Latest / The President's Daily Brief / October 23rd, 2026: Israel Sends Dozens of Fighter Jets Toward Iran & Russia's Secret Cable Surveillance

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October 23rd, 2026: Israel Sends Dozens of Fighter Jets Toward Iran & Russia's Secret Cable Surveillance · The President's Daily Brief

0:12
It's Friday,
0:13
the 23rd of October.
0:15
If you're in the US,
0:16
you've got about a week to get your Halloween costume sorted out.
0:20
Welcome to the President's Daily Brief.
0:22
I'm Mike Baker,
0:23
your eyes and ears on the world stage.
0:25
All right,
0:26
let's get briefed.
0:28
First up,
0:28
new reports suggest that the US and Israel
0:31
are preparing for another round of strikes against Iran
0:34
after November's midterm elections on the 3rd of November.
0:38
We'll break down the military plans and what could be coming next.
0:41
Remember the old days back when you
0:44
didn't let everyone know about your military plans ahead of time?
0:47
Later in the show,
0:48
the Pentagon is reportedly developing a new deep cover spy program aimed at China
0:54
and other American adversaries,
0:56
potentially expanding US intelligence operations
0:59
into economic warfare.
1:01
At the risk of repeating myself,
1:03
I remember when we didn't talk about plans to develop deep cover spy programs
1:08
because,
1:09
well,
1:09
they were secret.
1:11
Plus,
1:11
Russia is reportedly using fishing trawlers to
1:13
spy on Britain's critical undersea cables.
1:16
Can't swing a dead cab without hitting a spy nowadays,
1:18
with officials warning that Moscow may be
1:20
mapping the infrastructure for future sabotage.
1:23
And in today's back of the brief,
1:25
Israel heads to the polls next week
1:27
with Prime Minister Netanyahu's political future
1:30
in the balance.
1:31
But first,
1:32
today's PDB spotlight.
1:34
Dozens of Israeli fighter jets have carried out
1:36
a major military operation near Iran's border,
1:39
flying more than 800 miles from Israel
1:41
along a route consistent with an actual attack mission.
1:44
And now new reporting suggests the US and Israel
1:47
are preparing for another round of strikes against Iran
1:50
following November's US midterm elections.
1:53
According to Axios,
1:54
the Israeli Air Force operation involved dozens of
1:57
fighter jets accompanied by aerial refueling aircraft.
2:00
The planes traveled through Syrian and Iraqi airspace
2:04
following a route that Israeli pilots could use
2:07
to carry out strikes against Iranian targets.
2:09
As they approached Iran's border,
2:11
the aircraft turned around and returned
2:13
to Israel without entering Iranian airspace.
2:16
Israeli officials described the operation as a military exercise
2:20
intended to demonstrate the country's ability to
2:23
project air power over long distances.
2:26
They also said it was meant to discourage Iran
2:28
from launching attacks against Israel
2:30
ahead of next week's Israeli elections,
2:33
but some American officials reportedly have
2:35
another interpretation of what happened.
2:38
Axios reports that some US officials believe Israel
2:41
may have been hoping Iran would fire on the approaching aircraft,
2:44
potentially providing justification
2:46
for another round of Israeli strikes.
2:49
The Israelis knew their jets would likely
2:51
be detected by Iranian air defense systems,
2:53
and Washington
2:55
had been notified of the exercise in advance.
2:58
Now that is admittedly a best guess from unnamed American officials,
3:03
not an established account of Israel's intentions.
3:05
Other officials described the flight as a legitimate deterrence exercise.
3:10
And now there are growing indications that preparations
3:13
for another military campaign are already underway.
3:16
According to The New York Times,
3:18
American and Israeli military planners have developed
3:20
options for a new offensive against Iran
3:23
that could begin after the November 3rd US midterm elections.
3:27
One proposal involves a short but intensive
3:29
military campaign lasting approximately 3 days.
3:33
Potential targets reportedly include Iranian nuclear facilities,
3:36
missile and drone capabilities,
3:38
and portions of the country's energy infrastructure.
3:41
The US is also assembling additional military forces in the region.
3:45
According to the reporting,
3:46
the deployment includes 3 aircraft carriers,
3:48
marines,
3:49
combat aircraft,
3:50
and special operations personnel,
3:52
with a buildup expected to be completed by early November.
3:56
Now,
3:56
to be clear,
3:57
President Trump has not authorized another attack.
