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Early Start with Rahel Solomon
Israeli: Iran's Top Security Official Killed In Overnight Strike In Tehran; Havana In Darkness As Massive Blackout Hits Cuba; Massive Storm System Sweeps Across Eastern U.S. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired March 17, 2026 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[05:30:00]
H.A. HELLYER, SENIOR ASSOCIATE FELLOW, RUSI: The system is built for resilience, and I think that they will continue to have the system work and the regime maintain resilience in the coming period. They've been preparing for this, and I think we've seen that over the past few weeks.
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, and my team just tells me we haven't heard from the Iranians yet. Their message will be released very soon. So we're going to wait for that H.A. because this is, you know, a major development that we're seeing coming through this morning.
I want to talk about the Strait of Hormuz. President Trump saying he's going to be announcing very soon the coalition of countries that have agreed to help escorting vessels through that chokepoint. There is precedent -- we've seen this happening before -- but there are political and military hurdles that these countries would have to overcome before agreeing to this.
Do you think there's a huge likelihood that we'll see countries joining in?
HELLYER: I think you might see a few, but I think we've already seen that a number of American allies of the United States contacted to be a part of this coalition have dithered or said no or said they need to have more details.
It's reminiscent of, you know, the Board of Peace and trying to get countries, particularly in Europe, to sign up and they wouldn't. And in the end, you did get some people outside of the immediate region which felt that they had real skin in the game to actually be a part of the Board of Peace, but you didn't have much in the way of international acceptance of it.
And I think that when it comes to this, you're also going to see very few countries willing to put their forces into the theater without having much more of a say of how the theater is actually dealt with. And I don't think anybody thinks that they would have influence over that because it's really being done directly from the White House.
And I think they'd rather see negotiations between the parties take place instead because it's very difficult for you to actually take control of the straits to the degree where you can't think that everything is actually safe because it doesn't take that much to upset that calculus at all from the Iranians. A few drones, one strike, that's it.
GIOKOS: So, exactly. And, I mean, just the threat of a strike deters shippers, frankly.
I want you to tell me about the security architecture and how what we're seeing now is going to fundamentally change what we're going to expect in the Gulf as a whole and importantly, even bringing in other countries to assist with the strait, for example. That is also going to change the security architecture. There are going to have to be rules of engagement in terms of how countries and these naval escorts from other countries respond.
HELLYER: So this has been the problem in the region not just over the last few weeks and the last few months but, you know, arguably many years and decades.
The region's security architecture depends tremendously on the -- on an external underwriter -- in this case, the United States -- to provide that security. It's something that many of the Gulf states have not been happy with relying upon even though they don't want to replace the United States per se or eject it in that regard, but they need to have some sort of system in place that allows them to be more resilient without that external support. And they've been trying to do that over recent years because they simply don't regard the United States as incredibly reliable.
And at this moment in time what we're seeing is a war waged on Iran by the U.S. and Israel --
GIOKOS: Yeah.
HELLYER: -- which has put the Gulf states into a very difficult position because, of course, they are bearing the brunt of retaliation --
GIOKOS: Yeah.
HELLYER: -- from the Iranians.
This isn't a security architectural framework --
GIOKOS: So, H.A. --
HELLYER: -- that they're entirely happy with.
GIOKOS: Yeah.
So H.A., I want to talk about Israel's ground invasion -- the expansion of that in southern Lebanon and what it tells you about military objectives there.
HELLYER: That's another part of the regional security action -- architecture, Eleni. The Gulf Arab states but also the wider region recognize that Iran is tremendously destabilizing the region because of its proxies, because of its allied militias, and everything else that we know about the Iranians in the region.
But the other threat, and the one that gets identified a lot more regularly at this time, are the Israelis because the Israelis have carried out a genocidal war in Gaza, are occupying territory in Lebanon and Syria, and are pursuing a doctrine of paramountcy --
GIOKOS: Yeah.
HELLYER: -- throughout the region.
And when it comes to Lebanon, they've already made it clear that they're going up to and past the Litani River. We're talking about 10 percent of Lebanese territory already where Lebanese will not be allowed to be, which will be essentially a buffer zone held by the Israelis on Lebanese territory.
[05:35:13]
And I would argue they're going to go further and continue to hit targets in Beirut as they've done over recent weeks and months, even during a ceasefire. And I think people are very concerned that this will look very much like what happened in Syria in 1967 --
GIOKOS: Yeah.
