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IDF says Iran fires first missiles at Israel since U.S. strikes; Buildings in Tel Aviv severely damaged by Iranian missile; Israel says it's launched new airstrikes on Western Iran. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired June 22, 2025 - 03:30   ET

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

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[03:00:00]

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and around the world. I'm Becky Anderson from our Middle East programming headquarters here in Abu Dhabi. It is 11:00 A.M. here. It is 10:00 A.M. in Tel Aviv. And it is 10:30 A.M. in Tehran on Sunday, the 22nd of June.

Israeli Emergency Services say there is large-scale destruction in parts of the country after Iranian missile strikes. We've got new video from this scene in Israel's central district. Nic Robinson is at one of these spots in Tel Aviv that's been hit, and we'll check in with him in just a moment.

Also happening right now, Israel says it has launched new airstrike on Iran. This all follows the U.S. strikes overnight local time on Iranian nuclear facilities.

And let's get you up to speed on what we know about those. U.S. B-2 bombers dropped a dozen bunker-buster bombs, as they're known, on the Fordow site and two of them on the Natanz site. Meanwhile, U.S. Navy submarines fired 30 cruise missiles at Natanz and Isfahan. Iran,

Saudi Arabia and the International Atomic Energy Agency all say there has been no increase in offsite radiation. Iran's foreign minister says the U.S. strikes will have, quote, everlasting consequences.

Well, the White House released these photos showing President Donald Trump and his staff in the Situation Room. Later, he said the strikes were designed to end the nuclear threat from Iran.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Our objective was the destruction of Iran's nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world's number one state sponsor of terror. Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated. Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier. (END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he spoke with Donald Trump over the phone after the U.S. carried out its strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. He is praising the Trump administration's actions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: In tonight's action against Iran's nuclear facilities. America has been truly unsurpassed. It has done what no other country on earth could do. History will record that President Trump acted to deny the world's most dangerous regime, the world's most dangerous weapons.

His leadership today has created a pivot of history that can help lead the Middle East and beyond to a future of prosperity and peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, let's starred in Israel, CNN International Diplomatic Editor Nic Robertson is live in Tel Aviv, where there does appear to be damage from an Iranian missile. And you spoke last hour to an emergency worker who had suggested there at least ten casualties. Nic, tell us what we know about what happened here and what the impact was.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes. Sirens went off just before 8:00 AM in the morning here. That's two hours ago now. Most people went to the bunkers for shelter. We, from two miles away, heard a huge blast. And I'm just going to ask Sanjeev (ph) to step in and if you can turn around, maybe zoom in there. You'll be able to see the building that was hit there, Becky, a residential building.

[03:05:02]

We're looking at it there. It's hard to see through the trees. But the windows are gone. The window frames are gone. The walls are gone. The top floor looks like it's completely paved away. So, that's the building that took the direct impact.

Of course, the blast damage all around here, the rescue and recovery workers are onsite and inside. And I spoke just a few minutes ago with the police spokesman here to try to get the latest figures and the update on the situation. This is what he told me.

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DEAN ELSDUNNE, ISRAELI POLICE SPOKESPERSON: We're talking about a few buildings that are clumped together that are residential buildings right now. It's still very initial scene. We have first responders inside the police bomb squad looking for missile fragments, search and rescue team searching and moving under rubble to see if there's anybody that needs assistance.

We know of about 20 individuals who were likely injured at this time, and it's only because they listened to the instructions of the home front command. They were in their shelter, or else we would've seen a much more tragic scene here.

But like I said, things can still develop since it's very dynamic. And that's why our first responders are inside. And we're waiting also for calls from loved ones who may have lost connections with someone that they know lives here in this specific area.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: So, that was the police spokesman there giving us an update a few minutes ago back.

Becky, I think the picture here changes, frankly, by the minute as more of the rescue teams get involved here. I have to say it is chaotic. The picture is emerging across the country, though, a strike Haifa, in the center of the city there, very close to that impact where we were in Haifa on Friday. We are told by city officials there are at least two people injured there, two other impacts of strikes in the center of Israel as well, a few casualties there.

But as I should stress, Becky, these numbers are going to change over the next few hours as all these different emergency teams that swarm the site. They have their separate missions. But as they bring that information together, the numbers will begin to stabilize. Becky?

