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Trump Says, U.S. Airman Safe and Sound After Rescue Operation; Trump Says Iran Has 46 Hours Left to Open Strait of Hormuz; Pope Leo to Celebrate Easter Sunday Mass at St. Peter's. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired April 05, 2026 - 02:00   ET

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

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[02:00:00]

BEN HUNTE, CNN NEWROOM: Hello and welcome to our viewers here in the U.S. and all around the world. I'm Ben Hunte in Atlanta.

Let's begin with breaking news from the war with Iran. President Donald Trump has announced that the second missing American crew member whose fighter jet was shot down over Iran has been rescued by U.S. forces. President Trump posted this to his Truth Social account earlier saying in part, we got him. My fellow Americans, over the past several hours, the United States military pulled off one of the most daring search and rescue operations in U.S. history for one of our incredible crew member officers, who also happens to be a highly respected colonel and who I am thrilled to let you know is now safe and sound. President Trump added that the service member sustained injuries, but he will be just fine.

The high-stakes search began this week after an F-15 Strike Eagle Fighter jet was shot down in the region. Another crew member was rescued alive shortly after the crash and is now receiving medical attention.

CNN's Brian Todd is in Washington for us with the latest from the, thank you so much for being with me, Brian.

Just tell me, what is the latest and what more are U.S. officials saying about how this rescue mission actually unfolded?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ben, a second U.S. official confirmed to me a short time ago that the second crew member has indeed been rescued, saying that this mission has been completed. We are pressing officials now at the Pentagon, at CENTCOM and elsewhere as to what the details of this rescue mission were, whether there was a firefight involved, as some outlets are reporting that there was one. We're trying to get some details on that, pressing them during these overnight hours on that.

But as you mentioned, some of the best detail that we have at this very moment comes from the president of the United States himself, Donald Trump, posting on Truth Social a couple of additional details about the rescue mission. The president saying, quote, this brave warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran being hunted down by our enemies who were getting closer and closer by the hour. And the president said, this crew member was never truly alone because his commander-in-chief, secretary of war, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and fellow war fighters were monitoring his location 24 hours a day and diligently planning for his rescue.

The president also said that, at his direction, the U.S. military sent dozens of aircraft armed with what the president called the most lethal weapons in the world to retrieve this crew member. As Ben mentioned, the president saying that this crew member sustained injuries, but will be fine.

You know, this is the first time that a manned U.S. aircraft has been shot down in Iran During this conflict near the beginning of the war. Three F-15s were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti Defense Forces, this being the first time that a manned U.S. aircraft was shot down in Iran by hostile fire.

[02:05:07]

We can also tell you though, that there was a second incident on Friday that a -- where a U.S. A-10 Thunderbolt 2 plane, also known as a Warthog, was struck by Iran. But that plane did not go down inside Iran. The pilot, according to an official familiar with the matter, was able to guide the plane out of Iranian airspace and eject from the plane then. So, the second time that a U.S. warplane was hit in about a 24 hour span on Friday, and good news to report that second airman has been rescued in Iraq. Ben?

HUNTE: It does sound pretty incredible.

And looking ahead, what happens next? Are there any indications from Washington about how the U.S. will move forward in the coming hours and days, especially given how close this operation brought U.S. and Iranian forces?

TODD: Well, U.S. officials are indicating no let up in the bombing campaign, and the airstrike campaign at this moment. The president also posting on Truth Social that, you know, the U.S. maintains air superiority and kind of crowing over the fact that there were no injuries to -- no serious injuries, at least to these airmen who were involved in these shoot downs.

But officials here and really not indicating any let up in the campaign. The president, of course, during his address in the middle of the week saying that this overall campaign will last at least another couple of weeks.

So, we are going to see, you know, the crucial hours and days ahead, Ben, are going to be. Very critical to, to find out, you know, just how the pace of this air campaign will continue and whether it will continue with the pace that it has given these two incidents and these very kind of dicey rescue missions.

HUNTE: Okay. Well, Brian Todd, thank you so much for that. I'm sure we'll be speaking again later. Thank you for now. Let's keep talking about it. For more, I want to bring in CNN Military Analyst and former U.S. Air Force Colonel Cedric Leighton.

Cedric, thank you for being with me again. You've been across this almost hourly for us, and we appreciate it.

From a military standpoint, how difficult is it to carry out a search and rescue mission like this deep inside hostile territory? How big is this moment?

