The President's Daily Brief
December 9th, 2024: Assad’s Regime Toppled & Global Reactions Begin
Mon, 09 Dec 2024
In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: A historic day in the Middle East as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime falls to rebel forces, ending over 50 years of Assad-family rule. Governments worldwide react with a mix of hope and apprehension to this seismic shift. Ukrainian President Zelensky reveals the military death toll for Ukraine’s forces in the Russian invasion, as the U.S. prepares another billion-dollar aid package for the embattled nation. And in today’s Back of the Brief: the latest updates on the hunt for the man who killed United Healthcare’s CEO in cold blood in New York City last week. 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 Blackout Coffee: https://www.blackoutcoffee.com/PDB Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What historic event occurred in Syria on December 9th, 2024?
A historic day in the Middle East, as the region comes to terms with the fall of one of the world's longest-running family dictatorships. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been toppled by rebel forces. He fled the country shortly before the rebels took over Damascus.
Later in the show, governments around the world react to the fall of the Assad regime with a mix of, well, let's call it hope and apprehension. We'll break down the response so far. Plus, Ukrainian President Zelensky reveals the military death toll for Ukraine's forces in the Russian invasion as the U.S. prepares another billion-dollar aid package.
Chapter 2: How are global governments reacting to Assad's regime fall?
And in today's Back of the Brief, we'll bring you the latest updates on the hunt for the man who killed UnitedHealthcare's CEO in New York City this past week. But first, today's BDB Spotlight. Five decades of Assad family rule came to a crashing halt over the weekend as rebel forces ousted Bashar al-Assad's regime and forced the despot to flee.
His decades-long grip on power is over, bringing an end to the authoritarian dynasty his father began half a century ago and that was responsible for the death and torture over the decades of hundreds of thousands of Syrians. The collapse unfolded rapidly.
Chapter 3: What updates are there on Ukraine's military situation?
On Saturday evening, reports emerged that rebel forces had entered the suburbs of Damascus with claims that President Assad was even reaching out to them in hopes of negotiating an end to the conflict. Yeah, good luck with that. By Sunday morning, it was all over. Rebel forces had seized control and publicly declared victory.
The news was first broadcast on Syrian state television yesterday morning, with the nation's most prominent news anchor reading a news bulletin provided by the rebel leaders.
It read in part, quote, To those who bet on us and to those who didn't, to those who thought one day that we were broken, we announced to you from the Syrian news channel the victory of the great Syrian revolution after 13 years of patience and sacrifice. Now, the leader of the main rebel group, Abu Muhammad al-Jilani, has also made his first statements since arriving in Damascus.
In a speech delivered inside a mosque in the capital, he called the victory a new chapter in the history of the region. He added that Syria would no longer be a, quote, playground for Iranian ambitions, spreading sectarianism, and stirring corruption, end quote.
Chapter 4: What statements have been made by key rebel leaders?
Syria's foreign ministry has also released a statement which read, quote, a new page in Syrian history is being written, consecrating a national oath and covenant that will bring all Syrians together, end quote. The people who wrote that statement will likely find themselves out of a job very soon.
And depending on how things go over the next days and weeks, well, that could be the best scenario that they could hope for. The collapse of Assad's regime was years in the making. After clinging to power through a brutal civil war that began in 2011, in large part due to the backing of Iran and Russia, Assad faced growing dissent at home.
Rebel groups fragmented for much of the conflict recently coordinated a sweeping offensive, capturing key cities such as Aleppo and Homa before storming Damascus. Crucially, Assad's international allies, particularly Russia, seemed to pull back their support in recent months, leaving his regime increasingly isolated.
As opposed to 2015, when Russia and Iran provided significant military resources, personnel, and support in the last major beatdown of the rebels, this time around, both Russia and Iran are in much different situations. Russia, of course, has been focused on its Ukraine invasion and could ill afford to shift military assets to Syria.
