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Voters Hand Obran A Crushing Defeat; Trump Says U.S.-Iran Ceasefire Is Holding Well Amid Strait Of Hormuz Blockade; Oil Climbs Back Above $100 As U.S. Plans Hormuz Blockade; Trump Attacks Pope Leo As Being Weak On Crime, Terrible For Foreign Policy; U.S. CentCom: Naval Blockade in Hormuz to Begin Monday; Pope Leo Continues to Criticize War in Middle East; U.S. Carries Out Lethal Strikes on Two Alleged Drug Boats; India Mourns Loss of Beloved Bollywood Playback Singer. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired April 13, 2026 - 01:00   ET

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

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POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello and welcome to CNN newsroom. I'm Polo Sandoval in New York. And here's what's coming your way. Voters in Hungary have spoken loud and clear. Viktor Orban's 16-year hold on power. It's over.

And President Trump announcing plans for a U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. And oil markets are not happy at this hour. And the U.S. president also has some choice words for Pope Leo as the pontiff is set to begin a 10-day tour of Africa.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from New York, this is CNN Newsroom with Polo Sandoval.

SANDOVAL: Hi everybody. Let's begin with Viktor Orban's crushing defeat after holding power in Hungary for 16 years, the man who was set to replace Orban as Hungary's next prime minister, Peter Magyar. He greeted thousands of supporters celebrating his victory in Budapest, a record number of Hungarians coming out to vote in Sunday's parliamentary election.

Magyar said that he received 3.3 million votes. That would be the highest number that any Hungarian party has ever seen. He told supporters that together they, quote, liberated Hungary from the Orban regime.

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PETER MAGYAR, TISZA PARTY LEADER (through translator): We did it, Tisza and Hungary won this election, not in a small way, but in a big way and a very big way. Together we replaced the Orban regime. Together we liberated Hungary. We took back our country.

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SANDOVAL: Orban, a key ally of both Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, conceded defeats and congratulated the opposition leader.

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VICTOR ORBAN, HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTER (through translator): Dear friends, the election result is not final yet, but it is understandable and clear. The election result is painful for us, but clear. The responsibility and possibility of governing was not given to us. I have congratulated the winner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: CNN's Melissa Bell has the very latest from the capital city of Budapest.

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MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There is so much enthusiasm on the streets of Budapest tonight. People can barely believe that Peter Magyar has not only won the election, but that his party have achieved that 2/3 majority, super majority that will allow him, as he promised on the campaign trail, to return Hungary to the rule of law.

It is for the youngest amongst the crowds tonight that it is perhaps the most moving for many of them. They have never known anything but Viktor Orban's rule for as long as they can remember. And again, a certain sense of disbelief that this has been achieved. Some have spoken to us tonight of the fact that this feels revolutionary. It feels like they're living through a revolution, not an election result.

Peter Magyar himself has thanked them and spoken of the fact that he believes that it is for Hungary that not a small majority, but a very large majority has spoken tonight, has voted. Over the course of the day, 3.3 million Hungarians voted for his party. And they will now, he said, be able to put Hungary back on track.

We've also had people tonight coming up to us and apologizing for the last 16 years and the role that Hungary has played on the world stage and in the European Union. Minister Bell, CNN, Budapest.

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SANDOVAL: And earlier I did speak with CNN contributor Jill Dougherty, who was recently in Budapest speaking with leaders there. I asked her about the significance of this election. Here's what she said.

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JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: This is the biggest turnout, actually the biggest turnout since 1989, when communism ended in Hungary. And the thing that Melissa was talking about, this super majority, as it's called in Parliament, is really crucial because that was the system that Viktor Orban created. And they got now the opposition party, which will be now the party in power, is able to change the constitution and they can restore some of the protections for democracy that had existed before Viktor Orban started changing it.

And significantly, it can free up money that the EU was going to give to Hungary, but had been blocked for a while temporarily because of these violations of human rights that would be very helpful for the new incoming government because they need money.

