Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

U.S.-Iran Ceasefire Ends Soon, Another Round of Talks Uncertain; Canadian Tourist Killed at the Famous Teotihuacan Pyramids of Mexico, Other Tourists Wounded. Aired 3-3:45a ET

Aired April 21, 2026 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church, just ahead.

New talks with Iran remain up in the air as the clock winds down on a temporary ceasefire.

Investigators begin searching for a motive in a deadly shooting at one of Mexico's World Heritage sites.

And is A.I. too English-centric? Two Indian startups are building more inclusive models that could challenge Silicon Valley's one-size-fits- all approach.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Good to have you with us.

We begin this hour in the Middle East where the clock is ticking on a ceasefire deadline and there's uncertainty on the status of potential talks between the U.S. and Iran. Sources say U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance is expected to travel to Pakistan today to take part in a second round of negotiations. But the situation remains fluid with heated public rhetoric by both the U.S. and Iran.

President Donald Trump, who says the ceasefire ends Wednesday evening Washington time, insists Iran will negotiate and warns of consequences if they don't. Iran's foreign ministry says Iran will decide on how to proceed, claiming ceasefire violations and provocative actions by the U.S. are obstacles to diplomacy. Iran also vowing retaliation for this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Motor vessel Touska, vacate your engine room. We're prepared to subject you to disabling fire.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: The U.S. military there firing at then seizing an Iranian flag cargo ship it says was attempting to violate the naval blockade of Iranian ports. Night footage captured Marines boarding the vessel which remains in U.S. custody. Iran is now calling for the immediate release of the ship.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is following developments from Abu Dhabi, she joins us now live. Good to see you, Paula.

Still no word on whether Iran will take part in this second round of peace talks even as that ceasefire deadline looms. So what more are you learning and what happens if the deadline passes with no deal?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, the short answer to that is we don't know. We have heard a number of different scenarios from the U.S. President Donald Trump. One of the most recent in a phone interview with Bloomberg, he pointed out that he was asked if there is no deal, does that mean that the fighting continues immediately? He says if there's no deal, I would certainly expect it.

But earlier in the day, he had been asked the same question five times and had given three different answers. So we simply don't know what would happen if there is no deal by this deadline. It's worth pointing out the deadline has been shifted somewhat.

We believe that the two week ceasefire would end Tuesday evening, Washington time. According to President Trump, it is now Wednesday evening, Washington time to give a little more leeway to see if those talks could actually happen. So as far as we have heard from people familiar with this situation, there will be a delegation headed up by the U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance heading to Islamabad today.

Now we have heard from the White House as well that this is remaining fluid when it comes to this timing because of this increased rhetoric between the U.S. and Iran. Of course, that seizure of the Iranian flag ship is causing problems from Tehran's point of view, saying that this, as they put it, aggression is going to potentially derail and create some major obstacle to continuing diplomacy.

But as far as the U.S. and Trump administration is concerned, these talks could happen on Wednesday. Again, that timing could be fluid. The White House saying we expect the delegation to be on the road soon, but unclear when.

Now when it comes to the Iranian point of view, they have pointed to that seizure of the ship as being one of the major obstacles to being able to sit down and talk.

[03:05:02]

We did hear from sources on Sunday that they were planning to send a delegation -- a same delegation headed up by the Parliament Speaker. But of course, a lot has changed since Sunday. Now, when it comes to the Parliament Speaker, Mohammad Ghalibaf, he has posted on social media, I'll read part of it to you. He says, Trump, quote, "seeks to turn this negotiating table - in his

own imagination - into a table of surrender or to justify renewed warmongering. We do not accept negotiations under the shadows of threats. And in the past two weeks, we have prepared to reveal new cards on the battlefield."

So when it comes to the Iranian side, there have been a number of statements by different officials by the military pointing out that their demands have remained consistent, they are the same. It is the Trump administration that is moving the goalposts. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Our thanks to Paula Hancocks joining us live with that report from Abu Dhabi.

Well joining me now from London is Jasmine El-Gamal, founder and CEO of Averos Strategies and former Middle East adviser at the U.S. Defense Department. I appreciate you being with us.

