May 7th, 2025: Red Sea Deal Announced After Houthis ‘Capitulate’ & Hegseth’s Surprise Order
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It's Wednesday, the 7th of May. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker. Your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. Well, start things off today with a big development in the Middle East. President Trump says that the Houthis have capitulated, agreeing to stop attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

But, you may ask, is the threat really over? Well, I'm glad you asked. We'll have those details. Later in the show, India launches airstrikes against Pakistan. Keep an eye out on this developing situation, by the way. Attacking nine sites in response to the terrorist attack in Kashmir. Because, of course, what the world needed was more tension and conflict. Plus, just days into President Trump's second term, reportedly, a

A surprise order from his new defense secretary, Pete Hegseth Halted multiple U.S. weapons shipments to Ukraine Catching the White House, reportedly, completely off guard And in today's back of the brief A close call over Damascus Israeli and Turkish fighter jets narrowly avoided a confrontation During overlapping operations in Syrian airspace But first, today's PDB Spotlight

We'll begin with a major development out in the Middle East where the U.S. and Yemen's Houthi militants have reportedly reached a breakthrough ceasefire agreement Now, in a surprise announcement, President Trump said Tuesday that the U.S. will stop bombing the Houthis in Yemen effective immediately after the Iranian-backed group allegedly consented to stop attacks on U.S. vessels in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait

and end their disruption of one of the world's most vital shipping lanes. That's according to a report from Reuters.

Trump said the Houthis capitulated due to America's intense bombing campaign against the terror group, which has struck over 1,000 Houthi targets since it began back on March 15th. The president told reporters in the Oval Office that the military campaign left the group reeling and that they told the U.S., quote, they don't want to fight anymore. Trump said, quote, they said, please don't bomb us anymore and we're not going to attack your ships.

Following Trump's remarks, officials in Oman confirmed the breakthrough, saying they had mediated the ceasefire in recent days.

People familiar with the matter told CNN that the US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, who's been leading nuclear negotiations with Iran, worked to broker the agreement with the Houthis through Oman over the past week in the hopes of building momentum for a new nuclear deal with the Iranian regime According to the Omani foreign minister, the understanding between the US and the Houthis not to attack each other will ensure "freedom of navigation and the smooth flow of international commercial shipping"

Secretary of State Marco Rubio subsequently described it as an important development, saying the goal of the U.S. bombing campaign was always to stop attacks on global shipping and restore freedom of navigation in the region. As we've extensively covered here on the PDB, since Hamas launched its terror attacks on Israel back on the 7th of October in 2023,

The Houthis have carried out at least 145 attacks on commercial vessels and 174 attacks on US military ships in the Red Sea and Suez Canal Their attacks have rattled global trade, driving up shipping costs and disrupting critical supply chains across the world Some 70% of global trade traffic is now diverting around South Africa to avoid Houthi attacks near the Suez Canal

So, a halt to hostilities by the Houthis would bring welcome relief to global trade But, is the danger really gone? It's worth noting that the response from the Houthis to Trump's announcement was, well, somewhat contradictory A spokesman for the political wing of the Houthis claimed they had not conceded defeat and made no concessions to the U.S., instead saying America had retreated after realizing, quote, "...it is in a losing battle."

Separately, the head of the Houthis Supreme Revolutionary Committee simply said the Houthis would be evaluating the Trump administration's halt of, quote, aggression against the terror group Critically, Trump's remarks and the statement from Oman made no mention of the Houthis' relentless attacks on Israel and whether they agreed to stop those provocations as well But the head of the Houthis Supreme Political Council later said their attacks against Israel would continue He reportedly said, quote,

Quote, to all Zionists from now on, stay in shelters or leave to your countries immediately, as your failed government will not be able to protect you after today. That's not exactly the rhetoric of a group that plans to lay down their arms.

