It's Wednesday, the 22nd of April. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. And yes, still battling a late spring or early summer cold. But I do think it makes my voice sound rather, I don't know, sultry, perhaps alluring. Maybe not. All right, let's get briefed. First up, the fighting may still be paused. But inside Iran, the crackdown is intensifying. Thousands detained. And now even the graves of protesters are being targeted. I'll have the details. Later in the show, the United Arab Emirates, the UAE, says it has dismantled an Iran-linked terror cell, accused of plotting coordinated sabotage attacks inside their country. Plus, new warnings that China's cyber espionage capabilities are now on par with the U.S., with Beijing increasingly targeting Western defense firms. And it stays back of the brief. Israel scrambles to contain the fallout after soldiers are caught desecrating a statue of Jesus in Lebanon. But first, today's PDB Spotlight. As of Tuesday evening, the U.S. and Iranian delegations were still nowhere near sitting back down at the negotiating table in Pakistan. The anticipated second round of discussions never even got off the launch pad, as the U.S. delegation postponed their travel to Islamabad after explaining that the Iranian side had failed to provide any response to the current U.S. negotiating positions. And on the Iranian side, there was never any actual commitment to show up for the supposed talks. As we've discussed, it's still anyone's guess as to who or what leadership team is really in charge in Iran and able to make decisions and commitments for the regime. However, President Trump did announce that he's extending the ceasefire with Iran. This will be the second extension, while keeping the U.S. blockade firmly in place. Saying the move comes as the regime shows what he described as, quote, serious fractures internally, and at the request of Pakistani officials also trying to bring both sides to the table. But even as the guns remain quiet, at least for now, the regime crackdown inside Iran is only intensifying. According to a new report from Iran Human Rights, it's a non-profit organization with sources both inside and outside the country, at least 3,646 people have been detained since the outbreak of the war earlier this year, the 28th of February. But here's what really stands out. More than 760 of those arrests reportedly happened after the ceasefire took effect on the 8th of April. Essentially, the regime is using the ceasefire to step up their repression at home. Among those detained are civil activists, human rights defenders, and ordinary citizens. Many of them picked up in their homes and held for days or even weeks without any contact with their families. In some cases, detainees have managed to brief communication only to say that they're being held in intelligence facilities without disclosing where or possibly without even knowing that themselves. And they're not alone. In many of these cases, detainees are being held incommunicado, cut off from the outside world, with no clear legal process, no access to representation, and no indication of when or if they'll be released. The charges being leveled against them are broad, and in many cases, vague. Authorities say that detainees are accused of espionage, communicating with foreign intelligence services, sharing images or coordinates of sensitive sites, or attempting to establish operational cells. Others are being swept up for what one official described as disturbing public opinion online. Disturbing public opinion online, which is repressive regime speak for posting, sharing or speaking in ways that the regime doesn't like. Iran's police chief, Ahmad Rezaradan, recently outlined some of the numbers during a state television interview. He claimed more than 900 individuals had been identified or arrested for online activity deemed, quote, disruptive. More than 400 people were accused of sharing images from strike locations. Over 700 were labeled as part of so-called monarchist networks. That's a reference to supporters of the Shah's son, Reza Pallavi. And more than 200 were detained for using tools like Starlink, technology that allows access to the outside world beyond the regime's control. That's got to drive the regime crazy. In addition, more than 400 protesters and at least 100 individuals allegedly linked to what the regime calls terrorist groups have also been detained. And it's important to note that these figures are coming from the regime itself. With internet blackouts and limited transparency, human rights groups believe the true number of arrests is likely much higher. Now, all of that paints a picture of a government tightening its grip. But what we're seeing goes even further than that, because the crackdown is no longer limited to the living. In recent days, reports have emerged that Iranian authorities are targeting the graves of protesters, individuals who were killed during earlier demonstrations. Yes, graves. In the northern city of Rashid and in Tehran, witnesses say security forces have defaced, damaged, and in some cases completely covered graves with cement. Entire sections of cemeteries have reportedly been flattened into uniform slabs, erasing names, dates, and any visible trace of the individuals buried there. Families who lost loved ones, many of them young people killed during protests, are now being denied even the most basic form of remembrance. Some have been pressured to alter inscriptions on gravestones. Others have been warned that if they don't comply, the stones will be destroyed. In some cases, families have taken the extraordinary step of removing gravestones altogether, hiding them, essentially, to prevent further damage. It's not just repression. It's really something else. It's an attempt to erase memory, to make it harder for future generations to know who these people were, or why they died. And we've seen this before. Human rights groups including Amnesty International have documented similar actions by the regime in the past Obviously all of this is unfolding as the U and Iran are expected possibly perhaps to return to the negotiating table President Trump has weighed in publicly calling on Iranian leaders to release a group of detained women ahead of those talks, describing it as a goodwill gesture. Human rights organizations are going further, arguing that the release of political prisoners should be a central condition of any agreement. All right, coming up next, the UAE claims it foiled an Iran-linked sabotage plot, while new intelligence warns China is ramping up their already aggressive cyber espionage against Western defense companies. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here. Now, whether you're in a one- or a two-income household, right, if you're a breadwinner, well, you're carrying a lot of responsibility. You know that. Mortgage payments, tuition, everyday bills. So don't just disappear should something happen to you or your partner. But thinking about it, thinking about the what ifs in life, well, that can be overwhelming. However, I'm here to tell you that taking steps to protect your family financially is now a lot easier than it used to be. It's why I recommend Ethos Life Insurance. That's E-T-H-O-S, Ethos. It's fast, it's easy, it's 100% online. You get a quote in seconds, apply in minutes, and you get same-day coverage up to $3 million. Some policies are as low as $30 a month. 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According to the UAE's State Security Service, 27 individuals were part of the coordinated terror cell inside the UAE, aligned with the Iranian regime and actively working to expand their influence. And when you look at what they're accused of doing, raising funds, transferring money to suspicious foreign entities, recruiting and indoctrinating members, it begins to look a lot like the kind of infrastructure that Iran has built across the region through its proxy networks. By the UAE's own account, this wasn't a loosely organized group. It was a network operating with clear intent. In a statement posted to social media, the State Security Service said the suspects had been charged with establishing and operating a secret organization, running it from the UAE, pledging allegiance to foreign entities, and harming national unity and social peace. Officials in Abu Dhabi warned that the group aimed to spread misleading ideas among Amirati youth, recruit them to serve foreign loyalties, incite against the country's foreign policy and internal procedures, and portray the country in a negative light. Now, Tehran has been launching missile and drone strikes, of course, targeting countries that host American military assets, and the UAE, over the past six or seven weeks, has been one of the most exposed, weathering more attempted strikes than any other country in the region, though most have been intercepted. At the same time, Iran has been pushing a very specific narrative. Tehran has accused Gulf states of allowing U.S. forces to carry out attacks from their territories, essentially arguing that these countries are active participants in the conflict. But Gulf states, including the UAE, consistently reject that claim from Iran, maintaining they do not allow their airspace or territory to be used for offensive operations against the Iranian regime. As these terror network arrests in the UAE were announced, the response from Tehran was, well, predictable. The regime's foreign ministry spokesman dismissed the operation as being carried out under, quote, baseless pretexts and urged the UAE to respect what Tehran called the rights and human dignity of those detained. Ah, Tehran, always standing up for the rights and human dignity of the common person. Meanwhile, there's what's happening beyond the UAE. For regular PDB listeners, this should sound familiar. This week, Israel exposed a separate Iranian-linked network targeting officials and assets abroad. And the overlap here is clear. Recruitment, coordination, and direction tied back to Tehran. And similar networks have also been identified elsewhere, including in Pakistan. Okay, shifting gears, there's a fresh security warning coming out of Europe. China's cyber espionage capabilities are now on par with the U.S., with Western defense industries firmly in the crosshairs. Now this comes from a new report by the Netherlands Military Intelligence Agency which is known as MIVD The head of Dutch military intelligence Vice Admiral Peter Riesink is making it clear that China cyber operations aren just improving they've already reached a level that's difficult for Western countries to fully identify, track, and mitigate those risks. In his words, Western governments are, quote, not always capable of seeing all the threats that China produces. And that is a striking admission when you consider who's saying it. He goes further, describing these operations as, quote, very capable and organized in a complex way, which translated out of vague intelligence language points to something sustained, coordinated, and far more sophisticated than the kind of activity we were seeing just a few years ago. And this report is worth paying attention to. The Netherlands has been one of the more clear-eyed countries in Europe when it comes to calling out both Russia and China. What they're outlining is a shift in the threat environment, one where China is operating at scale, with intent, and increasingly in alignment with Russia. ReSync warns that Europe is becoming more vulnerable in a weakening international system, one where, as he puts it, quote, rules become blurred and power becomes increasingly determinate. So, you ask yourself, what is China actually doing? Well, that's a very good question to ask. According to the report, Beijing is aggressively targeting Western military technologies, and defense contractors, seeking access to technologies from militaries and arms producers, while also working to identify vulnerabilities that could be exploited down the line. Now, it's important to note the Chinese regime, the PLA, and their Ministry of State Security, they've been engaged in this sort of activity for years. This is not something new. This isn't just about stealing data, though, for the sake of it, although they do that very well. It's about mapping systems, identifying weak points, and building out options for future conflict scenarios. That puts not just military systems at risk, but also civilian infrastructure tied into defense supply chains. The point of the effort is to probe and map out critical infrastructure to identify weaknesses and points of attack for possible future use. It's essentially the creation of a cyber playbook in the event of a major conflict. and it's designed to bring the pain immediately to the homeland, to the population of whichever adversary they're dealing with. The Dutch assessment explicitly ties Beijing to Moscow, pointing to growing cooperation between the two countries. And this isn't an isolated conclusion. It adds to a chorus of warnings coming from Western intelligence