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The United States And Israel Attack Iran. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired March 01, 2026 - 17:00   ET

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

[17:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good evening. I'm Kaitlan Collins. We are following major breaking news as right now President Trump is on his way back to Washington just moments after he posted his second video since the United States launched an extensive military attack against Iran. This video the president posted to Truth Social just now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Over the past 36 hours, the United States and its partners have launched Operation Epic Fury, one of the largest, most complex, most overwhelming military offensives the world has ever seen. Nobody has seen anything like it. We have hit hundreds of targets in Iran, including revolutionary guard facilities, Iranian air defense systems. Just now, it was announced that we knocked out nine ships, plus their naval building, all in a matter of literally minutes.

Iran's formerly supreme leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, is dead. This wretched and vile man had the blood of hundreds and even thousands of Americans on his hands and was responsible for the slaughter of countless thousands of innocent people all across many countries. Last night, all over Iran, the voices of the Iranian people could be heard cheering and celebrating in the streets when his death was announced.

The entire military command is gone as well, and many of them want to surrender into saving their lives. They want immunity. They're calling by the thousands. Combat operations continue at this time in full force, and they will continue until all of our objectives are achieved. We have very strong objectives. They could have done something two weeks ago, but they just couldn't get there.

Earlier today, CENTCOM shared the news that three U.S. military service members have been killed in action. As one nation, we grieve for the true American patriots who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, even as we continue the righteous mission for which they gave their lives. We pray for the full recovery of the wounded and send our immense love and eternal gratitude to the families of the fallen. And sadly, there will likely be more before it ends. That's the way it is, likely be more, but we'll do everything possible where that won't be the case. But America will avenge their deaths and deliver the most punishing blow to the terrorists who have waged war against basically civilization. They have waged war against civilization itself.

Our resolve and likewise that of Israel has never been stronger. America is now again the richest, most powerful nation in the world by far. But the only reason we enjoy the quality of life that we do and the freedom and security is we have done things that others are unable to do. But it's because of warriors who are willing to lay down their lives, to do battle with our enemies, and they do battle better than anybody.

An Iranian regime armed with long-range missiles and nuclear weapons would be a dire threat to every American. We cannot allow a nation that raises terrorist armies to possess such weapons, would allow them to extort the world to their evil will. We're not going to let it happen. Will not happening to us, and we're not going to let it happen to others.

The United States has the strongest military the world has ever seen. I rebuilt our military in my first term.

[17:04:58]

There's never been a military like we possess. And frankly, there's nobody even close. But we are now using that military for good. We want to have it for good purpose. We're undertaking this massive operation not merely to ensure security for our own time and place, but for our children and their children, just as our ancestors have done for us many, many years ago. This is the duty and the burden of a free people. These actions are right and they are necessary to ensure that Americans will never have to face a radical, bloodthirsty, terrorist regime armed with nuclear weapons and lots of threats.

For almost 50 years, these wicked extremists have been attacking the United States while chanting the slogan death to America or death to Israel or both. They are the world's number one state sponsor of terror. We are the world's greatest and most powerful nation, so we can do something about what they do. These intolerable threats will not continue any longer.

I once again urge the Revolutionary Guard, the Iranian military, police to lay down your arms and receive full immunity or face certain death. It will be certain death. It won't be pretty. I call upon all Iranian patriots who yearn for freedom to seize this moment, to be brave, be bold, be heroic, and take back your country. America is with you. I made a promise to you, and I fulfilled that promise. The rest will be up to you, but we'll be there to help. Thank you. God bless you, to our incredible warriors. And God bless the United States of America. Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: The president warning there that there could be more military deaths after at least three U.S. service members have already been killed as this operation is ongoing. CENTCOM confirmed as much earlier as the president also made clear in that video that this U.S. campaign is not over yet. He argued that this will go on until the United States achieves all of its objectives though, as you listen to the president in that six-minute video, he declined to detail exactly what those objectives are.

In a phone call that the president had with the Daily Mail before that video was published to Truth Social, he laid out a potential timeline here and said that this could last up to four weeks.