JASMINE EL-GAMAL, FOUNDER AND CEO, AVEROS STRATEGIES, FORMER MIDDLE EAST ADVISER, U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT, AND PODCAST HOST, "THE VIEW FROM HERE": Thanks for having me, Rosemary. Good morning.

CHURCH: Good morning to you too.

And as the ceasefire deadline approaches, we don't even know if Iran plans to be at the negotiating table in Pakistan with Tehran now calling for the immediate release of that cargo ship that the U.S. fired on and seized on Sunday. How likely is it, do you think, that Iran will send a delegation in the end?

EL-GAMAL: Well, I think everything is so unclear right now.

I mean, I think you and Paula were just talking earlier and it's very confusing. There was already a gulf, a huge gulf between the two sides when it just came simply to the issues on the table and how far apart the two parties were in terms of their demands. And it seems like every few days and every week we keep adding more complicating factors to these negotiations, which were already going to be very difficult.

So Trump's public statements are causing huge distress, huge confusion. He has this habit of calling reporters, as you know, and having chats with them, almost as if he's testing out ideas. Some people may, you know, if we want to be very magnanimous towards the President, we could call it strategic ambiguity, but others say he really has no idea what he's doing.

Regardless, Rosemary, the end result is the same, which is that it's really throwing a wrench in these negotiations. The Iranians seem to want to sit down and just start talking about the issues, whereas the President keeps going back-and-forth and tries to make it seem like the Iranians have already capitulated and surrendered before they even get to that negotiating table.

I will say quickly that one other new complicating factor are reports that we're hearing that now the Iranians within themselves are being split between the more hardline IRGC, who seem to be against the negotiations, and the diplomatic element, the foreign minister, Aragchi, and Ghalibaf, the Speaker of the Parliament. And that's adding another wrench into the negotiations as well.

CHURCH: Very interesting there. And of course, Iran says it won't negotiate under the shadow of threats and then issued a threat of its own, saying Tehran will reveal new cards on the battlefield. What does that mean, do you think? And what might it signal?

EL-GAMAL: Well, I mean, it goes back to something that, you know, you and I have talked about before, the clock, right? I mean, it's a battle of wills, and it's a battle of timelines. Who can withstand pressure for longer? And who can exact a higher cost on the other?

And that's what we're seeing play out here.

I know that the two sides know that continued war is not good for either of them. You know, that's clear. But they neither seems prepared to make the first concession in a way that would make them seem like they have capitulated or surrendered.

So when Iran agreed to open up the Strait of Hormuz, they understood from the Pakistanis that Trump would in turn lift the blockade, for example. That didn't happen. And Trump made it seem like Iran had surrendered.

So that kind of public display of superiority, if you want to use that word, by President Trump in the negotiations, it doesn't really match the real leverage that the U.S. has vis-a-vis Iran. There's an imbalance in the sort of what's really happening on the ground, and what's being played out on social media and in public statements.

[03:10:03]

So at the end of the day, just to take away all the confusing statements and sort of the fog of war, the problem still remains that the two sides are very far apart on the negotiating table, and each of them are going to have to make certain concessions. And the best way to do that is to negotiate quietly, away from the glare of headlines, and come to a framework agreement, a broad framework, and then start working out the details later.

CHURCH: So in the end, what is it going to take?

To open up or reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and to resolve the other big issue, of course, of how long Iran should suspend uranium enrichment, because sources revealed that the U.S. wanted it 20 years, and Iran was willing to go as high as five years. So a long way apart.

EL-GAMAL: Well, in these types of negotiations, Rosemary, it's impossible to actually come up with an agreement right away. You know, one other problem is that it seems like the Trump administration is just extremely impatient to resolve these really, really complicated issues. Now during the JCPOA, back when I was in government, it took many months for the Obama administration to negotiate that JCPOA, it was over a year. And they had to do so much in the background to prepare the American

public for the deal, to prepare Congress to brief, you know, various interest groups around the country. I mean, it was a months-long process. And so I think there's a misunderstanding, really, when you think about it, on the part of the Trump administration as to how difficult these negotiations are going to be.

