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Israel, Iran Trade Missile Attacks; Eight People Killed in a Major Earthquake in Southern Mindanao, Philippines; Guadalajara Prepares for World Cup Despite Cartel Violence. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired June 08, 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]

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UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is CNN Breaking News.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Hello and welcome to CNN Newsroom. I'm Polo Sandoval, live in New York.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN MANAGING EDITOR, ABU DHABI: I'm Becky Anderson, live from our Middle East Programming Headquarters here in Abu Dhabi, where the time is 11:00 in the morning. And we are monitoring a new escalation in the Middle East as Israel and Iran trade missile attacks.

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Sirens sounded in Israel earlier as the military there said it identified a new wave of missiles launched from Iran towards Israel. This follows Israeli strikes on Iran with Tehran or Iranian media quoting an official saying a petrochemical plant was amongst those targets hit.

This latest escalation began on Sunday after Israel intercepted missiles launched by Iran for the first time since early April. Iran claims it struck an airbase in northern Israel and has threatened further attacks if Israel continues its offensive in Lebanon.

For more, we are joined now by CNN's Fred Pleitgen, live from the capital of Iran. A reminder, CNN operates in Iran only with the permission of the government. It does, though, maintain full editorial control of our reporting.

Fred, thank you for joining us. It is 10:30 A.M. or just after where you are. What further detail do you have on what was struck overnight?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Becky. And the Iranians are saying that they're continuing to fire back as targets were targeted by the Israelis overnight. There's very little coming from the Iranian government so far.

What we know is that apparently places were hit here in the capital, in Tehran, especially towards the west of the Iranian capital. There's also talk of a suburb here of Iran or a satellite town around Iran called Karaj where explosions were apparently also heard. But it's unclear what exactly the targets there were.

They're also hearing that potentially there were some explosions at Mehrabad Airport, which is an airport that is here within the city limits of Tehran. It's unclear, however, if those attacks are actually confirmed or what exactly might have been hit there.

And then the Iranians also reporting that apparently there were explosions in the northern city of Tabriz and in the central city of Isfahan. So far, what we're hearing is that there weren't any casualties that have been reported so far.

However, one thing that's potentially a dangerous attack that could lead to an escalation from the Iranian side is that both the Israelis and the Iranians are saying that a petrochemical facility near the southern city of Bandar Marshal has been hit. People have now been ordered to evacuate. That's very close to the Iraqi border, very close to Basra down there in the south of Iraq, of course, by the Shatt al- Arab.

It's also leading into the--

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ANDERSON: It does look as if we're having technical issues with Fred, if you can hear me, Fred, we will try and reconnect with you. Stand by.

I want to bring in Jasmine El-Gamal, who is the founder and CEO of Averos Strategies and is a former Middle East adviser at the U.S. Defense Department. She joins me now.

We have heard from Donald Trump speaking to reporters late yesterday and on some of the network Sunday news shows that he is close to a deal with the U.S., sorry, with Iran. He describes it as in its final stages. He describes it as a good deal, given what we have now witnessed over the past 24, 36 hours. How do you assess where we are at at this point, Jasmine?

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

I mean, what we're looking at right now really is a point in the war where U.S. and Israeli interests are really diverging in the sense that you can see that Donald Trump wants this war to end. He wants to get back to the negotiating table. He has seen the deal as being really close to being signed.

He's been frustrated that he hasn't been able to get it off the line, over the line yet, that the Iranians won't sign. And his focus has really been on getting that deal done, not so for the Israelis.

[03:04:58] And this is where the Lebanon front is becoming more and more important, because it is becoming clear that it is one of the issues, along with the unfreezing of Iranian assets, that is really holding up the deal. And that's because of the extent to which Israel and Prime Minister Netanyahu do not want to see this war end with Israel on the back foot vis-a-vis Lebanon without having achieved what its stated goals are in Lebanon.

