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New Strikes By Israel And Iran Fuel Fears Of All-Out War; Iran Accuses Benjamin Netanyahu Of Sabotaging U.S.-Iran Nuclear Talks; Donald Trump Leaves G7 Early To Monitor Middle East Tensions; How Israel-Iran Conflict Is Impacting Global Oil Prices; U.S. Aircraft Carrier Heads To Middle East; Israel Targeting Iran's Surface-To- surface Missiles; Gaza Officials Says Palestinians Killed While Waiting For Aid; U.S. Citizen Among 14 Killed In Russian Strikes On Kyiv; Minnesota Shooter Stalked Victims Like Prey; Curfew For Downtown L.A. Reduced; Internal Government Records On Immigrants In Ice Custody Contrast Trump Administration Claims On Serious Convictions; Court Filing Shows Doctor To Plead Guilty To Supplying Ketamine To The "Friends" Star; The Louvre In Paris Closes As Staff Protest Conditions; Poodle Doggy Paddles Into Spanish Rescue Squad. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired June 17, 2025 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:00:13]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN HOST: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and from all around the world, I'm Lynda Kinkade.
Israel and Iran are bracing for more deadly back and forth strikes as the White House weighs its next moves. The Israeli Defense Forces ordered people to go to bomb shelters, saying Iran has fired more missiles. Air sirens have been blaring.
In Iran, state media says air defenses have been activated over Tehran as the number of explosions rang out in the capital. A local official says Iran shot down an Israeli drone near the country's Natanz nuclear facility.
Well, the U.S. president abruptly left the G7 summit for what he called obvious reasons, telling his national security staff he's going to convene a meeting in the White House Situation Room. Before his departure, Donald Trump offered this explanation to his Canadian counterpart.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I have to be back. Very important. I want to just thank our great host. Thank you to Canada, but you probably see what I see, and I have to be back as soon as I can.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, earlier, Mr. Trump posted that Iran should have signed the deal. I told them to sign. What a shame and a waste of human life.
Simply stated, Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. I said it over and over again, everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran.
And it seems that many are heeding that advice. These images show a long line of cars trying to escape the Iranian capital. The Israeli prime minister says the strikes have set back Iran's nuclear program, "A very, very long time, but made it clear that additional targets remain."
Israel's ambassador to the U.S. says Iran's photo nuclear site, which is buried deep in the mountains, can only be destroyed with a special American bomb.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YECHIEL LEITER, ISRAEL AMBASSADOR TO THE U.S.: In order for Fordow to be taken out by a bomb from the sky. The only country in the world that has that bomb is the United States, and that's decision the United States has to take whether or not it chooses to actually pursue that course.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, CNN's Paula Hancocks is tracking all the developments and joins us live from Abu Dhabi. Good to have you with us, Paula. So, can we start with a new wave of missiles from Iran this morning, what are you learning?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lynda, we know that air raid sirens have been sounding across much of Israel, central Israel, also Tel Aviv. We know that people have been told to seek shelter.
Now, there have been some images that we have seen of streaks in the sky over Jerusalem showing the missiles coming from Iran itself. We don't have information at this point as to what the points of impact may have been, how many may have been intercepted, or how many got through to their targets. So that is information we're waiting for.
We did hear, though, just in the last hour, from the spokesperson of the Israeli military, and he had pointed out that there had been very few missile strikes in the early hours of today, as opposed to the early hours of Monday morning, when there were hundreds of missiles.
He had said that that was because the IDF, the Air Force had been targeting the missile production sites, the missile launches, what he called missile hunting in Iran, and seemed to suggest that that had had some positive impact by lessening the number of missiles coming through.
Now, we will have to wait and see whether that prediction was premature as to how many missiles have been fired from Iran this time. But certainly, there is no sense that this is quietening down in any shape or form. We are seeing, once again, air raid sirens across much of Israel, and we have been seeing throughout the night air strikes hitting parts of Iran as well, Lynda.
KINKADE: And Paula, as I mentioned earlier, the U.S. president left the G7 summit early and then took to social media urging everyone in Iran's capital to evacuate immediately. Talk to us about the reaction to that warning in the region.
