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Oil Prices Rise After U.S. Announces Blockade Against Iranian Ports; U.S. Official Reports Trump Administration, Iran Still Engaged in Talks; Minnesota Officials Investigating ICE Arrest as a Possible Kidnapping; Researchers Say Civil War Breaks Out Among Chimpanzees in Uganda. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired April 13, 2026 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: So as we continue to track gas prices, the national average for a gallon, currently $4.13, and that is expected to rise. Because oil prices are rising once again after the U.S. announced that blockade against Iran's ports. President Trump says the U.S. military will sink any Iranian tax ship that comes near the blockade.

CNN's Vanessa Yurkevich is following the impact of all of these moves. So what can Americans expect going forward, Vanessa?

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, unfortunately, because we now have oil trading closer to $100 a barrel, it was over $100 a barrel for U.S. crude and Brent crude earlier this morning. Coming off the highs a little bit, trading just below that. You can see on your screen right there.

Because of that, we are expecting for gas prices to rise yet again, and this is because the president said that he is blockading Iranian ports. And this is important because Iran does export 1.8 million barrels a day, so that's about 2 percent of the world's oil. And this cuts off now a critical funding stream for the Iranian government and military that was presumably being used to fund a lot of this war with the United States and Israel.

And it also accounts for about 13 percent of Iran's overall GDP, so it is a hit as well to the overall economy of Iran. And what this means essentially for any investor looking at this is that is all going to push oil prices higher because it takes oil out of the marketplace. What that means ultimately for gas prices and U.S. consumers is that some good news, at least today, is that gas prices are at $4.13 a gallon. That is what they were at just yesterday. That's up about 2 cents from a week ago. But remember, gas prices have actually fallen by several cents in the last week because of the ceasefire that President Trump announced on April 8th.

But now, here we go in reverse. We're going to see oil prices continue potentially to rise or at least stay where they are around that $100 a barrel. And then there's a lag by about a week to gas prices, so we could see those gas prices at the pump tick back up again. Obviously, in this case, prices going up is not a good thing for U.S. consumers, especially when they've been dealing with higher prices for well over a month now, filling up at the pump every single day -- Erica.

[15:35:00]

HILL: Yes, absolutely. Vanessa, appreciate it -- Boris.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Even as President Trump's U.S. blockade on Iranian ports went into effect this morning, a U.S. official said that talks are still happening between the two countries. We're also learning that Trump officials are internally discussing details for a potential second in-person meeting with Iranian officials before the ceasefire between Washington and Tehran expires next week. Meantime, Trump is threatening any Iranian ships that come near the blockade, saying that Tehran is seeking to make a deal very badly.

Iranian officials are calling the U.S. action provocative, warning the blockade would amount to retaliation against the global economy.

Here to discuss possible next steps in the war is Michael Weiss, editor of The Insider, also the co-author of "ISIS Inside the Army of Terror." Michael, great to see you. Thanks for being with us.

First, how do you anticipate that Tehran is going to respond to this blockade, perhaps not immediately, but after several days, if the impact on their economy is felt more strongly?

MICHAEL WEISS, EDITOR, THE INSIDER: Yes, great to be with you, Boris. Well, look, Iran stands to lose quite a bit of money because of this blockade. I saw one analysis that puts it at about $435 million a day in terms of their inability to export oil.

So they see this as more than provocative. This is a sort of a stranglehold on their ability to not only enrich themselves and keep the lights on, but also continue any kind of war posture because, again, this war is not yet concluded. There's only a ceasefire, which, as you said, is set to expire.

The reporting I'm hearing and some of the chatter from U.S. sources suggest that there may be talks yet again in Pakistan, as you alluded to, as early as late this week. One of the allegations or claims that I was hearing is that these 21-hour marathon talks with J.D. Vance were called off simply because the Iranians did not trust their communications would not be interdicted by the American side and had to go physically back to Tehran to consult with the new supreme leader about next steps. So, I mean, Donald Trump has indicated, and by all accounts, I mean, he's telegraphing a desire to wrap this war up, but he doesn't want to be seen as somebody who's going to do it from a disadvantage or that the Iranians have somehow won simply by surviving.