Iran now finds its primary proxy, Hezbollah, severely degraded and in no position to provide fighters and resources to Syria as they have in the past. In the hours since the fall of Damascus, videos have emerged of Syrians across the country toppling statues of regime figures, including those of Hafez al-Assad. That's the previous president and father of Bashar al-Assad.
Meanwhile, Bashar al-Assad's whereabouts were initially unclear, with early speculation that his plane had crashed within Syria. However, Russian state news agencies later revealed that the ousted dictator is currently in Moscow. There's a surprise with his family, where he's been granted asylum.
Now, granting asylum to a brutal dictator responsible for so much death and suffering over the years is entirely on brand for Putin's regime. Reportedly, Moscow explained that they granted Assad asylum for quote humanitarian reasons. Well, that joke writes itself.
As we've been reporting on the PDB, this marks a major embarrassment for Syria's two primary sponsors, Iran and Russia, both of which appear to have reluctantly accepted the fate and fall of their client. In a statement, Iran's foreign ministry reaffirmed its commitment to respecting Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Well, that would be a first, insisting that the Syrian people alone must determine their country's future. free from what it described as, quote, destructive interference or external imposition, end quote. Clearly, whoever wrote this in the Iranian foreign ministry is a frustrated comedy writer.
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Chapter 5: What are the implications of Assad's asylum in Moscow?
were filled with hope and euphoria, which gave way within months, unfortunately, sadly, to chaos and sectarian violence. Now, a major contributor was the dissolution of the Iraqi army, police, and government institutions by the US and allies, somehow believing that the removal of existing structure that had operated under Saddam Hussein would be replaced by something better.
Instead, well, they created a void that was filled by years of despair. With Syria keeping existing institutions intact while working on reforms to ensure a society that protects and respects all the groups and minorities and persons that make up the Syrian tapestry, well, that will be critical to future success. Oh, look at me, sounding all hopeful.
Coming up next, reactions from around the world to the fall of Assad's regime. Plus, Ukraine's military death toll and the latest U.S. billion-dollar aid package. I'll have those stories when we come back. Hey, Mike Baker here. Let's talk about trees, shall we? And plants. Oh, and don't forget shrubs. Now, did you know that Fast Growing Trees is the biggest online nursery in the U.S.? It's true.
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Offer is valid for a limited time. Terms and conditions may apply. Welcome back to the PDB. I want to turn now to the international response to the fall of the Assad regime, which can be described as a mix of hope and relief and apprehension. We'll start in the Middle East, where Saudi Arabia expressed, quote, satisfaction with the positive steps in Syria.
The kingdom called for, quote, concerted efforts to preserve the unity of Syria and the cohesion of its people. Over in Turkey, which had a large hand in supporting the rebels, the foreign minister said, quote, Today there is hope for the Syrian people.
He went on to speak about the importance of stability, unity, and sovereignty in Syria, as well as the well-being of the Syrian people, noting that that would allow millions of Syrians to return home. And no doubt, the return of Syrian refugees will be one of Turkey's top priorities in the coming days, considering that it hosts more than 3 million of them.
Meanwhile, Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu called it, quote, an historic day for the Middle East, describing Assad's collapse as both an opportunity and a source of potential danger. On the ground, practical moves were already underway. Netanyahu ordered the Israeli Defense Forces to take control of the buffer zone between Israel and Syria.
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Chapter 6: How might the fall of Assad's regime affect Syria's future?
They lost all interest in Syria because of Ukraine, end quote. And speaking of Ukraine, President Zelenskyy revealed on Sunday that 43,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed while 370,000 have been wounded since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. The announcement marks Kiev's first public disclosure of casualty figures in the nearly three-year conflict.
Zelensky shared the figures in a telegram post countering a claim from President-elect Donald Trump, who wrote on Truth Social that Ukraine had, quote, ridiculously lost 400,000 soldiers since the war's inception. Now, this shift toward transparency, if Zelensky's numbers are accurate, follows nearly three years of withholding such data, citing concerns about providing intelligence to Moscow.
