PDB Afternoon Bulletin | September 28th, 2026: Eight U.S. Marines Injured in Iranian Missile Attack & RAF Fairford Investigation Widens

It's Monday, the 28th of September. Welcome to the PDB afternoon bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. First up, new reporting reveals that eight US Marines were injured. When an Iranian anti-ship missiles struck a US contracted vessel in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this month. Now, I'll have the details. Later in the show, new details in the suspected terror plot near RAF Fairford. As investigators examined whether the men arrested were acting on behalf of a foreign state. No, and not to bury the lead, all five men are being released on bail. But first, today's afternoon spotlight. Nearly two weeks after an Iranian missile struck a US contracted vessel near the Strait of Hormuz, we're now learning that eight American Marines were aboard that ship, and all eight of them were injured. According to NBC News, citing three US officials, the Marines were operating as part of a battalion landing team. When an Iranian anti-ship cruise missile hit their vessel on the 14th of September. Seven of the Marines were enlisted personnel. One was an officer. None of the injuries were described as life-threatening. The Marines reportedly suffered smoke inhalation and concussion like symptoms. All eight have since reportedly returned to duty. Now, we did know that Iran had hit a US contracted vessel. Two days after the attack, Fox News reported that a ship operating around the Strait of Hormuz had been struck during an Iranian attack involving four drones and at least one missile. Sources said some US personnel were aboard and that there had been minor injuries, including smoke inhalation. What we didn't know was who those American personnel were. We now know that they were Marines and apparently every Marine aboard the ship was hurt. But there are still some significant unanswered questions here. For one, we still don't know exactly what kind of vessel these Marines were operating from. NBC's sources say it was not a US Navy ship. Fox described it earlier as a US contracted vessel, but neither sent armed or the Pentagon as publicly identified this ship, explained its mission or said why a Marine battalion landing team was aboard. We also don't know whether the Iranians knew that Marines were on that vessel when they launched the attack. There's also another piece of the story that surfaced before NBC's latest report. Last week, the Washington Post noticed that the Pentagon had quietly added another 37 wounded service members to its public casualty database from the Iran conflict. That included 29 sailors and eight Marines. The Pentagon did not publicly explain how or when those troops had been injured and sent com declined to comment when the post asked about the increase. Defense officials have said that there can be delays in adding casualties to the database, particularly when we're talking about concussions or traumatic brain injuries because the symptoms don't always appear immediately. So there's no evidence at this point that the Pentagon deliberately concealed those injuries. But it does mean that almost two weeks after this attack, we're still learning basic details about an incident in which an Iranian missile struck a vessel carrying American troops. The Strait of Hormuz, of course, remains at the center of the competition between Washington and Tecron. Iran continues to use control of the strait as leverage. The US says, of course, tried to break that leverage. Meanwhile, American forces are still operating in and around those waters. The September 14 strike does raise questions that remain unanswered today. What exactly was that vessel doing? Why were Marines aboard? And perhaps more importantly, to what extent does the Iranian regime still maintain the ability to target US forces and commercial shipping operating in and around the Strait of Hormuz? All right. Coming up next, the RAF Fairford Terror investigation that we reported on this morning continues, with police now examining whether the suspects may have been linked to Iran or another foreign government. And as the suspects are reportedly released on bail. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here. Now we have all heard those radio ads about the IRS. You know the ones I'm talking about. They tell you to be afraid. Be very afraid. And then they try to frame you into calling. Well, tax relief advocates. TRA is different. If you owe money to the IRS, whether it's 5,000 or 50,000 or 500,000 pounds, TRA has a solution to your tax problem. Don't lose hope. TRA could reduce or even eliminate what you owe to the IRS. 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British counterterrorism police now say all five suspects are British nationals in their 20s from London. Three are from Westminster, one from Camden and another from Wilson. They were initially detained on suspicion of explosives offenses and later arrested on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act. And in a somewhat surprising move, all five have now been released on police bail. Now that may sound surprising, particularly if you heard what President Trump said about the case yesterday. In some brief comments, the President said the group intended to cause "big damage" and praise the response by British police as fantastic and amazing. Now, I'm no inspector Kusel, but you would imagine that if the police had found damning evidence in the vans or otherwise held by the suspects, or if this had been a longer investigation in the subjects were otherwise known to the police, well, you'd think a quick bail release would not be in the cards. But to be fair, the fact that the suspects have been released on bail does not mean that they've been cleared. Counterterror officials say all five remain under investigation and are subject to strict restrictions on their movements and contact with others. Investigators also say their work at the scene has opened up several new lines of inquiry. And one of those lines appears to be whether somebody outside Britain was involved. The head of British counterterrorism policing say investigators are considering whether the alleged activity may have been carried out by proxies or by individuals working "knowingly" or "unknowingly" on behalf of a foreign state. Reuters, citing a source familiar with the investigation, reports that an Iran-linked motive is currently considered the most likely possibility. Investigators are also examining at the same time whether this could have been a Russian sabotage act or an Islamist plot. Basically, they're leaving all possibilities on the table while they work together information and evidence. Iran's embassy in London, no surprise, issued a categorical denial one day, calling suggestions of Iranian involvement unfounded and malicious. Well, if the Iranian government says so. Now, British police are also stressing publicly that they have not yet determined a motive. As we noted this morning, RAF Fairford has been used by American bombers striking Iranian targets. Iran's revolutionary guard corps, the IRGC, warned back in July that bases used in the tax against Iran could themselves become legitimate targets. But there's another interesting question emerging here. How much did authorities know before those vans showed up near the base? Reuters is reporting that the arrests themselves were not intelligence-led. According to a source familiar with the investigation, security had already been increased around Fairford because of the broader threat environment. But Sunday's arrests came after a member of the public reported three suspicious vans apparently heading toward the base. See, the old see-something say-something, it does work. Britain's defense secretary added to the uncertainty Monday, though, saying the woman whose call brought the police to the scene had only a "partial picture" of what the authorities knew. So, bottom line, there's still quite a bit that we don't know. We don't know whether Iran or any foreign government was involved. We don't know whether these men were acting on instructions from someone else, and police have not publicly detailed exactly what was found inside those three vans or how advanced any potential plot may have been. Now, just a thought, but to minimize the inevitable public speculation and misinformation, it would be very good for the local authorities to release as much information as possible within the confines of conducting an active investigation. And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bullets in from Monday, the 28th of September. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com. And to listen to the show Add Free, that is very, very doable, just become a premium member on the president's daily brief by visiting PDBpremium.com. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool. Now, I've been a business owner for many years, and I want to take just a moment to talk to all of you small business operators out there. Here's the thing. Running any small business means dealing with constant unexpected expenses, right? Whether it's upgrading an IT system or repair costs or managing payroll, there's always something. And you can't afford to let traditional bank red tape slow your momentum. That's why you need Cardiff, America's favorite small business lender. 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