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Oh, this moment is huge, Ben. It's great to be with you again. This is one of the most intricate operations that you could mount in any type of military scenario that you're talking about. It's bad enough, difficult enough to do it under benign conditions, you know, where there's no hostile fire or anything like that going on when you're just trying to rescue somebody from a crash site. But it's more than triple the difficulty when you're going into hostile territory.

And in this particular case, what you had is a situation where the Iranians were actively looking for the downed air crewman. And so with them looking, and, of course, we were looking, you know, from the U.S. side. We also had the capability, as the president alluded to, to track these movements of these airmen. And make sure that as much as possible that they were kept relatively safe. But there's only so much you can do from afar, and that's why they needed to be extracted as quickly as possible.

So, this is really one of the most difficult missions that can be mounted by any military force. And it's doubly difficult when you're in a situation where there's the possibility of possible fire where people are looking for you and they don't have any good intentions in mind.

HUNTE: We are reporting that U.S. officials say there was an engagement with Iranian forces during the mission. What kind of confrontation are we likely talking about though?

LEIGHTON: So, probably there're several possibilities, Ben, but what it seems like to me is there's a force, a militia force in Iran called the Basij Force. And they would be most likely to be at the provincial level and at the below that, at the town level. And they might first local forces that could be engaged in a situation like this.

You know, there are of course other possibilities, elements of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, and, of course, their military members as well. But whether, whichever force it was, they most likely people charged with the equivalent of homeland defense. And they may not be the most crack units that -- or the most elite units in the Iranian military, but, regardless, they pose a threat. And if they have weapons they can kill. And that's a threat that you know, presumably was neutralized very effectively in an extraction mission like this.

So, this is one of the dangers that these extraction missions have to face. And it's highly likely that local forces will try to not only capture air crewmen but they will also try to impede the rescue operation.

[02:10:04]

And apparently they were not effective in doing either one.

HUNTE: Looking across social media, there are reports that additional U.S. aircraft were hit or took fire during the rescue. What does that tell you about the current threat level there and when will we know more?

LEIGHTON: So, yes, it may take a while to know more, you know, at least in public about this. But, you know, you have reports of aircraft -- fixed-wing aircraft being hit at various times, including during this particular mission set. And you also, of course, have reports of helicopters, Black Hawk helicopters, being impacted by small arms fire, probably.

So, what it tells you is that the threat environment there is real. They have the capability to shoot at you, especially if you're flying at low altitude, with machine guns, you know, with, you know, even with pistols, sometimes you can fly low. And that's something that can be dangerous and it can absolutely affect your ability to fly and to maintain the stability of the aircraft.

When it comes to other types of weapons systems, such as shoulder- fired missiles, surface-to-air missiles of various types, all of those are still existing within the Iranian inventory. So, when you talk about things like air superiority, it doesn't mean that there's a fleet elimination of the threat. What it means is that, generally speaking, you can fly fairly well over Iranian airspace without being in danger. But there are obviously exceptions to that.

And in certain localized instances, like this one, the threat is real and there is a possibility that the Iranians used other techniques besides radar to actually capture the signature of the aircraft and then shoot it down. So, that's a possibility that has to be looked at to see whether that was the case in this situation. But one remains a dangerous place with their superiority even there.

HUNTE: I've probably got about 30 seconds in this, but just give me your perspective on whether a successful rescue like this actually helps to contain further escalation. Because, clearly, this is a win for America, but how much of a loss is this for Iran?

LEIGHTON: Well, it does show that there're some weaknesses, Ben, within the Iranian system. You know, they -- so their air defenses were capable enough to shoot down the aircraft, but their internal security forces were not capable in apprehending the pilots, the pilot and the systems officer. So, what that means is that there are certain weaknesses within the Iranian system. It is not a rigid system. It is a porous system. And that means that there are certain inherent weaknesses in it and those weaknesses can be exploited.

HUNTE: Okay. Well, for now, thank you so much, Colonel Cedric Leighton, we appreciate it and thank you for your time.

LEIGHTON: You bet, Ben. Thank you for having me.

HUNTE: Okay. After the break, we'll have the latest on this breaking news out of Iran. President Trump announcing a successful rescue operation to save a U.S. pilot shot down in enemy territory.

So much to discussed. Stay with us. See you in a moment.