And they don't want to see Iran coming out of this war being geopolitically in a situation of advantage over Israel. And that's what Iran is trying to show right now. It is the first time that it is striking Israel in response to a strike of Israel against Hezbollah in another country, not just a direct strike against Iran and that tells me that the conflict is now shifting the center of gravity towards Lebanon for the moment.

ANDERSON: Donald Trump says he is calling the shots. It is not, he says very specifically, Benjamin Netanyahu calling the shots.

On the surface, given Israel's attacks on Lebanon over the weekend, very specifically on Beirut, and now on Iran in retaliation, they say, for the attacks on Israel by Tehran, I just wondered, do you believe Donald Trump's credibility is on the line here, pushed by Benjamin Netanyahu's actions, or is this all part of the deal, as it were?

EL-GAMAL: Well, to a certain extent it is, Becky, just because he's saying himself that he's the one calling the shots. And, obviously, he's not. He's trying to wrest control of the situation when both Israel and Iran are now looking at each other, and they are engaged in their own balance of power, in their own conflict, really, conflict within a conflict, to ensure -- each one wants to ensure that they come out of this with the upper hand, and with a sense to the other that they are not weakened, and to extend that deterrence vis-a-vis the other.

So, Iran, obviously, why is Lebanon important to Iran? I think, just to clarify for your viewers, it's a very important part of Iran's strategic depth in the region.

As you know, the nuclear issue is one issue that was being negotiated with Iran, but the two other issues that were even more important to the Iranians, and more of a red line to them, were ballistic missiles and support for proxies in the region, and that's because of their need to project strategic depth in the region vis-a-vis Israel, and to make sure that it is not in a position where it can be existentially threatened.

So, this is a really important issue for the Iranians, and the big question here is whether Donald Trump will be able to exert control over the Israelis, over Prime Minister Netanyahu, to ensure that this does not escalate any further, and that the parties can come back to the negotiating table, and that's not a guarantee, given that Prime Minister Netanyahu needs to protect his own interests and domestic considerations as well.

ANDERSON: And the Iran-backed Hezbollah is a really important issue for Israel, not just for Benjamin Netanyahu, but for many Israeli officials, pushing the Prime Minister to, as it were, finish the job when it comes to Hezbollah in Lebanon. That puts the Israeli Prime Minister, frankly, in a very difficult position, as you rightly point out, there is a very specific domestic issue and pressure for the Israeli Prime Minister, and it puts those running Lebanon in a very difficult situation as well.

From the Lebanese perspective, and my colleague Christiane Amanpour spoke to the Lebanese President just at the end of last week, who called on Iran to get out of the country, get its proxy out of the country. Where do you believe, or what do you believe, the Lebanese government, its President, its Prime Minister, can do next?

EL-GAMAL: Well, this is a really important question, Becky, and it's important to note that this Lebanese government is the first one that has actually made a concerted effort, a real effort, both in its public statements and on the ground, to push back against Hezbollah, to attempt to consolidate arms under the control of the Lebanese state. They are truly devoted to that mission of securing Lebanon, of pushing back against external influence in Lebanon.

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And so in that sense, it's probably one of the strongest Lebanese partners that the U.S. has had in a very long time. When I was at the Pentagon, this was years ago, I covered the Lebanon file, and so I can tell you from experience that this is a different kind of government in Lebanon that does need support in pushing back against Hezbollah and achieving those objectives. Now, of course, it's like the Gulf countries, right? It's stuck between a rock and a hard place here.

And the Israelis are not making it easier on the Lebanese government by continuing to push farther and farther into Lebanese territory, by continuing to conduct these strikes, and really pulling the rug out from under the Lebanese government as a sovereign government. It's making it a lot harder for them to do what they need to do domestically in order to push back against Hezbollah with that huge Israeli presence there that's, as you know, disrupting both lives, humanitarian crisis, the removal of people from their homes in the south, the destruction of the south completely.

It is the opposite of what the Israelis should be doing to try to give this Lebanese government room to do what it wants to do.

ANDERSON: Always good to have you, Jasmine. Thank you very much indeed.