And then finally, implications for Ukraine because Hungary was blocking, using its veto in the EU to block money. 90 Billion euros for Ukraine.

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And then of course we can talk about other places but implications certainly for Russia which supported Viktor Orban and for the United States, the administration of Donald Trump which also supported Viktor Orban.

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SANDOVAL: Let's turn now to the situation in the Middle East following the failed U.S.-Iran talks over the weekend. U.S. President Donald Trump ordering a blockade on all traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports at the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. Central Command saying that it will begin enforcing the maritime blockade starting on Monday evening. Local times about nine hours. Markets already reacting to this news with oil prices surpassing $100 a barrel again and the future of this trade of Hormuz and the war. The outlet is still unclear after those talk ended with no deal and the vice president back in the United States.

But President Trump says that the temporary ceasefire is holding. Well meanwhile the speaker of Iran's parliament posting this warning about the blockade. He writes with a message to the Trump administration. Enjoy the current pump figures with the so called blockade. Soon you'll be nostalgic for $4 to $5 gas.

Let's bring in CNN's Ivan Watson who joins us live from Hong Kong with more on this potential blockade here.

What we expect to be a when it's in position here or when it's active, what kind of vessels will be affected? And also just a little bit more on how the markets are reacting, Ivan?

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I don't think anybody's anticipating that the pressure on global energy supplies will ease up anytime soon. If you look at Lloyd's List, this kind of venerable shipping publication, it says that there was some movement of ships through the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend. A bit more on Saturday and it produced on Sunday.

And it reports that since President Trump's announcement that he will be imposing a naval blockade, shipping has ground to a complete halt. And this is from a pre-war levels of more than 100 ships crossing through that narrow channel a day. So, Iran has effectively stopped traffic except for ships that either

paid $2 million a ship to Iran for safe passage or some governments that had better relations with Iran. And President Trump has threatened to use the U.S. Navy to stop any other ships from going through.

One of the bizarre contradictions of nearly six weeks of U.S.-Israeli bombardment of Iran was that Iran was actually exporting more crude oil during this period than it had been per day in the three months prior to this. Because of the pressure on global oil prices, the Trump administration allowed Iran to evade sanctions that the U.S. had imposed and allowed it to export legally oil that had already been loaded onto crude oil tankers.

So Iran was making money while the Israelis and the Americans were bombing it. And now what President Trump has signaled is that he is going to choke all revenue going to Iran through the export of oil or natural gas. And that, of course, will have impacts felt all around the world.

And as the Iranian parliament speaker pointed out on the pump prices at the pump at the gas station for average Americans.

SANDOVAL: Yes, the very direct threat there against the U.S. coming from the Iranians. And meanwhile, Ivan, as you know, the bombardment, or at least the offensive from the Israelis in southern Lebanon that continues, I mean, what can you tell us about that?

WATSON: Sure. Israel has made it clear that the two-week ceasefire that the U.S. and Iran agreed to does not extend, in the Israeli government's opinion, to Lebanon. So the war, if anything, has gotten more deadly. Recall that on Wednesday at the beginning of the ceasefire, Israel carried out 100 airstrikes in 10 minutes and killed more than 300 people across Lebanon, including at least 30 children.

On Sunday alone, at least 35 people were killed in Lebanon by Israeli airstrikes. Among the casualties was a paramedic working with the Lebanese Red Cross. This was Hassan Badawi that the Lebanese Red Cross says was killed by an Israeli drone in the area of Beit Yahoun.

There were also other incidents. United Nations peacekeepers on the ground in southern Lebanon, they say that an Israeli Merkava tank repeatedly rammed a clearly marked United Nations peacekeeping vehicle.

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And the United Nations peacekeepers also say that Israeli troops have fired warning shots that have actually hit United Nations peacekeeping vehicles. The Israeli military says it's also seen dozens of rockets fired from Hezbollah that Iran-backed militia into Israeli airspace. There are negotiations expected between Israeli and Lebanese diplomats in Washington on Tuesday. Polo.