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HUNTE: Okay, let's return to our breaking news. A U.S. crew member whose fighter jet was shot down over Iran has been rescued. U.S. President Donald Trump posted on social media that the colonel is now, quote, safe and sound after the U.S. military carried out what Trump called one of the most daring search and rescue operations in U.S. history.

The operation began on Friday after the U.S. F-15E Strike Eagle Fighter Jet was shot down. The two crew members ejected. The other was rescued shortly after that crash.

CNN's Jim Sciutto tells us what we know so far about the operation.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: President Trump announcing a successful search and rescue operation for the second member of that F-15 crew shot down over Iran on Friday. This, a difficult operation, a dangerous one, the president said it involved dozens of aircraft and we know that they were rushing against time.

I had been told that the U.S. received a communication from this missing airman on Friday evening and indications that he had been injured, which added to the urgency of the search and rescue operation, but also we know that Iranian authorities were trying to get to this pilot first, Iranian State T.V. even going so far as to encourage residents in the area to locate the pilot, report the pilot's location, and offering a reward to do so.

So, we know that there was a race here, a race against time to get him to treat those injuries, get him out of the country safely, get the pilot before Iranian authorities or the military were able to do so.

And we should also note that search and rescue operations are highly dangerous operations. You have a lot of aircraft involved, many of those aircraft fly flying low and slow, the helicopters that would do the extraction, the fixed-wing aircraft that would help locate. They did, of course, have fighter cover. But, again, a dangerous operation, a difficult one over time with, thankfully, a safe outcome for this missing airman.

[02:20:05]

Jim Sciutto, CNN, Tel Aviv.

HUNTE: Well, President Trump said on social media today that Iran has 48 hours left to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. As Julia Benbrook reports, it does remain unclear if this latest deadline and ultimatum will actually stick.

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Just a few days ago now when President Donald Trump delivered a primetime address here at the White House, his first since the beginning of Operation Epic Fury, he said that he believed that the Hormuz of Hormuz, that critical waterway where 20 percent of the world's oil typically passes through, would reopen, quote, naturally after the conflict ends. He has repeatedly, though, threatened to target Iranian power facilities if they do not reopen it fully. And he says that time is running out.

I want to pull up this post for you now. On Truth Social, he said, quote, remember when I gave Iran ten days to make a deal or open up the Hormuz Strait, time is running out, 48 hours before all hell will ream down on them. Adding, at the end of this Saturday morning post, quote, glory be to God.

Now, Trump has moved this deadline multiple times when he first set it late last month. It was at 48 hours. There was a five-day pause, then a ten-day extension. So, that deadline now sets at Monday, April 6th.

In a post shortly after that Truth Social post, Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, did say that he spoke on the phone with Trump that day and that he believes that this deadline will stick. He said that he supports the president's ultimatum and that he believes there will be an overwhelming military force if Iran continues to impede the strait.

Julia Benbrook, CNN, the White House.

HUNTE: Earlier, CNN spoke of CNN National Security Analyst Alex Plitsas about the war's military objectives as the Strait of Hormuz does continue to remain closed. Here's a quick part of what he had to say.

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ALEX PLITSAS, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: What's changed since the initial objectives, which were, again, to take out the drones, the missiles, the industrial base that was associated with them, the navy and the air force. While the nuclear sites haven't really been struck at this point is the Straits of Hormuz, which Iran is attempting to hold at risk, which is why they're not being transited. While they're not closed, ship owners feel uncomfortable transiting there. That still remains open at this point. So, this could have been a significant problem.

So, at this point, it'll depend on what the president wants to do with those objectives. He's made statements this week about potentially leaving it for the allies or others to deal with since the U.S. gets very little oil out of here. I think we'll know in the next few days or so where that's going to stand. But to your point, he made Monday the deadline. He gave the Iranians to come to the table, open up the straits, and see if they could get a negotiated, end the war or the conflict. At this point, the Iranians seem to have rejected that Pakistani process.

What I did hear yesterday in speaking to mediators in the region is that the process that was undertaken by the Pakistanis to try to get a negotiated settlement didn't appear to be leading to a successful outcome, hearing that the Turks may try to step in, in the interim. But without an a negotiated settlement or some sort of sign from Iran by Monday, the president has stated that he will potentially open up significant military action at that time.

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HUNTE: Okay. The U.S. military pulls off a daring rescue of a down service member in Iranian territory. When we return, we'll have the latest on that breaking news.

See you in a moment.

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[02:25:00]

HUNTE: Welcome back. Let's have a quick recap on the latest from Iran.