HANCOCKS: Well, the warning itself didn't have a lot of context. It has to be said that the U.S. president's warning residents of Tehran to evacuate, not giving any reason as to why they should.
We do know that the Israeli military had specified a certain neighborhood of Tehran to be evacuated, and we know that they did then target that particular neighborhood. For example, they targeted the state's -- the state T.V. news provider, and we understand from officials on the ground there that two people were killed in that strike.
[02:05:15]
But certainly there is concern in Tehran. It is a very different situation for civilians and residents on the ground there, they have no air raid sirens. There's no warning of when the air strikes are about to hit, and there are no official shelters. People are sheltering as best they can in the metro, in the subway and also in underground parking lots.
So, it's -- they're certainly not as prepared for this kind of onslaught as civilians in Israel are. So, that's a very different situation for the residents there.
And it's been brought out, you can see from those images of absolute gridlock, of people trying to leave Tehran, trying to go to somewhere more rural, more isolated, where they feel that they do have more protection.
The Israeli military has warned Iranian residents to move away and evacuate if they are close to weapons production facilities, for example. We have seen there have been some apartment blocks that have been targeted, because there may be a certain individual in there that Israel wants to target as well.
So, it's a very difficult situation for residents in Tehran to know exactly where is safe.
KINKADE: And of course, Paula, there have been civilian casualties on both sides. Reports certainly suggest that the death toll is much higher in Iran. What are the latest details? And how reliable is that information coming out of the region?
HANCOCKS: Well, the information we have is coming from the Ministry of Health, from hospitals as well in Iran itself. And at this point we know that well over 200 people, they have said have been killed in Iran. They say that the vast majority are civilians. They say that children have been killed as well in those strikes.
We do know that some top military commanders are among the -- those numbers as well. We know that that has certainly been a key target for Israel trying to take out the head of the -- of the Army, of the armed forces, of the Revolutionary Guard Corps, of the Air Force. And that has really been a key part of Israel trying to destabilize the regime and the regime's ability to be able to react militarily.
But of course, we are seeing casualty figures in Israel as well, but they are far less. And I think that goes back to that the point I was making that Israeli civilians have a very sophisticated air raid siren system, an early warning detection system that warns them when there are incoming missiles, and they are told to go to shelters which they have, and this is simply something that the Iranian residents don't have, Lynda.
KINKADE: Paula Hancocks first in Abu Dhabi. Our thanks to you.
Well, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he estimates that Israeli strikes on Iran have set the country's nuclear program back, "A very long time."
In an interview with ABC News, Netanyahu did not rule out targeting Iran's supreme leader.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, are you going to target the Supreme Leader?
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: Look, we're doing what we need to do. I'm not going to get into the details, but we've targeted their top nuclear scientists. It's basically Hitler's nuclear team.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But U.S. officials tell us that the president flatly rejected a plan, an opportunity that the E.U., that the Israelis had to take out the Supreme Leader. Do you understand his concern? My understanding his concern is that this would escalate the conflict beyond where it is already.
NETANYAHU: It's not going to escalate the conflict. It's going to end the conflict.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, for more, I want to welcome from Istanbul H.A. Hellyer, Senior Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute for Defense and Security Studies. Good to have you with us.
H.A. HELLYER, SENIOR ASSOCIATE FELLOW, ROYAL UNITED SERVICES INSTITUTE: My pleasure. Thank you for having me on the program.
KINKADE: So, the conflict is now entering its fifth day. Why do you think President Trump is cutting short his trip to Canada to meet with his national security team?
HELLYER: I mean, there are any number of reasons. This is a very serious war that is broken out. It doesn't simply impact Israel and Iran. It impacts the wider GCC Middle East region. The repercussions for energy, the repercussions for international law, are quite phenomenal.
So, I'm not surprised that President Trump left a little early in order to have this meeting. I do think that it's quite ominous, though, as well, especially given the backdrop of precisely that interview that you just aired.
