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IDF: New Strikes Target Tehran Military Industrial Sites; Presidents Xi And Putin Urge De-Escalation; Appeals Court: Trump Can keep Control Of California National Guard. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired June 20, 2025 - 05:30   ET

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


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[05:30:25]

MJ LEE, CNN ANCHOR: Iran is holding what it calls marches of wrath and victory today following Friday prayers. Iranians are being urged to take part in nationwide demonstrations to show their anger over Israeli strikes.

Iran's supreme leader often takes part in the prayers but any public appearance by the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei could be risky after Israel refused to rule out the possibility of targeting him. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said no one in Iran should have immunity.

The Israeli military says it struck dozens of targets in Iran overnight, including missile production sites and a nuclear research facility. And Israel says at least six people were injured today by an Iranian strike on the city of Be'er Sheva. Emergency crews are searching damaged buildings for casualties.

CNN's Nada Bashir is following the latest developments, and she joins me now from London. Nada, what can you tell us about the situation in Iran?

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you mentioned, MJ, we have seen yet another night of strikes by the Israeli military. They say some 60 Israeli fighter jets were engaged in carrying out those strikes overnight targeting dozens of what they have claimed to be military targets, including military industrial sites and production sites for missile components. That's according to the Israeli military.

But, of course, important to underscore that since that initial attack by the Israeli military in the early hours of Friday morning last week what we have seen, of course, is a continuation of these devastating attacks. More than 200 people killed, the majority of them reported to be civilians, and that figure could continue to rise. We are still waiting for updates on total and latest casualties from Iran's Ministry of health.

But what we are also learning now just in the last few hours, according to the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency, is that it is believed that now the Arak nuclear water reactor facility has also sustained damage as a result of strikes carried out by the Israeli military on Thursday as well. So clearly, we are still seeing damage being sustained by Iran's key nuclear sites.

And, of course, what we've also been hearing from the Israeli prime minister is a warning that these attacks -- these strikes will continue. Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke to Israeli media saying that the Israeli military has the power to and intends to continue striking Iran's nuclear facilities -- all of Iran's nuclear facilities and will not stop until its military objectives are met.

But, of course, again, it is important to note that Iran has now repeatedly denied that it was intending to build a nuclear weapon. We know, of course, that the Trump administration's own intelligence chief back in March testified before Congress stating that there was no indication that Iran was, in fact, developing that nuclear weapon.

And then just yesterday we heard from the International Atomic Energy Agency's chief Rafael Grossi who spoke to CNN. And I'll just read you what he told our Anderson Cooper, saying that there was no indication of a systematic program in Iran to produce a nuclear weapon and that evidence gathered by the IAEA -- the U.N. agency -- on Iran's nuclear program can hardly be a basis for any military action.

Now, of course, there is now some limited hope that there could potentially be an off-ramp for some sort of diplomatic resolution as the U.S. President Donald Trump has given that two-week window for consideration of any diplomatic movement before any potential involvement by the U.S. military in terms of direct strikes within Iran.

And what we are also seeing today is a meeting of the foreign ministers of Germany, of France, the EU's high representative for foreign affairs, and crucially, of course, Iran's foreign minister meeting in Geneva today. So there is some potential for diplomatic movement. But, of course, what we have also been hearing from Iran's deputy foreign minister today is that there will be no hope for diplomacy while Israel's attacks on Iran continue.

So still clearly from daylight and the messaging that we are hearing from both Iranian and Israeli officials when it comes to the international community there is desperate efforts now to push forward to some sort of diplomatic end to what is an escalating crisis now -- MJ.

LEE: We'll be keeping a close eye on those talks in Geneva.

Nada Bashir in London. Thank you so much.

As the U.S. considers possible strikes on Iran, Russia and China are stepping forward. Ahead, what they are doing to counter U.S. influence in the Middle East.

[05:35:00]

(COMMERCIAL) LEE: Moscow says forcing regime change in Iran would be a red line for Russia. In an interview with Sky News the Kremlin also said assassinating Iran's supreme leader would open Pandora's box and it would unleash more extremism in Iran.

[05:40:00]

Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping discussed the crisis on Thursday and sent some thinly veiled messages to Washington.