President Donald Trump says the second crew member from a U.S. fighter jet shot down in Iran has been rescued. He posted on social media that the colonel sustained some injuries, but he is now safe and sound.

The post also said the rescue effort involved dozens of aircraft and he called the operation one of the most daring search and rescue efforts in U.S. history.

Iran announced on Friday that it shot down an F-15E fighter jet. Its other crew member was rescued earlier.

Let's bring in CNN's Eleni Giokos, who's standing by for us in Dubai. Thank you for being with me, Eleni.

I know it's early over there, but what has the reaction been like so far across the Gulf to this massive news of the U.S. rescue operation?

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDNT: Well, we haven't seen any official statements Ben, but importantly, this is such a significant news, because there was a race by Iran and the United States to find this U.S. crew member.

This is after U.S. Special Forces went into what we understand to be very dangerous, mountainous territory, and they were able to locate and then rescue this U.S. officer. Importantly, Iranian State T.V. had put out a message about a monetary prize, a prize for anybody that had the location or would find this U.S. crew member.

So, the last 36 hours was possibly what is considered a nightmare scenario for the U.S. military. President Trump also posting on social media some of the information that we actually understand to whatever has happened in terms of the timeline here. And he says, at my direction, U.S. military sent dozens of aircraft armed with the most lethal weapons in the world.

Speaking to military analysts this morning, they tell me that there's massive military architecture that goes behind this kind of rescue mission.

[02:30:04]

So, it's not only the military side, but it's intelligence and it's communications. It's also clearing the area before locating the U.S. crew member.

Importantly here, we also know that, you know, this mountainous area was, of course, very treacherous, and, importantly, it brings to question in terms of the capabilities on the Iranian side from an air perspective. And also a military analyst, in fact, Cedric Leighton, was telling me earlier, this shows air dominance by the United States, but not as superiority.

It also shows that Iranians ground troops were not able to locate this U.S. crew member. This is after the F-15 was downed on Friday. A few hours after the downing of that fight jet, we know that the first crew member was found as well as rescued. And also there was targeting of the Black Hawk helicopter that was able to leave Iranian territory.

But this was, of course, very treacherous situation. And, of course, President Trump talking about how dangerous, how daring this was, and, you know, we're waiting to hear more information on exactly how this rescue mission transpired. Ben?

HUNTE: Well, thank you for that update. And also how seriously are regional governments taking current US warnings around the Strait of Hormuz.

GIOKOS: Yes. This is -- I mean, this is possibly, you know, one of the most serious sort of days that we are going to be facing. We've had these timelines being extended before. Initially, it was 48 hours. Then President Trump delayed it by another five days. He opened another ten-day diplomatic window, which frankly comes to an end Monday, the 6th of April, that is tomorrow. He says all hell will break loose on Iran if they don't open up the Strait of Hormuz.

I also have to mention the oscillating messages from President Trump. He's initially said, you know, it's not our problem. The Strait of Hormuz needs to be opened up through a coalition of other governments that, you know, really rely on oil passing through the straits. And then he said, this strait is going to open up naturally.

Now, we're seeing this threat coming to the fore once again. In the meantime, Iran striking back with other threats, saying that the gates of hell will open up in the region if President Trump goes ahead with striking critical energy infrastructure in Iran. So, we're waiting to see.

But it's also quite interesting to take notes of some of the traffic that's been occurring in the Strait of Hormuz over the last few days where Iran is allowing some vessels to pass through. It seems that with through coordination directly with Iran, some vessels have been able to sort of either pay a toll or coordinate directly with Iran to pass through Iranian territorial waters.

So, it's a wait-and-see approach to see if President Trump once again extends this deadline. Ben?

HUNTE: Okay, Eleni Giokos in Dubai, thank you so much for now, speak to you again later, I'm sure.

We are joined now by retired U.S. Army Major General Mark MacCarley. He's the founder of the legal firm, McCarley and Rosen. Thank you so much for being with us again, sir. We appreciate it.

You have commanded troops and now work in the legal space. When you look at a U.S. operation like this inside Iranian territory, are there any immediate legal questions that it raises under international law?

MAJ. GEN. MARK MACCARLEY (RET.), U.S. ARMY: Yes, perhaps the question that will not be resolved for a long period of time. And that goes back to such questions as whether or not the president, when he initiated Operation Epic Fury, whether he was at that particular point obligated, or within days thereafter, after February 28th, to consult with Congress.

