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CNN This Morning

Israel, Iran Trade Missile Attacks, Fragile Ceasefire Tested; Nithya Raman Pulls Ahead Of Spencer Pratt In L.A. Mayor's Race; Trump: Israel And Iran Must Immediately Stop 'Shooting'. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired June 08, 2026 - 05:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL)

[05:31:10]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: We are covering this breaking news this morning. Tensions flaring once again in the Middle East as Iran and Israel trade missile attacks. Iran state media released these images showing missiles being fired toward Israel. This was just a few hours ago. Israeli defense forces saying they are intercepting the attacks.

Now the fighting this morning represents the worst escalation since the ceasefire went into effect in April. The two countries started exchanging missile attacks early Sunday, which then carried on into Monday. Iranian officials say the new attacks were in response to Israel's ongoing strikes against Lebanon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EBRAHIM ZOLFAQARI, IRGC SPOKESPERSON (through translator): The Zionist Army must stop its attacks on southern Lebanon in the suburbs. And if it expands its attacks on that region or responds to Iran's actions it will face more crushing and regrettable blows and destructive attacks will begin against the regime and its supporters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: CNN senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen also filed this report from Tehran. We want to note that CNN operates in Iran with permission of the government but maintains full editorial control of our reporting.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: On our rooftop position here overlooking Iran's capital Tehran we have been able to hear a couple of very loud thuds that could be explosions, and then also some smaller ones in pretty close succession that might have been anti-aircraft fire. Now that's not confirmed. It's not exactly clear what that is.

However, we do know that the Israelis say that they have been striking targets, as they put in, in Iran's capital Tehran but also on other Iranian cities like, for instance, Isfahan and Tabriz. That's also confirmed by the Iranians.

And the Iranians also say and the Israelis also confirm that Israel has hit a petrochemical facility in the south of Iran. It's very close to the Iraqi border and very close to the city of Basrah. The Iranians are saying that the staff of that petrochemical facility has been ordered to evacuate that facility.

And the Iranians are also saying that they are hitting back in a major way. They say in retaliation for the attack on that petrochemical facility that they launched ballistic missiles towards a similar facility, they put it, in the Israeli city of Haifa.

The Iranians also earlier saying that there had been a wave of Iranian ballistic missile attacks targeting two Israeli air bases and specifically, radar installations affiliated with those air bases.

The Iranians are saying right now their missile forces and generally their forces are in a state of complete readiness, and they are also warning the Israelis to stop their military action.

Of course, all of this coming as the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran continues to very much hang in the balance. Iran and the U.S. saying that they are trying to work towards a memorandum of understanding to end the conflict between Iran and the United States but also to then move towards broader peace talks aimed at achieving a larger peace agreement.

The Iranians are saying those talks are in a difficult state. They want some of their frozen assets to be unfrozen immediately. And both sides are acknowledging, of course, right now, that especially with these attacks going on it certainly seems as though that ceasefire and the general situation right now very volatile.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CORNISH: OK. Once again, Fred Pleitgen talking to us from Iran.

Now I want to bring in Avi Mayer. He's the founder of the Jerusalem Journal. He joins us live from Israel where missile sirens have been active throughout the day.

So first, Avi, can you tell us at this time of day there what's happening where you are?

[05:35:00]

AVI MAYER, FOUNDER, JERUSALEM JOURNAL (via Webex by Cisco): Well Audie, good morning. I'm actually here in suburban Maryland, not too far from you.

But throughout the night my phone has been buzzing with notifications of missiles falling in locations throughout Israel. Millions of Israeli families have spent the entire night in bomb shelters, which is a condition with which we are now long familiar.

And in many respects, this is not much of a surprise. To most of us in Israel we have enjoyed some period of calm over the past two months, but the residents of northern Israel will be asking what ceasefire? There has been ongoing missile and drone fire by Hezbollah towards northern Israel for the entirety of this period. Fifteen Israeli personnel have been killed by Israeli -- by Iranian-backed Hezbollah drone and missile strikes. That is more than the entirety of the 13 U.S. personnel killed in the war so far.