I mean, I'll remind you, the three core operational objectives of this war, eliminate the nuclear program once and for all and get rid of that enriched uranium. Two, destroy the missile program once and for all. And three, rob Iran of its ability to project power in the manifold terrorist groups and militias from Lebanese Hezbollah to Hamas to a consortium of Iraqi IRGC-backed militias.

All of these objectives have not been fully satisfied. That's according to our own U.S. intelligence assessment, right? So, Donald Trump needs a win here. And I think a naval blockade is certainly one way to do it. And according to all the Marines I've talked to, much preferable to seizing Kharg Island with a Marine Expeditionary Unit or several of them, which was going to be very, very dangerous and untoward.

SANCHEZ: Isn't it also possible, Michael, that this could backfire? Because there are still a lot of questions about how the U.S. Navy might respond to ships, for example, that have already paid Tehran's tolls or Chinese ships that are trying to traverse the Strait. If there's any hostilities there, this could broaden into a wider conflict, no?

WEISS: Absolutely. I mean, China, I think 40 percent of their oil bypasses the Strait of Hormuz. About 13 percent of it comes from Iran.

Donald Trump is set to meet with Xi at some point next month. So I'm very keen to see what that conversation looks like. And yes, look, the IRGC, the Navy may be all but destroyed, but they still have access to these fast boats.

They have form in terms of applying these limpet mines to naval vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. There are all manner of things that they could do at a very low level, unsophisticated manner to chivvy or harass or indeed try to blow up anything that's trying to break through this blockade or to simply harass U.S. military assets. You've got 15 warships in the Strait, right?

And the IRGC is also messaging that they are planning new operations. They won't get into any details. Why would they, of course?

But they might not take this sitting down, particularly if they begin to feel the squeeze.

SANCHEZ: It's also the case that U.S. Intel believes that China in the next few weeks is going to deliver some anti-aircraft weapons to Iran. In response, President Trump talked about installing a 50 percent tariffs on China. Do you believe that that is a credible or even effective threat on Beijing?

WEISS: Well, you know, the Chinese have stared us down before with threats of tariffs. I mean, as recently as just several months ago, right? Russia, too, is another factor I wouldn't discount here.

So the Russians are quite keen to see some of the uranium shipped to Russia and to be enriched there. And they're doing this for very strategic reasons, right? They want to have a kind of rapprochement with the United States related not just to the war in Ukraine, but basically the entirety of the post-Cold War security posture in Europe.

[15:40:00]

Russia just suffered a pretty catastrophic defeat in Viktor Orban's stunning electoral loss yesterday. So they're looking to reset their own agenda with the United States. And they're putting all kinds of things on the table, too.

Remember one of the key armors of Iran up until this war was Russia. I mean, all of their air defense systems the S300s that Israel and the United States destroyed In the 12-day war in June came from Russia. So China is not the only factor here to keep in mind.

SANCHEZ: Michael Weiss, thank you so much for the analysis. Appreciate it.

WEISS: Sure.

SANCHEZ: Still to come, a Minnesota county is now investigating the arrest of a U.S. citizen by ICE agents. More on what officials are calling a possible case of kidnapping when we come back.

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[15:45:00]

HILL: We have new reporting to share with you about the ICE arrest of an American citizen in Minnesota earlier this year. Officials now say that arrest is being investigated as a possible kidnapping. And they're demanding the federal government share additional information.

CNN's Whitney Wild is following these developments for us. So what more do we know about the arrest and now this push for more information?

WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: Well, this case centers on an incident that happened January 18th with a man named ChongLy Scott Thao. He's that man, an elderly U.S. citizen who was taken out of his home by immigration agents. And as you see it there, he's wearing little more than Crocs, shorts, and a plaid blanket.

And this, you know, photo really caught the attention of the nation. It caught the attention of lawmakers. Now the county attorney in Ramsey County, John Choi, says he thinks effectively that this is evidence of a possible kidnapping.

And so they are going to the federal government to demand more information about the circumstances surrounding this. They say that the federal government has shared very little information so far. Here's more from county attorney John Choi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN CHOI, RAMSEY COUNTY, MINNESOTA ATTORNEY: This case involves a felonious allegation of kidnapping. Illegal detainment, right? False imprisonment.

I also want to make it very clear that we are not going to let this go. And what that means is that this could take a long time. And I believe that the statute of limitations in these cases can be tolled.