I do want to note as the president is flying back to Washington that we have gotten about 14 minutes of explanation from the president since this extensive military operation, an attack against Iran was launched, but those are videos posted to Truth Social, not in front of reporters, not in front of the U.S. press pool that is typically with him while he's in Florida, which is where he was when these strikes were launched.

We're still waiting to see if the president will address reporters as he's on his way back to Washington right now and what he'll say in response to key questions about how long this could last, how many military deaths the American people should be prepared for as a result of this, and much more on what exactly the U.S. objectives are here.

What we are seeing play out in the Middle East is, on the second day of this operation, a fresh wave of attacks from both Israel and Iran. The Israeli Defense Forces announced that they carried out attacks in the heart of Tehran, that's Iran's capital city. And Iran is still retaliating across the region, including strikes on several Gulf nations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(EXPLOSION)

COLLINS: That's what was playing out in the skies of Bahrain as a top Iranian official tells CNN exclusively that the president, in their view, crossed a very dangerous red line, referring to the killing of Iran's supreme leader, as the president referenced there. They added that they believe Iran has no option but to respond.

Joining me now is CNN's chief international correspondent Nick Paton Walsh. Obviously, Nick, we're watching all of this play out, and not just what's happening inside Iran and this extensive campaign by the United States and Israel, but how this is playing out and creating these shockwaves across the region that could have huge ramifications for the Middle East period going forward here.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Look, I mean, it is utterly startling how at this moment of extraordinary weakness for Iran, Trump said 48 leaders killed in a matter of hours at the beginning of this American and Israeli onslaught here, that they are choosing to attack neighbors, regional powers like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, with whom it has not traditionally had a long-term public quarrel, but has essentially here picked an entirely new fight, hitting civilian targets by mistake or by accident or error at some point. That is utterly stunning.

[17:10:00] And that persists until now. And, in fact, the foreign minister of Iran has indeed suggested that some kind of autonomy may have been given to Iranian military units, an order given prior to the death of Khomeini in this original onslaught. So, unclear exactly what kind of command and control we're indeed seeing.

Also, as you mentioned, too, Kaitlan, it is not entirely clear what the U.S. endgame or goals really are here. If you listen to the president there, he kept harking back to two specific things, long- range missiles and Iran having a nuclear weapon. Well, clearly, the Israelis and the B-2 bombers that we saw by the United States in the air over the last 36 hours are going for some of the more potent ballistic missiles. And certainly, I think, after this level of onslaught, it's highly unlikely that the not particularly good condition nuclear program we saw prior to this onslaught will be in a worse one still.

Then we have this wider aspiration from the president talking about the possibility of some kind of regime change, popular uprising of the IRGC, a Revolutionary Guard Corps, seeking total immunity rather than certain death. That is, I think, something which is slightly more of a pipe dream at this stage. We are not seeing signs of wider popular uprising at this particular point, although Trump did say for the second time since this began that the U.S. would be there to help the Iranians rise up. We'll have to see if that moves at all.

But ultimately, now we're looking at a president whose timeline seems to shift to potentially nearly a month in one conversation. In other times, he suggests, perhaps, he might be willing to speak to the Iranians soon. And I think a region here deeply on edge as to how, as this continues, the capacity for it spiraling out of control increases, but also aware as well that Iran is probably weak and weaker by the day, and the United States may see its complications here growing as well. Kaitlan?

COLLINS: And also, who exactly it would be from Iran that the president would be speaking with? A lot of unanswered questions here. Nick Paton Walsh on the ground in Israel, thank you for that report.

I've also got our CNN military analyst and the retired Air Force colonel, Colonel Cedric Leighton, here with me. And colonel, obviously, when you look at what has happened and taken stock of the last 24 hours since you and I spoke yesterday afternoon, what are your takeaways from the strikes that you're seeing carried out by the United States and Israel and what has continued now that we know the supreme leader is dead?

CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST, RETIRED AIR FORCE COLONEL: Yes, that's a great point, Kaitlan, because when you look at the types of strikes that we've actually conducted, you see that, on the map here of Iran, there are quite a few of them. And, you know, what they look like is something like this. This is from Tehran today, March 1st, and you see right here in this particular frame, you see the smoke billowing there and another place over here. So, Tehran itself, a city of about 10 million people or so, is a very target-rich environment just by itself, so that's why you see this concentration right here of targets that they hit.

But they've also hit targets in the west, in this particular place in Kermanshah. It looks almost like a sandstorm coming through here. But this is the result of a strike because there are military installations in this particular area.

So, when you look at everything that they've done, they've basically taken out the air defenses in the west, the area around Tehran, and then you've got the coastline.

President Trump mentioned that they've gone after the Navy. This is what you see here, Navy facilities along the coastline right here. Chabahar, for example, Bandar Abbas, all these areas are part of the Iranian military navy force, and that is one area that they want to make sure that they clean up so that it doesn't affect this area right here, which is the Strait of Hormuz.

COLLINS: OK. So, that's where the United States and Israel have hit. What about Iran's retaliatory strikes that we've seen in the region and a lot of condemnation on what they have been hitting so far?

LEIGHTON: Yes, absolutely, Kaitlan. So, one of the areas -- well, a couple of the areas that they've hit basically are all along this side of the Persian Gulf. So, when you look at, for example, what they did in Bahrain, this is from the capital, Manama, hitting a high-rise building right here, it makes you almost think that you're in Ukraine when you see something like this. So, this is the kind of stuff that they've actually been able to do here. And that damage, of course, is quite considerable to that building. And, of course, that can result in a lot of casualties.

But not only in Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, all of these areas as well as Saudi Arabia, they have been hit. Now, that is crucial because, as a result, the Saudis are saying, we are going to get ready to potentially attack Iran ourselves because of this.

And then, of course, you have Jordan and Israel. Israel in particular, of course, is dealing with a lot of these kinds of situations, has dealt with this for quite some time. So, this is not new to them, but it still causes a lot of trouble for the Israelis and requires defensive measures to be taken such as with the Iron Dome system and other related air and missile defense systems.

[17:15:00]

COLLINS: Yes, a lot to watch right now beyond Iran and just in the region. Colonel Cedric Leighton, thank you for breaking that all down for us.

LEIGHTON: You bet.

COLLINS: And when we come back here at CNN, much more of our special coverage as the Middle East is still reeling from another wave of violence, the uncertainty over Iran's future leadership following the killing of the supreme leader there, and whether or not President Trump will speak to reporters as he is headed back to the White House for the first time since launching this attack.

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[17:20:00]

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COLLINS: Iran has formed to what is being described as a provisional leadership council to lead the country as Iranians are grappling right now with a profound shift in the nation's history after the killing of the supreme leader, Khomeini, here. The Iranian foreign minister says a new supreme leader could be chosen within days. And this is coming as Iranians are cheering and celebrating in parts of Tehran following the announcement of the supreme leader's death.

My next guest was arrested and wrongfully imprisoned in an Iranian prison for 500 and 44 days. Jason Rezaian is the author of "Prisoner: My 544 Days in an Iranian Prison, Solitary Confinement, a Sham Trial, High- Stakes Diplomacy, and the Extraordinary Effort it Took to Get Me Out." And it's so great to have you here. I should note you're also the director of the Press Freedom Initiatives at "The Washington Post."

And when you hear what the president just said in this new video that he has shared, we've only heard from him a total of 14 minutes since this happened on camera, but he spoke directly to the Iranian people, and I want to just give everyone a moment to listen to what his message was to them again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I once again urge the Revolutionary Guard, the Iranian military, police to lay down your arms and receive full immunity or face certain death. It will be certain death. Won't be pretty. I call upon all Iranian patriots who yearn for freedom to seize this moment, to be brave, be bold, be heroic, and take back your country. America is with you. I made a promise to you, and I fulfilled that promise. The rest will be up to you, but we'll be there to help.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Jason, where do you think this leaves the Iranian people?