And so in some respects this is not much of a surprise, but it is, of course, a dramatic escalation by the Islamic regime.

CORNISH: Uh, can you talk about that idea of escalation? We were talking with military expert Cedric Leighton earlier about why Iran retaliated on this -- in regard to this attack on Lebanon, on Hezbollah, in Dahiya. That they treated that as a red line of some kind and escalated as a result.

How is this being talked about by Israel? Do they see it as deterrent? Was it just another strike in the back-and-forth or was there something qualitatively different about that target?

MAYER: Well, it's important to note that Dahiya is a suburb of Beirut that holds the headquarters of Hezbollah. Essentially, a Hezbollah stronghold. And what happened on Sunday over the weekend is that Israel finally struck that stronghold after months of ongoing missile and drone fire targeting northern Israel and injured hundreds of thousands of Israelis. And the Iranians decided that was going to be their red line.

Now again, it's very -- to be very clear, there has not been a ceasefire in effect in the north of Israel. It has been bombarded by Iran through its proxy, Hezbollah, over the course of this entire period by hundreds of drone and missile attacks. And this was Israel finally responding and saying enough is enough.

CORNISH: Um, what is the relationship -- how is it talked about in terms of how Trump is talking publicly and the reporting about his frustrations with Netanyahu?

MAYER: Well, we understand that there have been several testy conversations between the two, but both have stated openly that they are aligned on the overall goals here. The goals being, of course, denying Iran the capacity to develop a nuclear weapon and severely degrading its military capabilities.

We did hear President Trump say yesterday that it was -- he was calling on Israel not to retaliate. But we're hearing from Israeli officials that the Israel response to the Iranian missile fire was fully coordinated with the United States, and the U.S. has been engaged in defending Israeli skies.

So I think we're seeing certain messaging happening publicly but more happening behind the scenes. CORNISH: Just so we're clear, again, comparing to the military notes from earlier, is it your sense that these are independent strikes Israel is doing or that this is happening with more than U.S. support? That it's happening with material backing.

MAYER: As of right now, what we know is that these are Israeli airstrikes carried out by Israeli aircraft and other armaments but with full coordination with the United States. Meaning as far as we know right now, the U.S. is not actively engaged in offensive activity in Iran. But we have heard from various reports that the U.S. and perhaps other countries in the region have been involved in air defense, meaning preventing those missiles from reaching Israel -- reaching their targets as has happened throughout this war.

CORNISH: OK. That's Avi Mayer speaking to us here in Maryland. Thanks so much.

And next on CNN THIS MORNING, our breaking news coverage continues. Yemen's Houthi rebels get in on the action targeting Israel. Are these latest escalations bound to expand?

Plus --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He has taken away the attention. We don't need that negativity. We need nothing by positive vibes.

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CORNISH: Tonight, game three of the NBA final between the Knicks and the Spurs, but with President Trump in attendance some fans worry it's going to take away from the game.

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[05:43:52]

CORNISH: Back to our breaking news as strikes are escalating between Israel and Iran. Now we're learning about another player in these latest attacks. Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen claiming responsibility for launching a missile towards Israel -- a missile Israeli forces say they intercepted.

But the warning goes further. The Houthis are now declaring that they call a total ban on Israeli-linked shipping in the Red Sea, threatening to target vessels and potentially disrupt another critical global trade route.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is live from Abu Dhabi for us. Can you help us understand the timeline here of when Houthis launched this strike with this back-and-forth between Iran and Israel?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So Audie, this is information coming to us from the Houthis this morning -- this Monday morning -- and it follows what we have seen as the largest escalation in strikes and tensions between Israel and Iran since that ceasefire was signed back in April.

[05:45:03]

Now the Houthis are a proxy of Iran. They have in the past been believed to be operating fairly autonomously but they certainly have got involved on a number of occasions in support of Iran, specifically firing rockets and missiles towards Israel.

