The President's Daily Brief - PDB Afternoon Bulletin | September 12th, 2024: Moscow Mounts Kursk Counteroffensive & Hamas's Mentally Broken Fighters

Episode Date: September 12, 2024

In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin:    More than a month after Ukraine’s surprise invasion of Russia’s Kursk region, Moscow appears to have launched a major counteroffensive to take back the territory. Israel’s defense minister has revealed a document from a top Hamas commander warning terrorist leader Yahya Sinwar that the group faces dire losses, and the remaining fighters are mentally broken. 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 PDB Afternoon Bulletin. Email: [e-mail].  Blackout Coffee: https://www.blackoutcoffee.com/PDB Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Fresh roasted shipped out within 48 hours of roasting. Go to Blackout Coffee.com promo code PDB. for 20% off your first-time purchase. It's Thursday, 12 September. Welcome to the PDB afternoon bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. First, the Kremlin appears to be launching major military operations

to retake the Kursk region, after Ukrainian troops surprised and, frankly embarrassed to the Kremlin, by their incursion in early August. They cost Russia some 500 square miles of territory. Also, Israel's defense minister has revealed a document from a top Hamas commander that warns terrorist leader Yaya Sinwar that the Iranian-backed terror group faces dire losses. The document from the Hamas commander also warns Sinwar that the remaining fighters are mentally broken. But first, our afternoon spotlight. More than a month after Ukraine's surprise invasion of Russia's Kursk region, Moscow appears to have launched a major counter-ex.

offensive in an effort to retake that territory. The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed Wednesday that Ukrainian forces were being, quote, steadily squeezed out of the Kursk territory after Russian forces began mounting counterattacks two days ago along the western edge of Ukraine's front lines in the region. Since Tuesday, Russian officials say their troops have reclaimed 10 settlements from Ukrainian forces. That's according to a report from NBC News. Russian foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov vowed Wednesday that Ukrainian forces in Kursk would soon, quote, be squeezed out completely. There could be no doubt about it, he said. Ukrainian President Zelensky, meanwhile, confirmed on Thursday that Russia had begun fighting

to take back portions of Kursk, but said that Russia's, quote, counteroffensive actions were according to our Ukrainian plan, end quote. Now, Zelensky did not expand on this statement and declined to provide further details of what the situation looks like currently on the ground. While Russia is clearly on the march in Kursk, analysts with the Institute for the Study of War said that the size and scale and outcome of Russia's operations remained unclear, and the situation on the ground was extremely fluid. They said visual evidence confirms that Russia deployed units of roughly 100 to 250 soldiers to the region on Tuesday and are using more combat experienced troops, and that, of course, suggests that Putin has made retaking Kursk a top

priority, that's according to our report from the Washington Post. Now, as a reminder, Ukraine launched a surprise incursion into Russia back on the 6th of August, shocking both Russia and their Western allies with their success. Keeves' forces managed to grab roughly 500 square miles of territory, seize approximately 100 settlements, and capture some 600 Russian prisoner. of war. Zelensky said the incursion was part of a larger strategy to strengthen Kyiv's negotiating hand for potential future peace talks with Russia. Now, while the move has been a morale boost for Ukrainians, critics said that it strained their resources and personnel, leaving their front lines in eastern Ukraine vulnerable to Russian forces who've been steadily gaining ground

in the Densk region since early August. Putin said last Thursday that Ukraine's incursion failed to halt Russia's advances in eastern Ukraine and instead overstretched Keeves' defenses. Kremlin forces continue to close in on the city of Pogrovsk, and that's a crucial logistics hub, and destroying critical infrastructure in the area this week that has left the city without access to gas or drinking water. If Pukrovsk eventually falls, well, Russia would be able to cut off one of the Ukrainian military's main supply routes in the region, and it would give Russia effective control of nearly the entire Denedsk region. With Russian troops moving into Kyrsk, Kiev faces a difficult dilemma, commit more forces to retain their territorial gains in Kursk,

or reinforce their front lines in eastern Ukraine to prevent the further advance of Russian forces. Coming up after the break, Israel's defense minister has revealed a document from a top Hamas commander warning terrorist leader Yaya Sinwar that the group faces significant losses and terrible morale. I'll be right back. How many discounts does USAA auto insurance offer? Too many to say here. Multi-vehicle discount. Safe driver discount. New vehicle discount.

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Never fly during a Scorpio full moon. Just tell the manager you'll sue. Instant room upgrade. Stop taking bad travel advice. Start comparing hundreds of sites with kayak and get your trip right. Kayak, got that right. Welcome back to the afternoon bulletin. Israeli defense minister, Yov Ghalant,

revealed a letter on Wednesday written by deceased Chmass commander Rafah Salameh. detailing the severe toll that Israel's military operations have taken on Hamas's capabilities. The document sheds light on the internal struggles within Hamas as they cope with losses in personnel and weaponry and as their fighters lose their resolve. In the letter, Salami expressed a desperation about the state of Hamas's military assets to its leader, Jaya Sinwar, and to Sinwar's brother, Muhammad. Salami described how Hamas had lost between 90 to 95% of its rocket capabilities and around 60% of its weapons. Anti-tank weaponry, a critical element in Hamas's arsenal, is also severely depleted, with 65 to 70% of launchers and rockets destroyed.

Most concerning for Hamas is the loss of its fighting force. Salami estimated at least 50% of its fighters had either been killed or wounded, leaving just 25% of its personnel capable of fighting. According to Salami, those who remained were mentally and physically broken, and public support for the group was eroding. Now, if true, that last note, that last point, the idea that Hamas is losing support within the population of Gaza, well, that would represent a potentially critical shift. Galant presented this document as proof that Hamas is under severe strain,

describing Salami's plea for assistance from the Sinwar brothers as a sign of the group's growing desperation. Gallant said, quote, we are continuing the effort that started in October and continue step by step and reaches all senior Hamas officials. Salome wrote this letter to the Sinwar brothers, we will get to them as well, end quote. Galant also shared a video on social media, showing a photo of Mohammed Sinwar's children in front of an image of the September 11th terrorist attacks. This photo discovered in a tunnel beneath Conunis was released Wednesday on the 23rd anniversary of the 9-11 attacks, underlining Hamas's ties and, of course, support to global terrorism.

Meanwhile, the IDF confirmed the deaths of two more Hamas fighters that were involved in the 7-October attacks. One of the militants had been guarding Corporal Noah Marseano, an Israeli soldier, abducted and later killed by Hamas at Shifa Hospital. Another militant, a member of Hamas's Nukba force was also killed in a drone strike, and he had played a role in attacking the Arres crossing during the 7 October onslaught. Now, negotiations with Hamas do still remain a key focus for Israel as they continue efforts to secure the remaining hostages. Of the 251 hostages taken by Hamas on 7 October, 97 are still believed to be in Gaza, with 33 of those confirmed dead. And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bulletin for Thursday, 12 September.

Now, if you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com. And, of course, remember what your mother told you. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of the president's daily brief by simply visiting PDB premium.com. How simple is that. I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed.

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