The President's Daily Brief
PDB Afternoon Bulletin | February 21st, 2025: Netanyahu Vows Revenge After Hamas Lies About Returned Remains & Starmer Proposes 30,000 Strong 'Reassurance Force' For Ukraine
Sat, 22 Feb 2025
In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin: We’ll begin in Israel, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is vowing revenge against Hamas after discovering the terrorist group failed to turn over the remains of an Israeli hostage as promised, throwing the fragile ceasefire into question. Later in the show, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is set to propose a European-led military force of 30,000 to oversee a potential Ukraine-Russia ceasefire when he meets with President Donald Trump in Washington next 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 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What prompted Netanyahu's vow of revenge against Hamas?
It's Friday, 21 February. Welcome to the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get ourselves briefed. First, Israel is reeling after it was revealed that the terror group Hamas failed to turn over the body of a mother taken captive on 7 October, instead replacing her remains with those of an unknown Palestinian woman.
Later in the show, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will reportedly propose sending a European-led military force of some 30,000 troops to Ukraine to enforce any potential peace deal between Moscow and Kyiv, and he'll propose that when he meets with President Trump in Washington, D.C. next week. But first, today's afternoon spotlight.
We'll begin in Israel, where Prime Minister Netanyahu is vowing revenge against Hamas after discovering that the terrorist group failed to turn over the remains of an Israeli hostage as promised, throwing the fragile ceasefire into question.
Chapter 2: What was the deceptive act by Hamas regarding hostage remains?
As we discussed on yesterday's PDB, Hamas claimed to have returned the bodies of four hostages on Thursday, including the remains of Shiri Bibas, a 33-year-old mother taken on 7 October, her two sons, Ariel and Kafir, who were aged four years old and nine months old when they were kidnapped by Hamas, and 84-year-old Adel Lifshitz.
A subsequent forensic analysis performed in Tel Aviv positively identified three of the returned bodies as the Bibas children and Lifshitz, but the Israeli military said Friday the fourth body was not that of Shiri Bibas or any other known hostage, revealing a cruel deception by Hamas.
Of course, Hamas took women and young children hostage during their 7 October attacks, so the cruelty aspect of this deception should surprise a total of zero people. The idea, said the remains, appeared to be that of an unknown Palestinian woman that Hamas tried to pass off as Shiri Bebas.
The discovery provoked grief and outrage among Israelis, who had already been left disturbed by Hamas's barbaric actions during the transfer of the remains on Thursday, which was turned into a ghoulish, sick public spectacle. On Friday, Netanyahu vowed to ensure that Hamas paid the, quote, full price for this cruel and evil violation of the ceasefire agreement.
Chapter 3: How did Netanyahu and international figures react to Hamas's actions?
Netanyahu said, "...the cruelty of the Hamas monsters knows no bounds. In an unspeakably cynical manner, they did not return Shiri to her little children, the little angels, and they put the body of a Gazan woman in a coffin." The Prime Minister added, "...we will work with determination to bring Shiri home together with all our hostages, both living and dead.
May God avenge their blood, he said, and so we will avenge." Adding insult to the situation, Hamas blamed Israel for what they claimed was a, quote, mix-up, saying the so-called, quote, mistake likely occurred due to Israeli bombings of the area where the hostages were once held. The group had claimed the four hostages were killed in Israeli airstrikes, but, well, that also proved to be false.
Forensic analysis of the remains determined that Lifshitz and the Bibas children were savagely executed by their captors sometime in November of 2023, that's just one month after they were taken during the 7 October attacks. Hamas then had the gall to demand that mediators ensure the continued implementation of the ceasefire agreement and that Israel return the unidentified remains back to Gaza.
The group then accused Netanyahu of making, quote, "...threats which serve only to manipulate Israeli public opinion," end quote. Well, international condemnation was swift, with U.S. envoy for hostages Adam Boehler calling Hamas's deception a horrific and clear violation of the current ceasefire agreement, which began on January 9th. He said, quote, End quote.
For now, it's unclear how the shocking incident might impact the next swap of hostages for prisoners on Saturday, but Hamas's military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, said Friday that they planned to proceed with the release of another six Israeli hostages over the weekend and would return the remains of four more hostages next week.
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Chapter 4: What are the implications for the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement?
As we've been tracking here on the PDB, negotiations were set to begin soon to advance the second phase of a broader ceasefire agreement, as the first phase is set to end on 1 March. But Hamas's violation has cast significant doubt on whether the truce can last.
In a statement that reflected much of the public sentiment in Israel on Friday, the country's finance minister said, quote, Hamas's serious violation and ongoing abuse cannot be passed over in silence. The only solution is the destruction of Hamas, and this must not be postponed, end quote.
All right, up next, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer proposes sending a European-led military force of 30,000 troops to Ukraine to enforce any potential peace deal between Moscow and Kiev. I'll be right back.
Chapter 5: What is Keir Starmer's proposal for Ukraine?
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Welcome back to the Afternoon Bulletin. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is set to propose a European-led military force of 30,000 to oversee a potential Ukraine-Russia ceasefire when he meets with President Trump in Washington next week.
Now, the so-called, quote, reassurance force, spearheaded by the UK and France, was first presented to European leaders at an emergency summit in Paris earlier this week. According to the Telegraph, the proposed force is not meant to resemble a conventional military occupation.
Instead, it would focus on intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, aiming to provide real-time situational awareness far from the front lines rather than engaging in full-scale ground combat.
From what we know, the mission's stated objectives are ambitious, such as reopening Ukraine's airspace for commercial flights, securing Black Sea trade routes, and protecting critical infrastructure such as nuclear power plants.
A Western official speaking to The Telegraph also described the force as capable of monitoring and shooting down aerial threats, but under stricter engagement rules than a conventional no-fly zone. Notably, instead of pre-authorized rules of engagement, the European forces would be required to positively identify all aircraft before taking action.
Naval patrols in the Black Sea would further bolster the mission, acting as a deterrent against Russian interference in Ukraine's commercial shipping, particularly with grain exports. But Starmer's plan falls well short of the 200,000-strong peacekeeping force that Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has suggested as the potential price for agreeing to a ceasefire.
And there's a larger geopolitical undercurrent at play here. The British Prime Minister's proposal comes amid growing concerns that Trump may disengage from supporting Ukraine altogether, following the potential ceasefire negotiations with Russian President Putin on Tuesday.
As we covered yesterday on the PDB, Trump unleashed a social media tirade, a verbal barrage against Zelensky, calling him a, quote, dictator and warning that he is prolonging the war, fueling speculation that Kiev could be sidelined in future negotiations. While Washington has ruled out sending its own troops, the U.S.
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