So what we've heard from this morning is that they say that they had a missile barrage targeting sensitive Israeli enemy targets. Israel says that they did intercept a projectile from Yemen itself.

But, of course, the second part of this is that the Houthi rebels are threatening to disrupt global commerce even more than it is already. There is a very key maritime area, the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which is an area that runs into the Red Sea. They have threatened to disrupt traffic going through that area, specifically saying that Israeli vessels will not be allowed to navigate into the Red Sea.

Now they have done this in the past and they did not restrict themselves to Israeli vessels even though they said that was their intention. We have seen that they have fired upon vessels over recent years causing devastation, really, in that very critical water chokepoint.

And it comes at the same time as we are seeing very little getting through the Strait of Hormuz as well, further to the north.

So if there was disruption for both of these key waterways then it would cause chaos in the global economy -- even more than we have seen from the Strait of Hormuz.

So certainly, this is being taken seriously. Israel says that it is able to intercept missiles from Yemen -- from these Houthi rebels. But, of course, in this escalation it does show another front potentially opening up in the midst of this very shaking ceasefire -- Audie.

CORNISH: OK. That's Paula Hancocks speaking to us from Abu Dhabi.

Now it is 46 minutes past the hour. This is your morning roundup.

Almost a week out, the votes are still being counted in L.A. Nithya Raman is pulling ahead of former reality TV star Spencer Pratt in the Los Angeles mayoral race. Raman, an L.A. City Council member, gained about 3,000 more votes than Pratt on Sunday. The two are fighting to see who will face off against incumbent Mayor Karen Bass in November.

Right now, Chinese leader Xi Jinping is in North Korea for rare diplomatic talks with Kim Jong Un. He's expected to spend two days there. This is his first trip since 2019, and it's seen as an important opportunity to strengthen relations.

And it's game three of the NBA Finals between the Knicks and Spurs. Thanks to President Trump's attendance there will be heavy security. Secret Service will deploy snipers, intelligence, and surveillance teams. The watch party outside Madison Square Garden has also been canceled.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Unfortunately, I think it's kind of a shame. I really would like it, you know, because we've been waiting for this for, like, how long? And, you know, a lot of people can't afford to get into the game. I'm one of those people. So I was actually looking forward to going to one of these watch parties.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is a monumental day in New York City and you're going to cancel it? It's all right. We going to find a way, OK? If you guys know real New Yorkers, we going to find a way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: The Knicks are up by two against the Spurs.

And next on CNN THIS MORNING, President Trump says he calls the shots and Israel will fall in line, but did Israel just prove him wrong?

And in our next hour it's the final stretch in Maine where Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner is looking to stabilize his campaign days before the election.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRAHAM PLATNER, (D) MAINE SENATE CANDIDATE: It doesn't matter what you do, but you gotta do something because the moment we're in right now, it's going to require all of us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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[05:53:35]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This shows you where Iran is right now. They've always been a sponsor of terror, and they are continuing it here against our allies in Israel.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Suddenly for Iran, after all this time, to decide that they were going to attack Israel for Hezbollah's actions make no sense.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle weighing in on the renewed strikes between Iran and Israel.

On Sunday, President Trump held a phone call with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after Iran launched ballistic missiles aimed at Israel. He urged Netanyahu not to retaliate, according to a U.S. official. Netanyahu went against Trump's urging and hit targets in Iran leaving the existing ceasefire vulnerable. Trump has also boasted to the Financial Times Netanyahu "won't have a

choice but to accept any deal the U.S. negotiates with Iran," declaring "I call the shots. Netanyahu does not call the shots."

But Netanyahu has defied him, so President Trump is trying again. He just posted on Truth Social moments ago, "Israel and Iran must immediately stop 'shooting.'"

Ambassador Alon Pinkas joins me now. He's the former Israeli consul general in New York.

First, can I ask you about that Truth Social post? The president saying both Israel and Iran must stop.

[05:55:00]

ALON PINKAS, FORMER ISRAELI CONSUL GENERAL IN NEW YORK (via Webex by Cisco): Yeah. Good morning, Audie.

