The President's Daily Brief
PDB Situation Report | January 18th, 2025: Gaza Ceasefire Deal Reached & Why Greenland Matters
18 Jan 2025
In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: A major breakthrough in the Middle East as Israel and Hamas strike a deal to halt the fighting in Gaza. We’ll discuss the agreement, including the planned release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, with Jonathan Schanzer of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. President Trump’s recent remarks about Greenland are sparking debate over America’s role in the Arctic. With rivals expanding their influence, is the U.S. losing ground? Brendon Weichert, author and National Security Analyst at The National Interest, joins us to break it down. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. YouTube: youtube.com/@presidentsdailybrief Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Full Episode
Hi, Mike Baker here. I'm still out in the desert. It's an amazing trek into great cause, raising awareness for the UK's Special Forces Benevolent Fund. While I'm gone, Mike Slater is stepping in to deliver the President's Daily Brief.
Welcome to the PTV Situation Report. I'm Mike Slater filling in for Mike Baker, who's currently making his way through the deserts of Saudi Arabia and Jordan on Camelback. Because why not, right? We've all done that before. It's Baker's turn. In the meantime, let's get briefed. Kick it off today's show. We got a major development from the Middle East.
Israel and Hamas have struck a deal to stop the fighting in Gaza and release some hostages. Part of the agreement, Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners could be released as early as this Sunday. We'll be joined by Jonathan Shanzer from the Foundation for the Defense of Democracy's for all the details.
Then later in the show, President Trump's recent remarks about Greenland, drawing some questions about America's role in the Arctic, where rivals have been steadily expanding their footprint in the region, raising questions about our priorities and our influence, and China's influence as well.
Author and national security analyst at The National Interest, Brandon Weikert, joins us for more on that coming up in just a few minutes. But first, today's Situation Report Spotlight. At long last, it seems Israel Hamas I've reached an agreement to halt the fighting in Gaza, bringing the promise of a long-awaited ceasefire. It's a few days before President Trump takes office. 2023.
So I want to emphasize that. In exchange, Israel will release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. If implemented, the agreement would provide the first meaningful pause in violence for Gaza's war-weary population over a year. It could also pave the way for Palestinian civilians to return to northern Gaza and significantly boost humanitarian aid into the region.
While the deal offers a moment of hope, its success depends on the cooperation of both sides in this fragile moment of diplomacy. For the people of Gaza and Israel, it could mark a turning point. Maybe just another fleeting pause in a long conflict.
For more on this, let me bring in Jonathan Shanzer, Executive Director of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, who is currently in Israel as we speak. Jonathan, thank you for being here. My pleasure. Where is your head at on this Hamas deal? What do you think?
Well, I got here on Monday, and we all knew that the deal was close. They'd been circling over this for a couple of days. I spent the last days trying to just talk to senior people here, talking to the people who've been involved in brokering this deal. First, I'll just start by saying this was a deal that was put on the table by the Israelis back in May.
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