WHY IS ISRAEL INVESTED IN THE FATE OF SYRIA'S DRUZE?

HEADLINE 1: Iran just might limit its uranium enrichment to avoid further punishment from Israel and the West.

HEADLINE 2: Egypt is reportedly bolstering its military presence along the border with Gaza.

HEADLINE 3: U.S. envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack and deputy special envoy Morgan Ortagus arrived in Israel yesterday.

--

FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer provides timely updates and in-depth analysis of the latest Middle East headlines, followed by a conversation with Jonathan Hessen, nonresident senior fellow at the Hudson Institute's Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East.

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

--

Featured FDD Articles:

"For the First Time in 25 Years, Syria Acknowledges Direct Talks With Israel" - Ahmad Sharawi, FDD Policy Brief

"Behind Khamenei's post-war shake up: Salvaging the remains of the 'Axis of Resistance'" - Saeed Ghasseminejad, The Jerusalem Post

"Exodus or Endurance: The Plight of Egypt’s Christians" - Cliff May and Mariam Wahba, FDD's Foreign Podicy

QATAR, TURKEY, IRAN, AND GAZA

HEADLINE 1: The Trump administration just went scorched earth on the International Criminal Court with fresh sanctions.

HEADLINE 2: An Israeli imprisoned in Lebanon for over a year has quietly been freed — no prisoner swap needed.

HEADLINE 3: Tensions are running high in the West Bank.

--

FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer provides timely updates and in-depth analysis of the latest Middle East headlines, followed by a conversation with Rep. Greg Landsman (D-OH).

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

--

Featured FDD Articles:

"The single negotiation goal with Iran should be complete dismantlement of nuclear program" - Mark Dubowitz and Brig. Gen. (Res.) Jacob Nagel

"Israeli operations in Lebanon against Hezbollah: August 4–17, 2025" - David Daoud

"The Iran Breakdown: American Economic and Financial Power and the Iran File" - Mark Dubowitz and Juan Zarate

WHY ARE LEGACY MEDIA OUTLETS AMPLIFYING HAMAS' NARRATIVE?

HEADLINE 1: Hamas has possibly agreed to a 60-day ceasefire with Israel. But don’t hold your breath. The terms are 10 living hostages and 18 bodies in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences.

HEADLINE 2: Yesterday, the families of the “Beautiful Six” commemorated one year since Hamas murdered their loved ones in cold blood.

HEADLINE 3: Israel and Australia are locking horns — and things are only getting worse.

--

FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer provides timely updates and in-depth analysis of the latest Middle East headlines, followed by a conversation with Jonas Du, a fellow at The Free Press.

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

--

Featured FDD Articles:

"Donald Trump Set a Nuclear Precedent. Now He Must Enforce It" - Andrea Stricker and Henry Sokolski in The National Interest

"The urgent need to procure more THAAD interceptors" - Bradley Bowman and Ryan Brobst in Defense News

"Top US teachers’ union supports Palestinian counterpart with terror-linked leader" - Brandy Shufutinsky in JNS

HOW IS ENERGY RELATED TO U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY?

HEADLINE 1: The family of Israeli hostage Matan Zangauker released a new video of him in Hamas captivity.

HEADLINE 2: Israel is preparing a full-scale offensive in Gaza City.

HEADLINE 3: Israel struck the Houthis where it hurts — again.

--

FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer provides timely updates and in-depth analysis of the latest Middle East headlines, followed by a conversation with FDD Senior Advisor Richard Goldberg.

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

--

Featured FDD articles:

"Nvidia⁩ Games: China v. the US in AI Arms Race" — FDD's Foreign Podicy with Cliff May

"Egypt Inks Multi-Billion Dollar Energy Deal With Israel Despite Gaza Tensions" — FDD Policy Brief by Mariam Wahba

"China Has Most To Gain From Trump-Putin Talks in Alaska" — Craig Singleton

HOW DID ORDINARY IRANIANS RESPOND TO ISRAEL’S 12-DAY WAR AGAINST THE REGIME’S NUCLEAR PROGRAM?

