it calls, quote, strategic partnerships, especially with Russia and China. As we've already reported, both those countries have issued strong condemnations regarding the U.S. and Israeli strikes. Both have criticized what they describe as violations of suffering. sovereignty, and as we know, Vladimir Putin is very big on respecting the sovereignty of other nations,

and both nations have called for restraint and have returned to diplomacy. That much was expected, but strongly worded condemnations are not the same thing as commitment. So far, neither Moscow nor Beijing has offered any tangible support for the regime. There's been no pledge of air defense systems, no deployment of naval assets, and no indication that either power is prepared to intervene directly on Iran's behalf. And that gap between rhetoric and action tells us something important about the limits of these relationships. We'll start with China. Beijing's position reflects its broader strategic priorities. China values stability in global energy markets, access to Gulf oil, and, critically, the management of its relationship with Washington. With high-level diplomatic

engagement between the U.S. and China expected to continue, Beijing has little incentive to escalate a conflict that does not directly threaten its core interests. China's relationship with Iran has always been transactional. Tehran supplies energy, Beijing provides investment and diplomatic cover when it suits its purpose. But it's also historically avoided entangling itself militarily in Middle Eastern conflicts. Even in previous crises involving Iran, Beijing limited itself to statements of opposition and calls for dialogue. There's no indication that this moment will be any different. Russia presents a different but equally constrained case. Moscow and Tehran have grown closer in recent years, particularly since the start of Putin's war in Ukraine. Putin has leaned on Iran to supply his military

with cheap drones. By Ukrainian estimates, Russia has launched approximately 57,000 Iranian-shed-designed drones into Ukraine during its four-year invasion, and the two governments share an interest in challenging U.S. influence. So on paper, that alignment looks at the U. looks significant. But in practice, as we've seen before, Russia's ability to project power beyond its immediate theater has been reduced. Years of grinding war in Ukraine have stretched its military resources and strained its economy. While the Kremlin has condemned the strikes on Iran, it has stopped short of signaling any readiness to intervene. There's also a hard economic reality at play. Instability in the Gulf is already pushing oil prices higher, and higher prices ultimately

benefit Russia's energy-driven economy and help sustain its war effort. In fact, Kremlin envoy Kareel Dmitrov appeared to gloat about this over the weekend, posting on X, quote, $100 per barrel of oil soon. So this economic dynamic creates little urgency from Moscow to assume additional risk on Iran's behalf. What this moment shows is that Iran's partnerships are rooted in shared opposition to the U.S., not in mutual defense obligations, shared ideology or shared value systems. There's no equivalent of a NATO-style security guarantee binding these powers together. When the stakes involve direct confrontation with U.S. and Israeli forces, each country is calculating its own exposure. Now, this doesn't mean that Russia or China are going to remain passive forever. They could increase diplomatic pressure,

expand economic coordination, or use this crisis to try and extract concessions elsewhere. But so far, the evidence suggests that Iran is largely facing this fight without any meaningful backing. All right. Coming up next, while China and Russia may be watching from the sidelines right now, one Iranian ally, or proxy, has decided to get involved. And that would be Hesbollah. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here. Now, whether you're in a one or two-income household, if you're a breadwinner, you're carrying a lot of responsibility. Well, of course, you know that. mortgage payments, tuition, everyday bills that don't just disappear should something happen to you or your partner.

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prompting retaliatory strikes near Beirut, reopening a front that's largely been quiet since the 2024 ceasefire. It didn't take long before sirens were sounding across northern Israel as the rockets breached Jerusalem's airspace. According to Axios, one projectile was intercepted and others fell in open areas. While the initial barrage caused no reported casualties inside Israel, it does mark a sharp escalation along the Israel-Lebanon frontier, one that has been relatively quiet for months. Not long after, Jerusalem responded. Explosions shook the southern outskirts of Beirut, as Israel's military moved to strike Chazbalah targets in response. And I want to point out, Chazbullah made no attempt to distance itself from the early morning attack. The terror group quickly

claimed responsibility, framing the rocket and drone barrage as retaliation for Israeli strikes on the Islamic Republic, and more pointedly, as revenge for the killing of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamani. From Israel's perspective, the intent was unmistakable. In the statement from the Israeli military chief of staff, quote, Chazbullah opened a campaign overnight and would be fully responsible for any escalation. As I mentioned, Israel wasted little time in responding. Air strikes hit the Dahlia district in southern Beirut, which is a densely populated area long regarded as a Hezbollah stronghold. While Israeli forces have conducted operations against Hezbollah and southern and eastern Lebanon in recent months, strikes near the capital have been rare. The explosion sent residents fleeing the

capital with videos posted to social media showing traffic jams as civilians try to get out ahead of further Israeli retaliatory attacks. Lebanese state media reports more than 30 people were killed and nearly 150 injured so far. As operations expand, the Israeli military issued evacuation warnings to residents in roughly 50 villages across eastern and southern Lebanon, urging civilians to leave areas that are near Hezbollah facilities. Inside Lebanon, the fallout was immediate and maybe not in the way that Hezbollah expected. The country's prime minister condemned the Hezbollah rocket and drone launches as, quote, irresponsible, warning they endanger Lebanon's national security and invite retaliation. Shortly after, the Lebanese Prime Minister issued another

statement this time, announcing a ban on Hezbollah's military activities altogether and declaring any armed operations outside of state authority illegal. Now, for those of you who may be unfamiliar, Hezbollah operates independently of Lebanon's government and has long served as Tehran's primary proxy in the region, although the terror group was significantly weakened during the 20th, In the World when Israel eliminated much of its senior leadership, Hezbollah has refused to fully disarm in accordance with the ceasefire. That, of course, mirrors Hamas's failure to disarm under the terms of their existing ceasefire with Israel. Under sustained pressure from Washington and Jerusalem,

the Lebanese government agreed to dismantle Khazbalah's arsenals, yet the group rejected surrendering weapons north of the Latani River, insisting that ceasefire terms only apply to areas south of it near the Israeli. frontier. That unresolved dispute now collides with the broader war. By launching rockets and retaliation for Khomeini's killing, Khazbollah effectively tethered Lebanon's stability to Tehran's military decisions. And so with Hezbollah now engaged, Lebanon risks becoming a new front, not by decision of its elected government, but because, as somewhat expected, Iran's strategy of proxy warfare has deliberately broaden the war on its behalf.

And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bulletin for Monday, the 2nd of March. 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, you can do that. It is really very simple. 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.

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