Clare Sebastian reports.

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CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this was a previously unscheduled call between Presidents Xi and Putin and one the one hand it shows the global geopolitical divide hardening around the Iran- Israel conflict.

Russia and China, of course, two allies of Iran, both according to a Kremlin aide who briefed on the call, roundly condemning Israel. China calling on "major powers" to de-escalate the situation, according to a readout from the Chinese foreign ministry. Clearly, a thinly veiled reference there to the United States.

While both countries have not only a shared desire to counter U.S. influence globally, but they have economic skin in the game. China is by far the biggest buyer of Iranian oil and Russia built Iran's only nuclear power plant at Bushehr and is kindly building new reactors there. Putin saying on Wednesday Israel had agreed to ensure the safety of the Russian staff at the plant.

But both Russia and China have also offered to mediate in this conflict. And for Russia, especially which still maintains open lines of communication with Israel, this is a crucial opportunity to appear as an indispensable regional powerbroker and, of course, to keep the door open to resetting relations with the United States, Israel's biggest backer.

President Trump, though, who had signaled openness to the idea of Russia mediating, toughened his stance on that on Wednesday saying that the told Putin "let's mediate Russia first." A reference, of course, to the faltering U.S. effort to bring an end to Russia's war with Ukraine.

Clare Sebatian, CNN, London.

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LEE: Coming up CNN is the first Western media outlet to arrive in Tehran since the fighting began eight days ago, and our crew got rare access to a TV station that was hit by an Israeli missile.

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[05:45:15] LEE: Welcome back. I'm MJ Lee. Here are some stories we are watching today.

Israel is reporting dozens of strikes overnight in Iran targeting military and nuclear sites. Meanwhile, a missile fired from Iran damaged several buildings at a technology park in Be'er Sheva in southern Israel. Authorities there say six people were slightly wounded.

Diplomatic efforts to ease tensions between Israel and Iran are happening today in Geneva. Iran's foreign minister is meeting with envoys from the U.K., France, Germany, and the European Union in the coming hours. One diplomat described the talks as "exploratory to feel the room."

The U.S. president says he will decide within the next two weeks whether to launch a military strike on Iran. Donald Trump says he wants to give diplomacy a chance before making a final decision. The White House says Iran is very weak and vulnerable after a week of Israeli strikes.

CNN journalists are getting extremely rare access in Tehan. Senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen toured Iran's capital and a TV station that was hit by an Israeli missile earlier this week.

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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): As Iran and Israel continue to trade salvos of bombs and missiles, in Tehran the cleanup is in full swing in residential areas that were struck.

We went to several impact sites -- buildings partially collapsed and some completely destroyed, and others.

PLEITGEN: The authorities here say this building was flattened in the first wave of strikes against targets in Tehran, but in other parts of Iran as well. And they say in this site alone six people were killed and two bodies are still buried under the rubble.

PLEITGEN (voiceover): As tensions between Iran and Israel continue to escalate many residents have left Tehran. The streets empty, some shops closed, but defiance remains.

Billboards across Tehran showing those killed by the Israeli aerial attack and vowing revenge. This one addressing Israel directly, saying "You have started it, we will finish it" as Tehran's leadership says it won't back down. "If the Zionist regime's hostile actions persist, our answers will be even more decisive and severe," the president says.

And Iran saying the Israelis are also targeting civilian installations, taking us to the state TV channel IRIB recently bombed by two Israeli airstrikes. An anchor had been reading the news as the building was hit. This is that studio now, burned out with only a skeleton of the charred anchor desk left. Authorities say three state TV employees were killed here.

PLEITGEN: You can see how much heat must have been emitted by the impact and by the explosion. The phones that they had here are molten. Here also the keys molten and this screen. And there's actually someone's lunch still at their desk standing here, which probably they would have been wanting to eat until they had to evacuate the building. You can see there's a spoon here that's also been melted away by this explosion. And the devastation here is massive at the Iranian state broadcaster.

PLEITGEN (voiceover): Iran's leadership vows to persevere, saying it will continue to target Israel if the Israeli aerial campaign doesn't stop.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran.