HELLYER: -- where the Golan Heights were taken as a buffer zone -- so- called -- and never returned, and eventually almost completely depopulated. There were 130,000 people in the Golan Heights --
GIOKOS: Right.
HELLYER: -- before the 1967 war and now there's six -- and then there were 6,000 within a few months.
GIOKOS: All right.
HELLYER: The same thing could happen in south Lebanon.
GIOKOS: All right, H.A. Hellyer. Thank you so much. Really good to see you. We appreciate those insights. Always good to speak.
I want to update you on this breaking news that we had coming through this hour. The Israeli defense minister now confirming that Iran's top security official, Ali Larijani, has been killed, and that was an overnight strike in Tehran. He was the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Council.
And we are waiting to hear news from Iran. We are hearing that press release is coming soon so we'll wait to hear from Iran. But for now we have confirmation from the Israeli side that Ali Larijani was killed in an overnight raid and strike in Tehran.
All right, I want to get you back now to Rahel Solomon who's in New York for us -- Rahel.
RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Eleni. Thank you.
Well, still ahead for us, millions of Cubans are facing a nationwide blackout after the collapse of the island's power grid. How a new threat from President Trump could complicate efforts to get those lights back on.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:41:30]
GIOKOS: All right, updating our breaking news this hour. The Israeli defense minister now confirms that Iran's top security official, Ali Larijani, has been killed in an overnight strike in Tehran. He was the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council.
We've got CNN's Oren Liebermann joining us from Tel Aviv.
Ali Larijani was very important after the killing of the Ayatollah Ali Khamenie. Now we've heard news and confirmation from the Israelis that he has been killed in that strike in Tehran.
How does this degrade Iran's decisionmakers and the ability to, you know, keep on making the decisions that we've been seeing and frankly, keep the regime intact?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Ali Larijani was considered one of the most key decisionmakers, if not the primary decisionmaker in Iran right now, crucially on security issues but on other issues as well. He was also one of the most vocal and visible members of Iran's leadership and that put him not only right at the top of the decision-making power in the country, but also right at the top of Israel's target list.
We saw that when we learned a short time ago that Israel had targeted Ali Larijani in a strike in Tehran on Monday night, and now we see the statement from Defense Minister Israel Katz that Larijani has been killed in that strike, according to an Israeli assessment.
We haven't yet seen an announcement or confirmation from Iran at this point, but we have already in past over the course of the first 2 1/2 weeks of this war seen Israel get ahead of the Iranians in announcing who they have successfully targeted and assassinated when it comes to Iran's leadership.
It wasn't just Larijani that was targeted overnight. The Israeli military said they also targeted the head of Iran's Basij paramilitary forces a short time ago. So Israel going after the top of the security leadership and that will continue.
Defense Minister Israel Katz, in announcing that Larijani had been killed, made clear that the effort to target Iran's leadership would not stop here. In a short statement he said, "The prime minister and I have instructed the IDF to continue hunting the leadership of the terror and repression regime in Iran."
So Katz making it clear at this point that Israel's continued goal as it goes after the Iranian regime's military forces, its space forces, its ballistic missile program is to keep hunting down and killing the leadership of Iran's security forces and its political leadership. Anybody who is a decisionmaker in Iran it's quite clear at this point Israel considers a legitimate target that they will continue to go after here.
GIOKOS: Yeah, a really good point. What we have seen also, even with the killing of the ayatollah and other key leadership -- you know, dismantling the leadership structure has been difficult because you are seeing people replaced really quickly. Ali Larijani was -- you know, he appeared on TV 24 hours after the assassination of the ayatollah.
What is the sense in terms of the amount of people that are available to replace the likes of Ali Larijani and other key decisionmakers in terms of, you know, making the -- you know, the prospect of regime change possible in these circumstances?
LIEBERMANN: That's a really good question and Israel may have an assessment of that. How far do you have to go down Iran's leadership ladder to seriously weaken the regime. From the conversations we've had with Israeli military officials, the airstrikes alone -- and they are extensive with thousands more to go -- are not likely to topple the regime on its own.
[05:45:00]
And that's why you see Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu trying to appeal to the people of Iran, effectively telling them your time will come where it's up to you to overthrow the regime.
I don't think Israel believes that it can do that and topple Iran's leadership with airstrikes itself, no matter how far it goes down that list of leadership. It's also very difficult to tell people to come out onto the streets when you are carrying out waves of strikes on a daily and sometimes, it seems like, an hourly basis.
But what's clear, at least at this point, is Israel will keep working its way down that leadership list in terms of targeted killings and assassinations, and the moment Iran names a replacement for Larijani that person, too, will be on Israel's list.