This is something you would expect from the president to say, you know -- the diplomatic lingo of show restraint, exercise caution, patience, and so on. It's clear that he -- President Trump has to make this statement.

But basically, what this statement is saying -- you know, the underlining -- the underlining logic of it is that this is not my war anymore -- I, President Trump. This is not my way anymore. This is between Israel and Iran and I'm not part of this. I'm pursuing negotiations to get a deal -- good deal, bad deal, mediocre deal. We could discuss this.

CORNISH: Yeah.

PINKAS: He's basically saying to Mr. Netanyahu, Audie, you're on your own. And he's basically saying to the Iranians well, you're not necessarily going to have a deal if you keep on shooting. But the bottom line is this -- I'm not involved in this.

CORNISH: Can I ask you about that, though? What we're hearing about what he's saying on Sunday to Netanyahu is very different from what you're explaining. He is trying to say --

PINKAS: Right.

CORNISH: -- I'm the one in the lead here. I think the viewers are looking and wondering if Israel is in the lead here.

PINKAS: Yeah, it's a very good question and, you know, it's open for interpretation. Let me put it in context and be brief about this.

Netanyahu and Trump have a different political calculus. Trump is saying I want to end this war, and I can rein in Israel, and I -- and I will tell them what to do and they will do what I tell them. And I call the shots, et cetera, et cetera.

Netanyahu, on the other hand, has defied Trump three times in the last three weeks with breaking -- violating the ceasefire in Lebanon. With attacking the Dahiya, which is the corridor --

CORNISH: Yes.

PINKAS: -- the neighborhood -- the area in Beirut where Hezbollah mostly is centered -- despite Trump's warnings. And again, last night when Iran launched a barrage of missiles. Trump called on Netanyahu to show restraint -- exercise restraint and not retaliate, and three times Netanyahu defied him.

Netanyahu is speaking to a domestic audience. He's got an election in two or three months, either in September or October -- three or four months. So Netanyahu wants to brag that I stood up to the American president and when it came to national security and when it came to the defense of Israel, I stood up. And only I could do this. OK, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.

What Mr. Trump is doing, Audie, in stating more than once that he calls the shots and Netanyahu will have no choice but to accept, he's talking not necessarily about the ceasefire but about a framework or a provisional memorandum type of deal with Iran, meaning that --

CORNISH: So you -- is there a red line? Can I just interrupt for a second? Is there a red line or is --

PINKAS: Yes.

CORNISH: -- the messaging from Israel, regardless of what -- Netanyahu can make any decision and the U.S. will --

PINKAS: Right.

CORNISH: -- essentially follow with a security guarantee.

PINKAS: Right. Well, not necessarily because if I'm right and Trump is essentially saying, Audie, that Israel is on its own and I'm not involved in this, Israel cannot sustain a prolonged conflict with Iran in terms of munitions, missile interceptor, depletion rate, and so on. And what Trump is basically saying, I'm calling the shots here.

And yeah, there is a red line. If the red line is that -- well, the red line is further escalation --

CORNISH: Um-hum.

PINKAS: -- that could inadvertently involve the U.S. That, I think, for Trump is a red line.

I also think -- this perhaps is for a different segment -- that Trump is dissatisfied, disillusioned, and livid at Mr. Netanyahu for the basic --

CORNISH: So then can there be a ceasefire going forward if this continues between Israel and Iran's proxies, meaning obviously, Israel has wanted to keep Lebanon out of the conversation. Iran keeps trying to pull it back in. It feels --

PINKAS: Right.

CORNISH: -- as though this ceasefire could be over. It feels as though the war could go longer because Israel's prerogatives are different. That's what you're describing.

PINKAS: Absolutely. You're absolutely right, Audie.

Netanyahu has several vested interests in this. He needs to maintain a permanent state of war. He needs to -- he wants politically to distance himself from the calamity of October 7, 2023, and somehow turn it into a strategic triumph, which could only come through Iran. That failed in the war.