SANDOVAL: Ivan Watson live in Hong Kong. Thank you so much for those updates. Let's keep the conversation going now and discuss more of this with

Ali Fathollah-Nejad. He's a founder and director of the center for Middle East and Global Order. He joins us live from Berlin. Ali, welcome. Thank you so much for joining us.

ALI FATHOLLAH-NEJAD, FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR MIDDLE EAST AND GLOBAL ORDER.: Thanks for having me.

SANDOVAL: Before we get to the failed talks from this weekend, maybe we could pick up where my colleague Ivan Watson left off as he previewed the next round of negotiations this time though between Israel and Lebanon. I mean, could we expect the failure of the talks from this weekend to maybe offer some insight on how the talks could potentially go in Washington in a couple on Tuesday?

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: Well, when it comes to the front between Israel and Lebanon, it's very clear that the Israelis have tried to push back against Hezbollah and complete the project of dismantling Hezbollah. This was inside into the flesh of the Iranian government because according to the understanding of the Saudi Republic, the ceasefire also entailed cessation of hostilities on all fronts, including in Lebanon.

So this is one of the major issues. But I don't believe that the Israeli campaign is going to stop because of that and we're going to surely see the continuation of those of this military campaign.

SANDOVAL: And when we look at the failed talks between the U.S. and Iran, the ones that were just talking about from this weekend, if we do see a return to direct talks, further diplomatic talks, where do you see the most hope for a possible breakthrough between the U.S. and Iran?

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: Well, things are getting much more complicated now with the U.S. announcing a naval blockade against Iran, a de facto oil blockade against Iran. This of course, is intended to increase the pressure upon Tehran to first of all do what it said during the ceasefire, that is to reopen the Strait of Hormuz one and two, to concede to some of the core U.S. demands.

As we know, President Trump is very much interested in pushing back against Iran's nuclear program, something that the Iranians have not been able or willing to deliver when it comes to the demand of zero enrichment, but also the handing over of the stockpile of highly range of highly enriched uranium.

Also, another core U.S. demand is that Iran stops support for proxies in the region including Hezbollah in Lebanon. So the positions are quite, you know, far apart. So it's not really a surprise that, you know, the talks in Islamabad didn't lead to an initial success.

So we're going to enter a new phase of the war with this naval blockade and we're going to see what kind of, you know, ramifications and dynamics are going to, you know, going to come from that.

SANDOVAL: Ali, I have about 60 seconds left for our conversation with that. I'm wondering if you think that the Iranian delegation's inability to secure a deal this weekend, if maybe that leads to more infighting within the regime itself, just offer a window of what may be happening inside Iran right now.

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: I mean, what we've seen over the last few weeks has been an intensification of infighting. There has been tremendous pressure from regime elements vis-a-vis Ghalibaf, the speaker of Parliament who has been heading the Iranian delegation in negotiations with the United States. Now he is coming back empty handed. He is being insulted by those domestic critics to be an accommodationist.

So it's really getting more complicated for any figures within Tehran to continue diplomacy with the United States. But also at the same time, there seems to be some urgency within the Islamic Republic to seek some talks to try to get frozen assets free to get -- to try to get sanctions relief.

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So there may be an economic urgency. And this economic urgency is also directly connected to U.S. plans for a oil blockade. So which is going to target Iranian oil export to China.

SANDOVAL: Wow. That's fascinating as it is revealing. Ali Fathollah- Nejad, thank you so much for all that insight. Appreciate your time.

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: You're welcome.

SANDOVAL: The war of words between the leader of the U.S. and the leader of the world's Catholics is heating up. Just ahead, President Trump slamming Pope Leo as the pontiff continues to call for peace.

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SANDOVAL: Pope Leo continues speaking out against attacks by the U.S. and Israel in the Middle East as the pontiff calls for peace. American President Donald Trump hitting back against the leader of the world's Catholics this weekend.

In a social media post, Trump said that Pope Leo is weak on crime and terrible foreign policy, he said. Well, later when boarding Air Force One, the president said that he's not a big fan of the pontiff. Earlier this month, the pope called Trump's threat to destroy Iranian civilization unacceptable.