Jasmine El-Gamal joining us this morning from London, on the Iran- backed Hezbollah. As I say, a really important security issue for Israel.

Let's head to Jerusalem where CNN's Oren Lieberman is following developments. Oren, just get us up to speed on what has been going on in the wee hours of the morning where you are, what Israel has been doing in Iran, and where you believe we are headed next. OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Well, the latest is that just about 40 minutes ago we got another alert warning from the Israeli military of incoming Iranian ballistic missile fire. That alert has since been cleared, meaning people can leave their shelters. Magenta Vita Dome, which is Israel's emergency response service, says there were no injuries.

They are scanning sites to see if there are any reports of damage, so we'll keep you posted on that. There had been a report of shrapnel damage at a settlement in the occupied West Bank from a previous barrage, so we have seen waves of a few barrages from the first three early in the morning to a few more happening since then.

In terms of what Israel has been striking in Iran, the first statement from the Israeli military offered very few details. They simply said they're targeting military infrastructure in central and western Iran.

It was then Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Yechiel Leiter, who gave a few more details. He said Israel was striking surface-to- surface missiles as well as what he described as non-energy infrastructure. That's important because striking energy infrastructure opens up effectively a Pandora's box throughout the Gulf, that means Iran might retaliate by striking Gulf infrastructure, and that's the global economic sort of nightmare scenario that President Donald Trump is trying to avoid.

The consequence of that for him, of course, is rising gas prices, which is a huge domestic issue, and one of the ways to at least try to avoid that is to prevent strikes on energy infrastructure. That being said, several hours later, Israel struck a petrochemical facility in western Iran, so it seems at least we may be heading in a direction of that escalation.

There was also one missile incoming from the Houthis in Yemen, an Iranian proxy there. It's the first time we've seen a missile from the Houthis since early April, so it remains to be seen if that front also opens as well.

If Israel carries out strikes against Yemen, if we see more incoming fire from the Houthis, and all of this, of course, complicates not only the U.S.-Iran talks, but also the new Lebanon-Israel ceasefire, which is just days old. President Donald Trump has clearly signaled, and I think blatantly stated, that he wants to get back to negotiations and finish a deal that he claims is close, but this makes all of that so much harder.

ANDERSON: It's good to have you, Oren. Thank you very much indeed. Look, this latest action overnight, local time in the Middle East, spiking concerns about whether or not there really is an end to this wider conflict.

I want to get you the oil prices so that our viewers get a sense of where we are at, Brent Crude, which is the global benchmark of course, 5 percent higher as we speak. WTI, the U.S. benchmark, trading just below 4.5 percent higher. Later this hour, we're going to get a closer look at the situation in

the Strait of Hormuz, as Iranian officials say the country is charging up to $2 million per ship for passage.

Plus, North Korea hosts Chinese leader Xi Jinping. We get you live to Beijing for the latest on what that trip is expected to cover.

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SANDOVAL: Welcome back.

At least eight people are reported dead after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck the southern part of the Philippines just hours ago. The early morning quake on Monday struck just as the new school year was getting started.

You could see some of these elementary school children swaying with those seismic waves. Fortunately, everybody okay, but you can hear them screaming there.

A collapsing structure behind them, you see there, eventually making its way down to the ground. Even worse, certainly sending those children into a panic again. Nobody injured there.

Local video, though, elsewhere does show some damaged roads and crumbling buildings. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has deployed government agencies to act immediately to help evacuate residents and also begin their rescue work.

China's leader Xi Jinping making a rare visit to Pyongyang for talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. He arrived just a short time ago, and he's expected to spend about two days there on his first trip to North Korea since 2019. It's also the Chinese leader's first trip abroad this year.

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Let's go live now to Beijing, where CNN Bureau Chief Steven Jiang is following the very latest. Steven, just talk to us about the symbolism and also the geopolitics at play with this visit.

STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, Polo, according to state media, both leaders have now started their formal talks after that welcoming ceremony you have just seen, with Kim and his wife personally going to the airport on a tarmac, welcoming Xi and his wife, then throwing them a very lavish welcoming ceremony.

Now, this trip, as you mentioned, carries a lot of significance, both symbolically but also geopolitically, because it's not lost on people. Xi is making this trip just a few weeks after he received both President Trump and President Putin of Russia in Beijing.

Now, after Trump's visit to Beijing, the White House put out a fact sheet claiming both Trump and Xi share this goal of denuclearizing North Korea. But I don't think it's very unlikely Xi is going to press Kim on this issue, given Beijing is seen increasingly as recognizing North Korea as a de facto nuclear power. It's been non-supportive, even opposing U.N. sanctions on Pyongyang over its nuclear weapons program.

The other aspect, of course, given North Korea's growing ties with Russia, there has been this narrative of this comes at the expense of its ties with China.

But the reality, of course, is China continues to provide the Kim regime with an economic lifeline and remains North Korea's most important ally. Bilateral trade, for example, has been restored to pre-pandemic levels. And these two communist allies very much see eye to eye on most issues, both very much aligned geopolitically but also ideologically.

And then, of course, from Beijing's perspective, this trip is very much reinforcing this image of Xi increasingly playing a leading role on the world stage at a time when the U.S. is seen to be in decline when it comes to its global influence. Polo?

SANDOVAL: Steven Jiang with that live report from Beijing. Thank you, Steven.

And ahead here on "CNN Newsroom," more on our breaking news coverage of escalating tensions in the Middle East, where Iran is now warning of a, quote, more crushing response. If Israel keeps attacking Lebanon. We'll take you back to the region in a moment.

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HANCOCKS: Well more now on our breaking news this morning.

A fresh round of attacks between Israel and Iran overnight. The first such missile strike since the ceasefire began on April the 8th. Here you see the Israeli defense forces overseeing reported strikes on military targets in western and central Iran.

Earlier, Iranian state media confirmed Israeli projectiles hit a petrochemical plant in the south-west of the country. That came just hours after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed to have struck an airbase in northern Israel. Iran said that attack was retaliation for strikes against its proxy Hezbollah in Lebanon on Sunday.

CNN's Paula Hancocks joins me now here in Abu Dhabi. Let's concentrate very specifically on Lebanon. What we've seen over the weekend and why it is so sort of crucial to the wider U.S.-Iran story.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So Becky, what Tehran has done is they have linked what is happening in Lebanon with what is happening in Iran. They have effectively said if there isn't peace and a ceasefire in Lebanon where we still see Israel targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon, then there will not be a U.S.-Iran deal.

Now we know that the U.S. President has been frustrated with the Israeli Prime Minister over the past week at least saying that he should not be striking in the capital in Beirut. We did see though that Israel did target the southern neighborhood, the Hezbollah stronghold of Dahiyeh which is why Tehran says that they have escalated this at this point.

But also they're seeing frustration from the Lebanese leadership. We had an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour just on Friday with the President and he was voicing his frustration that Iran is tying Lebanon in with all this. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEPH AOUN, LEBANESE PRESIDENT: Our people being killed. Our people being -- our houses being destroyed. They are using Lebanon as a bargaining chip in their negotiation with the United States, it's unacceptable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: Now there was another ceasefire signed between Israel and Lebanon just last week or at least the framework of one which was mediated by the U.S.. There was skepticism at the time.

Hezbollah rejected it saying they aren't part of it. It amounts to a surrender for them.

And what we're really seeing is from the Israeli point of view they're not ready to stop firing upon southern Lebanon. They're not ready to keep targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon. Let's listen to what the IDF has said about this today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGADIER GENERAL EFFIE DEFRIN, IDF SPOKESPERSON (through translator): The regime is attempting to create a new equation by carrying out direct fire toward our territory in response to IDF strikes in Dahiyeh. We will not allow this. The IDF will continue to operate throughout Lebanon and will intensify its actions against the Hezbollah terrorist organization.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: So Israel has said that it will continue to target southern Lebanon. It will continue to target Hezbollah which makes it difficult to see how to get through this particular escalation in strikes as Tehran is making that very direct tie between the two.