ANDERSON: Nic, I know that you're on the site of one impact. Is it clear the scope at this point of missile strikes across Israel?

ROBERTSON: The first assessment early this morning that there were 30 missiles incoming, there appeared to be a second wave of missiles incoming towards the north of the country. It appears that second wave was defeated, the picture that emerges of initial wave of 30.

And it would be very hard to distinguish at the moment anything different between these incoming missiles and those over previous days. The number of intercepts appears to be about the same, about 10 to 15 percent of the Iranian missiles getting through. If we're looking at four different impact sites at the moment, 30 missiles, similar percentages to what we've seen prior, nothing different. And Iran apparently not able to, or not willing to, or planning something else, not willing to put up the huge kind of barrage of massage that they put up a little over a week ago, just 30 this morning.

I don't think anyone here thinks this is the end of it, but that's the fragment of the picture we have so far today, Becky.

ANDERSON: Nic Robertson is on the ground in Tel Aviv, Nic, good to have you. Thank you very much indeed. Nic back with more as he gets it from that site.

While Iranian officials and media are contradicting Mr. Trump's claim that these nuclear sites were, quote, obliterated by the U.S. strikes, an Iranian lawmaker claims the attack on the Fordow nuclear facility was, and I quote here, quite superficial, while a state news outlet says that only the entrance and exit tunnels were damaged.

Well CNN's Fred Pleitgen was the first western journalist to enter Iran after the conflict with Israel began. He's in Tehran with early reaction to those U.S. strikes.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Iran is deeply condemning the strikes on its nuclear facilities by the Trump administration. Iran's Atomic Energy Organization has come out and called these savage attacks on these nuclear facilities. They also say that they're against International law, and have accused the International Atomic Energy Agency of being complicit in all of this.

But one of the key things is that the Iranians are saying that this will not deter their nuclear program. And there is a senior Iranian parliamentarian who came out in the very early morning hours on social media and said that the United States, as he put it, can bomb facilities but cannot bomb knowledge, obviously also saying that Iran's nuclear program and Iranian enrichment will continue.

One of the things that we've been hearing from Iranian officials over the past couple of days is they say that they will continue enrichment in any case, it's a red line for them, they say. At the same time, of course, they are in the standoff right now with the Israelis.

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We've been seeing over the past couple of hours the skies here right now are fairly quiet. But in the overnight hours, there was a lot of activity by air defense systems here over Tehran, also some thuds, which could have come from airstrikes, but could have been the air defenses being active as well.

The Iranians are saying that they have various means of hitting back at the United States. It's not clear how they're going to do that. They do, of course, say that there are militias that are on their side in the Middle Eastern regions, in countries where the United States has bases. But, in general, the Iranians are saying there are many methods at their disposal.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran.

ANDERSON: And that report from Fred filed a couple of hours ago.

Well, CNN Correspondent Paula Hancocks joins me now here in Abu Dhabi.

And, first, I mean, a heightened sense of anxiety across the region, of course, concerns over environmental contamination from these strikes. So, very specifically, what do we know at this point?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, Becky, we have had a statement from the U.N. nuclear watchdog. The IAEA has issued this statement, which I'll read out. First of all, following attacks on three nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, the IAEA can confirm that no increase in offsite radiation levels has been reported as of this time. And they say they'll have further assessments throughout the day.

So, the IAEA has said that since these three sites have been struck, there has been no indication of any increased radiation levels. We're hearing the same from Saudi Arabia. But, clearly, it is an issue that those in the Gulf are very concerned about. We have heard from regional leaders, for example, that they're concerned, for example, if the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, which is just on the west coast of Iran, was targeted that may lead to a leak into the Persian Gulf.

There are concerns about this environmental contamination. You have some 60 million people in the Gulf who are relying on desalinated water. So, obviously here, there is great concern that this could lead to some kind of environmental contamination. So I think this is why, obviously, the IAEA is coming out with that statement very early on and that is something we'll be watching very closely here. We need to follow that, of course.

ANDERSON: Less than 48 hours ago, the Europeans sitting down with a representative, the foreign minister from Tehran in Geneva. The idea of these sort of talks or dialogue there in Geneva was to try and understand where Europe might take any discussions on the nuclear file and on what happens next with their relations with Iran, and very specifically, I think, provide a bridge to any further talks between the U.S. and Iran talks that, of course, were canceled supposed to happen last week. Any discussion at this point? Are we hearing anything about when we might next see talks between the U.S. and Iran?