As we've been closely tracking this week, Israel mounted a wave of retaliatory strikes against the Houthis on Monday and Tuesday after a Houthi missile attack on Sunday which punched through Israeli air defenses and detonated inside Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport's perimeter and injured several people. On Tuesday, Israel struck key infrastructure used in Houthi tunnel construction and weapons smuggling, including Sana'a International Airport in Yemen's capital. Following the strikes,

Houthi officials promised more attacks, saying they would, quote, meet escalation with escalation. So, is the U.S. leaving Israel to fight the Houthis on their own? At this time, it remains unclear. But according to our report from the Jerusalem Post, Israeli leaders were blindsided by Trump's announcement, which was not officially communicated beforehand. Separately, we should also note that

It's unclear if Britain, which has participated in attacks on the Houthis alongside the US, has also approved the tentative ceasefire agreement or if they were left in the dark, much like Israel. And I think we've also learned just how many times one person can say Houthis in an article.

All right. Coming up after the break, India launches strikes on Pakistan and new reports that a surprise move by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth blindsided the White House. I'll be right back.

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Welcome back to the PDB Late last night, India launched its largest-ever peacetime missile strike against Pakistan, dramatically raising the strikes between the two nuclear-armed neighbors. The strikes come in direct retaliation for last month's terrorist attack in Kashmir, which killed 26 Indian civilians. In an operation dubbed Operation Sindor, Indian armed forces targeted nine sites within Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

According to an official statement from the Indian military, they hit terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir from where terrorists' attacks against India have been planned and directed. Altogether, they claim nine sites were targeted. The statement emphasized the strikes were, quote, focused, measured, and non-escalatory, specifically noting that no Pakistani military facilities were attacked. India launched the missiles from within its own airspace in Shikharpur,

ensuring that no Indian aircraft crossed into Pakistani territory. Following the announcement of the campaign, the Indian Army posted on social media, quote, justice is served, Jai Hind. Jai Hind is a patriotic Hindi phrase commonly used in India, which translates roughly to victory in India or long live India. On the Pakistani side, authorities confirmed that the strikes caused casualties. At

At least three people were reportedly killed and another 12 injured in a city known as the headquarters of Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, the terrorist organization believed responsible for those brutal, hitherto brutal attacks in Kashmir. In response, Pakistan vowed retaliation. A spokesperson for Pakistan's armed forces warned via social media, "Pakistan will respond to it at a time and place of its own choosing. It will not go unanswered.

The temporary pleasure of India will be replaced by enduring grief." In a post on X, Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif called the strike an act of war. He declared, "The enemy will never be allowed to succeed in his nefarious objectives."

Additionally, the Indian Army has confirmed that Pakistan has opened artillery fire along the heavily contested line of control in Kashmir, heightening concerns about further escalation between the nuclear-armed rivals. Reacting to the developments, President Trump addressed the situation briefly, saying to reporters, It's a shame. I just hope it ends very quickly.

Yesterday's strikes signal a significant escalation between India and Pakistan Underscoring, of course, the delicate balance of power and the volatility in the region Okay, moving stateside Roughly one week into President Trump's second term

A surprise order from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth grounded 11 military cargo flights that were bound for Ukraine, reportedly without the knowledge of the president or top national security advisors, sowing confusion among allies and officials.

The order, delivered verbally from Hegseth's office via the Pentagon's Joint Staff to U.S. Transportation Command or TRANSCOM because everybody loves a good acronym halted weapons shipments already authorized by Congress during the final months of the Biden administration The flights, loaded with artillery shells and other munitions had been scheduled to depart from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware and then Air Base in Qatar with final routing through a logistics hub in Poland

The freeze followed a 30 January Oval Office meeting where Hegseth, reportedly encouraged by anti-interventionist aides, floated a draft memo urging a pause in aid to gain leverage with Moscow.

Three sources familiar with the meeting said Trump declined to issue any formal directive halting aid and was unaware of the SecDef's subsequent action Nonetheless, the verbal order was issued shortly thereafter According to internal Pentagon records reviewed by Reuters and multiple sources familiar with the situation the move triggered a wave of confusion across Kyiv, Warsaw, and Washington

Frantic calls from European and Ukrainian officials began on the 2nd of February, demanding clarification Inside the White House, Pentagon, and State Department, senior officials reportedly scrambled to determine whether the disruption signaled a broader policy shift or a unilateral misstep

By the time flights resumed on the 5th of February, well, the damage was done. The White House told Reuters that Pegseth was executing what it described as a standing informal directive to re-evaluate Ukraine assistance. But the administration has not explained why the order was issued without informing key departments, nor why it was quickly reversed. White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt downplayed the confusion, stating, quote,

The bottom line is the war is much closer to an end today than it was when President Trump took office. Transcom initially estimated the cancellations cost the Pentagon over $2 million. That figure was later revised down to $1.6 million after one of the 11 flights incurred no charge.