3:59
He has repeatedly rejected proposals to
4:02
resume major military operations against Iran,
4:05
including an offensive that American and Israeli forces
4:08
were reportedly preparing to launch earlier this month.
4:12
The administration's apparent preference
4:13
has been to maintain pressure,
4:16
particularly economic pressure on Tehran,
4:18
while leaving room for negotiations.
4:20
The question facing military planners.
4:23
Is whether another concentrated round
4:25
of strikes could convince Iran's leadership
4:27
to make concessions that
4:29
months of fighting and economic pressure have failed to produce,
4:33
and there's another complication.
4:35
Washington and Jerusalem
4:36
may not be working toward precisely the same objective.
4:40
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has now publicly declared that
4:43
overthrowing Iran's government
4:45
is the only way to permanently eliminate the threat from Tehran.
4:49
He says he's directed the Israeli military,
4:51
Mossad,
4:51
and other security agencies toward that goal.
4:54
Netanyahu also accused Iran's new,
4:57
possibly alive,
4:58
possibly not Supreme Leader Mustawa Khamenei
5:01
of continuing efforts to develop nuclear weapons despite the
5:04
damage inflicted during previous American and Israeli operations.
5:09
For Netanyahu,
5:09
the stated objective is no longer
5:11
simply destroying Iran's nuclear facilities or weakening its military.
5:16
The goal is regime change.
5:18
Now that's,
5:19
of course,
5:19
a much more ambitious undertaking
5:21
than a 3 day bombing campaign designed to pressure Tehran into negotiations,
5:26
and it raises questions about what happens
5:28
if the US launches another limited offensive,
5:31
but Israel wants to continue fighting until the regime collapses.
5:35
Iranian officials have already warned that
5:37
another American Israeli offensive could trigger retaliation
5:41
against targets across the region,
5:43
including oil facilities,
5:44
data centers,
5:45
and undersea communications infrastructure.
5:48
One adviser to Iran's negotiating team has dismissed the idea
5:52
of a limited 72 hour campaign,
5:54
warning that Tehran's response
5:56
would be more severe than previous attacks,
5:58
and that is the central problem
6:00
with the proposed military operation.
6:03
American planners may believe another concentrated campaign
6:06
could finally force Iran's leadership to negotiate,
6:09
but after nearly 8 months of war,
6:11
damaged military infrastructure,
6:13
mounting economic pressure,
6:14
and repeated threats from Washington,
6:16
Tehran still hasn't agreed
6:18
to the concessions that the administration is seeking.
6:21
So you ask,
6:22
what would another 3 days of bombing actually accomplish?
6:26
It could destroy additional Iranian military capabilities.
6:29
It could further weaken the country's economy.
6:32
But there's no guarantee it would force the regime to change its position,
6:36
particularly
6:37
if Iranian leaders believe that they can survive the attacks
6:40
and retaliate against American interests elsewhere.
6:44
All right.
6:45
Coming up next,
6:45
the Pentagon plans a new deep cover spy program targeting China.
6:49
Well,
6:49
it's good of them to tell us,
6:51
and Russia reportedly is using fishing trawlers
6:54
to map Britain's undersea cables for potential sabotage.
6:58
I'll be right back.
7:00
Hey Mike Baker here.
7:01
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8:27
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8:29
The Pentagon is reportedly planning a deep cover
8:33
spy program to penetrate foreign economic networks,
8:36
with officers posing as businessmen
8:39
with no visible connection to the US government.
8:42
So
8:42
spies
8:43
operating as businessmen,
8:45
which just proves the old saying that there is nothing new under the sun.
8:49
Intelligence services around the world have been doing this
8:51
since spying was invented,
8:53
which was just after prostitution was invented.
8:57
Anyway,
8:57
the news about the Pentagon's plans comes from
8:59
an exclusive investigation by The Washington Post,
9:02
which spoke with six people familiar with the initiative,
9:05
all on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive effort because,
9:09
well,
9:10
they're supposed to keep their pie holes shut.
9:12
And not discuss sensitive information,
9:14
but that seems too difficult for them.
9:16
Those sources say it remains in planning and is not operational.
9:20
Now the Pentagon denies such an initiative is underway.
9:23
Deputy Press secretary Jacob Bliss told the
9:25
Post the reporting was based on information
9:28
that was quote simply not true.
9:30
He accused its sources
9:32
of being either badly misinformed
9:34
or deliberately leading you astray,
9:36
end quote.