[02:10:05]
Netanyahu, who I think we need to remember has already been indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes, is speculating about assassinating the leader of Iran, the leader of the Iranian regime, a thoroughly disreputable regime, a regime that's been responsible for much suffering in the region.
But this is a war that the Israelis began a few days ago in the midst of negotiations that were taking place between Washington, D.C. and Tehran.
So, I think this is a very, very careful moment and unsurprising that the American president would return to discuss the situation with his national security team.
KINKADE: Yes, and Netanyahu also spoke about how this operation could lead to regime change in Iran. Is that a realistic goal, or does this operation have the potential to strengthen hardliners in Tehran?
HELLYER: So, I don't think it's a realistic goal in terms of bringing down the regime, because I think that the regime is more than simply the supreme leader on top of it.
I think that when you've had a regime like the Iranian regime, that's been existence in Iran for since 1979 for 45 years, there are contingency plans. There are hierarchies of command and control.
So, you know, one person goes, another one takes over. I don't think it's quite so brittle that we can imagine that any one person's death is simply going to lead to its disappearance.
I do think that the attempt to do so would be gravely destabilizing. Would probably be against the backdrop of, you know, a lot of killing of different people that have nothing to do with this. Your reporter just mentioned the death toll in Tehran.
Of course, there will be military, there will be different security officials that would have been killed, but alongside them, because many of them were killed in their homes, alongside them will be civilians, people that are not legitimate targets in any war. So, I think that that's very concerning.
When it comes to strengthening the hardliners. I think, right now, the hardliners are pretty -- are pretty strong in Tehran, are pretty strong in the Iranian regime. Because the argument for going into negotiations with the United States in the first place was one that was very carefully debated, right? And when you have this turn of events, we're in the middle of negotiations. The United States did not hold back its closest ally in the region from embarking on a war. I think it's very difficult to see how it wouldn't be that the hardliners in Iran would be immensely strengthened.
KINKADE: It's interesting when you hear Republican lawmakers here in the U.S., they're quite divided over how the U.S. should respond. The U.S. has voiced support for Israel, but also urged restraint, and of course, Donald Trump campaigned on ending foreign wars. How does this all align with that foreign policy, and what role is Washington actually playing behind the scenes.
HELLYER: So, there is an interesting debate that's going on within MAGA on this particular point. Because, of course, Donald Trump did campaign on ending wars, not starting them.
Now people argue, well, he didn't start this one, and I think that to some extent that's accurate. Of course, the United States did not declare war on Iran, but the United States has an incredible power over Israel's range of options.
So, it doesn't even need to be that the Israelis took permission from Washington, D.C. before embarking on this action, they simply needed to make sure that there wasn't a red light.
And I think that they very clearly got that absence of a red light. They let the Americans know that they wanted to do this, and the United States did not hold them back. And it would have been very easy for the United States to hold them back. There is no security architecture for the Israelis without the cooperation of the United States of America.
So, I think that there'll be that there's already a very clear discussion underway within MAGA. I think that that will continue, because I don't think that this conflict is going to end in the next day or so. I think that we're going to see repercussions of this for quite a long time.
And more broadly speaking, and I'll finish here, the rules based order, respect for international law, that entire architecture that has underpinned so much of the way we conduct international relations, even if fragmentedly, even if partially over many decades, it really stands in question, when you have the most prominent upholders and defenders of that order simply say that Israel has the right to self- defense.
[02:15:18]
There is an environment of impunity that is underway here, and the consequences of that, I think, are going to shape a lot of what happens, not today, not tomorrow, but for many, many years to come.
KINKADE: Yes, Israel, of course, says it launched this conflict, this operation to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.
Is there credible intelligence to support that justification, and how much damage has Israel done to Iran's nuclear military targets?
HELLYER: So, there's preemptive and there's preventative, right? So, a preemptive strike to stop an imminent attack is legal in international law, there is no evidence to suggest that that is what happened, because there was no imminent threat. You have the Americans, you have the Brits.