Donald Trump overnight has effectively said, these were one-off strikes we want to get back Iran to the table again and talking to the Iranians. What's the status at this point?

HANCOCKS: At this point, we're not hearing anything about potential negotiations, potential talks. At this point, we're looking at the next I think most officials around the region as well are looking at the coming hours to see what kind of response there could be. We have seen that initial Iranian missile response against Israeli -- different Israeli towns and cities.

But, I mean, bear in mind it was only -- it was this time last week that the U.S. and Iran were supposed to be sitting down together in Muscat, Oman, to discuss, you know, diplomacy. We just got to remind ourselves of how quickly things have changed. And then, of course, 48 hours ago, European leaders were trying to hammer out some kind of deal.

Iran has been very clear that they were engaging in diplomacy when the Israelis decided to carry out these strikes, insinuating that they are less willing to be to be listening to any kind of suggestions that the diplomacy should take over once again. And of course, Iran has also pointed out that they can targets U.S. military targets in the region. We just heard Fred talking about it there from Tehran. There are a number of military targets, military bases, U.S. troops, dotted around the Middle East. You've got more than 40,000 that are in different areas.

We've seen what can happen in the past. We've seen militia groups in Iraq, in Syria, targeting those U.S. bases with some success. Not a huge amount of success because the U.S. was able to repel it, but Iran still has these assets in the region. They still have these proxies. Most of them are severely debilitated, for example, Hamas, Hezbollah. [03:15:00]

But they still have these options of carrying out these strikes against U.S. targets. So, I think at this point it is waiting to see whether they decide to go down that route before the option of diplomacy can really truly be looked at.

ANDERSON: And it will be no surprise when today we are likely to hear more statements of deescalation calls for calm certainly around this region. And CNN has a number of articles, not least one that I penned with one of our reporters, CNN Senior Reporter Mostafa Salem on Friday, which is entitled Trump's Gulf Arab allies race to avoid all out war in Iran. Good analysis across CNN's assets on our digital site.

Paula, thank you very much indeed for joining us.

And we are following breaking news out of both Israel and Iran this hour. When we return, the latest on the U.S. strikes on Iran and what it could mean for the very near future for the United States. That is coming up after this.

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ANDERSON: Israeli emergency services officials say an Iranian missile has caused large scale destruction in Tel Aviv. Other Israeli cities have also suffered damage after Iran launched a new wave of air attacks overnight.

[03:20:05]

And we've learned that Israel has now launched new airstrikes on Western Iran. All this comes hours after the U.S. launched its own airstrikes on three of Iran's most important nuclear sites. This video, which was broadcast by Iranian state-media purports to show smoke rising over the Fordow nuclear site.

Sources familiar with the operation, say the United States used bunker-buster bombs on Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. Iran's foreign minister warns that the United States attacks' will have, quote, everlasting consequences.

Let's get you to Miri Eisin, who's a senior fellow at the International Institute for Counterterrorism. Importantly, she's also a retired colonel of the Israel Defense Forces. She's in Ramat Hasharon in Israel.

Mary, first let me just ask you, how are you and what happened where you are overnight?

MIRI EISIN, SENIOR FELLOW, INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR COUNTER- TERRORISM: So, there was a quiet night until 3:00 A.M. when we woke up to the announcement. But I'll add in that the attacker this morning took me in a place where it's very Israeli. I mean, until now, no casualties. Where I was, I was in a safe room, lots of booms. There's debris in and around the area. And the direct hits were not where I live, sort of in other areas.

So, what we each do is we immediately reach out to make sure, where is everybody? Are you okay? Get through it. I already know of a few friends who seem to have lost their homes in this last attack, but they are fine. And that's part of our own resilience in an odd way, that on the one hand, she managed to write, we don't have a house, but they're all safe.

ANDERSON: Well, it's unclear and just what the extent of the damage across Israel is unclear at this point the extent of the impact and damage in Iran.

But we do have this new video into CNN, Mir, the first we know out of Iran after these U.S. strikes. You and our viewers can see it is filmed from a moving car at a distance in the Qom Province. How long will it be before you believe we will get actual impact reports? And how will the IDF be trying to learn more information about exactly what happened in these U.S. strikes?