Pope Leo currently preparing to leave on a trip to four African countries on Sunday. He spoke out against -- he spoke out once against the, quote, madness of war. Let's get the latest now by heading live to Christopher Lamb in Rome, preparing to also travel. Christopher, it's wonderful to have you.

Before you bring us up to speed on the future travels of the Holy Father, maybe you could just tell us if perhaps the Vatican is responding to this latest Trump tirade. CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: What the Vatican has to

say about this, we're about to get on board the plane to depart to Algeria. The journalists are traveling with Pope Leo. So there is expectation that something might be said when we on board.

Look, I think the broader context here is that the remarks by President Trump really don't have an obvious precedent. Can't remember the last time the president of the United States attacked a pope in this way. But of course, Pope Leo has in recent days and weeks been more outspoken on the war in Iran.

And more broadly, he is something of a spiritual and diplomatic counterweight to President Trump. His style of leadership, his priorities are in contrast to the U.S. President. And of course, he's about to travel to Algeria. He's going to be the first pope to visit this Muslim majority country.

Again, the contrast between an American pope in Algeria, a Muslim country at a time when the U.S. has been engaged in a military operation in Iran is a stark contrast. So we're waiting to hear what the pope and the Vatican might say.

But I think we can see that Pope Leo's voice and his remarks and what he's been saying about the war is cutting through to the U.S. and obviously, President Trump has responded in a very strong and unprecedented way.

SANDOVAL: CNN's Christopher Lamb, thank you so much for that update. Safe travels. And we'll be looking for your updates as Pope Leo begins his first major trip overseas this year.

We're going to have much more on the state of the fragile cease fire in the Middle East after the break, including latest reactions to President Donald Trump's threat to blockade the Strait of Hormuz.

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SANDOVAL: You're watching CNN Newsroom. I'm Polo Sandoval. And the U.S. is making a play for the Strait of Hormuz in the wake of the failed peace talks Iran this weekend. President Donald Trump announcing a blockade on all traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports in the vital waterway. U.S. Central Command says it will begin enforcing the maritime blockade beginning on Monday evening local time. So in about nine hours or so.

President Trump also saying that the U.S. will prevent passage for any ship that has paid a toll to Tehran.

All right, let's get some analysis now and head over to CNN political and national security analyst David Sanger. He's also the author of the book "New Cold War: China's Rise, Russia's Invasion and America's Struggle to Defend the West," just out in paperback. David, thank you so much for joining us again.

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Great to be with you, Polo.

SANDOVAL: So look, the ceasefire still in place. There's still some time in it. Do you see some room for talks still?

SANGER: There could be room for talks. Obviously, the president's theory of the case here is that the blockade will change Iran's fundamental view. Once we had a chance to dig into what broke up the talks with Vice President Vance and the Iranian delegation, it seemed to be the list of demands that the U.S. has long had and that Iran has long rejected, starting with no nuclear stockpile, no ability to produce nuclear weapons, no blockade or even declaration of control over the strait, and no support for the proxies, Hezbollah, Hamas and so forth.

And it looked like Iran rejected all of those. So I think, you know, the question is that no one's broken off talks, but clearly the president's trying to use the big stick.

SANDOVAL: When we talk about the imminent blockade. Do you think that it could result in a prolonged closure of that Strait of Hormuz? And if so, how is that going to further destabilize markets?

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I mean, looking at the numbers, it looks like we're already seeing oil prices top $100 a barrel again.

SANGER: Sure. Look, can't be any more prolonged than it's been in the past 40-something days, right? I mean since the Iranians sealed it off, the only ships that have been getting through are pretty much Iran's own ships, and a few who paid this large toll.

But if you look carefully at the Central Command's statement, they are not turning off and blockading all traffic, they're just turning off and blockading the Iranian traffic.

It's a little bit different than what the president said. So we'll see. It takes -- it takes all that Iranian oil off of the market.

