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U.S. and Iran Reach Agreement to End War, Reopen Strait of Hormuz; Trump on His Way to G7 in France; NTSB Investigating Missouri Skydiving Plane Crash that Killed 12; Mitch McConnell Hospitalized, Receiving Excellent Care. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired June 15, 2026 - 08:00   ET

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

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

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, the breaking news this morning. What is in the deal? Well, it depends who you ask.

New questions about the agreement that is scheduled to be signed between the United States and Iran in Geneva this Friday, ending 15 weeks of war and opening the Strait of Hormuz, which was, of course, open before the war. We are waiting to hear what the president has to say about all this when he lands in Geneva for the G7 summit shortly. Now, Iran says the agreement will initiate a new 60-day period of talks on their nuclear program, but only once the United States releases billions of dollars in frozen funds.

Now, a U.S. official rejects that, saying no funds will be released until Iran follows through on its own commitments. What's more, Iran insists the agreement ends the fighting in Lebanon, but Israel's defense minister says the IDF will not withdraw from southern Lebanon. And before the agreement was even announced, Israel launched new strikes on Beirut.

A U.S. official says that President Trump was furious and he made that clear to Axios, saying that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, quote, has no effing judgment.

Let's get right to seeing as Alayna Treene, who is live in Geneva, where the president will be arriving shortly, where this agreement will be signed on Friday. Whatever is in it, though, we don't fully know yet exactly.

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right. I think the key question, of course, is we have to see the text of this Memorandum of Understanding. Officials telling us, John, that we likely won't see that until Friday when it is actually signed. Now, I'd remind you what we've been hearing from administration officials, what I've been hearing in my conversations with people at the White House about what it will entail.

One, of course, the dismantling of Iran's nuclear program. And I think the specific thing there is, of course, what happens with the highly enriched uranium. Officials have said that the U.S. will be able to go in to retrieve it and destroy it on site. And then, of course, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Initially, the president, when he posted about this deal, touting it yesterday, he said that he was authorizing the Strait to be opened immediately. I should note, he does not have the authorization to do that.

But he later corrected in another post saying that it would be opened on Friday after this signing of the agreement here in Geneva. We were also told that the U.S. blockade on Iranian ports would be lifted upon that signing as well. Also crucial to this agreement.

I think the point as well about what comes next, because once this Memorandum of Understanding is signed, it will trigger, there's a provision in it that would trigger a 60 day period for highly technical negotiations. That is going to be a very important and fragile period of time for these talks about the specifics on how to actually implement what is outlined in this MOU.

And also, of course, broader conversations about enforcement mechanism and this big question, which has remained a sticking point about monetary compensation for Iran, with the Iranians saying they need to see some of those funds unfrozen immediately, the U.S. saying that will not happen until these different points are agreed to on the Iranian side. Now, as for the reaction, what I'm hearing in my conversations with sources from the White House to all of this is, one, they were celebrating this last night. I was talking to some of them before they headed out for that UFC fight on the South Lawn of the White House. And this was really something that the president wanted to come here to Europe with to tout.

He wanted to head into this G7 summit that will take place over the next three days in Evian-les-Bains, France, with a victory on Iran. Part of that is, of course, because I'd remind you of the tensions we really saw between the president, many of the European leaders who will be here on the ground and particularly Trump lashing out at them for what he believed was their refusal to intervene on the Strait of Hormuz. We are starting to hear from European leaders as well.

Some of those officials telling CNN's Kevin Liptak that they are eager to hear more details about what this actually entails. They've only been getting briefings, of course, from the relevant parties here. So there's going to be a lot that needs to be discussed.

And then, of course, what is throwing a, you know, almost a wrench in some of these plans is what we are seeing on the Israeli side. The president, very frustrated with how the Israeli Prime Minister, Netanyahu, has been responding to this, continuing to launch strikes in Lebanon right before this agreement was signed. You mentioned what he told Axios, but he also said this to The New York Times.

He described Netanyahu to The New York Times as a very difficult guy and went on to say, to be honest with you, he should be very thankful to us for doing this, because if Iran had a nuclear weapon, Israel wouldn't be around for two hours. That was a direct quote from the president. I think that just goes to show how tense this relationship between the U.S. and Israel is at this point. [08:05:00]

The president really not wanting them to threaten this upcoming agreement, John.

BERMAN: Now, again, when we get that text, it'll be interesting to see domestically and around the world how it is received. Alayna Treene in Geneva this morning. Thank you very much -- Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's talk more about this. Joining us right now is the Axios global affairs correspondent and CNN political and global affairs analyst, Barak Ravid. And it's your interview that really set things over the weekend on fire with what President Trump told you.