I mean, there has been no evidence that has shown that the Iranians were an imminent threat. Of course, there have been discussions for quite some time, as I said, it's a thoroughly disreputable actor, and there have been many concerns expressed by many different actors over many years, that there was -- that there were these efforts to build a nuclear weapon, but nothing imminent.
So, you don't have the right in international law to take, "Preventative action." It's preemptive, it's very different. Preemptive means that there's an imminent attack.
KINKADE: H.A. Hellyer in Istanbul, we obviously just lost that link at the last moment, but we appreciate your time. Thanks very much.
Well, still to come, G7 leaders are trying to steer President Trump away from his massive trade wall. We'll look at whether they've made any progress when we come back.
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[02:21:32]
KINKADE: This is a live look at the Tel Aviv skyline, where smoke is visible in the distance, Israel's national emergency service says responders are headed to reported impact sites after the latest wave of missiles from Iran.
Israeli police said their teams were responding to impacts in Tel Aviv, but they said there were no reported injuries so far.
Leaders of the G7 summit in Canada have signed a joint statement calling for a resolution to the Israeli Iran crisis. U.S. officials say Donald Trump was initially reluctant to support it, but eventually signed the statement after changes to the language were made. The final version calls for the protection of all civilians in the conflict.
It also refers to Iran as, "The principal source of regional instability and terror," and says Iran can never have a nuclear weapon. President Trump has now left the G7 a day early to monitor what's happening in the Middle East. CNN's Kristen Holmes brings us the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: President Donald Trump leaving the G7 early. He was supposed to spend Tuesday with several meetings as well as holding a press conference. But Monday, the Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, posted that after
the day that Donald Trump had had a series of good engagements that he needed to get back, given what was going on in the Middle East.
I talked to a number of White House officials who said throughout the day, Donald Trump kept asking to be briefed on what exactly was happening in the Middle East, where things stood between Iran and Israel, and it became clear as things began escalating in the Middle East, it would be better for him, at least they believe so, to be in Washington with all of his officials nearby, they are likely going to convene in the Situation Room.
Do want to note one thing that I was told by a White House official is that their posture has not changed. We've seen a lot of speculation swirling about why he left early. Was this a change in posture from the United States?
We are told pretty definitively that at this time, of course, anything can change. At this time, the U.S. is still maintaining a defensive posture, meaning they are helping Israel with deflecting, with interfering with those missiles. They have used the argument that there are U.S. S military assets in Israel. They need to protect their U.S. citizens in Israel. They need to protect but they are not, at this point, going on the offensive.
Now, part of that reasoning, we are told is that Donald Trump is still really hoping to get Iran to the table in terms of a nuclear deal. They are hoping to have their top intermediaries meet, their top officials meet, to try and work something through. And throughout the last several days, Donald Trump has been urging these officials, these U.S. officials, to maintain contact with their Iranian counterparts, but if not them, with the intermediaries around the globe, to try and ensure that this still happens, that Iran comes to the table. We've obviously seen him calling for that publicly as well.
So, unclear what the next steps are going to be. But right now, what we do know is that Donald Trump is not staying the full time at the G7. He had a set of meetings on Monday, and then is heading back to Washington.
Kristen Holmes, CNN, Calgary.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, before President Trump announced his early departure from the summit, the main focus was to try and convince him to walk back his aggressive trade war. Trump did sign a trade deal with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday, the U.K. still faces a minimum 10 percent tariff on most of its exports, but Trump and Starmer are praising the deal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: So, we have our trade agreement with the European Union, and it's a fair deal for both, and it produced a lot of jobs, a lot of income. And we have other many, many other ones coming. [02:25:07]
But you see, the level of enthusiasm is very good, but the relationship that we have is fantastic, so I just want to congratulate you.
KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: But Donald, thank you very much. This now implements on car tariffs and aerospace and are really important agreement, and so this is a very good day for both of our countries, a real sign of strength.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also agreed to pursue economic and security negotiations within the next 30 days.
Justin Wolfers is a professor of Economics and Public Policy at the University of Michigan, and joins us now. Good to see you.
JUSTIN WOLFERS, PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS AND PUBLIC POLICY, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN: My pleasure.
