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Fred Pleitgen Reports from Iran; Attacks Escalate in Strait of Hormuz; Oil Prices Rise Again; Rep. Johnny Olszewski (D-MD) is Interviewed about Iran; Storms Across U.S.; Oil Prices Rise Again. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired March 11, 2026 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:00]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Near Lebanon, in Israel, he says that he's gotten sources, western intelligence sources, telling him that Russia is now giving Iran not just general but specific advice on drone tactics against the United States. How concerned should we be about that? I mean what should the U.S. be doing about that?

ANDREW MCCABE, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, greatly concerned, but not at all surprised. This should not come as a shock to anyone. The alliance between Russia and Iran has always been very close, and it's become crucially important to Russia over the last few years based upon their isolation from the rest of the world as a result of their attack -- unprovoked attack on Ukraine.

So, you know, Russia depends on Iran. Russia is using Iranian military hardware, drones, all sorts of things to support their war effort in Iran. Or, I'm sorry, in Ukraine. They are not going to risk that relationship now.

And all of a sudden, the tables have turned. They have something they can offer the Iranians, which is the benefit of their expertise and targeting capacity from their time targeting Ukrainians. It should not be a surprise that they are offering that intelligence to -- now to our enemy, because the Russians owe us nothing. We are not friends with the Russians. They are a perennial existential threat. And so, we should not be surprised to see them lining up against us.

SIDNER: Yes, perhaps a surprise is that this administration is talking about potentially lifting some sanctions on Russia because of the oil crunch. We will have to wait and see what happens in this space.

Andrew McCabe, thank you to you.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Smoke rising from a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, one of three hit overnight. The new efforts Iran might be taking to keep that crucial shipping lane closed to the world's oil.

Deadly storms and tornadoes sweep through the Midwest. We've got new reports of fatalities coming in as nine million people are now under threat. And honestly, one of the most stunning performances of all time, the most points scored in an NBA game in more than 60 years. That's 35 years before the birth of Kate Bolduan. And what's truly surprising, the player who did it. Really. No one saw this coming.

I'm John Berman, with Kate Bolduan and Sara Sidner. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, the breaking news this morning, the Strait of Hormuz, multiple commercial vessels have now come under attack. This morning we're going to show you images from a Thai flagged ship right there. Look at that huge ship. And look at that smoke. One of at least three vessels struck by what they are still calling unknown projectiles in or near that critical waterway. Thailand's ministry of transport says 20 crew members have been rescued, but three remain unaccounted for.

We're also going to show you a map that shows the approximate locations of the strikes that have happened today in the strait. Remember, some 20 million barrels of fuel a day move through that shipping route. It is essentially shut down for now for ten days plus. And one immediate result of this new round of strikes, new spikes in oil prices.

This also just coming in, a new update from U.S. Central Command. The CENTCOM commander saying last night an American bomber force hit a ballistic missile manufacturing facility in Iran. Also, that the last of Iran's four Soleimani class warships have been taken out. And right now he says they are turning their focus to Hormuz.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADM. BRAD COOPER, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: Our mission is to end their ability to project power and harass shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. From the air we've achieved a concentration of air power with back-to-back waves of advanced fighters, creating constant pressure on the enemy every single day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: CNN's teams positioned throughout the region.

I want to start with CNN's Fred Pleitgen, who is inside Iran, just filed this report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The U.S. and Israel's massive aerial campaign seems to be continuing in full swing. Overnight, the position that we were, we heard jets streaking overhead and then massive explosions in the distance. It's unclear what exactly the target was of that aerial raid that we witnessed. But certainly it wasn't the only one in the past 24 hours.

In Tehran, the Iranian capital, there were major airstrikes also overnight and into the morning hours. Some of the targets appeared to have been in the east of the city and east of Tehran. That's an area that's gotten hit quite a lot over the past couple of days. But then also, once again, the area around Mehrabad Airport. That's sort of the second airport of the Iranian capital that is very much within the city limits.

Also, outside of Tehran, there's a satellite town called Karaj, which has been hit in the past couple of days quite frequently and apparently was now hit once again.

[09:05:07]

All this comes as the Iranian government is trying to project that it is in a strong position in its standoff with the U.S. and Israel. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which is, of course, the elite wing of Iran's military, sent out a text message to people here inside Iran detailing the costs to the United States of the ongoing war with Iran. The Iranians trying to say that they are the ones who are now in the driver's seat.

Meanwhile, politicians here in Iran continue to say that right now the Iranians are not interested in negotiations with the United States and instead are gearing up for what could be a very long war.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, in northern Iran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BOLDUAN: Fred, thank you so much. It's unbelievable the reporting he's been able to bring out from Iran.