ANDERSON: Let's be very clear here. Donald Trump has said that he has asked Benjamin Netanyahu to both refrain from attacks on Beirut and on retaliatory attacks on Iran for the strikes by Iran on Israel.

It is not just Benjamin Netanyahu who has a position about defending Israel. His opposition agree. Naftali Bennett this morning who is leading a party who will at the moment be in opposition to Benjamin Netanyahu in the elections later this year said the following.

[03:30:00]

"This is a moment of truth. We will see whether Israel is a sovereign state capable of defending itself.

Containment or a symbolic response will signal the enemy that the blood of our citizens is cheap and therefore Israel must act forcefully and effectively. On that matter all of us the citizens of Israel are standing together."

HANCOCKS: There is strong support within Israel for these continued strikes against Hezbollah. The fact that Hezbollah is continuing to fire upon communities in northern Israel and that is part of this issue as well. The fact that we heard from the Israeli ambassador to the U.S. this morning saying no self-respecting country would tolerate such an attack.

Talking about Iran but also there has been talk on Hezbollah as well. The fact that they are continuing to strike and it cannot be ignored. This joint statement just from last week was talking about it having to have Hezbollah putting down its arms.

Hezbollah operatives cannot be in southern Lebanon so close to the Israeli border. So this is a key part for Israel and one that they have said consistently they are not going to bend on.

ANDERSON: Where the last 36 hours leaves prospects for a U.S.-Iran agreement at this point is unclear. We await to get a response to what we have seen in the past hours from Donald Trump. It is very early Monday morning there in Washington on the East Coast and we will report on what we hear as soon as we get it.

Of course thank you very much indeed for joining us, Paula Hancocks in the house with me.

Christina Goldbaum is the Beirut Bureau Chief for the "New York Times." She joins me from Beirut. Christina, thank you.

I just want to get perspective where you are. Can you just explain for us what you believe the current thinking is in the administration there?

CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM, BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF, "NEW YORK TIMES": Sure.

So I think we need to go back to two weeks ago when we saw Benjamin Netanyahu first threatening to bombard Beirut. It was a very tense day here in the city. You then saw Iran saying it would pull out of talks with the U.S. and Israel and President Trump intervening to hold off on that bombardment.

And then that week a few days later was when we saw these talks in D.C. between the Lebanese government and Israel mediated by the U.S. And an agreement that came out of that was surprising to people here because as Hezbollah rejected it the following day a lot of people weren't that surprised because the text of the agreement itself called on Hezbollah to lay down its arms to stop firing at northern Israel and Israeli forces. But it actually included very little in terms of concessions from Israel.

And so I think a lot of folks here now the sense is that they are kind of trapped between outside major powers. They are trapped between the U.S. government, the Israeli government that as Paula said is still intent on continuing its military offensive in Israel. And Iran that has linked a ceasefire, any broader ceasefire with the United States and Israel to a ceasefire in Lebanon as well.

What we've also seen over the last few weeks is a ramped up Israeli military offensive in the south. We've seen increased bombardment. Hezbollah responding with fire in the areas that Israel now occupies here.

And so I think the general sensibility here is this country is really caught in a limbo waiting to see what happens next. And also kind of come to a point where it's generally accepted now that the ceasefire agreement that was made in April that's been unraveling for weeks is almost now completely dead. I mean even if there is a sense that Israel is not able to strike Beirut because of the United States.

Again the fighting is still ongoing in the south and getting worse. So again this is the country right now caught in a limbo and with a government that has very little ability to rein in Hezbollah or stop the fighting.

ANDERSON: Christina, you will have heard, I'm sure, the interview that Donald Trump conducted on Sunday with NBC.

He actually walked out of this interview but not at the point when they were discussing Lebanon.