JASON REZAIAN, ARRESTED AND WRONGFULLY IMPRISONED IN IRANIAN PRISON FOR 544 DAYS, DIRECTOR OF PRESS FREEDOM INITIATIVES: Confused, Kaitlan. I think we've seen the scenes of celebration and elation following the killing of Supreme Leader Ali Khomeini. I think that those responses are natural after being under the oppressive rule of this person who has a lot of blood on his hands over a 37-year rule. Tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of Iranians were killed because of his leadership.

But that leadership doesn't, unfortunately, end with his death. The firepower of the Islamic Republic is still in the hands of the Revolutionary Guard, the besieged paramilitary forces as well. And we haven't seen signs of any fissures in that structure yet. I think we will at some point. I don't know if it's going to happen today, tomorrow, next month or sometime in the further future.

So, I think that there is really no clarity on what President Trump is offering in terms of support for Iranians, normal Iranian people, the people that have been protesting regularly for the last -- regularly over the last 25 years or more. They've been doing so with no defenses, and they still don't have defenses. So, I'm not really sure what it means for them.

COLLINS: Yes. I think that's a key question where the president is saying to the Iranian people, we've taken out the supreme leader, now it's up to you. I think a lot of people would ask, do they have the capability to do that, given what we've seen in these past, you know, protests and the crackdowns and what has happened here? I mean, do they even have the capability to do what the president is talking about here?

REZAIAN: Not at current. And I think that is -- should have been clear after the 12-day war back in June. Many layers of Iranian leadership have been taken out in that round of attacks as well as this one. And I think more leaders will be taken out. But it has got a deep bench, for lack of a better term.

And, you know, I think the reality is that this could be a very long slog. I don't think that the Islamic Republic can ever regain anything like superiority over the society or legitimacy in that country, whatever remnant of that remained up until now. But the truth is it's a country of 92 million people, and the hand, the weaponry, the firepower is in the hand of a very small percentage of those people who still control the levers of power.

COLLINS: Yes. And obviously, Khomeini had not really groomed a successor. It's not -- there's no obvious person in this moment as we talk about this three-person council. But, I mean, I just think we have no clue who's leading Iran in this moment.

[17:24:50]

And just overall, though, as someone who was imprisoned there and has covered Iran for 25 years, this moment in and of itself where Iran has been so badly weakened and doesn't pose the same kind of threat, I mean, right now, obviously, they are striking Gulf nations, but overall doesn't threaten and intimidate neighbors the same way it used to, what does that mean for this region? Because there was a New York Times analysis that compared it almost to the collapse of the Soviet Union, for example.

REZAIAN: I think there are some obvious parallels to that time. The difference being that during the decline of the Soviet Union in the final years, there was lot of coordination with the United States around that effort. Diplomatic relations had never ceased between the United States and the Soviet Union. Don't forget, Mikhail Gorbachev was the chairman of the Communist Party. It wasn't like he was some kind of Jeffersonian Democrat that had been, you know, vying for the freedom of the Soviet Union for decades. That's not the case.

And in Iran, I don't think that we've done the heavy lifting of trying to understand who other opposition figures are or viable people inside the country are that might come into leadership roles.

And I think the thing that Iranian people fear the most and something that some of us have been talking about for a long time is that you take out this top level of leadership and you try and do something like you did in Venezuela and make a deal with another devil, right? Someone in the Revolutionary Guards, another cleric who has his finger on the pulse and has been in charge of repressing people in that country.

As you look at this leadership council that exists right now, one person on that is Mohseni Ejei, someone people have talked about as a possible successor. He's the head of Iran's judiciary. During the protest several weeks ago and in the days that followed, he came out very forcefully and said, we need to arrest, prosecute, try as many of these protesters, and execute as many as possible to send the message. And that has been this person's M.O. So, the idea that another cleric would come in and be potentially more open or less hard line, I think, is wishful thinking.

COLLINS: Yes, so much skepticism around what that could look like. Jason, thank you for joining us on this moment. It's really great to have your perspective in this.

REZAIAN: I appreciate it. Thank you.