9:37
But
9:38
You know what,
9:39
let's play along with the Post's reporting and
9:41
their sources who can't keep their yaps shut
9:43
and ask ourselves what would a program like this
9:46
be designed to accomplish.
9:47
Well,
9:48
the reported goal would be to support the Pentagon's economic warfare campaign
9:52
by uncovering secrets in industries such as artificial intelligence,
9:55
advanced semiconductors,
9:56
and biotechnology,
9:58
technologies that could of course power Beijing's next generation of weapons.
10:03
The CIA has already signaled a greater focus on these targets.
10:07
In September,
10:08
CIA Deputy Director Michael Ellis
10:10
discussed expanding espionage against Chinese
10:13
companies working in those industries,
10:15
an unusual public acknowledgment
10:16
of a long-standing intelligence target.
10:19
The Pentagon
10:20
has already begun building out their
10:22
public-facing side of that economic campaign.
10:25
Not to be outdone in the category of,
10:27
let me tell you about super secret stuff that we might just be doing.
10:31
Earlier this year,
10:32
Deputy Secretary of War Steve Feinberg announced an economic defense unit.
10:36
I'll bet that's gonna be,
10:37
uh,
10:37
the EDU,
10:39
describing its mission as quote,
10:40
deterring,
10:41
denying,
10:41
disrupting,
10:42
and helping to defeat
10:44
adversaries.
10:44
That's 4 D's,
10:46
so they're serious
10:47
through economic means,
10:48
end quote.
10:49
Its investments include $750 million to help secure access
10:53
to a major rare earth mineral deposit in Brazil
10:57
supporting supplies essential to advanced electronics and weapons systems.
11:00
The proposed spy program
11:02
would add a clandestine component to that broader strategy.
11:06
Now following a standard playbook of how to conduct operations,
11:09
its officers would assume roles as executives,
11:12
consultants,
11:12
or other private sector professionals
11:15
that could put them in places where an overt American official
11:18
would attract immediate suspicion and attention.
11:21
Overseeing the planning,
11:22
according to the Post,
11:23
is Tom Rockinson,
11:25
a former CIA veteran who became deputy director of operations in 2017.
11:30
And now serves as a senior adviser to Feinberg at the Pentagon.
11:34
He's essentially brought the agency playbook over to the Pentagon
11:37
for conducting non-official cover operations.
11:40
The effort has drawn in military
11:41
intelligence specialists and retired CIA officers,
11:44
according to the Post reporting.
11:46
Whether it would become a stand-alone unit
11:48
or expand existing military human intelligence capabilities,
11:51
uh,
11:52
remains unclear,
11:53
but the Pentagon would also have to work through
11:56
resistance from within America's intelligence community.
11:59
One former senior CIA official familiar with the discussions
12:03
put that objection bluntly,
12:04
quote, akasan just wants to build his own CIA down in the Pentagon.
12:09
Well,
12:09
to be fair,
12:10
there is a long tradition of government agencies
12:12
and organizations wanting to protect their turf,
12:14
build out their own capabilities,
12:16
no matter how redundant,
12:18
and increase the size of their fiefdoms.
12:20
The CIA has traditionally guarded its responsibility
12:23
for clandestine human intelligence operations overseas and
12:26
Insisted that other agencies coordinate their activities
12:29
through the CIA station chiefs in the country concerned.
12:33
The Pentagon has its own intelligence capabilities and authorities,
12:36
of course,
12:37
but expanding its deep cover operations could intensify those disputes.
12:42
Beyond the agency rivalry,
12:43
the proposed program's legal footing also remains unclear.
12:47
The Post reports unresolved questions about how
12:50
it would fit within military and intelligence authorities
12:53
while the relevant congressional committees don't appear to have been briefed.
12:57
Hm.
12:58
All right.
12:59
From spies in the business world
13:00
to suspected spies on fishing boats
13:03
off Britain's shores,
13:05
Russian trawlers have repeatedly loitered over undersea
13:07
cables and followed their layout for miles.
13:11
British officials recognizing the obvious fear that Moscow is studying how
13:14
to disrupt the networks connecting the UK with America and Europe.
13:18
An analysis published by The Telegraph examined 4.5 years of vessel tracking data
13:24
from Global Fishing Watch.
13:25
Over that period,
13:26
it identified more than 500 suspicious incidents involving Russian trawlers.