He said of Lebanon, I'd like to see a more surgical attack on Hezbollah. More surgical, we can help them with that. Or we can, he said, recommend Syria.

Syria is doing a very good job at cleaning up their acts, they have a very good leader. He, we'd love to help. What do you make of those comments?

GOLDBAUM: I mean obviously here because of the history, right? Syrians intervening during the civil war here. There is a lot of fear since this war began that Syria could send in forces into Lebanon and then that would escalate this war even further.

[03:35:00]

Now obviously there is a long border that the two countries share. Especially in the east along the Beqaa Valley. And so again for the last two months this has been Lebanese people's concerns that this war would escalate to a point where Syria would intervene.

And it would almost be a groundhog's day of what we saw here 20 years ago. And so I think that has stoked some concerns here because that again within this country would be seen as an escalation and not a kind of de-escalation that up until this point we've seen Trump trying to do with Prime Minister Netanyahu and rein him in.

So again when I say we're in limbo it's really Lebanon is kind of teetering on the edge. And I think the one thing that is understood is that there is no sense of any kind of imminent ceasefire.

What people are preparing for here is an escalation. Whether that comes in a few days, whether that comes in a few weeks. I would be very surprised if the Syrian government led by al-Sharaa would get on board with that kind of invasion.

But again it's been a volatile time here. It is a government -- his government in Syria that is trying to establish better ties with the United States. So again even that suggestion here stoked a lot of concern.

ANDERSON: Good to have you. Thank you very much indeed for joining us out of Beirut in Lebanon where the time is 10:35 this morning.

Ships transiting through the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian permission are paying up to $2 million. That's according to a senior member of Iran's parliament at least. Iranian media reports those payments are being deposited into Iran's treasury and that some of it is being made in goods and services instead of in cash but Iranian officials say the fees are not tolls. They are describing them as services rendered.

Global oil markets have been reacting to what we've seen in this sort of escalation over the last 24 hours with the following Brent crude trading 4.5 percent higher, WTI crude the U.S. benchmark up about 4 percent. And I have to say those oil prices, the spike in prices affecting Asian markets which are of course trading this out in their Monday session significantly lower.

We await to see what the impacts of that trade will have on U.S. markets when they open later today.

For more I want to bring in Richard Meade. He is editor-in-chief for Lloyd's List Intelligence. Richard, what do you make of what I have just reported according to Iranian sources?

RICHARD MEADE, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, LLOYD'S LIST INTELLIGENCE: Well, we've known that fees have been charged since the outset of the conflict. I think the $2 million figure is perhaps over-egging it. We certainly saw figures in that realm at the beginning of the conflict related to tankers moving through.

From what I understand those figures have dramatically decreased to what effectively amounts to service charges. Because for bulk carriers you'd be looking at around $120,000 a vessel, for oil tankers about $160,000.

But it depends on a number of things including the affiliation of the vessel, the cargo, nationality, things like that. So there's no fixed fee here, but we know that in some cases it certainly is being paid.

ANDERSON: Right, what's getting through the Strait of Hormuz? MEADE: Very little Iranian crude. May exports fell 84 percent from

April. That's largely related to the U.S. blockade of Iranian vessels and Iranian cargo.

Some vessels that are non-Iranian affiliated are starting to move with U.S. protection effectively being offered in the background. But I must stress this is significantly down on where we were. And May was the lowest traffic volumes that we've seen since the war started.

So we are still at the point where 95 percent plus of normal traffic is not moving.

ANDERSON: That which is moving, as I understand it, is hugging the Omani side of that waterway, correct? Can you just explain?

MEADE: Well, that depends very much on who you are seeking permission from. So there are a number of vessels that are still effectively seeking Iranian permission, these are the ones that are either moving under a government-to-government contract and seeking permission from the Iranians.

Now, they are taking the northern route across Lahr Island, and they are essentially seeking permission from the newly formed PGSA, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority. This is being operated by Tehran.