COLLINS: Up next here, investors have been bracing since what happened overnight with oil futures at stake. And are they going to spike as trading kicks off just a few moments from now or following what the economic impact is going to look like for Americans of these strikes?

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COLLINS: Oil markets are bracing right now after the strikes in Iran with prices expected to jump as futures trading kicks off just a couple of moments from now. Andy Lipow is the president of Lipow Oil Associates and is tracking all of this for us this hour. And Andy, obviously there's a lot of concerns about what exactly this could look like. OPEC has been increasing production. But what do you think is going to happen when these markets open soon?

ANDY LIPOW, PRESIDENT, LIPOW OIL ASSOCIATES: Well, Kaitlan, I expect the oil market is going to jump $3 to $5 a barrel on the back of attacks on three tankers in the straits area as well as, really, we have a de facto shutdown of the strait because the oil tankers are not going through it as missiles are flying. And, in fact, we've got reports of at least four tankers that have diverted away or dropping anchor.

COLLINS: OK. So, if these oil prices rise, I mean, a lot of Americans who are watching not just about these strikes and wondering what has been happening there and what the objective is, what is -- what are they going to see in terms of what this looks like at the pump for them?

LIPOW: Well, what this means is gasoline prices will rise about 12 cents a gallon over the next 7 to 10 days. The same could be said about diesel prices. Of course, the worst-case scenario is if the Straits of Hormuz are closed for a longer period of time, you could see oil prices rise $10 a barrel which translates to 25 cents a gallon at the pump.

COLLINS: So, I think that's a question of, you know, does it last a couple of days? Does it last for weeks? I mean, the president's timeline, as Nick Paton Walsh was noting earlier, he has ranged from saying we could see this happening for one more week. He told "The Atlantic" and the "Daily Mail," I believe, earlier, this could go on for a month, potentially, depending on the United States achieving their objectives there. I mean, if this stretches for three weeks, four weeks, then what does that impact look like?

LIPOW: Well, I think the impact will be between $10 and $20 a barrel because what we are losing is 20 million barrels a day of oil and refined product supply, which equates to about 20 percent of the world's demand. If we go on for an extended period of time, I do expect the United States, the European Union and others will start to release their strategic petroleum reserves to mitigate any further increases in price.

COLLINS: What else are you going to be looking for as this plays out in the next few hours and then seeing obviously as the U.S. markets open tomorrow?

LIPOW: Well, my biggest concern is if Iran retaliates by hitting oil infrastructure and its neighbors across the Middle East, as well as if they start indiscriminately attacking oil tankers, especially those that are carrying oil that's either going to the United States or linked to Israeli and United States owner operators.

COLLINS: OK. We'll watch to see obviously as Iran has continued its retaliation. Andy Lipow, thank you for joining us to preview that.

LIPOW: Thanks for having me.

[17:34:58]

COLLINS: And up next here, we have more on the dramatic escalations that we are seeing play out in the Middle East after the United States and Israel launched their coordinated strikes deep into Iran. I'm going to speak to the former Israeli ambassador to the United States about all of these right after this.

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COLLINS: And we're back with our breaking news this hour as Israel has now launched a new wave of attacks, striking what it describes as dozens of targets belonging to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard with the IDF saying that their military is preparing to mobilize around what this could look like in terms of where this is going next and what exactly is playing out inside the Middle East. [17:40:02]

Obviously, we have seen these tensions in the Middle East only escalating since the United States and Israel launched their attacks against Iran, and how we've seen Iran retaliate, and also the condemnations that have come from several world leaders in the region, saying that Iran should not be attacking them because they were attacked by Israel and the United States.

Our international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, is joining me now from Saudi Arabia. And Nic, obviously, this is a key question of how this is playing out with the Crown Prince in Saudi Arabia as well as what these other leaders in the region are saying tonight.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes. Look, I think the question on the minds of all the leadership around the region at the moment is, what is Iran's leadership going to do next? And does it also have a singular leadership? And that's a very core question because the assessment that I'm hearing from sources here is that what happens over the next 12 to 24 hours will really be key for indicating what happens over the next week and beyond that.