Now let's go to Tel Aviv right now. That is where Oren Liebermann is standing by for more on all that has developed in just the last 24 hours.

Oren, what's the latest you're hearing?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Kate, it seems a lot of Iran's focus right now is on the Strait of Hormuz. That as we see them continue to launch ballistic missiles. In fact, there was a siren warning of incoming Iranian ballistic missiles here within the last hour or so. And we've seen continued Iranian attacks around the gulf itself.

As you pointed out, one of those suspected Iranian drone attacks targeted a U.S. diplomatic facility in Baghdad. That according to two U.S. sources familiar with the matter. That's part of Iran's asymmetric strategy. They can't match the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Navy. What they can do is cause havoc, panic and disruption. And we see that, especially now when it comes to the Strait of Hormuz. A number of vessels have come under what the U.K. maritime agency called sort of unknown attacks.

Meanwhile, U.S. sources -- or rather sources familiar with U.S. intelligence tell CNN that Iran has begun to mine the Strait of Hormuz. It's important to note here that they don't have to close entirely

with their military or with mines what is a narrow shipping alley. As long as they increase the threat enough, that will have the impact Iran is likely looking for. And that's because of the concern, the risk and the insurance prices that shipping companies and oil companies will see in trying to sail through there, and that will effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz, even if Iran isn't able to close it militarily.

It is worth noting that one of those sources who said the U.S. -- or rather Iran is beginning to mine the Strait of Hormuz, said they've only used or still retain 80 to 90 percent of their mine laying capabilities. So, for Iran, this could just be the beginning. And, Kate, that's why it's such a focus of the U.S. effort right now, because of its global impact.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. Oren, thank you so much for your reporting, as always.

Let's talk more about that and the focus of where the administration is right now, Alayna Treene at the White House.

Alayna, what are you picking up this morning?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, look, I think the White House is very much aware that anyone who has been to a gas station here in the states in recent days, they are noticing this impact, that everything that is happening in the Strait of Hormuz, as Oren just laid out. And again, I think it's important to emphasize, this is the world's most important energy chokepoint. This is where 20 percent of the world's crude oil is being sent through.

And so, what is happening there, this intense standoff in the Strait of Hormuz is incredibly concerning, of course, to the U.S. You played that video clip of Admiral Bradley Cooper describing a lot of that.

Now, yesterday we did hear from the president talking about some of this. There were actually some conflicting messages. At one point he was saying, you know, he was threatening Iran, that if they were to shut down effectively the Strait of Hormuz, that they would be hit much harder. He later said, you know, and announced that the U.S. military, the Pentagon, had gone after some of these, you know, mine laying ships in Iran, these ships that were trying to lay these mines. And we heard from U.S. CENTCOM, the U.S. Central Command, about their targets on this as well.

But all of this comes as they're also weighing, Kate, this idea of having the U.S. Navy try to escort U.S. -- or, excuse me, escort oil tankers through the strait. And actually, we heard another conflicting message yesterday coming from the energy secretary, Chris Wright, who at one point he posted and then quickly deleted a post noting that the U.S. Navy had escorted an oil tanker through the strait. We then heard the cleanup from the White House press secretary saying that was inaccurate. Except that is something that the president is going to consider at a later time. But I think what Oren was touching on is exactly what the people in

this building, Kate, are so worried about. They recognize how rattled the oil markets are at this moment. They know that spiking gas prices is something that is freaking out a lot of Americans at a time when they're already struggling with affordability in this country. And so, this is a huge part of their ongoing operations as they continue to also give out kind of conflicting messages as well about what the timeline is and what the end goal is for this broader military campaign with -- in Iran and throughout the Middle East.

Kate.

[09:10:05]

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. Alayna, thank you so much. Really appreciate it.

Sara.

SIDNER: All right, thank you so much, Kate.

Joining me now is Democratic Congressman from Maryland, Johnny Olszewski. He sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Thank you for being here this morning.

Let me first talk to you about one of your colleagues, Senator Blumenthal, who is on the Armed Services Committee, expressed his deep concern about what he heard in his committee meeting when it comes to the war in Iran.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): We seem to be on a path toward deploying American troops on the ground in Iran to accomplish any of the potential objectives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: OK, Republican Rick Scott just appeared on this show saying that the president does not have any plan to put boots on the ground. What is your sense of things?

REP. JOHNNY OLSZEWSKI (D-MD): Well, two things I know is that, first of all, the secretary of defense has already said he has not ruled out boots on the ground. And if we want to accomplish any of the objectives, as Senator Blumenthal said, that really are at stake here, and the president had said our objectives, whether it's eliminating the nuclear threat that he said was gone in June, or regime change, anything significant is going to require, in my opinion, boots on the ground. And that is something overwhelmingly opposed by Americans. And it's deeply concerning.