Now, others who are not seeking that permission are essentially seeking U.S. protection. They are seeking the Omani route that you just mentioned in the south. So essentially we're seeing a two-tiered operation in terms of security.

[03:40:01]

But I must stress, this is very small amounts of tonnage on both sides of the transit separation scheme, and nobody really expects this to be a sustained process. We're still waiting for some sort of diplomatic peace deal in order to get ships moving.

ANDERSON: Yes. And this, straight and foremost, let's remind our viewers, is significant leverage, of course, for Iran in these talks about an agreement.

And Donald Trump says he's in the final stages of that agreement, or certainly did say late yesterday. He said it would be a good deal. I mean, clearly, as part of that deal, the idea is to get effective sort of movement once again in the Strait of Hormuz.

At the end of the day, Richard, I mean, at Lloyd's List, you cover the shipping industry. It doesn't really matter what sort of agreement is made, you know, and who signs this new agreement. It is for the shipping industry to decide whether it is safe to move its vessels through those waterways.

And what does safe look like to the industry and what is sustainable as far as costs are concerned?

MEADE: It's an interesting question. There's an increasing amount of ship owners that are now voicing an opinion saying, well, if we have to pay, let's pay, but let's get it moving.

I personally think that that sets a very dangerous precedent outside of the Strait of Hormuz, because essentially you'll be looking at the Strait of Malacca, you'll be looking at the Danish rate. Globalized trade, essentially having to rewrite the rules of how it works. So there are serious consequences here.

But leaving that aside for the moment, I think in terms of the security requirements, the reality is this has now happened. And there will now be a threat that this can happen again, regardless of how this ends. So I think, you know, you are seeing diversification away from the Strait of Hormuz in terms of pipeline investment, new ports, people trying to move away from a single point of failure in terms of maritime choke points.

That's going to be a long term trend. But I think in the medium term, it's going to take months, not weeks to unravel this mess as supply chains start to recalibrate. So whatever happens, this is not ending soon.

ANDERSON: Always good to have you, Richard. Thank you very much indeed for joining us.

And we are, let's just bring up these Asian markets.

We are seeing a significant drop on at least two of the Asian markets today, the Japanese Nikkei 225 and the KOSPI down. It has to be said that there is a fall in tech stocks today, that off the back of the dip in tech prices on Friday on Wall Street.

But these markets will provide some sort of indication as to how the U.S. stock markets will open later. And they will be affected by the spike in oil prices, of course, as well. Okay, that is the market futures story.

As we speak more on that, as we get it, we'll have the latest on the growing protests in Albania over the development of a luxury resort connected to President Trump's family. That's coming up. Why demonstrators say they are taking to the streets.

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[03:45:00]

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SANDOVAL: And welcome back. Let's get you caught up on some of your other major stories.

Pope Leo continuing his weeklong tour of Spain. He's now meeting with Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Madrid. He'll also be making an address to members of the Spanish parliament on Sunday.

More than a million people, including members of the royal family. They attended a public mass that was held by the pontiff in one of Madrid's plazas. And during the service, Pope Leo preached unity, peace and support for society's poor and forsaken.

The pope also attended a gathering of Spain's cultural representatives. Spanish actor Antonio Banderas speaking at the engagements and also highlighted the church's history as a patron and producer of the arts.

And thousands of Albanians flooded the streets of the capital city on Sunday, protesting against a development project that's been linked to President Trump's daughter, Ivanka, as well as her husband, Jared Kushner. Kushner's investment firm is developing a resort with a whopping $1.6 billion price tag on an island just off the coast of Albania.

For more on these demonstrations, I want to head over to CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau, who's following the story very closely from Rome. Barbie, tell us more about these protests that have been sparked by this luxury project and also perhaps what Kushner has said thus far.

BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN REPORTER: There's been a steady drumbeat, let's say, of anger against the development of the Adriatic coast in general in Albania. You know, we're talking about an area that's very close to Greece, to the beautiful islands in that area, part of the Adriatic coast.