And one person not heard from yet publicly, it does appear, is what we were just talking about, Benjamin Netanyahu himself. And after that extraordinary interview that you had with the president this weekend, Barak, what are you hearing today?

BARAK RAVID, CNN POLITICAL AND GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, I think Netanyahu, his people and his mouthpieces in the Israeli media are all furious about this, this deal. The Israeli ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, has been making phone calls to members of Congress telling them how much Netanyahu is concerned and disappointed about this deal. One of Netanyahu's key mouthpieces in the Israeli press, a guy called Yinon Magal, wrote on X a, you know, super strong post where he called the U.S. negotiators, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Jew boys. He called Vice President Vance scum. He said they're working for Qatar and the other Gulf countries.

So when somebody that close to Netanyahu writes those things on X, I think it gives some sort of an impression about how Netanyahu and his close circle, what they think about this deal.

BOLDUAN: And the Lebanon front, I think it appears is going to be more and more critical to how long this framework exists and stays in place if they're going to continue negotiations about the long term future and stopping any long term future of a nuclear program. Israel's defense minister said this morning that it is not, they are not withdrawing from southern Lebanon. So what is going to happen here?

What are you hearing behind the scenes?

RAVID: So first, I have no information that points to any demand by the United States at the moment at least, for an immediate Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon. What I heard from U.S. officials is that basically in Lebanon, they're talking about a ceasefire, which means everyone hold in place. No military action, neither by Hezbollah nor by Israel.

And from what I heard from regional mediators that the talks between the U.S. and Iran through the mediators over the weekend, the point the U.S. made is you Iran make sure Hezbollah doesn't shoot and we'll make sure Israel doesn't shoot. But the thing is that the Iranians don't feel that Trump really has a way to make sure that the Israelis don't take military action in Lebanon. I think this is why that's going to be a main sticking point in the implementation of this deal.

And also next week on June 22nd, there's supposed to be another round of direct negotiations at the State Department between Lebanese and Israeli officials. The U.S. wants a deal between Israel and Lebanon, not through Iran, but through direct Israeli Lebanese talks. And I just wonder if the Israeli government will be open enough to actually have good faith negotiations when it is so mad about the current deal.

BOLDUAN: Yes, I mean, as Aaron David Miller had put it, I know you'd send it out. No U.S. president has said publicly about an Israeli prime minister what Trump has said about Netanyahu from what President Trump said to you on the phone over the weekend.

RAVID: What a wonderful guy.

BOLDUAN: Yes, as I read multiple times, it was not a --

RAVID: Multiple times.

BOLDUAN: It was not to be missed in case you didn't hear me.

RAVID: It was not a runoff. Multiple times, multiple times.

BOLDUAN: It definitely was. Great reporting as always, Barak. Thanks for coming on, Sara.

SIDNER: He gets all of it.

All right, ahead, a skydiving flight turns deadly after a plane crashes soon after takeoff. The new details we're learning about this devastating end of that flight.

Plus, Senator Mitch McConnell hospitalized for the second time this year. How he's doing this morning.

And an officer tracks down a slithering suspect. You can guess -- at a family home.

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SIDNER: All right, this morning, NTSB investigators are on their way to the site of a fiery plane crash in Missouri. The deadliest skydiving incident in decades killed the aircraft's pilot and 11 skydivers. Officials said the plane went down moments after takeoff from Butler Memorial Airport about 300 yards from the runway and right near a highway.

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Horrified friends and families on the ground saw it all unfold. The plane apparently struggled to gain altitude before it crashed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SHERIFF CHAD ANDERSON, BATES COUNTY, MISSOURI: There were witnesses that were family members. Yes. Our hearts go out to them.

There's nothing we really can say to make it better. We just pray for them and their loved ones and their friends and their family and hope that they can recover to some sense of normalcy if we can.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: All right, CNN transportation analyst and former inspector general for the Department of Transportation, Mary Schiavo, is joining me now. So first to -- I mean, it's horrible that family members were sitting there watching all this. I can't imagine that moment for them.

But give us some sense of when you hear that it seemed to have a little trouble as it was taking off, struggling to gain altitude, what that tells us the potential was happening inside this aircraft.

MARY SCHIAVO, CNN TRANSPORTATION ANALYST: Well, what's happening inside the aircraft and more particularly in this case, the engine or the flight controls or the weight and balance, a lot of things with the performance of the plane tells us that exactly what the NTSB had found in a previous study. They said that most often when you have an accident on takeoff, it's due to loss of power, a stall, meaning that the airflow over the wings is disrupted because you are two nose up or two down nose out of alignment with the flight or you're overloaded. And so here they will be looking at all of those.

But because there were some witnesses and they did say the engine seemed to be losing power. Now it can look like that when it's caused by other things. They will obviously be looking at that.