HEADLINE 1: Israel is reportedly in talks with several countries to take in Palestinians from Gaza.

HEADLINE 2: Ali Larijani, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, visited Beirut this week.

HEADLINE 3: Turkey and Syria signed a defense cooperation agreement.

BONUS HEADLINE 4: France, Germany, and the UK may reimpose sanctions on Iran.

--

FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer provides timely updates and in-depth analysis of the latest Middle East headlines, followed by a conversation with FDD Research Analyst Janatan Sayeh, who specializes in Iranian domestic affairs and the regime’s malign influence in the region.

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

--

Featured FDD articles:

"The Houthis and the U.N.’s Ship of Fools" by Max Meizlish and Bridget Toomey

"Ukraine peace is in reach — if Trump meets Putin’s demands with US vigor" by RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery and John Hardie

"America’s fair-weather friends" by Cliff May

IS SYRIA'S NEW STRONGMAN UP TO THE TASK?

HEADLINE 1: Iran reported a new statistic about last month’s 12-day war. Between June 13 and 24: Iranian police arrested 21,000 people.

HEADLINE 2: The evidence against Hamas’s claim of starvation in Gaza is mounting, even as the accusations against Israel continue to fly.

HEADLINE 3: The IDF eliminated five armed terrorists masquerading as World Central Kitchen workers.

--

FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer provides timely updates and in-depth analysis of the latest Middle East headlines, followed by a conversation with FDD Research Analyst Ahmad Sharawi, who specializes in the Levant.

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

--

Featured FDD articles:

"Analysis: Armenia–Azerbaijan deal worries Iran" by Janatan Sayeh

"U.S. and Partners Conclude Month of Military Exercises in the Pacific While Eyeing China" by Cameron McMillan and Roc Iore

"Mapping a Shadow War: Explosions Across Iran After the 12-Day War" by FDD Visuals Team and NUFDI

ISRAELI MOSSAD OPERATIVES ARE SPYING IN IRAN WHILE SOME ORDINARY ISRAELIS ARE SPYING FOR IRAN.

HEADLINE 1: Iran has sent its surviving nuclear scientists into hiding.

HEADLINE 2: The IDF foiled another attempt to smuggle weapons from Egypt into Israel.

HEADLINE 3: White House envoy Steve Witkoff met with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al-Thani in Ibiza, Spain over the weekend.

--

FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer provides timely updates and in-depth analysis of the latest Middle East headlines, followed by a conversation with journalist Dan Raviv, host of “The Mossad Files” podcast.

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

HOW DO TRUMP VOTERS VIEW U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ISSUES?

HEADLINE 1: The United Nations has finally engaged with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, or “GHF.”

HEADLINE 2: The Lebanese government approved a U.S. proposal to disarm Hezbollah by the end of 2025.

HEADLINE 3: Israel signed a major energy export deal with Egypt.

--

FDD Executive Director Jonathan Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Carrie Filipetti, executive director of The Vandenberg Coalition.

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

WHAT IS THE ISRAELI PUBLIC OPINION ON THE WAR IN GAZA?

HEADLINE 1: A group of Iranian scientists secretly visited Russian nuclear facilities last year.

HEADLINE 2: Israel is snarling at the United Nations, and it’s high drama.

HEADLINE 3: The multi-front war in the Middle East continues on, uh, multiple fronts.

--

FDD Executive Director Jon Schanzer delivers timely situational updates and analysis, followed by a conversation with Haviv Rettig Gur, host of the Ask Haviv Anything podcast and Middle East analyst at The Free Press.

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief/

WHAT'S THE ON-THE-GROUND REALITY IN GAZA?

HEADLINE 1: Turkey hosted a senior Hamas delegation this weekend.

HEADLINE 2: White House envoy Steve Witkoff and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee visited Gaza on Friday.

HEADLINE 3: The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or “UNRWA,” is feeling the heat here in the United States.

--

FDD Executive Director President 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.

Learn more at: https://www.fdd.org/fddmorningbrief