There is a very, very strong diplomatic message being sent from the region here. There was a virtual meeting of the GCC ministers, the foreign ministers, the Saudi foreign minister here, having a statement saying that they condemned the flagrant and unjustified attacks on the GCC countries by Iran, and that they stressed that it was the country right to take all necessary measures, that's their words, all necessary measures to protect its security and stability.

And that very much reflects what we heard from the Saudi kingdom a few hours before that, which was calling Iran's strikes targeting areas in Saudi cowardly because, as you mentioned there, Saudi Arabia very clearly had made it publicly known to Iran, and they say Iran was aware that Saudi airspace was not being used for attacks on Iran.

And the very clear messaging coming from the foreign ministry on this particular issue and that is, you know, in the light of these, again, it sounds very similar to the language used by the GCC here, in the light of this unjustified aggression, the kingdom affirms it will take all necessary measures, again, all necessary measures, to defend its security, protect its territory, its citizens, its residents, including the option of responding to the aggression, including the option of responding to the aggression.

So, this is strong diplomatic language, and it's this kind of language that it's hoped in this region causes the Iranian leadership, whatever it is, to pause and desist in the strikes on these GCC countries.

COLLINS: And they're squarely at the center of all of these and host major U.S. military facilities inside them. Nic Robertson on the ground in Riyadh, thank you for that report. We'll check back in with you as we hear more from these leaders as all of this is playing out and everyone is watching it extremely closely.

Israeli's prime minister -- the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is arguing that the strikes against Iran are going to only increase in the coming days. What exactly is their plan as they are coordinating closely with the United States on this war on the Middle East? What's happening, right after this.

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[17:45:00]

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COLLINS: We're back now with our breaking news as Israel has launched this new wave of attacks on dozens of Iranian targets with the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, arguing that it's only going to get more intense as it goes on. We're learning that at least nine people were killed after an Iranian missile struck in a residential area near Jerusalem.

The former Israeli ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, joins me now. And ambassador, thank you for being here. I think a lot of people are looking at what's playing out right now between the United States and Israel and Iran and asking, what is next militarily in your view?

MICHAEL OREN, FORMER ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED STATES: Good to be with you, Kaitlan. It's good morning here in that in Tel Aviv. What's going to continue, I think, as the prime minister said, is that there's going to be intensification of the military activity by the United States, by Israel against the Iranian regime.

The goal, a stated goal is to actually bring down the regime. I don't know if that can be done by military means alone. Certainly, military means from the air without having sort of a corresponding popular revolt, as we saw in the previous weeks before the war. But that is the stated goal.

For Israel specifically, it's to eliminate Iran's ability to strike us with these ballistic missiles, which are huge. You mentioned that nine people were killed this morning. That explosion, even though it's about a 40-minute drive from here, shook this building in Tel Aviv. And last night, another building hit, killed another woman, a 40-year- old woman in Tel Aviv, also shook this building. These missiles pack about two thousand five hundred pounds of TNT. They're quite big. Iran has thousands of them. So, for Israel, that is a strategic threat which has to be eliminated.

COLLINS: The White House and some Republicans have been arguing this could go on for a month, potentially. I mean, is Israel capable of carrying this out for another month, in your view?

OREN: It is indeed. And we're going to have challenges in terms of our anti-missile arsenals, our stockpiles of interceptors of various types. We have a multi-layered umbrella that includes lower level, which is Iron Dome, which you probably know. David's Sling, an intermediate level than the arrow systems, which are orbital and suborbital.

[17:50:02]

We also have laser systems now that can take down drones. But, still, we are a small country with limited arsenals. And there's also the question of simply jet fuel and also ordinance for the jets. But last summer, we maintained a very steady pace for 12 days. A month is doubling that a little bit more. I think it's within Israel's capabilities.

COLLINS: You're suggesting that maybe a regime change can't be carried out by military force alone. Obviously, that's what we're seeing play out here. I think there are a lot of questions about who potentially is going to lead Iran next and whether or not this is going to work, certainly from the U.S. perspective, of people who say, you know, regime change has been tried before and it hasn't exactly been successful. I mean, how does Israel define success here?