13:31
Now operating near a cable doesn't automatically make a fishing boat a spy ship,
13:36
but the repeated pattern has drawn the attention of British officials
13:40
and NATO intelligence personnel.
13:42
One NATO source offered a fairly blunt assessment,
13:45
telling the newspaper,
13:46
quote,
13:46
We're absolutely aware of what Russian civilian fishing ships are up to and where.
13:51
Some of these ships have never seen a single fish on their deck,
13:54
end quote.
13:55
Well,
13:55
that could just be bad luck.
13:57
After all,
13:58
it's called fishing,
13:59
not catching.
14:00
Some days are like that.
14:01
But it does raise an obvious question.
14:03
If they're not there to catch fish,
14:05
what are they looking for?
14:06
British officials say Putin is using what they call quote commercial proxies
14:10
to map the precise locations of these cables in case of conflict.
14:14
That gives Moscow plausible deniability.
14:16
A Russian warship operating near critical infrastructure,
14:19
of course,
14:20
is going to attract attention.
14:22
A fishing trawler,
14:23
well,
14:23
has an obvious commercial reason
14:25
to be out at sea.
14:26
That fits the logic of Gray's own warfare,
14:29
preparing to disrupt an adversary's essential services
14:32
while obscuring who is responsible.
14:34
We're talking about infrastructure here
14:36
supporting critical data and communications,
14:38
transportation,
14:39
financial institutions,
14:40
hospitals,
14:41
phone networks,
14:42
other essential services.
14:44
These networks do have alternative routes,
14:46
so cutting one cable
14:48
would not necessarily cause widespread disruption,
14:51
but
14:52
coordinated,
14:53
informed damage to several key cables
14:55
would be much more serious.
14:58
But the concerns about Russia's intentions don't rest on fishing boats alone.
15:01
In September,
15:02
Britain,
15:03
Norway,
15:03
and the US
15:04
reportedly confronted Russian submersibles in Arctic waters
15:08
as they trained to use a specialized weapon intended to disable undersea cables.
15:13
The vessels were associated with Moscow's secretive
15:16
main directorate of deep sea research,
15:19
known as Googi,
15:20
G U G I,
15:21
which is just fun to say.
15:23
Googi conducts specialized underwater military and intelligence operations.
15:27
According to the reporting,
15:28
NATO forces intercepted the vessels and forced them to leave.
15:32
Earlier this year.
15:33
Britain's Defense Secretary issued a warning to
15:35
Putin after Russian attack and intelligence gathering submarines
15:38
were detected operating in the North Atlantic.
15:40
In response to those concerns,
15:42
London is preparing to strengthen the laws protecting those undersea cables.
15:47
Under the existing framework
15:49
described in the reporting,
15:50
certain offenses involving interference with communications cables
15:53
can carry fines of just 1000 pounds.
15:56
Prosecutors can pursue prison sentences when they prove an
15:59
offense was committed on behalf of a foreign power.
16:02
Seriously,
16:03
a 1000 pounds fine.
16:05
In a forthcoming white paper,
16:06
the British government is expected to
16:07
propose lengthy prison sentences and unlimited fines
16:11
for damaging critical undersea infrastructure.
16:14
Of course,
16:14
tougher penalties are only part of the response.
16:17
Britain also needs to detect threats and protect the cables before damage occurs.
16:22
The British Ministry of Defense says the
16:24
government is investing approximately $440 million more
16:28
to strengthen protection for critical undersea infrastructure.
16:31
The department says it is clear-eyed
16:34
about the threat that Russia poses.
16:36
Alongside its NATO allies,
16:38
Britain is strengthening maritime
16:39
surveillance and anti-submarine warfare capabilities
16:43
to better detect and counter Russian activity.
16:46
OK.
16:47
Coming up in the back of the brief,
16:48
Israel heads to the polls next week,
16:51
and new polling suggests that neither Prime Minister Netanyahu nor his opponents
16:55
have a clear path to victory.
16:57
More on that when we come back.
17:01
Hey Mike Baker here.
17:02
Now you may have noticed that the US midterm elections are heating up.
17:06
That's putting it mildly.
17:07
Congressional control,
17:08
possible Senate control,
17:09
and President Trump's agenda are all basically on the ballot and up for grabs.
17:14
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17:14
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17:18
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17:19
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17:25
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17:28
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17:30
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17:33
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17:34
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17:37
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17:39
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17:42
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18:43
In today's back of the brief,
18:44
with Israel's general election just days away,
18:47
the latest polling suggests neither Prime
18:49
Minister Netanyahu nor his main political rival
18:52
is on track to secure a parliamentary majority.