KINKADE: So, President Trump has dropped tariffs on British cars and opened up the door to more U.K. steel and aluminum, even after raising tariffs on other countries. How big of a win is this for a post Brexit Britain, and what's the upside for the U.S. in this shifting trade landscape?
WOLFERS: Look, this is tiny. First of all, the U.S. and the U.K. are not particularly close trading partners. Three percent of American imports come from the United Kingdom, and they've opened up trade in 100,000 cars, and for those American middle class families who might have been hoping for a break on paying tariffs on imported cars, I'm sorry, but the stuff that America imports from Britain is Rolls Royces and Bentleys and Aston Martins and Jaguars and Land Rovers and all the sorts of cars that you'd see in the parking lot at Mar-a-Lago.
So, calling this a deal, or calling this a big deal would be pretty dramatic overstatement.
KINKADE: It certainly sounds that way. I do want to turn to Israel and Iran. Tensions, obviously, are rising as this conflict continues, yet oil prices haven't surged.
Talk to us about why the market hasn't really reacted, and under what conditions could we see a change?
WOLFERS: So, we have seen some reaction. Oil prices up maybe $10.00 a barrel, if you were looking at the right moment. That I agree, is quite muted, and that's of course, because nothing yet has happened to threaten global oil supply.
The concern is that Iran could basically block tankers from the Middle East coming over to the rest of the world. And if that were to occur, you'd see oil prices spike pretty dramatically. The U.S. is less dependent on foreign oil than it once was, but still quite dependent.
Oil prices would rise even if the U.S. weren't dependent. If you reduce the global supply, global prices would rise, and that, in turn, would set off inflation and potentially slow the economy.
Look, the one thing we know from all past wars is they're bad for the economy. I mean, there's a million ways in which the generals tend to be a little bit too optimistic. These things go on longer. They are more expensive. They're more costly, and they can create ripple effects that we're yet to imagine.
KINKADE: Yes, of course, just back to the G7 they have agreed, at least in a draft document to a strategy to secure critical minerals. Is this a direct response to China's recent export restrictions, even though China has since walked them back, and how real is the push to cut dependency?
WOLFERS: Look, it's a real and very direct response. Lynda, we could go all the way back three months ago, and my guess is you and I had never uttered the word rare minerals in our lives, and your viewers probably were going about their lives without having to think about them even once.
And so, what's subsequently changed is, of course, that Trump started the trade war with China. China understood very quickly the leverage that it had, there's obviously going to be a movement towards reducing that dependence. That dependence does create leverage for China, but it's very hard to do.
Rare earth minerals are not, in fact, rare they're in lots of places. They're just incredibly costly and expensive to mine. That's something that China has been willing to do, and it also is specialized in refining, and it would be a long time before the rest of the world could start to generate enough to do without China.
KINKADE: Justin Wolfers, always good to see you. Thanks for joining us.
WOLFERS: A pleasure.
KINKADE: Well, still to come on CNN NEWSROOM, an Iranian official warns Israeli attacks targeting their civilians, and it won't be tolerated. Well, the latest on that conflict, next.
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[02:34:16]
KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Returning to our top story, the deepening conflict between Israel and Iran. These are live pictures coming into us from Tel Aviv. In just the last hour, sirens were again sounding in parts of Israel after the military said Iran had launched another wave of missiles. Emergency responders are now heading to reported impact sites in Israel.
Our CNN producer in Tel Aviv also reported hearing explosions in the city. Explosions heard as well in Tehran, where local media report that Iran's air defenses had been activated. The state affiliated news agency citing a local official reports that Iran shot down an Israeli drone near the country's Natanz nuclear facility.
[02:35:00]
The unfolding crisis in the Middle East prompted U.S. President Trump to leave the G7 summit in Canada early. He said he had to return to Washington for "obvious reasons."