OREN: Well, historically, there has been some successes. World War II is a good one. There was good regime change in Germany and Japan. And our next two neighbors in Iraq are no longer suffering under the rule of Saddam Hussein. So, there have been examples where this work. But in this case, you know, without having boots on the ground, it's very, very difficult. The president made it very clear that he's not putting American boots on the ground. We certainly aren't in the state of Israel.

I think, again, the goal from Israel's perspective is to eliminate the threat, and that is a strategic threat. If Iran has thousands of these missiles, these 2,500-pound missiles, they'll be able to use that umbrella to advance their nuclear program, to continue to support terror throughout the region, and we won't be able to really respond because we'll have these missile threats that are pressed to our foreheads. I think that is the immediate goal for Israel, for the United States.

I think it's also to create a situation where the Iranian regime, if it's not replaced by a popular vote, will no longer be in a position to threaten America's allies in the Middle East or to threaten America through terror, through interrupting international shipping or, for that matter, attempting to assassinate the president of the United States.

COLLINS: How long do you think this could go on for? I mentioned a month that some senators have said here. The president himself mentioned a month earlier. Is that Israel's expectation?

OREN: We have to prepare for that expectation. Certainly. And keep in mind, you know, I'm sitting here in South Tel Aviv, we had a run to our bomb shelter about 30 times today, and that's pretty normal.

And it's quite frightening because even our bombshell, we found out, cannot withstand a direct hit by these rockets. If you're sitting there with your family and you have a few minutes to get into the bomb shelters, you count down the seconds, there's an explosion. If the explosion is not on your head, you consider yourself very fortunate. So, it takes a tremendous price. People aren't necessarily going to work. There's no traffic in our streets. The kids are not in school. Tomorrow is a Jewish holiday. It's a holiday of celebration. Not many people are going to be celebrating. So, our lives are very profoundly interrupted here. But we are a resilient society. We have a very advanced and deep-seated civil defense system here of sirens, of bomb shelters. We can hold out. Unfortunately, tragically, we're very-well versed at this.

COLLINS: You are very well-versed. Obviously, there has been so much of that happening. We've seen just how much the Iron Dome has been put to use because of this. When it comes to how Iran is responding and the retaliation here and beyond, what that looks like for everyday life, I mean, what do you think this means for the region overall and what we're seeing play out following the death of the supreme leader? But as you made clear, Israel wants to go further than that in terms of eliminating key figures in the regime.

OREN: It's an excellent question. It begins with this. The answer is that Iran has been responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of people throughout the Middle East and not just in the Middle East. It was the key catalyst for the war of the last two and a half years in Gaza and Lebanon and elsewhere. It was the primary backer of Hezbollah and Hamas, other terrorist organizations in our region. It has sworn to destroy us every day since coming to power in 1979, not just sworn, has acted on that, and trying to develop the means to realize that vision of destruction.

So, if Iran is eliminated as this type of terrible catalyst for violence and war in the Middle East, it opens up many, many possibilities. Already, with the degraded Iran, we've been able to have talks with Lebanon, talks with Syria. That was unthinkable, unthinkable two and a years ago. And just last week, we had Mr. Modi from India visiting here.

We could actually be in a situation where you would have an arc of peace of pro-western strategic alliance that would stretch from the Tel Aviv Beach not far from where I'm talking to you all the way to the bank of the Ganges. Under sort of a Pax Americana, the Middle East, that would be ideal.

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But if Iran succeeds in emerging from this with the same regime and that regime gets a sanction relief and then can then use that money again to build up its proxies in the region and invest in terror, in tunnels, and in rockets, we could find ourselves back on, say, October 6, 2023. Nobody wants that. We don't want it, certainly. I know the United States doesn't want it either.

COLLINS: Ambassador Michael Oren, thank you for joining me tonight. I appreciate your time.

OREN: Thank you, Kaitlan.

COLLINS: We have a new hour of our live special coverage after a quick break with more on these developments as President Trump is set to land in Washington any moment now.

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