And the reason why it can be tolled is if there's fraud or concealment done by the actors that make it difficult for us to get to the truth, then we will use every legal argument that we have to make sure that we will find what happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILD: DHS said at the time when this photo came out and there were questions raised about it, that immigration agents were looking for a sex offender. In the press conference today, Choi said, or confirmed at least, that immigration agents were looking for a sex offender at the time who was already in custody. He also said that to their knowledge, there was no warrant.

There was no legal basis to go into that home. There was no legal basis to detain Mr. Tao for an hour away from his home. And so taken together, they say that there's a potential crime here that needs to be investigated.

This is just one active investigation that they're announcing. There's another active investigation they say is underway. There are three more preliminary investigations that they're reviewing, although Choi declined to detail the circumstances of those cases or the facts that are supporting those early investigations.

As for the demand for information from the federal government, they have sent to a demand letter. The deadline for that information is April 30th. You know, if it goes the way Hennepin County has seen, which was the case in the Alex Pretti shooting, they also sent it to a demand letter.

The federal government did not supply any information. They have now gone to federal court today. Choi did not rule that out.

He's basically listed out a lot of options they can use to try to get the information they need because they have a responsibility to investigate and enforce Minnesota laws, specifically Minnesota criminal statutes that they're obligated to enforce on behalf of their constituents -- Erica.

HILL: Whitney, really important updates for us. Appreciate it. Thank you.

Just ahead here, the new rumble in the jungle. Why researchers say a chimpanzee civil war has now broken out between two rival factions in Uganda. And the lesson for us humans.

[15:50:00]

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SANCHEZ: A civil war among primates is capturing global attention right now. It's taking place in Uganda and it's happening among the world's largest known community of wild chimpanzees. For decades, the apes were part of a unified group that hunted and mated together, albeit a group that had three smaller regional factions broken up by western, central and eastern clusters.

But then in 2015, a group of researchers noticed a change. According to findings published in the journal Science, instead of mingling, they saw the western chimpanzees run away from the central group, which chased after them. Two years later, western chimps attacked the alpha of the central faction, and the groups now live in totally separate territories.

At least 28 chimps, including 19 infants, have reportedly been killed since the start of this conflict.

HILL: So in their study, the researchers concluded with this. "It is tempting to attribute polarization and war that occur in humans today to ethnic, religious or political divisions. Focusing entirely on these cultural factors, however, overlooks social processes that shape human behavior. Processes also present in one of our closest animal relatives. In some cases, it may be in the small daily acts of reconciliation and reunion between individuals that we find opportunities for peace."

Joining us now is the communications director for Zoo Miami, Ron McGill. Ron, always good to talk to you. So I will say I sort of feel like I need to defer to Boris on this because this is Boris' story of the day.

SANCHEZ: I brought it up in the morning meeting, Ron. And it is so fascinating.

HILL: And it is fascinating.

RON MCGILL: It's a great story. It's a fascinating story. No, absolutely.

HILL: So did it surprise you at all?

WEISS: It really didn't surprise me because remember, chimpanzees are the closest living relatives we have. They're over 98 percent genetically identical to human beings.

[15:55:00]

And what you're seeing in these chimpanzees is basically a reflection of what you see in human culture. You know, you're seeing different factions as change takes place in the leadership, the culture itself changes. And you have to understand chimpanzees are very territorial.

And though they were willing to share territories for a while, as some of the leadership started to die and be replaced with other leadership, all of a sudden, you started having conflicts.

You know, I've worked with chimpanzees quite a bit, and I can tell you they're as individual as people. You have chimpanzees that are very low-key, very compromising. You have chimpanzees that are very aggressive. You have chimpanzees that are very nervous. So just like people, depending on who takes over the leadership. One of the things I'll point out is that on all the chimpanzees that

have been killed, I think it was like 19 were infants, but the rest of the adults were all males. And that tells you something right there, in that they're going after males because they want to take charge, OK.

The females are being left out of that killing spree because it's the males that are going at each other to take over territory, to take over the culture.

SANCHEZ: The researchers indicated that everything changed from one day to the next. Did that surprise you? Because I think people generally, when they see chimps on TV or in movies, they imagine that they have a certain temperament.