The brief halt exposed deeper fractures inside the administration's national security ranks, where decisions with global implications were made absent interagency coordination. Then-National Security Advisor Mike Waltz is said to have personally intervened to reverse the halt once its scope became clear.

Ukrainian officials described the White House response as vague and at times dismissive. One told Reuters the miscommunication was waved off as "internal politics." Behind the scenes, several of Hegseth's advisers aligned with the America First foreign policy movement were quietly drafting proposals to scale back U.S. support for Ukraine and redirect focus toward countering China.

On 15th of April, though, several of those aides were escorted from the Pentagon after being accused of unauthorized disclosure of classified information

The February freeze was followed weeks later by a formal announcement on the 4th of March when the White House declared an official pause in military aid to Ukraine Are you confused yet? It's worth noting that while the Trump administration has since recently approved new military aid packages no new Ukraine assistance policy has been formally announced

All right, coming up next in the back of the brief, a near miss in Syrian skies. Israeli and Turkish warplanes reportedly came dangerously close to a clash near Damascus. More on that when we come back.

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In today's Back of the Brief, it appears that a dangerous confrontation between Israel and Turkey was narrowly avoided last week amid Jerusalem's bombardment of targets in Syria. As we covered on Friday, Israel's air force bombed an area adjacent to Syria's presidential palace in Damascus overnight last Thursday in what leaders in Jerusalem called a clear warning to Syria's new Islamist-led government to prevent further bloodshed against the country's minority Druze community.

It turns out, however, that during the strikes, Turkish and Israeli fighter jets were operating in the same airspace, according to a report from the Jerusalem Post. Given the tense relationship between Israel and Turkey, the encounter could have quickly devolved and sparked conflict between the two regional powers. But Turkish F-16s conducting reconnaissance flights in the area were able to send warning signals to the Israeli jets using their electronic warfare systems, alerting Jerusalem to their presence.

Brief radio contact was then made between the aircraft, allowing both sides to narrowly avoid what could have been a calamitous confrontation. And how many times have you heard anybody say calamitous confrontation? As a reminder, since the fall of Assad late last year, both Ankara and Jerusalem have moved quickly to shape Syria's future. Turkey is backing President Ahmed al-Sharra's Islamist government and hoping to establish permanent military installations inside Syria.

Israeli leaders, meanwhile, remain deeply mistrustful of the new Sunni Islamist government, particularly given al-Sharah's past as a former al-Qaeda operative They've been conducting airstrikes targeting the former Assad regime's military infrastructure and armaments to prevent them from falling into the hands of the extremists

They've also called the Turkish presence a, quote, danger to Israel and accused Ankara of trying to convert Syria into a de facto protectorate. Additionally, Israel has carved out a demilitarized zone in southern Syria near the Golan Heights to protect their border from Islamist extremist groups and have repeatedly warned Syria's rulers from deploying forces south of Damascus. But to ward off potential conflict, Israeli and Turkish officials held technical talks last month in

in Azerbaijan to establish a de-escalation mechanism and prevent "undesirable incidents" A rough mutual agreement was established with both sides promising to keep communications channels open in a desire to preserve regional stability even as both nations work to impact the future direction of the war-torn nation

And that, my friends, is the President's Daily Brief for Wednesday, the 7th of May. Now, if you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdbatthefirsttv.com. Finally, and you may have heard this, reportedly the White House is set to make a big announcement during President Trump's upcoming trip to the Middle East. I suspect, but...

well, can't confirm, that they plan to announce that as of today, the PDB's YouTube channel, at President's Daily Brief, has officially gone over the 100,000 subscriber mark. Mm-hmm, you heard me correct. On behalf of the entire PDB team, I just want to say thank you to all for supporting the President's Daily Brief. The bar is now open. Let the festivities begin. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back later today with the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. Until then...

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