18:55
That raises the prospect of a political stalemate with smaller parties and
19:00
potentially holding the balance of power.
19:02
According to the New Arab,
19:03
an average of 7 polls conducted over
19:05
the past week shows that Netanyahu's political bloc
19:08
and the opposition bloc led by former military chief Gadi Eizenkott
19:12
are each projected to win 51 seats in Israel's 120 member parliament.
19:17
That would leave both sides 10 seats short of a majority.
19:21
Now,
19:21
as a reminder,
19:22
Israelis don't directly elect their prime minister.
19:24
They vote for political parties competing for seats in the Knesset.
19:28
That's Israel's parliament,
19:30
because no single party is expected to win a majority on its own.
19:33
Parties with similar political interests typically join
19:36
forces to form a governing coalition,
19:39
and that requires the support of at least 61 lawmakers.
19:43
Eisenkott's Yashar party is projected to win 22 seats
19:47
narrowly ahead of Netanyahu's Likud Party at 21,
19:51
but those figures represent the individual parties
19:54
rather than their broader political alliances.
19:56
When the other parties align with each leader
19:59
and those who are included,
20:00
both political blocs are projected to hold 51 seats.
20:05
That means the smaller parties and their willingness to support either side
20:09
will prove decisive in determining who forms Israel's next government,
20:13
and one group that could have an outsized influence is Israel's Arab parties,
20:17
which are projected to increase their combined representation from 10
20:20
to 14 seats.
20:22
But both Netanyahu and Eisenkott have ruled
20:25
out forming coalitions with those parties,
20:27
potentially making the path to a parliamentary majority
20:30
even more difficult.
20:32
On Netanyahu's side,
20:33
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gur's far-right Jewish Power party
20:37
is projected to win 8 seats
20:39
running independently after competing as part of an electoral alliance in 2022.
20:44
But Ben-Gur is already aligned with Netanyahu,
20:47
meaning a strong showing
20:49
could strengthen his influence within the prime minister's political camp
20:52
without
20:53
necessarily bringing that broader coalition any closer to a majority.
20:57
And there have been two other significant developments
21:00
in the final days of the campaign,
21:02
as we reported earlier this week on the PDB.
21:04
President Trump has thrown his full support behind Netanyahu,
21:07
describing him
21:08
as a great warrior and making clear that he
21:10
wants his longtime ally to remain in power.
21:14
But the first poll published after Trump's endorsement
21:17
showed Eisenott's party leading Likud by 3 seats.
21:21
Unlike the 7 poll average cited earlier,
21:23
this individual survey projected 55 seats for the broader opposition bloc
21:28
compared with 51 for Netanyahu's allies.
21:31
Meanwhile,
21:32
former Defense Minister Benny Gentz announced Monday that his Blue and White party
21:36
would withdraw from the race
21:38
after polling suggested it would fail to win enough votes to enter parliament.
21:42
That could redirect some of his supporters toward other opposition parties,
21:47
potentially
21:47
reshaping the final numbers.
21:50
Of course polls are only snapshots of voter sentiment,
21:53
and as you as voters know,
21:55
the actual election results could
21:57
change the political calculations considerably.
21:59
But even if Netanyahu or Eisenkott emerges with the largest party in the Knesset,
22:04
that alone won't guarantee either man the premiership,
22:08
with neither major bloc currently projected to secure a majority.
22:11
The real contest will likely begin after the
22:14
votes are counted as smaller parties become the kingmakers
22:18
in the battle to form Israel's next government.
22:21
And that,
22:22
my friends,
22:22
is the president's daily brief for Friday,
22:24
the 23rd of October.
22:26
Now,
22:26
if you have any questions or comments,
22:27
just reach out to me at PDB@thfirsttv.com.
22:31
And of course,
22:32
like clockwork,
22:33
every Friday brings a brand new episode
22:35
of our weekend show,
22:36
the PDB Situation Report.
22:38
You can catch it this evening at 10:00 p.m. on the first TV.
22:41
And as always,
22:41
new and past episodes are available on
22:44
our YouTube channel at President's Daily Brief
22:47
and wherever you get your podcast stuff.
22:49
I'm Mike Baker and I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin.
22:53
Until then,
22:55
stay informed,
22:56
stay safe,
22:57
stay cool.