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LEE: And Hamidreza Azizi is a visiting fellow with the SWP German Institute for International and Security Affairs. He joins us now from Berlin. Thank you very much for being here.

[05:50:00]

For starters I wanted to ask what you might be hearing about conditions in Iran. Have you been in touch with your colleagues, your friends? What are they telling you?

HAMIDREZA AZIZI, VISITING FELLOW, SWP GERMAN INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL AND SECURITY AFFAIRS: Well, it is very difficult since yesterday especially to get access to friends and colleagues in the country because of the almost internet shutdown.

The authorities say this was necessary in order to disrupt the sleeper cells and Israeli networks operating inside the country, which were using drones against military facilities. But at the same time it might also have to do with the fear of internal unrest in terms of, for example, some potential armed cells getting activated and so on. So in that sense it's very difficult.

But from what we can hear and see on social media -- those who do have some access -- the public mood is of anger and at the same time despair because of the increasing human toll -- civilian casualties -- and at the same time no end game clear either on the Iranian side or the U.S. side -- the Israeli side, sorry.

LEE: And as you talking -- yeah -- we've been showing scenes from parts of Iran, including smoke billowing from parts of the country.

How weakened is the country since Israel's attacks began, and what options does it have right now military as the conflict continues?

AZIZI: Well, what I can tell you is that at the moment the Iranian strategy is that of re-establishing deterrents, not battlefield dominance because they simply know that it is not possible. This is not a war that they can win because of the huge asymmetry that exists. Israel now has almost complete air dominance over Iranian airspace, and they have technological superiority, and above all they have U.S. support.

So what I can see from the pattern of Iranian missile strikes and also from the statements, the aim is to increase the costs on Israel as much as possible in order to change the perceptions of Israel from an imminent or a potential victory, but at the same time not escalating to the extent that the United States would come in. Because they know that in that case the costs are going to be quite huge.

They keep the option of threatening the United States of --

LEE: OK.

AZIZI: -- retaliating in the region on the table, that's another story. They try not to get to that point.

LEE: All right, Hamidreza Azizi in Berlin. Thank you very much for joining us.

AZIZI: Thank you.

LEE: And when we return a new court ruling in President Trump's legal fight over deploying National Guard troops in Los Angeles.

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[05:57:20]

LEE: Hurricane Erick weakened to a post-tropical storm after slamming into Mexico's southern Pacific coast as a category three storm. It leaves flooded streets and serious damage in the state of Oaxaca. No deaths have been reported.

Erick made landfall over coastal towns around breakfast time on Thursday. In Puerto Escondido it knocked out a history statute of a sailfish being rescued by fishermen. Winds slowed to about 50 miles per hour as the storm moved inland. But intense rain threats three Mexican -- threatens, excuse me, three Mexican states with serious flooding and possible mudslides. Erick is the first major hurricane to hit Mexico before July.

Serious storms tore through the U.S. East Coast knocking out power to nearly 700,000 homes and businesses. Wind gusts were up to 70 miles an hour. The storms affected air travel from North Carolina to New York. Airports in New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. were hit hardest. A few storms are still possible in the region but most of the severe weather has moved into the Atlantic Ocean.

U.S. President Donald Trump approved federal disaster relief for several American states after powerful storms. Trump posted on social media that he approved money for Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, and North Carolina. This comes as some of these states are still recovering from last year's Hurricane Helene.

A federal appeals court is allowing U.S. President Donald Trump to keep control of thousands of members of California's National Guard. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted the president's request to temporarily lift a lower court ruling that required him to relinquish that control. President Trump reacted on Truth Social shortly after Thursday's ruling calling the decision "a big win."

It extends a pause the court put in place while the legal battle plays out. About 4,000 National Guard members were called in to beef up security in Los Angeles amid unrest over President Trump's immigration enforcement.

And Donald Trump is extending the deadline for TikTok to be sold or be banned in the U.S. for 90 days. He signed an executive order on Thursday. The new deadline is September 17.

In a statement, the company said it's grateful for Trump's support. TikTok says more than 170 million Americans and seven million U.S. businesses use the platform.

Thank you for watching EARLY START. I'm MJ Lee. "CNN THIS MORNING" starts right now.