A senior Iranian official says the lives of its citizens are a red line. The official told CNN that any specific targeting or aggression towards citizens will get a "very decisive response." The IDF issued warnings on Monday for Iranians to evacuate areas targeted in their strikes, but it wasn't enough to prevent civilian deaths. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mid broadcast, the conflict came to the studio. Israel said, without evidence, this state broadcaster building was being used by Iran's armed forces, a shockwave of a different kind to fueling panic in Iran. The blast in District 3, an area the IDF told Iranians on social media to flee hours earlier. And these blasts hitting the hills to the capital's west, showing the firepower now in use. Israel says it controls the skies over Tehran and this is what that feels like, screams on ordinary streets.
Sunday night, many fled the capital. The roads out apparently hit on Monday too, nothing like this in recent memory. In the western city of Kermanshah, State Media posted images of the Intensive Care Unit of a hospital damaged. The IDF told CNN they were "not aware of any attack that happened on a hospital in Iran." And it's unclear if anyone was hurt.
Over 200 dead, though 90 percent civilians, since Friday, Iran's Health Ministry said, but each number its own story, many from the youth that the West sees as the hope for Iran's post-Ayatollah future. This is Tara Hajmiri (ph) dancing at the dentist killed alongside her family, said State Media.
Also, Nilifa Galivand (ph) big in gyms and social media, age 31, killed alongside her parents and Pania Abbasi (ph), a poet, age 23, killed with her parents and brother. Her poem, "The Extinguished Star" reads, you and I will come to an end somewhere. The most beautiful poem in the world falls quiet.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, as the conflict intensifies, U.S. officials tells CNN the USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group is moving to the Middle East without delay. The Nimitz was already expected to relieve another Carrier Strike Group, the USS Carl Vinson, but has canceled a previously scheduled port call on its way to the region. It's unclear how long the two strike groups will overlap in the Middle East. The official also told CNN, naval assets capable of defending against ballistic missiles are expected to move into place in the Eastern Mediterranean in the coming days.
Well, early in (ph), CNN Military Analyst, Colonel Cedric Leighton explained Israel's strategy of targeting Iran's surface-to-surface missiles. He spoke with my colleague, Boris Sanchez.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: So basically, what you're talking about is missiles like this. This happens to be the Haj Qasem missile, which is a new missile that the Iranians have, a relatively new missile, and it's designed to basically travel, not only faster than most of the Iranian missiles, but it could potentially be a hypersonic missile. So if that's the case, missiles like this are the ones that you want to get rid of. They look very similar to some Chinese designs. So, it tells you something about the technology transfer that is helping the Iranians achieve these kinds of weapons production goals.
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CO-ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWS CENTRAL": That's a significant point. When Israel says that it's achieved supremacy in the skies over Iran, what exactly does that mean?
LEIGHTON: Basically, Boris, what it means is they can attack everything that you see here. And what it -- what they're really telling you is that Israeli jets can fly basically unchallenged throughout any part of Iran. Any of these areas right here, these include major bases like Shiraz, for example. Kermanshah, Isfahan, all of these are major bases that the Iranians have. So, every single air defense system that they have in Iran is at risk. And you mentioned earlier that about one-third of them had been hit. That does not mean that they're necessarily completely destroyed, but their effectiveness has been reduced, so that it is almost ineffective.
SANCHEZ: Iran has also had some success in penetrating the Iron Dome and Israel's defense systems. What does that look like?
LEIGHTON: So, let's take a look -- well, let's take a look at the Iron Dome. This is what the Iron Dome actually looks like. So it has, basically, these are all missile launchers right here.
[02:40:00]
So when you're looking at each one of these areas, this is basically what's happening. Iran has been able to hit about -- Israeli targets with about 10 percent of the missiles that they have available to them. The rest of them, about 90 percent or so, are actually being shot down, not only by the Iron Dome, but you also have systems like the Arrow System, which is -- they're a high-level system. Then you have David's Sling. Those are the kinds of missile systems that really take out a lot of what the Iranians are flying into Israel. But 10 percent is still enough to cause considerable damage in places like Tel Aviv and Haifa, two of Israel's major cities. SANCHEZ: Especially when the way that they're launching these missiles, the way that they're spacing it out, that pace is set to go on for at least several more days. How much longer do you think Iran could keep this up?
