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So Russia just rolled out some pretty impressive new technology and it sort of worked then didn’t.

It’s a new drone defense system, the Arena M, and it sounds like it may have perfectly intercepted some Ukrainian drones flying at Russian tanks. Problem is, they were facing hundreds and the system was overwhelmed.
Sources:
https://t.me/feniksdpsu/2188
https://t.me/azov_brigade_ngu/1676
https://x.com/kriegsforscherD/status/2086165753917509724?s=20
https://t.me/boris_rozhin/221592
https://t.me/milinfolive/177376
https://t.me/swodki/606694
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Check out our campaign to help out one of the units that fought in these operations: https://givebutter.com/Southern_Front
So Russia has now responded to Ukraine’s counteroffensive in the south.
They said no.
It’s a bold choice. And if this is how they actually plan to proceed, it’s going to make things much more difficult for the Russian military.
Now as a refresher. Two days ago news came out that Ukraine had been conducting a major operation in the southern direction since January.
They’d keep a lid on the news and over the course of seven months, liberated 26 settlements and took back over 745 square kilometers.
Sources:
https://t.me/rybar/82439
https://t.me/voin_dv/20675
https://t.me/rybar/82440
https://t.me/skala425/963
https://t.me/ua_dshv/8563
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Today’s guest is Harrison Mann, a former U.S. Army major and executive officer of the Defense Intelligence Agency's Middle East/Africa Regional Center who resigned in protest at his office's support for Israel's war in Gaza. We talk about the Minab school strike in Iran, where that investigation stands right now and the impact this has on the perception of the US military at home and abroad.
You can follow Harrison and his work at the links below:
https://x.com/Harrison_J_Mann
https://www.instagram.com/harrison_j_mann/?hl=en
https://substack.com/@harrisonmann
https://aboutfaceveterans.org/
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Get 10% Off your entire order & take advantage of Ridge’s Annual Sweepstakes by going to https://www.Ridge.com/PRESTON #Ridgepod
Ukraine just quietly took back over 700 sq km of territory that Russia had claimed over the last year. Here’s the deal: Russia kept making the same mistake so Ukraine took advantage of it. In turn, nearly all of Russia’s gains in the eastern Zaporizhia direction in 2026 have been wiped out. Back to square one.
Sources:
https://x.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/2087533010354618868?s=20
https://t.me/si4eslavskabrygada/2533
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Russia has a manpower shortage in Ukraine. It’s not that they’re running out of people, far from it. They’re running out of people they want to fight the war. The undesirables. The second class citizens, prisoners and folks that to be blunt, the Kremlin just doesn’t care that much about.
And as that group gets smaller and smaller, it becomes increasingly likely that we’re going to see a forced mobilization in Russia where citizens are pressed into service and sent to the front.
Sources:
https://archive.is/20260810134149/https://www.ft.com/content/45289802-848f-4fa6-9769-6971b4b69bcc
https://warontherocks.com/a-return-to-mass-russian-force-expansion-in-the-war-with-ukraine/
https://www.wsj.com/world/russia/the-kremlin-is-bullying-more-russians-into-fighting-in-ukraine-3d1af6d7
https://t.me/dshrg2/5395
https://t.me/V_Zelenskiy_official/20369
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Today we're joined by Dara Massicot. Dara is a senior fellow in the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace where her work focuses on defense and security issues and she’s just back from a research trip to the front lines in Ukraine.
We get into the varying targets for Ukrainian strikes, how they coordinate efforts at that depth, major issues facing the two countries for the rest of the year and more.
Follow Dara at the links below:
https://carnegieendowment.org/people/dara-massicot
https://x.com/MassDara
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Check out the doc on Ryan here: https://youtu.be/BDmUPUTQ7ms?si=YRpMbDS2I11797IO
Ukraine just struck a target more than 2,000km inside of Russian territory. That’s 1,242 miles for my fellow Americans which means roughly the distance from New York City to Miami Florida.
These deep strikes, especially those against refineries, are causing a fuel shortage in Russia. Despite Russian efforts to slow the bleed, we are still seeing videos of citizens lined up at the pump hoping the gas station doesn’t run out before they can fill up. And it’s worse in the occupied territories meaning that military transport along the southern land bridge is facing new challenges in keeping the front supplied.
Sources:
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/81805
https://t.me/rybar_in_english/33373
https://united24media.com/war-in-ukraine/ukraine-set-to-receive-70-atacms-and-12-m270-launchers-from-turkey-in-280-million-arms-deal-21502
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It’s looking more and more that we’ve reached an impasse in Iran.
Trump will not accept Iran's newest terms as that would signal a clear US defeat. However, a significant escalation to change the dynamics also seems unlikely. That leaves us with how things sit today: Iran with de-facto control of the Strait of Hormuz.
Sanctions will stay in place and economic relief won't be granted, but real nuclear negotiations probably won't come together anytime soon.
Now President Trump remains optimistic just a few hours ago stating "It will work out. It always works out.”
Sources:
https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/trump-strait-of-hormuz-opening-iran-negotiations-b6a43ad6?mod=trending_now_news_4
https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/07/politics/general-dan-caine-off-ramp-iran-war
https://www.axios.com/2026/08/09/trump-iran-interview
https://www.reuters.com/world/what-is-patriot-missile-system-why-are-supplies-depleted-worldwide-2026-08-07/
https://fortune.com/2026/08/08/iran-economic-collapse-us-naval-blockade-hormuz-sanctions-relief/
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Nearly 31,000 Russian soldiers were killed or seriously wounded in July marking the fifth month this year where Russia lost more men than they were able to recruit.
Those losses are adding up and have led to a change in a US intelligence assessment that now believes, that because of the mounting challenges in Ukraine, Putin may try to directly test NATO in the near future. In fact, Russian hybrid warfare is already underway and just this week an explosive laden drone was found next to a Ukrainian plane parked at a German airport in what local officials referred to as an attempted act of Russian terrorism.
Sources:
https://www.wsj.com/world/europe/u-s-intel-links-russia-to-explosive-drone-at-german-airport-8a69a823
https://www.reuters.com/world/germanys-security-council-discusses-drone-incident-air-cargo-hub-2026-08-07/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/aug/06/leipzig-drone-bomb-found-near-ukrainian-plane-carrying-ammunition
https://www.wsj.com/world/europe/u-s-intel-finds-putin-could-test-natos-resolve-with-limited-incursion-e3b02e2c?st=LXaSes&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
https://x.com/414magyarbirds/status/2085980136378077692?s=20
https://x.com/414magyarbirds/status/2085646628560556041?s=20
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So while all eyes are on the Strait of Hormuz, a new front may have just opened, threatening even more instability in the Middle East and decreasing the changes the Iran war is wrapped up anytime soon. Yesterday the Houthis carried out an attack against Yemeni government forces sparking fears of a new regional escalation.
Initial reports are that 58 government soldiers were killed along with 11 civilians that were wounded after they were struck by Houthi drones in Saudi Arabia. This marks one of the deadliest days of the ongoing civil war in over four years and warns of a possible return to full scale war.
Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/30/saudi-forces-planning-major-offensive-against-houthis-central-yemen
https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthis-attacks-iran-us-explainer-6d79ab62dc697281ba5be0352e95b2c5
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/saudi-arabia-expects-imminent-attacks-north-south-senior-official-says-2026-08-06/
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/06/world/middleeast/houthi-yemen-strikes.html
https://www.timesofisrael.com/houthi-attack-on-saudi-arabia-wounds-11-civilians-as-kingdom-warns-of-wider-threat/
https://sanaacenter.org/publications/perspectives-and-analyses/28037
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