But this is not a cheap plane. It wasn't an old plane. And the engine is a Pratt & Whitney engine.

And that wasn't old either. So there will be lots of things that they have to look at in this in this accident.

SIDNER: Yes, it's devastating looking at just the scene of the plane, which is just broken completely apart. I do want to ask you about this plane. It was commonly used for skydiving.

Is there a different sort of regular relation compared to, say, a commercial jet?

SCHIAVO: Yes, there is. And that's been a criticism of the Federal Aviation Administration by the National Transportation Safety Board. So ordinarily, skydiving planes operate just like a general aviation aircraft, generally under the same rules and regulations, whereas a commercial passenger service scheduled airline has a lot of other standards and traditionally has had much more FAA oversight.

After a series of deadly accidents, the NTSB told the FAA, hey, beef up your surveillance of skydiving operations and the aircraft used in skydiving operations. And the statistics did get better in the last few years, but it's just a different regulatory overlook. And sometimes there just isn't as much FAA oversight.

SIDNER: I do want to ask you just how difficult is it? I mean, obviously, this is in a field. So you have all the parts of the aircraft that are kind of scattered about.

But how difficult is it to sort of recover this and then piece this all together to try to really learn what was going on in that aircraft?

SCHIAVO: Well, and you're exactly right. That is going to be one of the key investigations that the NTSB will perform because literally almost from your first day of flight school, you're taught that if you've got an engine out, depending upon your altitude, now we know here from witnesses, so this might not be accurate, but it didn't get over, you know, a few hundred feet or maybe even below that on takeoff. So they didn't have a lot of options.

And flight school tells you put that nose down and you look for a place without obstructions, fields. There seemed to be a lot of fields around to put that down. Now, eyewitnesses said it looked like the plane turned and many are guessing that perhaps it was trying to turn to land on a nearby road or highway.

Or perhaps at that point, the plane was already stalling, meaning you're not bending your lift. You don't have enough airflow over your wings. And what happens is the plane does turn.

It goes wing up and wing down and it looks to the ground observer like it's turning. But in fact, it's stalling. And the NTSB will be able to figure this out.

You know, I hope that we need answers here. Everyone does. But it could have been trying to turn to go back to land on the highway or it could have already been stalling.

And at that point, very difficult to recover. But nose down, straight ahead, find a field. That's what you trained in flight school.

SIDNER: Yes, it's hard not to think about the families that were there watching this, hoping to see something really fun and beautiful with people jumping out of the plane, skydiving and landing safely and then having to see this. The NTSB is on it and we will get answers. Mary Schiavo, thank you so much for your expertise on this. Appreciate it -- Kate.

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BOLDUAN: So the White House hosts a wild fight night. Why this morning, then UFC CEO Dana White told reporters there's no effing way they'll do it again. Much more on that.

Plus, there's a lot of effing going on. You know what I mean? Like there's a lot of F-bomb dropping happening in this show today. We need to pull it together, people.

SIDNER: Do better. BOLDUAN: You bet. Plus, there is a concerning recall on baby formula

linked to an infant botulism outbreak. What parents should be looking out for? We'll be right back.

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BERMAN: This morning, standing by for an update on the health of Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell. The former majority leader was admitted to the hospital this weekend, according to a spokesperson, no words yet on why he was hospitalized or his exact condition.

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I want to get to see it as Lauren Fox on Capitol Hill with the very latest. Lauren, what are you learning?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we have not gotten additional updates since yesterday morning when we learned that Mitch McConnell had been admitted to the hospital. We do not know what the condition is or what the prognosis is, only that he is receiving excellent care. That's according to his spokesman David Popp.

But I would also just point out to you that in the past when there have been incidents involving McConnell's health, we have not gotten a ton of detail right up front. I do want to run through. There have been a series of health issues that McConnell has been dealing with over the course of the last several years, including back in February when he was admitted to the hospital for flu-like symptoms.

Then back in 2023, he suffered a fall in March of that year and suffered some broken ribs. There was also that incident back in July of 2023 in which he froze during a press conference when he was answering reporters' questions. We should point out that Mitch McConnell is the longest serving senator in Kentucky's history.

He is also the longest serving party leader of either party in the U.S. Senate's history. He was already planning to retire at the end of this year. He will finish up his last term in the Senate in January.

But again, just not a lot of detail right now at the moment as to why he's been hospitalized or, John, what the prognosis is.

BERMAN: Now, it's been a tough year for the former leader, but he is receiving -- he is said to be receiving excellent care this morning. We will await news on his condition. Lauren Fox, thank you very much for that.

All right, a new warning from police. Do not fly your drones over the World Cup venues.

And then a cat stealing the show at the end of Romeo and Juliet. No matter what that cat does, my bet is Romeo's not waking up.

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