March 2nd, 2026: Jets Flying Over Tehran Unchallenged & Global Leaders React
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
It's Monday, the 2nd of March. Well, welcome to a brand new month. And 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. First up, just days into Operation Epic Fury, Israel says it controls Iran's airspace and is now operating with impunity over Iran. I'll have the latest details. Later in the show, the world reacts to the conflict. From the United Nations to Brussels, from Moscow to Beijing, global leaders are weighing in. Plus, while the war rages on, the FBI secures the home front. Director Kash Patel orders counterterrorism teams into a heightened posture as intelligence officials watch for signs of asymmetric retaliation from the Iranian regime.
And in today's back of the brief, a mass shooting in Austin, Texas leaves three dead and over a dozen injured. We'll bring you the latest on what's known about that attack. But first, today's PDB Spotlight. We are now at day three of Operation Epic Fury, the joint US-Israeli military campaign that began early Saturday morning Tehran time. And the scale of what has unfolded over the past 72 hours is definitely worth reviewing. According to reports, Israel and the US have struck roughly 2,000 targets across Iran since the start of the operation. The Israeli Air Force alone has flown more than 700 sorties and fired thousands of munitions. U.S. Central Command says its forces have targeted Iranian integrated air defense systems, naval vessels and submarines, anti-ship missile sites, underground missile infrastructure, and military communications centers.
Israeli officials say dozens of command centers tied to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, including IRGC headquarters, intelligence facilities, Air Force command hubs, and internal security structures, have been hit, along with ballistic missile arrays and aerial defense systems. Perhaps the most consequential development so far is Israel's assertion that it has achieved aerial superiority within 24 hours of the operation's start. Now, according to reporting from the Times of Israel, Israeli fighter jets are now employing what are known as, quote, stand-in munitions over Tehran. Bombs drop directly over their targets rather than launched from long-range standoff distances.
What is the significance of Israel controlling Iran's airspace?
In practical terms, that means Iran's ability to defend the airspace over its own capital has been severely compromised. Air defenses that once deterred direct overflight are no longer doing their job. Achieving air superiority, that quickly suggests one of two things. Either Iran's integrated air defense network was weaker than many analysts believed, or it was systematically compromised in advance of open hostilities, likely still degraded from Israel's air campaign back in 2025. In either case, control of the skies allows Israeli and U.S. forces to dictate tempo, choose targets with greater flexibility, and apply sustained pressure on critical infrastructure. At the same time, Iran's most potent conventional tools, ballistic missiles and armed drones, do remain in play.
The Israeli military says roughly half of Iran's ballistic missile launchers have been destroyed, though, over the past 48 hours. with hundreds of missiles dismantled and around 200 launchers either eliminated or rendered inoperable. In addition, Iran's central explosives production site, used to create material for missiles and drones, has reportedly been dismantled, and four key mixing facilities required for the manufacturing process have been struck. Now targeting explosives and missile fuel and engine manufacturing facilities suggests the campaign is not solely focused on suppressing current salvos, but on degrading Iran's capacity to regenerate missile stockpiles over the longer term. Even so, missiles and drones do continue to rain down on Israel and on Gulf nations that host US bases.
We've already seen three American service members killed and five seriously wounded in the conflict.
How are global leaders reacting to Operation Epic Fury?
Beyond the air and missile exchanges, another front is now drawing attention, and that would be the Strait of Hormuz.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:12–2:34
2
What is the significance of Israel controlling Iran's airspace?
2:34–4:18
3
How are global leaders reacting to Operation Epic Fury?
4:18–5:25
4
What measures is the FBI taking in response to the conflict?
5:25–7:27
5
What details are emerging about the mass shooting in Austin?
7:27–8:29
6
How has Operation Epic Fury unfolded over the past days?
8:29–13:42
7
What does achieving air superiority mean for Israel and Iran?
13:42–23:35
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from The President's Daily Brief
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