Back in February, Zelensky reported 31,000 troops killed without addressing the number of injuries. The Ukrainian president clarified that the 370,000 wounded included minor and repeated injuries, noting that about 50% of injured soldiers have returned to active duty, and also added the release of nearly 3,800 soldiers from Russian captivity.
Now, these numbers stand in stark contrast to Ukrainian claims of Russian losses, which Zelenskyy states exceed 750,000, including 198,000 dead and over 550,000 wounded. He added that since September, Russia has been losing five to six troops for every Ukrainian soldier killed, despite making gains in Ukraine's east. Now, Zelensky's disclosure comes as the U.S.
announced a new $1 billion security aid package for Ukraine, representing nearly half of the remaining funds in the Pentagon's Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. It's important to note that unlike previous aid packages sourced from U.S. military stocks, this funding will purchase new equipment, including munitions, drones, and tools for weapons repair.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced the aid at the Reagan National Defense Forum over the weekend, calling the U.S. and its allies the, quote, arsenal of Ukrainian democracy. Meanwhile, President-elect Trump on Sunday doubled down on his push for an immediate ceasefire, urging Russian President Putin to end the bloodshed and start negotiations.
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Chapter 7: What lessons can be learned from Iraq's post-regime change chaos?
Trump's comments followed a weekend meeting in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron and Zelensky, which Trump described as, quote, constructive. While Trump has previously advocated for a ceasefire, Sunday's proposal appeared more urgent, and both Kiev and Moscow responded swiftly.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reiterated Russia's openness to talks, but pointed to a 2022 decree from Zelensky ruling out negotiations if Putin remains in power. Zelensky, for his part, acknowledged Trump's proposal in a telegram post, but reiterated the need for effective guarantees to prevent Russia from reigniting the conflict, stating, quote, Ukrainians want peace more than anyone else.
Russia brought war to our land, end quote. All right, coming up next in the back of the brief, the latest on the manhunt for the gunman who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. I'll be right back. In today's Back of the Brief, the NYPD and federal authorities are intensifying their search for the suspect in the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO, Brian Thompson.
While police have made progress, the shooter remains at large, leaving law enforcement racing to piece together a trail spanning multiple states. According to ABC News sources, investigators made a key discovery on Friday, recovering a backpack in Central Park believed to belong to the suspect. Inside were just two items, a Tommy Hilfiger jacket and, oddly, Monopoly money.
Authorities also deployed divers to a nearby pond in search of the distinctive 9mm pistol used in the shooting, though as of now it's unclear if anything was recovered. On Saturday, the NYPD released new surveillance images showing the suspect in a cab, but his face is obscured by a medical mask.
While investigators believe they've obtained DNA from the crime scene, results from the NYC chief medical examiner could take several days. Now, the suspect's movements are gradually coming into focus. Investigators tracked the suspect's movements to the Port Authority bus terminal, where he arrived on 24 November via a Greyhound bus from Atlanta.
It remains unclear if the suspect boarded there or in a city along the route to New York. Surveillance footage suggests he spent 10 days in New York City before the shooting, staying at a Manhattan hostel under a fake ID and paying in cash to avoid detection. During this stint, security cameras captured a brief moment where the suspect lowered his mask, offering investigators a look at his face.
However, the NYPD has yet to identify him using facial recognition technology. After the shooting, the suspect fled into Central Park and then took a cab to the George Washington Bridge bus station. From there, he boarded a bus that offers commuter service to New Jersey and Greyhound routes to Philadelphia, Boston and Washington.
NYPD officers have since traveled to Atlanta to follow leads with the assistance of local police and FBI agents, while hundreds of detectives in New York continue to pour over surveillance footage, vet public tips and interview the suspect's former hostile roommates. While the nationwide manhunt continues, law enforcement has yet to identify the suspect by name.
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