The best thing, like I said, that they could hope for, which is, you know, something very normal in these types of complex negotiations, is putting that framework together to say, okay, here are the five things that we are going to now spend the next few months negotiating. You know, these are the topics on the table. Because as you know, even the topics are not in agreement that should be on the table.

But to answer your question about where we go from here, look, I think it's about pressure. I think it's about which party starts to feel more pressure in the coming days and weeks and decides that they really can't afford to go back to escalation and war.

On the Iranian side, that pressure is economic. And on the U.S. side, that pressure is discontent in the polls, the global markets, and pressure on President Trump generally to wrap this war up before he goes to China and before the midterms, of course, and the period of time when people start talking about what they're going to do for the midterms, the campaign periods.

CHURCH: Jasmine El-Gamal, thank you so much for joining us. I appreciate it.

EL-GAMAL: Thanks for having me.

CHURCH: Ukraine's ambassador to the U.S. says attacks on Russian oil targets are a way of enforcing sanctions after Washington granted Moscow yet another waiver for its oil. Ukraine struck more targets over the weekend. The waiver was issued to ease pressure on oil prices caused by U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

CNN's Jim Sciutto spoke with the ambassador about this issue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIM SCIUTTO, CHIEF U.S. SECURITY ANALYST: Ukraine, of course, has continued to attack with success Russian oil facilities here. Is that, in effect, oil sanctions by another means? I mean, is that deliberate to increase those attacks while these relaxation's have taken place?

OLGA STEFANISHYNA, UKRAINIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.S.: Well, I would say that, you know, this is a way of enforcing sanctions. And that means that, the sanctions have been imposed and the shadow fleet has obtained its name because it's the huge mean and instrument of evasion of sanctions, avoiding bypassing the legal restrictions in so many countries across the world.

So this fleet is operating illegally. But also the other thing we know that this shadow fleet brings the money, which is being a source of a fuel of war.

And the war right now in Ukraine is the attacks against civilians. It's the killing civilians, it's not just a front line, it's mostly the massive attacks against civilian people. So any source of Russian fuel, Russian government gains resources from is a direct fuel of war.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Still to come, a shooting at the Teotihuacan pyramids in Mexico has left one person dead. The latest details, just ahead.

[03:15:03]

Plus, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says he's sorry for appointing the scandal-ridden ex-ambassador to the U.S. And he's telling Parliament how it happened.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: An eyewitness captured the moment a gunman opened fire on a crowd of tourists visiting the historic Teotihuacan pyramids in Mexico.

(VIDEO PLAYING)

Authorities say the suspect shot and killed a Canadian woman before taking his own life, at least 13 people were injured. The pyramids are about 30 miles from Mexico City, attracting millions of tourists each year.

[03:20:06]

The shooting happened as Mexico faces scrutiny over security as it prepares to welcome millions of visitors for the World Cup this summer.

The British Prime Minister is apologizing to lawmakers over the scandal involving Peter Mandelson, the former U.K. ambassador to the U.S. Keir Starmer insists he did not know that Mandelson failed a security vetting before he was appointed.

CNN's Clare Sebastian has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Once again, the British Prime Minister has had to come here to Parliament to face the fallout of his decision to appoint Peter Mandelson, a veteran politician with ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, to the post of Britain's ambassador to the United States.

All these latest revelations come seven months after Starmer sacked Mandelson. A revelation published by a British newspaper last week that Mandelson had actually failed his security vetting ahead of taking up the post in Washington. But the Foreign Office officials overruled that failure so that the

appointment could go ahead. Well Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, over and over again repeating in the House of Commons that he had had no idea about this and if he had known, he would never have appointed Mandelson in the first place.

KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: A deliberate decision was taken to withhold that material from me. A deliberate decision was taken to withhold that material. This was not a lack of asking, this wasn't an oversight, it was a decision taken not to share that information on repeated occasions.

SEBASTIAN: You can hear there the backlash was fierce. Members of Parliament questioning not only the assertion that Starmer didn't know about the vetting but his overall judgment in making the appointment of Peter Mandelson.

KEMI BADENOCH, BRITISH CONSERVATIVE PARTY LEADER: The Right Honorable Gentleman's defense is that he, a former Director of Public Prosecutions, is so lacking in curiosity that he chose to ask no questions about the vetting process. He asked no questions about Mandelson's relationship with Epstein, he asked no questions about the security risk Mandelson posed. Apparently he didn't even speak to Peter Mandelson before his appointment, it doesn't appear that he asked any questions at all.