LEIGHTON: So, Iran is purported to have somewhere around 3,000 missiles. Now, this was before all of this started, so obviously their inventory is much less than what it was at the beginning of this conflict. However, what the Iranians can do is they probably have somewhere around, anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 missiles still left that they could potentially use. But all the launch sites are being targeted, and in some cases, the Israelis have been able to get at the Iranian launch sites as the Iranians are trying to launch those missiles. So basically, they're targeting them in real time and the way they're doing that is actually quite significant. It shows that there's a very quick turnaround time between the intelligence that they receive and their ability to strike those targets.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, as the conflict between Iran and Israel deepens, Gaza residents fear their suffering will be overshadowed. The Palestinian Health Ministry says more Palestinians were killed Monday while lining up for aid in Rafah. Families of those killed gathered at a hospital in Khan Younis to mourn their loved ones. Gaza Health Authorities say hundreds have died while attempting to find food in recent weeks, amid a worsening hunger crisis. The International Committee of the Red Cross says access to basic goods is increasingly difficult because of Israeli restrictions on what can be brought into Gaza.
A new wave of Russian drones and missiles triggered sirens across the Ukrainian capital overnight. A 62-year-old American was among the 14 people who were killed in the strikes in Kyiv, according to the city's mayor. The U.S. citizen had been sheltering in a house close to where medics were treating wounded victims. At least 55 people were injured in the attack. Several districts across the city were targeted, sparking fires and power outages. Officials say an apartment building was hit and several warehouses damaged.
Well, the suspect in the Minnesota lawmaker shootings has been in court. He faces federal and state murder charges. We'll have more on that story next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:47:47]
KINKADE: Well, news just into CNN, for the second time since the Israel-Iran conflict began, the Israeli military says it has eliminated Iran's most senior military commander. According to the IDF, Ali Shadmani, the new war-time Chief of Staff and the closest figure to Iran's supreme leader, was killed in a strike on a Command Center in Tehran. His predecessor had already been eliminated in the opening strikes of Israel's operation, which has targeted Iran's most senior military leadership in the past few days. Iran has not yet commented on Israel's claims around Shadmani's death. Well, the suspect in the Minnesota lawmaker shootings, Vance Boelter, has appeared in court. He's accused of killing State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, and wounding State Senator John Hoffman and his wife. Police say he had many other targets in mind. CNN's Danny Freeman has more now from Minneapolis.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Terrifying new information about the brutal killings of a Minnesota lawmaker and her husband and the attempted killings of another lawmaker and his wife.
JOE THOMPSON, ACTING U.S. ATTORNEY, DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA: It is no exaggeration to say that his crimes are the stuff of nightmares.
FREEMAN (voice-over): The Department of Justice is saying, the morning, 57-year-old Vance Boelter allegedly murdered State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and allegedly tried to kill State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. He also visited two other state lawmakers' homes with intent to kill them.
THOMPSON: He researched his fam -- his victims and their families. He conducted surveillance of their homes and took notes about the location of their homes.
FREEMAN (voice-over): Boelter first went to State Senator Hoffman's home in a black SUV with a fake license plate that read "Police" court document said. He disguised himself as a police officer wearing a silicone mask, seen here captured on a doorbell camera.
THOMPSON: Boelter knocked on Senator Hoffman's front door and repeatedly shouted, "this is the police, open the door." When Boelter lowered his flashlight, which he had shined in their face, they realized that he was not a police officer. They shut it out. You're not a cop; you're not a police officer.
FREEMAN (voice-over): Authorities say the suspect then went to another lawmaker's home and rang the doorbell, but that lawmaker was on vacation.
[02:50:00]
Boelter then continued to a third lawmaker's home, but appeared to hesitate as police were already checking on local leaders by then. Finally, at State Representative Hortman's home, authorities say police found Boelter, gunfire erupted, and Boelter had to abandon his car and an arsenal of weapons.
THOMPSON: Had they not foiled the plan, essentially took his vehicle away from him, which evolved (ph) all his maps, all his names, all his weaponry, I would be very scared what it would look like over the next few hours had we not done that.