EISIN: We have over Iran air superiority. Becky, what that means is that our airplanes and our air drones, with all of the different capabilities can be over those sites and look at them. So, first of all, we have visuals as do any satellite around in the sky, but that's from afar. That's not what's saying what's happening underground, but it does give you an indication.

In addition, we're going to be watching all of the different type of technological communications. To be able to attack these kinds of sites, you want to have some kind of contact with them. You're going to be monitoring that.

Iran, the Islamic regime over the last 10 days, including over the last 24 hours, has been limiting internet connection. Part of that is so that you and I will not be able to see the type of footage that you're uploading. Meaning it's very difficult right now for Iranians to be able to send out any kind of footage from inside Iran and what is going to be monitored.

So, I think that the combination of locals showing different things of our own monitoring from afar, let alone the international agency, Atomic Energy Agency, will also be saying its own. Nobody's talking from within there. That says something if nobody says anything.

The only thing I'll probably say is that I absolutely don't believe the Iranian official media.

ANDERSON: In the ensuing hours and in the past hour or so, we have got confirmation from the IDF that they are striking sites in Western Iran. What does that suggest to you given that these strikes come after the U.S. strikes on Iran and indeed after what appear to be the follow strikes from Iran on Israel?

EISIN: What the Iranians have fired in the last hour. That was a very strong attack against Israel, part of which we intercepted and part not. What we're going to be going after is those launchers, the ones that were attacking U.S. just an hour ago, because you want to attack the launchers. Those are the ones that reach Israel.

But, Becky, at this stage, I think that Israel is also going to be participating and trying to attack different Iranian missile and drone sites that would be able to attack U.S. or any of the other semi- allies, certainly, if it's the closer ones, the ones that are in agreement with Israel, to stop any attacks against them.

[03:25:02]

So, Israel attacking in Western Iran is going to be both the kind of launchers that just attacked us, but also looking at capabilities that are more short range and could attack U.S., forces U.S. allies in the region in a shorter range.

ANDERSON: That's interesting to hear that because, certainly, what I'm hearing from sources around the region is that there is a continued effort to take out the ability to respond on the part of the Iranians, just as these U.S. strikes were very specifically on nuclear installations.

Benjamin Netanyahu calling this moment a moment in history. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NETANYAHU: In tonight's action against Iran's nuclear facilities, America has been truly unsurpassed. It has done what no other country on earth could do. History will record that President Trump acted to deny the world's most dangerous regime, the world's most dangerous weapons.

His leadership today has created a pivot of history that can help lead the Middle East and beyond to a future of prosperity and peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Miri, at the moment when there is no real talk of peace, how concerned are you that this could be a pivot for the region and a very negative one, very different from what Benjamin Netanyahu has frankly just suggested there in that video released after the U.S. strikes?

EISIN: First of all, it's a pivot. Second of all, it could be a pivot in the -- when I say right direction, I just want to say, Becky, that, for me, the Islamic regime of Iran, that for the last 45 years and certainly for the last 35 years, physically has called for our annihilation, has built capabilities, has supplied all of the different proxies, and is fired with those proxies against us. I don't see it as being worse for the arena. I say that from an Israeli perspective.

What could be worse? What everybody and everybody is, I understand, that scare is both that there would be chaos in Iran and chaos, is never good anywhere. And I feel for 86 million Iranians.

Having said that, allowing that to deter us, and that was part of the deterrence of Iran, was that you prefer the stability of a regime that calls just for the annihilation of Israel and just uses its weapons against Israel. But now that they're threatening the rest of the world, that makes it a problem.

So, I have to say that I'm not as worried about the chaos as other people. I think that what I'm most worried about right now is what was talked about before also, dirty bombs, using this right now, both to attack within the Gulf to disrupt world and, you know, like take everything down together with us.

And that worries me. That is a worst case scenario. And I want to hope that we're acting both against their own capabilities to do so, that they, the Islamic regime, should not try now to destroy the world's economy by destroying the world's oil reserves, kind of, you know, like Samson bring down the temple on top of everybody.

ANDERSON: Miri, it's good to have you. Thank you very much indeed for your perspective this morning.