You're saying they're more like humans. Some are more aggressive than others. How would you describe them in terms of their aggressiveness?

WEISS: They can be incredibly aggressive. Dr. Jane Goodall did historic research on these animals. For so many years, people looked at them like, oh, they're just the pleasant vegetarian eaters and they're all, you know, happy-go-lucky. It's the kumbaya society.

And then she pointed out very well that not only are they not always pleasant, they are also murderous. They will eat other primates. They'll kill other primates and eat other primates.

They're hunters in that way. Incredibly aggressive. Many times more aggressive than, let's say, gorillas. Gorillas are truly the gentle giant. They're true vegetarians.

And actually chimpanzees are more closely related to us than they are to gorillas. So people don't understand that chimpanzees have very individual personalities. And changing overnight could just be, you know, a changing of the guard, the authority.

You notice all those infants were killed. The reason why those infants were killed, it happens, for instance, in lion prides. If a male lion comes over and takes over the pride, he will instinctively kill every cub in that pride that's not his for a couple of reasons.

First of all, they want to make sure that their own genes are going to the next generation. But also by killing the cubs, the females start to cycle again, and he can breed them.

So that's the same thing that's happening with chimps. You're killing the infants. She stops lactating. She can be bred again. And you're eliminating that threat from a previous generation.

HILL: So it seemed to happen so quickly. There didn't seem to be outside factors, right? No food shortages.

No obvious resource that they were fighting over. But there have to be, given how closely aligned we are to chimpanzees, as you said, more than 98 percent, right? Genetic material. What are the lessons for us as humans that, you know, we don't end up like these chimps? I mean, in many cases, it feels like we have, but still.

WEISS: Yes. Well, listen, you know, we need to learn to do better. We're supposedly smarter. We need to learn to do better.

You know, look at the bonobos, the pygmy chimpanzee. It's the least violent society of primates in the world. The pygmy chimpanzee, yet so closely related to the normal chimpanzee. What's the difference there? I mean, I don't want to get into a lot of adult information, but pygmy chimpanzees, they don't have war.

They settle everything with sex. That settles every conflict they have. It's unbelievable.

They bring themselves presents. Everything is kind of, you know, to acquiesce, to compromise. But we need to learn by looking at these chimpanzees that at the end of the day, nobody really wins.

You lose infants. You lose territory. You've got stress, incredible stress.

Chimpanzees are now, you know, fleeing to other areas. At the end of the day, it sounds so cliche-ish, but we all share the same planet, and it's much better to get along.

HILL: Yes, maybe violence is not the answer. Perhaps that's the message for all of us.

SANCHEZ: An incredible story. Ron, just before we go, I wanted to say I've been watching you since I was a kid on Sabalo Gigante on Saturday nights, through the Le Batard Show, and now on CNN. Congratulations on your retirement, which is next month.

Thank you for bringing us closer to our neighbors on this wild planet. We appreciate it very much, Ron.

HILL: Congrats, Ron.

WEISS: I appreciate you guys, and I always appreciate the platform that you give me to help and educate the people. And I'm leaving the county, but I'm still going to be at the zoo, so I'll still be talking to you guys.

HILL: We'll still call you. Don't worry.

SANCHEZ: Oh, yes. Oh, yes. For more of the advice on chimps. Thanks so much, Ron.

Before we go from chimps fighting each other to humans competing against machines. In China this week, dozens of humanoid robots are going to race against humans in a half marathon. The robots were taken out for a test run, you can see, over the weekend, to work through some technical glitches and safety concerns. HILL: The race will feature more than 100 robots, some fully autonomous, others remote-controlled. Last year, a human did cross the finish line first. This year, though, teams are pushing their technology to see if a robot can outrun a real person, which is just what we need in this moment when we're all so excited about technology taking over.

Run, robot, run.

[16:00:00]

SANCHEZ: We may need some of those chimps in the oncoming battle with the robots.

HILL: We might. Yes, let's, you know what? Let's put the chimps up against the robots.

SANCHEZ: That'd be interesting to see.

HILL: It would be.

SANCHEZ: Yes.

HILL: Wow. Well, maybe that's tomorrow. There's only one way to find out. You'll have to join us. Until then --

SANCHEZ: "THE ARENA" with Kasie Hunt starts right now.

END