And when the President's daughter went on a podcast and talked about how they discovered this beautiful island and this five miles of pristine coastline for this development project, it really angered Albanians who took to the street, because before that there had just been a steady denial by the administration, by the Prime Minister Edi Rama, about this development.

And he continues to say that there is no project, despite the fact that there has been evidence of moving equipment, of all sorts of excavators and things like that on this island. And so it's really not just about the development by the President Trump's daughter. It's in general the idea that the administration in Albania is kind of selling out.

Now, in 2024 there was a change in legislation for the development of the Adriatic coast that allowed quite specifically luxury resorts to be able to sidestep some of the protections. And this area is very much a protected wetland, a protected environment for all sorts of flora and fauna.

And there were inspectors from the European Union who came to take a look at the development. And the sort of subtext to all of this is the fact that Albania wants to be on the pathway to European Union membership.

And so when you've got kind of a blatant, you know, let's say workaround for the rules that the European Union keeps dear, especially with the protection of these areas, you know, that's very disturbing to the people of Albania. And we've seen some pretty massive protests on the streets of Tirana, the capital of Albania. And, you know, the construction, though, seems to be going on sort of in plain sight and in secret at the same time, Polo. SANDOVAL: Barbie Latza Nadeau with the latest on that front. Thank you

so much. Do keep us posted.

[03:50:01]

And with just days to go, World Cup host city Guadalajara, Mexico, it says that it's ready to roll. But the area's ties to cartel violence, they are raising some serious safety concerns. All the details for you in just a moment.

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SANDOVAL: The Mexican government is expecting to host more than 5.5 million visitors during the World Cup, and that presents some serious security challenges.

You see, one of Mexico's host cities, Guadalajara, it is also plagued by cartel violence. And security experts say that that warrants particular attention. But as our Valeria Leon reports, the city says that it is ready for the big event.

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VALERIA LEON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a celebration in Guadalajara, one of Mexico's three host cities for the 2026 World Cup.

But as the city gears up for the tournament, one question still lingers. Is it safe for visitors? From FIFA's perspective, preparations are well underway.

UNKNOWN: We built a board of technical experts that has been working on these challenges. These technical experts are working on mobility, security, infrastructure, public policies.

[03:55:06]

LEON (voice-over): Guadalajara in Jalisco State is looking to turn the page after a wave of violence earlier this year following the operation targeting Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, better known as El Mencho, one of the world's most wanted criminal figures.

Former Mexican national team star Pavel Pardo, a Guadalajara local, says the city is ready to welcome the world.

PAVEL PARDO, FORMER PLAYER, MEXICAN NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM (through translator): Jalisco is safe. We all saw those incidents of insecurity, which are not a good thing. But today, the city is ready to host the World Cup.

LEON: Standing here inside the Akron Stadium, you can get a real sense of the scale. It has a capacity of nearly 50,000 people, and it will be one of Mexico's key stages for the World Cup. It will host four of the 13 World Cup matches played in Mexico.

LEON (voice-over): And the impact is already being felt. Guadalajara expects up to 3 million visitors during the tournament, and hotel prices are soaring.

UNKNOWN (through translator); For two nights, it's almost $1700, while a normal stay would be around $225 at most.

LEON (voice-over): Local businesses are betting on a major economic windfall.

UNKNOWN (through translator): There's always been a great atmosphere at the World Cup.

LEON (voice-over): For visitors already here, they say their experience contrasts with the security concerns surrounding the city.

UNKNOWN: I feel very safe. I like feeling safe as a single woman. And the people are very welcoming and kind. I love it.

LEON (voice-over): As the countdown to the World Cup continues, Guadalajara is working to show the world that beyond the headlines, it's ready for football's biggest stage. Valeria Leon, CNN, Guadalajara, Jalisco.

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SANDOVAL: Thank you so much for watching the last hour of news, I'm Polo Sandoval in New York. Becky Anderson and I will be right back with you in just a few moments with more "CNN Newsroom."

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