Well, breaking news coverage continues next as Israeli emergency workers do survey the destruction from the first Iranian missile strike since the U.S. attacked Iran's nuclear sites overnight, Saturday into Sunday. It is 11:30 here from our Middle East programming. Headquarters will just shy off that after this.

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ANDERSON: Welcome back to CNN Newsroom. I'm Becky Anderson from our Middle East programming headquarters in Abu Dhabi.

Back to the breaking news out of the Middle East where Israel says it launched new strikes on Western Iran. It comes after Iran fired a fresh wave of missiles towards Israel overnight.

Search and rescue crews are operating in several locations across Israel after reports of fallen projectiles there. These are the first attacks launched by Iran since the U.S. struck three of Iran's nuclear sites, Saturday night into Sunday morning local time.

Well, a U.S. official tells CNN that American B-2 bombers and Navy submarines hit facilities in Fordow, in Natanz and in Isfahan. Video broadcast by Iranian state media who geolocated by CNN shows smoke rising from the direction of the Fordow nuclear site followinh those strikes. Iran's foreign ministry says the U.S. has begun a, quote, dangerous war against Iran.

President Donald Trump addressed Americans on Saturday night praising the operation. He called it a, quote, spectacular military success.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I want to thank and congratulate Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu. We worked as a team, like perhaps no team has ever worked before. And we've gone a long way to erasing this horrible threat to Israel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, Iran's Houthi allies say President Trump must bear the consequences for the strikes on Iran. The rebels based in Yemen reached a ceasefire with the U.S. last month, which did not cover Israel, but they issued this warning to Washington before the U.S. went after Iran's nuclear facilities.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YAHYA SAREA, HOUTHI MILITARY SPOKESPERON: Yemen, with its great people, faithful leadership and striving army will stand by any Arab or Islamic country subjected to Zionist aggression or that decides to confront this aggression in self-defense or in support of the Palestinian resistance fighters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, joining us now is retired Major General Mick Ryan of the Australian Army. He's also the author of the War for Ukraine, Strategy and Adaptation Under-Fire. Thank you for joining us live today.

And we are seeing the first pictures out of Iran since these U.S. strikes. There's a number of questions that we do know the answers to at this point, a number of questions that we simply don't. We do know from Washington what happened with these strikes, what was involved. It was the B-2 with bunker-busting bombs and tomahawk missiles from submarines.

[03:35:04]

What do you make of what you understand to be the details of these strikes and how do you read into strategy there?

MAJ. GEN. MICK RYAN (RET.), AUSTRALIAN ARMY: Well, first and foremost, I see U.S. military has delivered weapons that only it could deliver on targets that probably only it could reach with these very large, massive ordinance penetrators. It kooks like six of them in Fordow, two Natanz, and then a bunch of Tomahawks launched at Natanz and other targets.

So, this was clearly planned very closely with the Israelis to de- conflict airspace to ensure that these effects from these weapons delivered at the right place in time. And it's almost certain that America has other contingency plans to strike other targets. As President Trump indicated that if Iran doesn't come to the negotiating table, there'll be more strikes ahead.

ANDERSON: We don't know how much damage these bombs did at Fordow and yet that I'm sure we will get in the hours to come. We've seen these pictures of Donald Trump in the Situation Room with his team. What changed between Trump saying he would make a decision on strikes in two weeks or within two weeks 'time, that was late last week, of course, and deciding in about two days' time? And what do you understand would've been the scope of the planning for this? How much planning goes into strikes like these, what would've been done ahead of time?

RYAN: Well, on the planning, these things are planned months, if not years ahead. The United States military would've had this as a contingency plan probably for at least a decade and I would assume even more. Same with Israel, they probably had joint talks with Israel multiple times on this. So, it would've been a case of just updating the target picks and getting the aircraft off the ground.

I mean, clearly, there was a deception planned. The U.S. sent B-2s to different parts of the world where the B-2s that actually hit the targets went direct from Missouri and flew for around 37 hours.

So, these are extraordinarily intricately planned activities, takes a lot of coordination with allies, including Israel and other countries. But as you said, we don't know the impact of the strike set, and it will take up for days to find out.

ANDERSON: It's good to have you, Major General Mick Ryan. Thank you very much indeed.

Staying with CNN's breaking news coverage as we continue to monitor these strikes and the ramifications of President Trump's decision on striking these Iranian nuclear facilities. More, coming.

