THE SHIFTING DYNAMICS OF THE MIDDLE EAST: A SPECIAL SITREP EPISODE -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer is joined by former IDF International Spokesperson Jonathan Conricus and U.S. Middle East policy expert John Hannah for a special edition of the FDD Morning Brief. The two will provide Middle East situational updates and analyze the U.S. respon…

CHINA, RUSSIA, AND THE MIDDLE EAST HEADLINE 1: The Shin Bet and Israel police foiled a plot to carry out a terrorist attack in Jerusalem. HEADLINE 2: A former Islamic Revolutionary Guard from Iran gave a rare interview with Israeli media. HEADLINE 3: Former Israeli hostage Tal Shoham gave an exclusive interview to Fox News. BONUS HEADLINE 4: A Syri…

LEBANON, ISRAEL, AND THE GULF HEADLINE 1: The IDF carried out a strike in Damascus yesterday. HEADLINE 2: Qatar is preparing to supply natural gas to Syria. HEADLINE 3: The United Nations published a report accusing Israel of perpetrating “genocidal acts” in Gaza. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analys…

Cyber threats are evolving – but U.S. cyber policy coordination is still lagging behind. Four years after the establishment of the Office of the National Cyber Director, the Trump administration has a unique opportunity to establish stronger central coordination and drive meaningful improvements in how the federal government secures and defends cyb…

A SECURE FUTURE FOR THE MIDDLE EAST HEADLINE 1: The IDF conducted a series of strikes in Syria. HEADLINE 2: The IDF has been busy dismantling terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank city of Jenin. HEADLINE 3: Iran, Russia, and China conducted joint naval exercises. HEADLINE 4: Israel and Lebanon are launching a series of talks to resolve outstand…

THE REVERBERATING IMPACT OF THE 1929 HEBRON MASSACRE HEADLINE 1: Israel will allow Syrian Druze, along with Circassians – another ethnic minority in Syria – to work in the Israeli Golan Heights. HEADLINE 2: Recent meetings in Qatar between top Hamas terrorists and Adam Boehler, the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, are focused th…

WHO ARE THE KURDS, AND HOW DO THEY FIT INTO THE MIDDLE EAST PUZZLE? HEADLINE 1: The U.S. Air Force conducted a joint exercise with the Israeli Air Force on Tuesday. HEADLINE 2: Clashes broke out in Syria between Assad loyalists and the new government’s security forces. HEADLINE 3: The Trump administration is getting creative with its maximum pressu…

CAMPUS ANTISEMITISM POST-OCTOBER 7 HEADLINE 1: The State Department designated the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. HEADLINE 2: Russian missile experts travelled to Iran twice last year. HEADLINE 3: Turkey and Iran are at loggerheads. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely updates and analysis, followed by a conversation…

Nations pursue access to reliable, sustainable, and affordable energy that will sustain their national security objectives. While the China-Russia led alliance continues to rely largely on fossil fuels, Western countries increasingly seek to replace these traditional energy sources with renewable offerings, leading to less reliable and more expensi…

TURKEY'S TIES TO SYRIA AND ERDOGAN'S DYNAMIC WITH TRUMP HEADLINE 1: The IDF says it is ready to defend an endangered Druze community in Syria. HEADLINE 2: Lebanese authorities detained a man at the airport in Beirut on Friday. HEADLINE 3: The Trump administration is expediting the delivery of some $4 billion in military aid to Israel. -- FDD Execut…

THE U.S.-ISRAEL RELATIONSHIP FROM A DEFENSE PERSPECTIVE HEADLINE 1: The Iran sanctions keep on coming. HEADLINE 2: Israeli authorities arrested yet another Israeli citizen accused of spying for Iran. HEADLINE 3: A car-ramming attack unfolded at a bus stop near the Israeli city of Caesarea yesterday. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers t…

ANTISEMITISM AND A NEW MIDDLE EAST HEADLINE 1: The Trump administration escalated its maximum pressure campaign on Iran with a new round of sanctions. HEADLINE 2: Things are getting hairy between Syria’s new leadership and the Israeli government. HEADLINE 3: Speaking of Syria, an Israeli journalist uncovered troves of classified intelligence from t…

After nearly a year and half of war following Hamas’s brutal October 7 attacks, Israeli society has proven its resilience and strength. The IDF has had a series of military successes against Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and in Iran – though substantial challenges remain, in particular the return of all the hostages fro…

THE HOSTAGE CRISIS: THE STORY OF ALON OHEL HEADLINE 1: Israeli authorities have arrested 10 people suspected of smuggling arms from Jordan into Israel. HEADLINE 2: The IDF deployed tanks to the West Bank city of Jenin. HEADLINE 3: The IDF carried out a series of airstrikes in Lebanon ahead of Nasrallah’s funeral. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schan…

SOUTH AFRICA'S MALIGN TIES WITH AUTHORITARIANS HEADLINE 1: Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani was in Iran this week. HEADLINE 2: Arab leaders are meeting in Riyadh today to discuss alternatives to President Trump’s vision for Gaza. HEADLINE 3: Iran executed a record number of people in 2024. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers …

ABRAHAM ACCORDS, 10/7 WAR, IRAN HEADLINE 1: Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, and Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff met with Saudi officials in Riyadh. HEADLINE 2: Israeli troops remain in "buffer zone" in Lebanon to enforce the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire. HEADLINE 3: The European Union plans to weigh in on the postw…

STARTUP NATION, ISRAEL AND THE GULF, AND THE ABRAHAM ACCORDS HEADLINE 1: Secretary of State Marco Rubio was in Israel over the weekend. HEADLINE 2: On Friday evening, Hezbollah supporters attacked a UN peacekeeping convoy. HEADLINE 3: The IDF was hard at work in Gaza over the weekend. -- FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situation…

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation between Bradley Bowman, Senior Director of FDD's Center on Military & Political Power (CMPP), and IDF Major General (Ret.) Tal Kelman, who was tasked with overseeing Israel's "Iran file" during his service. Learn more at: https://fdd.org…

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Ed Husain, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and a professor at Georgetown University. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

Over the last two months, Turkey has thrown its weight behind Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the victorious Syrian rebel group who ousted Bashar al-Assad’s government from power. Westen countries have labeled HTS a terrorist organization – yet, despite HTS’s jihadi roots, Turkey has argued the group is capable of establishing a state that brings law a…

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Newsweek Senior Editor-at-Large Josh Hammer. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL). Learn more at: https://fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Professor Eyal Zisser, Middle East expert and Vice Rector of Tel Aviv University. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

Former IDF International Spokesperson and FDD Senior Fellow Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan Conricus delivers timely situational updates and analysis on headlines out of the Middle East, followed by a conversation with Rageh Omaar, ITV News' International Affairs Analyst. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/…

RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, senior director of FDD's Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation, fills in for Jon Schanzer on the FDD Morning Brief. He delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with retired U.S. Air Force General Mike Minihan. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief…

FDD Senior Fellow David Daoud delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Seth Frantzman, Senior Middle East Correspondent and Analyst at The Jerusalem Post and an FDD adjunct fellow. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Gidi Grinstein, founder and president of Reut Group and Tikkun Olam Makers (TOM). Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Dr. Hay Eytan Cohen Yanarocak, an author, Tel Aviv University professor, and one of the world's foremost experts on Turkey. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Mouaz Moustafa, executive director of the Syrian Emergency Task Force (SETF). Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Oded Ailam, former head of the Terrorism Division at Mossad. Learn more at: https://fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

FDD Senior Fellow and former IDF International Spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Brigadier General (Ret.) Amir Avivi. The pair discuss the emerging Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal and its implications for the wider region. Learn more at: https://fdd.org/fddmorningbr…

China has prepositioned destructive cyber capabilities in U.S. energy and transportation infrastructure. Russia has capabilities to disrupt undersea cables and industrial control systems. Iran has exploited unprotected networks to deface machines monitoring water systems. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA) at the Department of Homel…

FDD Research Analyst Mariam Wahba fills in for Jon Schanzer on the FDD Morning Brief. She delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Middle East scholar and author Samuel Tadros. The pair will be traveling west of Israel to analyze the latest news relating to Egypt. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmornin…

The character of war is constantly evolving. Those changes are happening not just on land, at sea, and in air – but also in the subterranean realm. The combatant that best understands these ongoing changes and adapts the most effectively is more likely to be successful in future wars. Few modern militaries know subterranean warfare better than Isra…

RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, senior director of FDD's Center on Cyber Technology and Innovation (CCTI), fills in for Jon Schanzer on the FDD Morning Brief. He delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Isaac 'Ike' Harris, adjunct fellow at CCTI and retired commander in the U.S. Navy. Learn more at: https://www…

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Bonnie Glick, FDD adjunct senior fellow and former deputy administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief…

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Brigadier General (Res.) Professor Jacob Nagel, FDD senior fellow and former head of Israel's National Security Council. Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbriefPor FDD

Four years ago, Congress created the Office of the National Cyber Director to serve as the president’s senior advisor on cybersecurity, implementing national strategy, supporting whole-of-nation cyber resilience, and working with the Office of Management and Budget to align federal resourcing to growing cyber threats from criminals and nation state…

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Dr. Kenneth Stein, founding president of the Atlanta-based Center for Israel Education and former director of the Institute for the Study of Modern Israel at Emory University. Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorningbrief…

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Major (Ret.) Andrew Fox, a research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society. For more: www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Joseph Gebeily, founder and former president of the Lebanese Information Center. Learn more at: www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, Senior Director of FDD's Center on Cyber and Technological Innovation. Learn more at: www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Olivia Reingold, staff writer for The Free Press. Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Jay Solomon, chief investigative reporter for The Free Press. Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Andrew Tabler, senior fellow at The Washington Institute. Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Joseph Braude, President of the Center for Peace Communications. Learn more at: www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Benjamin Anthony, co-founder and CEO of The MirYam Institute. Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Captain Chris "Chowdah" Hill, who commands the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower. Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Bruce Hoffman, a prominent American political analyst who serves as the Shelby Cullom and Kathryn W. Davis senior fellow for counterterrorism and homeland security at the Council on Foreign Relations. Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorni…

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with British-Israeli analyst, writer, and journalist Jonathan Spyer, who serves as the director of research at the Middle East Forum. Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/Por FDD