SIDNER: Look, we have new reporting this morning from our Nick Paton Walsh, who is in the region. His western intelligence sources are saying that Russia is now providing specific advice on drone tactics, which are, of course, being used against the U.S. and its allies. It had already been reported that Russia is giving general advice on drone tactics, but Trump's negotiator, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, said this when asked about the threat on CNBC.

Take a listen.

He said that he can tell you that the president had a conversation with Russia yesterday, and that he doesn't have a lot of information, but he said, and I'm quoting here, "we can take them for their word." Can we take Russia for their word, at their word?

OLSZEWSKI: I can't take this administration, this Trump administration, at their word. I certainly cannot take Vladimir Putin and Russia at their word. And this is all part of not having a plan for the war, for the tactics and the strategy constantly changing. And so, I do not take Russia, we should not take Russia at their word. They've lied about the war with Ukraine. I'm sure they're lying about the ways in which they're helping Iran in this war.

And just going back to the point earlier about boots on the ground, if we don't end the nuclear threat, if we don't change the regime, the net outcome here is you're going to have a more hard line leadership that is committed to not only resuming a nuclear program and a ballistic missile program. So, we're really in a quagmire that this president has created without consulting the American people, without Congress and Russia and what you just quoted there is part of the challenges that are being created as a result of the recklessness of this president.

SIDNER: Look, the Trump administration is telling the government and businesses, big businesses, that there is this increased threat. Things like cyber -- a cyber threat, among other things. A threat to potentially the, you know, sort of electricity grids or the energy apparatus. I'm curious if you think that there are enough people, after so many of the layoffs that happened, or the firings that happened from DOGE, if you feel confident that there are enough people in the FBI and elsewhere to deal with this potential threat.

OLSZEWSKI: I'm concerned there are not. And Maryland has certainly felt the brunt of a lot of the layoffs, especially during the DOGE regime with Elon Musk. Over 20,000 Marylanders were fired.

This administration actually fired experts in the Middle East from the FBI just before we went to war, as a sign of the incompetence and lack of a plan in this space. And so, as Iran and their allies are considering other responses to America, we should be deeply concerned that we don't have the resources and the people in place to respond. And this is all happening in a place where Americans are being crushed by cost of living crisis that we can't afford as it is.

And this war, we have billions for bombs, nothing for basics. And if we have our energy and other grids attacked, it's only going to serve to drive up costs more. So, we're spending billions to actually make the cost of living go up further.

And we're not prepared. And I'm -- one more reason we should be concerned about what's happening with this war.

SIDNER: Are you concerned about the preparation for what has happened in the Strait of Hormuz? Something that could have been predicted in this war.

OLSZEWSKI: Yes. What's happening in the Strait of Hormuz was known to be a concern before we even started this war. And so, this is one of many places where this administration has completely failed to have any sort of plan. There was no plan articulated before we went to war, whether it was for how we take out the weapons capabilities or their nuclear capabilities.

[09:15:04]

There was no plan clearly articulated about how we address this -- the Strait of Hormuz. And there was no plan for even getting Americans home. We're still struggling, and we're still hearing from people in our district who feel stranded by the State Department, who didn't even start to create a plan to get Americans out of the Middle East until the strikes had started. And so, this is a consistent problem with this administration that is, you know, jeopardizing the lives of American service members, it's increasing costs at home, and it's making us less safe around the world.

SIDNER: Congressman Johnny Olszewski, thank you so much for coming on this morning and talking us through it. Appreciate it.

John.

BERMAN: Dangerous storms ripped through parts of the central United States, leaving at least two people dead, several others injured. And there is a new threat this morning for millions of Americans.

A man trapped inside his burning car, saved by two brothers who were able to pull him from that wreck.

And who uses a payphone anymore, especially at a college? Do college students even know what a payphone is? This one is part of a new project to connect generations.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:20:13]

BOLDUAN: So, this morning we've now learned that two people have been killed after violent storms ripped through the central part of the United States overnight.

Officials confirm that the deaths occurred after a tornado hit in northwest Indiana. The storms are now moving east after unleashing at least ten tornadoes across three states. We'll show you. A driver capturing a scary scene on a road near Chicago. Just look at that. Look at that person outside. Oh, that's terrifying.

Let's get over to CNN's Derek Van Dam now for the latest on what we've seen and where this is headed, Derek. DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Kate, we focus so much on the tornado destruction, but there was a lot of destruction from large, gigantic sized hail yesterday. This is just some of it falling from the sky in Kankakee, Illinois.