SANDOVAL: Now, without a doubt, that's an important detail. And then on Sunday, President Trump also told Fox News that he's willing to target Iran's power plants and bridges after those talks collapsed in Pakistan.

In your assessment, do you think Iran's regime actually feels threatened by that?

SANGER: I don't know whether they do or not. I mean, that was certainly the threat that he was making prior to the ceasefire.

But there's a fairly reasonable case to be made that it's a war crime. And I think the first question that the U.S. government needs to ask is, does the U.S. want to be the country that does that? Because those facilities are primarily civilian facilities.

So, you know, when you think about this, one way to do it would be pretend for a moment that what you're hearing is not President Trump threatened to do X, but Vladimir Putin threatened to do X. And if we heard that he was going after power plants, which he has been in Ukraine, think about how we'd react.

SANDOVAL: Yes. When you -- when you see all the messages that we've already come across from the regime since yesterday, it doesn't really seem to be a regime that is at least publicly intimidated right now by what we're hearing from the White House.

If I could, just in the last few seconds I have with you, maybe just pivot over to one of the president's latest attacks.

It's now aimed at the head of the Catholic Church. President Trump saying that Pope Leo should stop catering to the radical left. We should remind viewers that the pontiff has previously called the president's threat of wiping out an entire civilization in Iran unacceptable.

What else is fueling Trump's latest wave of displeasure with the Vatican?

SANGER: Well, he clearly feels that this pope, an American pope is taking issue very directly and very strongly specifically on these human rights kind of issues that we were just discussing before.

But when you go into some of the phrases that he used, it's the kind of thing he does sometimes to attack local politicians. He said at one point that the Pope is weak on crime.

I thought that was sort of an interesting case to be making against the Pope.

SANDOVAL: Yes. Against crime -- the Vatican, who knows? He didn't really elaborate.

SANGER: Yes. And Vatican City doesn't strike me as a big crime zone right now. But, you know, maybe I'm missing something.

SANDOVAL: We'll see. We'll see what else he says.

David Sanger, as always, really appreciate the conversation. Thank you for your time.

SANGER: Great to be with you.

SANDOVAL: Well, five people have been killed in two U.S. military strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the eastern Pacific. U.S. Southern Command says that the strikes took place on Saturday.

The first strike killed two and left one survivor -- incredibly. Well, the second strike on a separate boat killed three others. Southern Command says the U.S. Coast Guard was immediately notified to begin searching for the survivor.

At least 168 people have been killed in similar strikes by the U.S. military since Operation Southern Spear started last year. Well, India mourning the loss of a national treasure. Ahead here on

CNN NEWSROOM, the tributes that are pouring in for singer Asha Bhosle, who died this weekend.

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SANDOVAL: India is mourning the death of legendary singer Asha Bhosle. She was famous across generations for her music and countless Bollywood movies in several languages. Her son confirmed the 92-year- old's death on Saturday in Mumbai.

During her decades-long career, Bhosle was nominated for two Grammy awards and also given India's top arts honor.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi joining the flood of tributes saying that Bhosle touched countless hearts around the world.

Listen to this tribute from one of her fellow artists.

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USHA UTHUP, INDIAN SINGER: Ashadi (ph) was one in a million. This is the end of an era, an era of iconic work, biggest volume of work, quality and quantity.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There can be no one like her.

UTHUP: And I'm so, so -- what can I say -- so glad to say that I got a chance to be with her.

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SANDOVAL: The Miami skyline is now missing a huge hotel after it was demolished on Sunday. Look at this.

You may have been able to make out some cheers in the background as the Mandarin Oriental Hotel came down in what was reportedly the city's largest implosion in more than a decade.

A developer told CNN affiliate WFOR that this implosion took years of planning because it happened on a tiny, manmade island just off the mainland.

Two new towers with hotel rooms and residences are now planned for that site.

And with those pictures, we do want to thank you so much for joining me. I'm Polo Sandoval in New York.

"WORLDSPORT" is next. Then the news continues with my colleague Rosemary Church at the top of the next hour.

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