FREEMAN (voice-over): Minnesota law enforcement officers then began what they call the largest manhunt in state history, which led them to rural Sibley County, roughly 50 miles from the crime scenes. New federal court documents state while he was on the run, Boelter texted his family. "Dad went to war last night. I don't want to say more because I don't want to implicate anybody." But with the help of a resident's trail camera, drones, and infrared technology, Boelter was taken into custody without incident.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you speak to why investigators believe he carried out this attack and for how long he may have been planning these attacks?
THOMPSON: Well, it's pretty clear from the evidence that he's been planning these attacks for quite some time. There's voluminous writings, as you've seen in the reporting, that were found both in his car and his house, about his planning, lists of names and individuals. Obviously, his primary motive was to go out and murder people. Now, they were all elected officials. They were all Democrats.
FREEMAN: Now, we actually got a statement from State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette on Monday. I'll read it in part. It says, John and I are both incredibly lucky to be alive. There's never a place for senseless political violence and loss of life. We are devastated by the loss of Melissa and Mark Hortman, and our hearts go out to all those who knew and loved them both. We're always at our best when we unite together, a note of hope there amidst tragedy.
Meanwhile, Boelter's next federal court appearance to face those murder charges is scheduled for the end of next week.
Danny Freeman, CNN, Minneapolis.
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KINKADE: Well, the nightly curfew for downtown Los Angeles will now go into affect two hours later, starting at 10:00 p.m. until 6:00 in the morning. Mayor Karen Bass ordered the curfew a week ago after days of protests over federal immigration raids. The mayor says law enforcement can assure public safety and there is no need for National Guard troops or U.S. Marines.
As immigration raids continue in LA and around the U.S., internal government documents obtained by CNN appear to dispute the Trump administration's claims that many of the immigrants taken into custody have been convicted of serious crimes. According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement records from October to May, less than 10 percent of those booked into ICE custody were convicted of crimes like murder or assault. More than 75 percent of them had no criminal convictions, only minor offenses for things like immigration or traffic-related issues.
One of the doctors charged in the overdose death of Matthew Perry has agreed to plead guilty, according to a court filing. Dr. Salvador Plasencia will plead guilty to four counts of distribution of ketamine. He's one of five people charged in connection to Perry's death. Prosecutors say an underground drug network was responsible for distributing the ketamine that killed the "Friends" star. According to the autopsy report, Perry died from the acute effects of ketamine and subsequent drowning in a hot tub. Well, over tourism is having an ugly consequence at the world's most famous art museum. Staff at the Louvre refused to take up their posts on Monday in protest over unmanageable crowd sizes, chronic understaffing, and work conditions. The spontaneous walkout left tourists waiting in an unmoving line behind the glass pyramid. Well, 8.7 million people visited the home of Mona Lisa last year. That's more than double what the museum's infrastructure was designed to accommodate.
President Emmanuel Macron unveiled a sweeping plan to renovate the museum and staff say those changes can't come soon enough.
Well, the dog rescue squad on a beach in Spain has welcomed its newest recruit. A Poodle named Nilo has joined a team of four Labradors to help lifeguards tow people back to shore. While Nilo was once scared of loud noises and crowds, his handler says the two-year-old has made great progress in training.
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MIGUEL SANCHEZ-MERENCIANO, GLOBAL K9 INSTRUCTOR AND CANINE EMERGENCY UNIT TECHNICAL DIRECTOR (through translator): He has gone from swimming basically vertically, which is a way of swimming, which is not correct, to swimming completely horizontally. His strokes are perfect. He uses his tail perfectly like a rudder to turn and to move. He knows how to go with the flow.
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[02:55:00]
KINKADE: While Spanish dog beach rescue squads typically enlist Labradors and Newfoundlands, however Nilo's handler says Poodles were historically used for water rescue with the name Poodle coming from a German verb, meaning 'to splash.'
Well, thanks so much for joining us. I'm Lynda Kinkade. I'll be back with much more "CNN Newsroom" in just a moment.
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