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[03:40:00]

ANDERSON: In the region, very specifically in Iran, where the U.S. launched strikes on three nuclear sites, U.S. President Donald Trump, says that Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated. That's a quote from the president himself.

Iran's Nuclear Safety Agency says it has no indications of radioactive contamination. According to state media, there US officials tell CNN that law enforcement agencies are watching for any response from Iran or others against the United States.

Tehran has already started fire missiles at Israel since those U.S. attacks videos show the devastation in neighborhoods that were impacted. Israeli emergency responders said they were heading to at least 10 scenes.

Well, some U.S. lawmakers reportedly got word in advance about the strikes, but the notification went strictly along party-lines. Sources say the top House and Senate Republicans were given advanced notice.

The same applies to their fellow party, chairman of the House and the Senate Intelligence Committees, but their Democratic counterparts were informed after the fact. Even though they all are usually briefed about major military engagements or following the U.S. strikes on Iran, there's some division among Republicans themselves over President Trump's actions. House Speaker Mike Johnson praised Trump saying that the strikes were, quote America first, policy in action. He said, this attack sends a clear message concerning that a nuclear armed Iran will not be tolerated. Republicans, Senator Lindsey Graham called the strikes quote, the right call, and that the Iranian regime quote deserves it.

However, the GOP support not Universal Representative Marjorie Taylor Green Post said that this is not the United States' fight. While emphasizing Israel's role in escalating tensions.

And on the Democratic side, Senate's Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, criticizing Trump's actions while also demanding that no U.S. President should unilaterally march the nation into war. Schumer warned that these strikes could potentially lead to a wider, drawn out conflict in the Middle East.

Right. Let's get you more on the CNN's Tom Foreman joining me from Washington. Tom, let's start with this. What's the latest that we are hearing about how long these strikes were in the planning and why Donald Trump chose to act now?

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, in terms of him acting now Donald Trump is, why he decided to act now, could simply be the notion that this seemed like the moment in which he might be able to do it. It also could be the simple fact that he is often proven quite capricious as a leader. He simply decides he wants to do something.

There was a lot of talk about the notion that he didn't like the fact that Israel was looking so strong. In effect he wanted to step in and have some kind of a play in all of this. We don't know. Ultimately, we will try to put it all together.

We do know that in acting the way he did by informing the Republicans in Congress, that this was going to happen, but not telling the Democrats specifically in the Gang of Eight, which is the leadership in the House and Senate and in the intelligence committees.

That he told the Republicans but didn't tell the Democrats about it, that Democrats are very unhappy, as you saw from some of the quotes there. And I note what the House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffrey said, President Trump is quote, President Trump misled the country about his intentions, failed to seek Congressional authorization for the use of military force and risks American entanglement in a potentially disastrous war in the Middle East.

And Becky, the pictures you've been showing of these missile exchanges that have happened since then. It's exactly what Democrats are talking about.

ANDERSON: And the high profile Democratic lawmaker known as a A.O.C., joining other Democrats accusing Donald Trump of violating the Constitution and Congressional war powers.

Tom, does this move violate the constitution?

FOREMAN: You know, Becky, that is something that has been debated now for decades here.

[03:45:02]

The War powers resolution of 1973 was supposed to let Congress reassert some of its control over the president being able to do these things. Nonetheless, there have been these carve outs over and over again where a president says, look, I had to do it because it was an emergency situation. We had to move quickly.

And in fact, that's even been claimed about this, where some of the Republicans have said Donald Trump knew he had to move right now, and he did move right now. You have to cool out about this. The thing is, this is being debated over and over again and often what is used is what's called an author authorization for use of military force, which is a sort of a soft Congressional maneuver to say to a president, yes, do what you might need to do in all of this.

The bottom line though, is Republicans are pointing to this and saying he was decisive and in doing so, he ended a problem. And Democrats are looking instead, especially again at the images you've been showing of the damage over there and the threats from the Houthis and from others, and they're saying, we think maybe he began a process here. He didn't end one, but we'll find out.

ANDERSON: Good to have you, Tom. Thank you. Well, Tom Foreman is in Washington.

We've got a lot more breaking news coverage ahead, including the first video that may show the aftermath of these U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:50:00]

ANDERSON: Getting our first look at possible damage, or at least the impact on these nuclear facilities inside Iran from U.S. strikes.