But I want to show you the damage that resulted from what could potentially, if confirmed, could set the new Illinois state record for hailstones falling from the sky. There was an unconfirmed report of a six-inch hailstone. And, yes, matching this up on the windshield and the hood of this vehicle, it looks like at least the size of a grapefruit or a softball fell from the sky. That's dangerous. That can be lethal. And, of course, that can cause billions of dollars of damage, depending on if it's hitting a populated area.

So, check this out. This is from the National Weather Service issued some of the preliminary hail reports that they saw coming out of the northern Illinois region. Previous state record, 4.75 inch. Now look at this. If this is confirmed, six inches would be the new state record. But several other reports actually ousted and bested this previous record, which was set back in 2015. So, that's really saying something. This was a long-track supercell storm that started in central Illinois and moved into northwestern portions of Indiana. That's what caused the fatalities and also the injuries.

Now, we still have our severe weather storms moving eastward. Watch box. This is a tornado watch. Inclusive of Indianapolis and Cincinnati.

The good news is that these storms are generally weakening as they march eastward. This is new though. Actually just to the north and east of Indianapolis, right along the Ohio border there, we do have a tornado warned storm. My guess would be that that's radar confirmed, not a visual observation of a tornado. Heading a little further south, no warned storms, but still some rough weather heading into Little Rock right now.

And then check this out. We've got a new tornado warned storm here near the border of Texas and Louisiana. So, you can see just the all- day threats that we have across the region.

And I'll leave you with this, Kate. The two best chances of tornadic development today, across the Ohio Valley and throughout the gulf coast states. Those are the areas we're watching.

BOLDUAN: Yes, keep a close eye today yet again.

Thank you so much, Derek. I really appreciate it.

John.

BERMAN: All right, gas prices up for the 11th straight day. Why it might be months before they fall.

And an NBA performance for the ages. And by ages we mean 60 years. Not since Wilt Chamberlain has anyone scored this much -- and Bill Simmons, you know, NBA podcaster noted, if you could have guessed which player would do it, you might have picked 50 other players first.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:27:35]

SIDNER: All right, breaking this morning, oil prices are on the rise again on the news of attacks on the ships near the Strait of Hormuz. New pictures show a Thai cargo ship that caught fire after being hit by an unknown projectile. Traffic through the key shipping lane is still near standstill. That has led to higher oil prices, which means higher prices at gas stations across the country. And with many Americans already feeling pain at the pump.

CNN's Danny Freeman is in Philadelphia with more.

What are you hearing from drivers? And I know the answer is not celebratory.

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, no, no, I wouldn't say celebratory at all. I mean, Sara, it's remarkable. The whiplash is really the key thing that I think people are feeling because just a month ago, just a few weeks ago, the prices were so much lower than they are today. But again, this is the impact that we're seeing over everything that's going on in the Middle East.

Let's talk about some of the differences, though, specifically, Sara, just to illustrate how much pain drivers are really feeling at the pump. The national average around $3.58 a gallon now. Here in Pennsylvania, it's a little bit above that, about $3.66 a gallon. But a month ago here in Pennsylvania, the price was $3.13 a gallon. That's according to AAA averages. That's part of the challenge that we're seeing here. Philadelphia is actually a little bit below that Pennsylvania average. This one is a little bit high at $3.79 a gallon behind me here.

But western Pennsylvania, interestingly enough, has been feeling a lot of that pain. Erie, $3.76 a gallon. Washington County, I'll remind you, that's a Republican stronghold, $3.75 a gallon. Allegheny County, where Pittsburgh is, $3.76 a gallon. Again, all about $0.40 higher than it was a month ago.

We were speaking to some drivers this morning, Sara. Take a listen to that frustration that they're feeling.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUCAS SIROTNIAK, PHILADELPHIA DRIVER: It's not great. I drive like 300 miles a week. So, it's not like, you know, it's a little bit much for sure. Yes. Yes.

FREEMAN: And you can feel that difference of that $0.40?

SIROTNIAK: Oh, yes. Oh, you can definitely -- this car is pretty cheap on gas. You know, it's normally pretty cheap on gas when it's reasonable prices. But now it's just like, you know, it's getting up there. FREEMAN: Do you feel that difference of like $0.40 a gallon?

JENNIFER REYNOLDS, PHILADELPHIA DRIVER: You can definitely feel it. You know, along with everything else, especially when you travel a lot, and in transportation, like your car is your main, you know, method of transportation, you know, you have to fill up to get to where you're going. You got to get to work. You got to get to those things that make you the money. But also, you know, it's also going out as quickly as it's coming in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[09:29:55]

FREEMAN: Sara, that last woman there, she's a mom. She was saying that she hopes the administration actually pays more attention to trying to get these gas prices lower because she said, as you noted there, or as rather she noted there, it's not just the gas prices, it's a lot of things.