services, especially from countries closer to Russia's borders, where the threat tends to be more immediate and harder to ignore. Russia is still seen as the most immediate and direct threat to Europe, of course, because of proximity. But what stands out here is how China fits into that picture. It's not just a secondary player. It's increasingly acting as a force multiplier, supporting Russia's ambitions while advancing its own. That relationship is becoming more concrete. The report points out Moscow brings real-world battlefield experience from Ukraine. Beijing, meanwhile, is providing economic and technological backing, including exports that help sustain Russia's defense industry. The report makes it clear that Russia can increasingly count on China as an ally, although, to be fair, the report may be overstating the willingness of the Chinese regime to aid Russia. At the same time, China's military is actively studying the war in Ukraine, treating it as a testing ground for future operations. What the report highlights is a longer-term alignment between two major powers, one that spans cyber operations, military cooperation, and strategic planning. But here's where the disconnect starts to come into focus. Despite these warnings, much of Europe still doesn't treat China as an immediate threat. European defense analysts say the continent remains heavily focused on Russia while viewing China as more indirect, something to manage economically rather than confront strategically. That's where things start to look increasingly out of step with reality, though. Because while reports like this do exist, economic ties with Beijing are still shaping how European policymakers respond. And that brings this into focus. If China's cyber capabilities are at parity with the U.S. and actively targeting Western defense infrastructure, the question isn't whether the threat is real. It's whether Europe is taking that threat seriously enough. Okay, coming up next in the back of the brief, a viral image of an IDF soldier smashing a statue of Jesus triggers outrage and swift punishment from Israeli leadership. More on that when we come back. Hey, Mike Baker here. Now, if you're like me, you love when the weather turns warmer, right? Because you can start gardening and you can get out there and enjoy the yard. But I tell you what, one thing I don't love about getting out in the yard is using some cumbersome, janky old garden hose. You know what I'm talking about? 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Each Thursday, I sit down with the most influential people in America. We're a no-spin chat. No script. Anything could happen. You can find We'll Do It Live on BillOReilly.com, YouTube, or wherever you download your podcasts. In today's Back of the Brief, two Israel Defense Forces, or IDF, soldiers are being jailed after taking part in what has quickly turned into a major public relations crisis for Israel. The incident traces back to southern Lebanon, in the predominantly Christian village of Debel. A photo began circulating on social media, showing an Israeli soldier swinging a sledgehammer at the head of a statue of Jesus Christ. It's an image that, of course, spread rapidly and drew outrage both locally and internationally. According to reporting, the statue had already been knocked from its cross before the soldier struck it, but the act itself, captured and shared, sparked immediate backlash, particularly among Christian communities in the region. The reaction from Israel's leadership was swift. After a quick investigation, they confirmed that the picture was real, not AI-generated for propaganda purposes. Prime Minister Netanyahu publicly condemned the act, saying he was, quote, stunned and saddened, and expressing regret to believers in Lebanon and around the world. He said that the behavior did not reflect the values that Israel claims to uphold, particularly when it comes to religious tolerance and respect for holy sites. The military echoed that message. The IDF confirmed the authenticity of the image and launched an investigation, calling the conduct, quote, wholly inconsistent with the values expected of its troops. Officials moved quickly to identify those involved, while also working with the local community to repair the damage. In a symbolic gesture, Israeli forces coordinated with residents in Debel to replace the destroyed statue with a new one. As you might imagine, the fallout hasn't been limited to the region. It's now spilling onto the international stage. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar clashed publicly with Poland's Radoslaw Sikorsky after Sikorsky called for punishment and broader accountability, suggesting the incident raised questions about Israel's military conduct. Saar fired back, calling the remarks irresponsible and defending the IDF as a professional and ethical force. Meanwhile, religious leaders, including Catholic Cardinal Pisabala, condemned the attack as a serious affront to the Christian faith, adding to mounting diplomatic pressure. The two soldiers directly involved in the incident have now been sentenced to 30 days of military detention, so 30 days for hitting Jesus with a sledgehammer, and removed from combat duty. In addition, six other soldiers who were present, but failed to intervene or report what was happening, are now facing further review and potential consequences. The military says additional command-level actions could still be on the table. The episode lands at a particularly sensitive moment. Southern Lebanon remains an active zone of Israeli military operations. And incidents like this risk inflaming tensions. Well, they don't risk inflaming tensions. They inflame tensions, especially with Lebanon's Christian community. For Israel, the message from its leadership is clear. Contain the damage, enforce discipline, and move quickly to show accountability. Now, whether that's enough to blunt the broader fallout does remain to be seen. And honestly, Jesus taking a direct hit with a sledgehammer? I did not have that on my bingo card for 2026. And that, my friends, is the President's Daily Brief for Wednesday, the 22nd of April. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdb at thefirsttv.com. And of course, if you'd like to have an ad-free PDB experience, well, that is entirely possible. Just become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by visiting pdbpremium.com. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back later today with the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.
