FDD Morning Brief

THE HOSTAGES ARE HOME. --FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan Conricus, FDD senior fellow and former IDF international spokesperson, and Ariel Oseran, senior Middle East correspondent for i24 News English.Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief

A CONVERSATION WITH HOSTAGE FAMILIES AT THE SUKKAH OF HOPEFDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer sits down with the families of hostages held in Gaza for a conversation recorded at the Kennedy Center on October 8, 2025 — just hours before details of the hostage deal began to emerge.Recording credit: Production Management One (https://www.instagram.com/pm1pro/)Learn more at: fdd.org/fddmorningbrief

A DEAL HAS BEEN MADE. NOW WHAT? HEADLINE 1: The Treasury Department rolled out a fresh round of Iran sanctions. HEADLINE 2: The U.S. Department of Commerce added over a dozen Chinese companies to a restricted trade list. HEADLINE 3: Israel disrupted a major arms smuggling operation into the West Bank. --FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with former Israeli National Security Advisor Eyal Hulata.Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief--Featured FDD Pieces:"Israel Moves To Counter Drone Threat on Egyptian Border" - Mariam Wahba, FDD"Hamasniks in fox holes" - Cliff May, The Washington Times"Recipe for Success: Guidance Based on the Experience of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission" - Sophie McDowall, FDD

HOW HAS THE WAR RESHAPED THE MIDDLE EAST TWO YEARS AFTER OCTOBER 7? HEADLINE 1: A prisoner exchange deal between Iran and France is in the works.HEADLINE 2: Some interesting stuff coming out of Lebanon and Syria.HEADLINE 3: Speaking of Syria, Syria and Kurdish Forces in the country agreed to a ceasefire yesterday.--FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with New York Times bestselling author Yossi Klein Halevi.Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief--Featured FDD Pieces: "Combatting PRC Illegal, Coercive, Aggressive, and Deceptive Behavior in the Indo-Pacific" - Craig Singleton, Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee "America must stop aiding our enemies by enabling the shadowy world of dirty cash" - Josh Birenbaum, New York Post"Is Qatar Finally Ready to Split With Hamas?" - Natalie Ecanow, Wall Street Journal

IS HAMAS SERIOUS ABOUT ENDING THE WAR?HEADLINE 1: The U.S. government approved a new aid package for Lebanese security forces.HEADLINE 2: Syria held elections for the first time since Bashar al-Assad’s fall.HEADLINE 3: Israel intercepted all the boats and there was no violence or bloodshed. But poor Greta Thunberg was grumpy because she wasn’t greeted with hugs and a dance party.--FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Council on Foreign Relations Senior Fellow The Honorable Elliott Abrams, who formerly served as U.S. Special Representative for Iran and Venezuela and Deputy National Security Advisor.Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief-- Featured FDD Pieces"Trump will help Ukraine hit Putin where it hurts — to finally end his bloody war" - John Hardie, New York Post"5 Ways to Curb Iran’s Oil Exports to China" - Saeed Ghasseminejad, The National Interest"Europe Should Support Moldova Against Russian Meddling" - Ivana Stradner and RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, Foreign Policy"Hamas Says 'Yes, But...'" - Elliott Abrams, The Free Press

WHAT CRIMINAL NETWORKS ARE DOING IRANS BIDDING? HEADLINE 1: German authorities arrested three suspected Hamas operatives one day before Yom Kippur.HEADLINE 2: Israeli forces dismantled a large rocket cache in the West Bank. HEADLINE 3: Israel’s Navy intercepted the flotilla attempting to break the so-called blockade on Gaza. Except, guess what? The navy reports that a bunch of boats didn’t have any aid all.HEADLINE 4: The U.S. Treasury Department slapped sanctions on 21 entities and 17 individuals involved in Iranian weapons procurement networks supporting the regime’s ballistic missile and military aircraft programs. --FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Amotz Eyal, founder and CEO of the Israeli newswire Tazpit Press Service (TPS).Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief--Featured FDD Pieces:"The Quiet Return of Hezbollah’s Smuggling Network in Syria" - Ahmad Sharawi, FDD"Trump Administration Plan for Gaza Puts Unprecedented and Unified Pressure on Hamas" - Aaron Goren, FDD"8 UN Failures in Yemen" - Bridget Toomey, FDD"Iran on Your Soil: Tehran’s Global Crime Network Exposed" - The Press Service of Israel

HOW IS QATAR GROWING ITS INFLUENCE IN THE U.S.? HEADLINE 1: The IDF took out two Hezbollah operatives in Lebanon.HEADLINE 2: Israeli authorities thwarted an ISIS-linked bomb plot.HEADLINE 3: The Houthis attacked a Dutch-flagged cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden.--FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with journalist Frannie Block of The Free Press.Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief--Featured FDD Pieces:"Hidden Huaweis" - Nathan Picarsic and Emily de La Bruyère, Real Clear Defense"The Chance to Save Myanmar" - Dan Swift and Sean Turnell, Foreign Affairs "FAQ: 5 Things to Know About Israel’s Gaza City Offensive" - Joe Truzman, FDD"The Middle Kingdom Meets Higher Education" - Craig Singleton, FDD

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE UNITED NATIONS? HEADLINE 1: U.S. ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee will travel to Egypt soon.HEADLINE 2: The mayor of Gaza City reportedly sent a letter to President Trump.HEADLINE 3: Another Houthi missile fired at Israel out of Yemen. Another Israeli interception.--FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with former UK Ambassador to Yemen and current FDD Senior Fellow Edmund Fitton-Brown.Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief--Featured FDD Pieces: "5 Recent Instances of Foreign Malign Influence Threatening U.S. National Security" - Mark Montgomery and Max Lesser, FDD"When Erdoğan Shifted Focus to the Kurds in Syria" - Sinan Ciddi and Ahmad Sharawi, The Jerusalam Strategic Tribune "Qatar Is Knocking on Canada’s Door" - Natalie Ecanow, FDD

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN ERDOGAN COMES TO VISIT? HEADLINE 1: Italy and Spain deployed navy ships to escort the flotilla attempting to break Israel’s blockade on Gaza.HEADLINE 2: Iran says it obtained a trove of documents about sensitive Israeli sites and nuclear facilities.HEADLINE 3: Russia and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding for the construction of nuclear power plants in Iran.--FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Council on Foreign Relations Adjunct Senior Fellow Henri Barkey.Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief--Featured FDD Pieces: "China Has Weaponized Battery Production Against the United States" - Elaine Dezenski and Josh Birenbaum, The National Interest "The United Nations is falling apart" - Edmund Fitton-Brown, The Spectator "Qatar is no Arab Switzerland" - Cliff May, The Washington Times

HOW DID ARAB CITIZENS OF ISRAEL EXPERIENCE THE OCT. 7TH HAMAS MASSACRE? HEADLINE 1: If you weren’t already worried about the rise of thinking machines, you definitely want to think twice about getting your news from AI chatbots. HEADLINE 2: Israel will close the Allenby crossing between the West Bank and Jordan indefinitely.HEADLINE 3: Hamas-led authorities in the Gaza Strip executed three alleged “collaborators” as they face rising pushback from militias. --FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer provides timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Arab-Israeli journalist and social activist Yoseph Haddad.Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief--Featured FDD Pieces: "Will Israel stop the carnage? A brutal occupation won’t work" - Reuel Marc Gerecht, UnHerd"A Surge in Islamism Widens Rift Between Sudanese Army and Its Regional Allies" - Hussain Abdul-Hussain, FDD"Palestine recognition would reward terrorism and contradict international law" - Irwin Cotler and Orde Kittrie, National Post