Iran's official state news agency published this video a short time ago. It says, this is smoke rising from the Fordow nuclear facility. That is where American B-2 bombers dropped six bunker Buster Bombs, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the International Atomic Energy Agency. Also, there has been no increase in offsite radiation.

Iran's foreign minister says the US strikes will have quote, everlasting consequences.

Meanwhile, Iranian missiles launched after the U.S. strikes have damaged parts of Israel. Emergency services there say there is large scale destruction in parts of the country after those Iranian missile strikes.

When U.S. President Trump addressed the nation late Saturday, he said his objective was to stop Iran's nuclear threat.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) TRUMP: For 40 years, Iran has been saying death to America, death to Israel. They had been killing our people, blowing off their arms, blowing off their legs with roadside bombs. That was their specialty. We lost over a thousand people and hundreds of thousands throughout the Middle East and around the world have died as a direct result of their hate. In particular, so many were killed by their General Qasem Soleimani. I decided a long time ago that I would not let this happen. It will not continue.

ANDERSON: Officials came to believe that Iran wouldn't unconditionally sit down to seal a nuclear deal according to sources familiar with the situation. And that determination came after European leaders gathered in Geneva in Switzerland late last week to try to bring about a diplomatic solution or at least provide a bridge between the Iranians and the U.S. to do as such, but it seems with no tangible results.

They met with Iran's foreign minister who insisted any talks with the U.S. could only follow if Israel stopped bombing Iran.

Well, President Trump was unwilling to press for that. It seems, as a result, it appears he determined that time consuming negotiations we're not worth repeating.

CNN's Larry Madowo been tracking all of this for us. He joins me now live from London. Larry, let's start with the reaction that we are getting to these overnight strikes by the U.S. and then we should talk about that European meeting and the lack of substantive progress, of course.

LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, Becky, we've just heard from the British Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, who said that Iran should go back to the negotiating table. He supports this action saying that Iran should never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon, and the U.S. has taken action to alleviate that threat. So that's one response.

So we're hearing also from Saudi Arabia. That's adding from a previous statement saying, condemning this action, saying that all parties should deescalate and calling these strikes a violation of the sovereignty of the Republic of Iran. So those are two reactions.

A stronger one came from the U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who called this a dangerous escalation, Becky, and in a region that's already on edge saying there's no military solution to this, that coming as Iran now requesting an emergency session of the U.N. Security Council, they're hoping the U.N. Security Council can condemn this action and hold the United States accountable even though that will be almost impossible to pull out.

ANDERSON: Donald Trump has made it clear that this will be one-off action and hopes that he can get the Iranians back around the negotiating table. So let's just consider what we understand to have happened or not happened in Geneva late last week.

MADOWO: Right. The European leaders have a meeting with the Iranian Foreign Minister, but the understanding from the White House to officials in the White House telling CNN that they felt this diplomatic solution was not forthcoming.

Iran insisted that they would not really go forward with this unless two things, Israel stopped attacking it, and they invited the Israelis to the negotiating table, and so President Trump appeared to be frustrated by this, and he remembers the experience from 2020 when Qasem Soleimani, he mentioned that in his address at the time, the killing of Soleimani was considered reckless and dangerous, but Iran was militarily degraded and was not able to put on a strong response. And that appears to be the calculation here, Becky, that Iran does not have the capability to put on a very strong response based on the fact that of the past 10 days, the missile capacity has been degraded.

[03:55:04]

ANDERSON: Good to have you. LarryThank. That's Larry Madowo in London. Thank you for joining us. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi. This is our Middle East programming headquarters.

Time here is a five minutes to midday. It is five to 11 in the morning in Tel Aviv. It is just before half past 11. On Sunday, June the 22nd in Tehran, I'll be back with more of our breaking news coverage after this short break.

I leave you with these live pictures from Israel.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: And welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and around the world. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi. Here is the very latest on the breaking news in the Middle East. We are getting our first look at what may be the aftermath of the U.S. strikes on nuclear facilities inside Iran.

Iran's official state news agency published this video a short time ago. It says, this is smoke rising from the Fordow nuclear facility.

[04:00:00]

That is where American B-2 bombers dropped bunker buster bombs overnight. Well, the US struck a total of three Iranian nuclear sites.