And then there are issues, which, again, will be debated. And those issues concern the extent to which in a campaign or a military operation such as this that do the antagonists, the U.S., and that's the focus of your question, and, of course, Iran, are they under international law allowed to attack schools, hospital, structures and facilities that have no relationship to the military effort, for instance, in this case, Iran.

But as I said, there's no clear decision whether or not this was right or wrong. What we really have to address at this point is how to resolve this whole conflict and resolve it for the benefit of the United States, firstly.

HUNTE: The U.S. is framing this as a mission -- a very successful mission to recover its own personnel, and we still don't have a clear picture of any civilian impact. How are operations like this typically justified though when they do take place inside another nation like this?

MACCARLEY: Well, it's not the first time that the United States has engaged in extraction and recovery of its pilots.

[02:35:02]

In fact, if you check the whole library of even major film productions, there are first rate films about recovery operations in Vietnam. There was a film made about a much more recent extraction recovery in of all places, Serbia, when the United States was interestingly flying the same aircraft, an older version of the F-15. We lost a pilot. A pilot was at least able to survive the crash and then was lost for days until finally recovered in the same manner but not with the degree of sophistication and the number of resources that we dedicated to this effort.

So, it's not unusual. In fact, the Air Force itself, and, of course, associated with the Army and the Navy, which provide additional capabilities, this is the Air Force creed. It is what the Air Force para rescue members of the Air Force, they are focused a hundred percent focused on the recovery of downed brothers and sisters, pilots, crew members of that aircraft.

So, they knew what they were doing. I'm confident plans in place for just this type of scenario. But what they pulled off with the other services was simply extraordinary. I have to say, it's a great day for the United States.

HUNTE: I love that. Okay.

U.S. officials say there may have been an exchange of fire with Iranian forces during the rescue. At what point does something like this risk crossing into a broader act of war, in your opinion?

MACCARLEY: I was addressing that a couple of minutes ago with Polo about the potential, when our Air Force para rescue and special operators from the multi-services Navy and Army found themselves at least briefly on the ground to meet with and to literally pick up, extract that airman, get him on a Pave Hawk, which is a Black Hawk, modified Black Hawk, and get him out of it out of Iran. But that could have gone seriously wrong.

And what I had speculated and discussed is if the Iranians, both their sort of territorial militia and their regular army, IGRC, if members of those Iranians had gotten close enough to the crash site, and then were intercepted, or our team, our para rescue men and women intersected with him, that would be the first ground war, quite frankly, ground conflict, face-to-face, between America and Iran. And so that's another what you would quite frankly call another escalation of the war, from what has been an aerial bombardment from space and aircraft could to become a ground war, coupled with all discussions about Strait of Hormuz and the utilization Kharg Island, for instance, and a couple of others that might appropriate for ground action. We hope that doesn't happen, but the plans are in place.

HUNTE: Okay. Well, we definitely will be seeing soon if that does happen. Major General Mark MacCarley, thank you so much for your time for now and for earlier as well. We appreciate it.

Onwards, the U.S. State Department says federal agents have detained the niece and grand niece of late Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani. In a post on X, Secretary of State Marco Rubio says, Soleimani's niece and her daughter were green card holders living, quote, lavishly in the U.S. He says he terminated their legal status and now both are in the custody of immigration officials with their removal from the U.S. pending.

The State Department called Soleimani's niece a, quote, outspoken supporter of the totalitarian terrorist regime in Iran.

Soleimani was a high ranking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander who was killed in a 2020 U.S. airstrike in Baghdad

Okay. We continue to learn more about the American pilot whose jet went down in Iran. Coming up, more on the effort that it took for the U.S. to rescue that pilot before the Iranians captured him.

See you in a moment.

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[02:40:00]

HUNTE: Okay, back to our top story out of Iran. A U.S. pilot whose fighter jet was shot down over Iran has been rescued. U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed the rescue in a post on social media. He said the aviator is, quote, safe and sound, after the U.S. conducted a high-stakes search operation. Another service member was rescued shortly after the crash. President Trump called the operation, quote, one of the most daring in U.S. history.

Some more news, Syria has temporarily closed one of its border crossings with Israel out of concerns it could be hit by airstrikes.

[02:45:03]

Israel has warned it will strike the facility, saying it's used by Hezbollah to smuggle weapons. But Syrian officials say the crossing northwest of the capital, Damascus, is used only for civilian transit.