SEBASTIAN: All of this is a moment of high risk for the British Prime Minister, coming in at already weak approval ratings and ahead of key local elections in just over two weeks' time. The saga continues on Tuesday when the Foreign Office official that Starmer has sacked over this latest scandal, Ollie Robbins, will come here to this building to give his version of events to a Parliamentary Committee.

Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Oil prices are reacting ahead of potential talks between the U.S. and Iran and as Taiwan continues to restrict access to the Strait of Hormuz. The latest in a live report just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom," I'm Rosemary Church. I want to check today's top stories for you.

A gunman opened fire on a crowd of tourists visiting the historic Teotihuacan Pyramids in Mexico. Authorities say the suspect shot and killed a Canadian woman before taking his own life, at least 13 people were injured.

A second round of direct talks between Israel and Lebanon are expected to be held Thursday in Washington D.C., that is according to both an Israeli and a U.S. official. Lebanon's President says one of the objectives is to end the Israeli occupation of southern areas. Israeli troops have not withdrawn from southern Lebanon during the 10-day ceasefire which expires at the end of this week.

U.S. President Donald Trump is insisting Iran is going to negotiate ahead of anticipated talks. Sources say Vice President J.D. Vance is expected to travel to Pakistan today to take part in a second round of negotiations, but the situation remains fluid. Iran's Foreign Minister says Iran will decide on how to proceed as the ceasefire deadline looms.

Well we are watching oil prices decline ahead of those potential talks in Pakistan. CNN's Eleni Giokos is tracking developments from Dubai, she joins us now. Good to see you, Eleni.

So, what is the latest on those oil prices and of course market reaction as well as expectations about what will likely happen in the Strait of Hormuz and at those talks?

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Very consequential questions and I think if I had to sort of define how everyone is feeling right now it's a sense of confusion and that's because we've seen contradictions, we've seen confusing messages from both sides and also a maritime confrontation frankly that has emerged.

You know on Friday there was so much excitement around the grand declaration by Iran saying that the Strait of Hormuz is open. We saw oil prices coming under significant pressure.

Saturday everything changes. You know there were Iran gunboats that were firing towards tankers on Saturday. Sunday then we saw CENTCOM seizing an Iranian tanker.

So a lot has changed but let's check in on the WTI and Brent crude prices that are slightly soft today and that's frankly on the back of potential talks in Islamabad and whether they can find some kind of off-ramp.

[03:30:05]

Now it is at this point wishful thinking for an ultimate breakthrough between the two sides but there's hope for some incremental moves for more negotiation. Brent crude now at $95 a barrel, it is down 0.04 of a percent. WTI the U.S. benchmark is sitting just short of $87 a barrel.

If we look at physical prices Rosemary it tells a very different story because there is a shortage of physical oil on the international market and importantly if I look at what the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company's CEO has been saying Sultan Al Jaber he says you know it's been 50 days almost 60, 600 million barrels of oil has been blocked so far.

So getting your head around 600 million barrels of oil has been blocked from getting into the international market and it really squares up with what we hear from the International Energy Agency says that in less than six weeks Europe could be facing jet fuel shortages and we've seen this really emerging at a global level.

If we look at what's happening in the Strait of Hormuz because that's really where the flash point is right now it is Iran's bargaining chip it's going to be a consequential part of the conversations in Islamabad. We also saw CENTCOM saying that they've been able to block 27 vessels from passing through the naval blockade even though they've expanded that naval blockade to be able to indict ships anywhere in the seas. We also saw the seizing of that Iranian tanker on Sunday.

Now Iran is pushing back and saying that the U.S. this is U.S. escalation of course complicating what could potentially happen in those talks Rosemary but this is really significant you've got a double blockade shippers are very reticent. Iran also posting footage saying there are vessels that are passing through the strait but you've got to remember that's with the Iranian authorization that's in the Iranian designated routes and also potentially paying a toll fee for shippers right now that could be a compliance issue down the line.