More than a million people have had to flee their homes because of Israel's military operations in Lebanon. Some of them say the humanitarian lifeline that they rely on for pretty much everything is now drying up. Displaced families also have trouble getting clean water and medications. Aid groups have warned their struggling to keep up with the growing humanitarian needs.

Those families say they do want to go back home, but some may not get that option. A military official said Israel could demolish some towns and villages on the Lebanese side of the border. That's to create a buffer zone against Hezbollah.

All right, our breaking news coverage will continue as we monitor the latest details on the rescue of a U.S. airman whose fighter jet was shot down over Iran.

Stay with CNN.

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[02:50:00]

HUNTE: Welcome back. Let's have a quick recap on the latest from Iran.

Safe and sound, that is how President Donald Trump is now describing the condition of a second crew member from a U.S. fighter jet shot down in Iran. He posted on social media earlier that the airman has been rescued in an operation involved dozens of aircraft.

Iran announced on Friday that it shot down the U.S. F-15E Fighter Jet. Its other crew member was pulled out alive earlier.

Trump called the latest rescue effort one of the most daring operations of its kind in the U.S. history.

Italy's prime minister has wrapped up her two-day Middle East trip, the first by an E.U. leader since the U.S. and Israel launched their war with Iran.

CNN's Clare Sebastian has the details for us.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this visit to the Gulf by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni really underscores the scale of the economic emergency this war has caused. Italy normally gets about 10 percent of its total gas supplies from Qatar as liquefied natural gas, according to Reuters, and 12 percent of its oil imports from the Middle East.

So, Meloni is there despite ongoing attacks by Iran to show support to these countries. Italy has already provided defensive weapons to Gulf allies, but also critically to safeguard its own energy supplies. Meloni told the emir of Qatar Saturday, Italy was willing to contribute to the rehabilitation of Qatar's energy infrastructure heavily damaged by Iranian strikes.

Well, this also comes as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to lambast European allies for failing to come to the U.S.'s aid in this war. Meloni treading carefully in an interview Friday saying that while Europe has little to gain, she said, from a divergence with the United States, this time, we disagree.

And her discussions in the Gulf have also focused on deescalating the conflict, part of an accelerated international effort. The U.K. led a 40-plus country summit earlier this week to discuss ramping up the pressure on Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The NATO secretary general is due in Washington next week, though that was pre-planned.

And meanwhile, a U.N. resolution drafted by Bahrain that would essentially authorize the use of force by member states to reopen the strait, calling for, quote, all defensive means necessary, has hit a roadblock. It was supposed to go to a vote in the Security Council Saturday, but that has now been postponed to next week, diplomats tell Reuters, amid resistance reportedly from China and Russia, China's U.N. envoy warning that the use of force would inevitably lead to further escalation.

Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.

HUNTE: Worshipers are beginning to gather at St. Peters Square in Vatican City for Pop Leo's first Easter Sunday mass as pontiff. The service is set to begin in just a few hours.

On Saturday night, Pope Leo led the Easter vigil. That's a ceremony traditionally held as sundown, beginning in darkness. Worshipers lit candles to mark Jesus' passage from death to life, symbolizing the resurrection.

During the service, Pope Leo echoed his cause for people to work towards peace and reject the divisions of war.

The Artemis II mission is now closer to the moon than it is to Earth. NASA says the spacecraft has traveled two thirds of the way to their main goal. The astronauts are preparing for their historic flyby of the moon's far side. That is scheduled for Monday before it slingshots back to Earth.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, NASA released more stunning photos taken by the crew. Instead of focusing on the beauty of the Earth, this time the photos captured the moon as they draw closer to it. The beautiful images left the crew awestruck.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINA KOCH, ARTEMIS II MISSION SPECIALIST: Last night, we did have our first view of the moon far side, and it was just absolutely spectacular.

I think that one of the interesting things that happens when you look at a moon that inherently just looks different is like the darker parts just aren't quite in the right place. And something about you senses that is not the moon that I'm used to seeing. And sure enough, we got out our lunar targeting information and we matched up, and we're like, that is the dark side. That is something we have never seen before.

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[02:55:00]

HUNTE: All right. That's all I've got for you for now. Thanks for joining me and the team. I'm Ben Hunte in Atlanta. I'll, of course, be back with more CNN Newsroom after this quick break.

See you in a moment.

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