So for now when you see this double blockade it means that not enough oil is heading through into international markets and it means status quo unless some kind of breakthrough regarding this international waterway is made hopefully in the next few days but remains to be seen.

CHURCH: Yes, that is the hope of course. Eleni Giokos, joining us live from Dubai with that report, I appreciate it.

Elon Musk is under sharp scrutiny in France. After the break, we will hear the latest on the slew of accusations his company is facing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:35:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back everyone, a look at your business headlines now.

American importers can now apply for tariff refunds they are owed $166 billion plus interest. U.S. Customs and Border Protection estimates the process will take 60 to 90 days. Importers of record can apply through the CBP website but not all tariffs are refundable just yet.

President Trump's pick to head the Federal Reserve will have a confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee today. The President hopes to have Kevin Warsh confirmed by mid-May when the term ends for current Fed Chair Jerome Powell. But Senate Republican Tom Tillis says he will block Warsh's nomination until the Justice Department drops a criminal probe into Powell.

Apple CEO Tim Cook is stepping down after more than a decade leading the company. During his tenure Cook oversaw Apple's growth into a $4 trillion company. His replacement will be John Ternus, a 25-year veteran at Apple and its Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering; the leadership change will go into effect on September 1.

Elon Musk's social media platform X is facing growing scrutiny from governments and regulators around the world. In France that has evolved into a full-scale criminal investigation. CNN's Melissa Bell has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: No sign of Elon Musk in Paris today after being asked by French authorities for a voluntary interview. This as part of an investigation into X that has over the course of the last more than year now expanded and deepened every step of the way and included at one point a raid on the offices of the company here in Paris.

French authorities are looking into initially an investigation that was kicked off because of allegations of algorithmic manipulation. It was then expanded to look into allegations around the A.I. chat bot Grok and allegations of the dissemination of holocaust denial material and child abuse material and it has gone so far now as to explore the possibility that X may have been complicit in the dissemination of sexual abuse material.

Now despite the gravity of the accusations and the expansion of that probe X has so far very little cooperated with investigators even though the company has continued to deny any wrongdoing.

[03:40:01]

Elon Musk himself has repeatedly tweeted about the fact that he believes that this is an investigation that is politically motivated, he has by choosing not to be in Paris on Monday left these investigators now with a question of what they do next.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Too often western A.I. overlooks diverse voices and contexts, but Indian innovators are working to add voices, languages and perspectives to disrupt that one-size-fits-all approach. CNN's Hanako Montgomery explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Is A.I. too English centric? A few months ago I was filming at the India A.I. impact summit. A big topic of conversation at the event was A.I. being built in India for India.

So let's break that down.

Can A.I. developed in the global south in countries like India really offer something different and more useful than what's coming out of Silicon Valley? There are over 7000 languages worldwide. The most well-known large

language models and A.I. chatbots are trained only on a fraction of them.

In India alone there are 22 major languages recognized and over 19,000 dialects. Experts say it's critical for A.I. to be inclusive and accessible especially in a country this diverse. It also works to capture cultural nuances that global models might miss.

That's where companies like corover.ai and Karya step in.

Corover.ai is an Indian startup that builds multilingual virtual assistants powered by its own large language model called Bharat GPT. It's created specifically for Indian audiences. As of January 2026 ChatGPT says it supports at least 10 major Indian languages whereas corover.ai says it supports 14 major Indian languages through voice and all 22 through text.

Karya takes another approach. The non-profit employs rural Indians to build data sets that are used for training A.I. in under-resourced languages.

These are just two of many A.I. startups aiming to make artificial intelligence more inclusive leaving no one behind.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: There's a new way to count down to midnight in New York's Times Square. Each night until April 30th an installation called Morning Again begins at 11:57 p.m. The three minute long video designed by Japanese artist Tomokazu Matsuyama spans 96 digital billboards transforming the cultural hub in a dazzling display of light motion and color.

It was inspired by the moment when one day bleeds into the next evoking themes of unity, diversity and New York's vibrant energy.

Matsuyama says quote "it's not about the color of our skin, it's not about gender, it's not about nationalities. We are here in New York to be a global citizen."

I want to thank you so much for your company, I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. "World Sport" is coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WORLD SPORT)