GIOKOS: All right, Oren Liebermann. Thank you so much for that update. We're still waiting for Iran to confirm the killing of Ali Larijani as we're following this breaking news coming through from Tehran.
We'll be right back after this short break. Stick with CNN.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:50:20]
SOLOMON: Welcome back. I'm Rahel Solomon, and here are some of the stories we are watching for you today.
The Israeli defense minister says that Iran's top security official has been killed in a strike in Tehran. Ali Larijani was the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council. Iranian state media posted a handwritten note from Larijani on its Telegram channel warning Navy members who were killed. The letter was dated March 17.
A fire aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford burned for more than 30 hours according to The New York Times. Officials say that the fire last week on the U.S. aircraft carrier was not combat-related. Two sailors had minor injuries and the newspaper reports that dozens more suffered smoke inhalation, and others were left without beds.
Afghanistan says that a Pakistani airstrike on a Kabul hospital has killed at least 400 people. Pakistan denies hitting any civilian sites, saying that it targeted militant infrastructure. The strike marks a sharp escalation in fighting between the two countries.
President Trump has again set his sights on Cuba, threatening to take over the island as it deals with a crippling nationwide blackout. Millions of people are in the dark right now after the island's power system suffered a total collapse. It's the first blackout since the U.S. effectively shut off the flow of oil to Cuba. Cuban officials have held talks with Washington, but The New York Times is reporting that President Trump wants Cuba's president to step down.
On Monday, Trump suggested that he was open to taking the country over.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I do believe I'll be the honor of -- having the honor of taking Cuba. That'd be a good honor. It's a great honor.
REPORTER: Taking Cuba?
TRUMP: Taking Cuba in some form, yeah. Taking Cuba. I mean, whether I free it, take it. I think I could do anything I want with it if you want to know the truth. And they're a very weakened nation right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: CNN's Patrick Oppmann has more from Havana.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Cuba is once again in an island- wide blackout, something that has happened frequently enough over the years but this time feels different because it is the first time since an oil embargo put in place by the Trump administration has led or contributed to this kind of island-wide blackout affecting 10 million people at the moment.
The Cuban government says they are working to restore power. The question is, can they? Because according to their own admission, no oil has come in for three months now. We have seen longer and longer blackouts as this crisis has developed. You know, where I live sometimes it gets up to 20 hours in the last several days.
We have seen people going out at night to protest, banging pots and pans. In one small town in the east of Cuba, people actually attacked the Communist Party headquarters over the weekend and tried to burn down the headquarters before police came in and firing shots in the air and broke up that protest.
But people are on edge here. People are wondering if the government can hold on. Certainly, the Trump administration has said they believe that the government here is in its final hours and that they should make a deal with the U.S. to allow some of that flow of oil. But the Trump administration is calling on the government here to make major concessions. No sign that would take place and whether or not they could do it in time.
Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOLOMON: We're going to take a short break and we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:53:10]
SOLOMON: We're going to give an update now on our breaking news this hour.
The Israeli defense minister says that Iran's top security official, Ali Larijani, has been killed in an overnight strike in Tehran. He was the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council. He was among Iran's most powerful civilian officials and was close to the late supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Iran has yet to confirm his death, but we are expecting a statement from Tehran any moment now.
A massive storm system sweeping across the eastern part of the U.S. has cause severe thunderstorms, blizzard conditions, and even tornados. Hundreds of thousands of customers across several states lost power and thousands of flights were canceled or delayed. Travel disruptions even delayed a Senate vote until Tuesday morning.
The multiday storm has pushed winds up to 80 miles an hour and it's about to cross the Gulf Coast all the way up to the Great Lakes and is expected to move offshore overnight.
In the south, multiple twisters were reported. One in Arkansas demolished buildings and part of a home. And take a look at this. Massive winds lifted part of a barn in southern Missouri sending donkeys literally running for cover. Farmers say that none of the animals were hurt.
And Hawaii is being hit with severe flooding, landslides, and power outages from a so-called Kona storm. The storm shattered a 75-year rainfall record on the islands. On Maui island, significant rainfall is causing dangerous conditions as floodwaters swallowed up the roads -- and not just roads but also homes.
A couple, both nearly 80 years old, had their dream home taken from them by a flooded river. Their home sat nearly 75 feet from a stream but was still swept away. They say they didn't have flood insurance because it wasn't a flood zone. The couple says that they're grateful to have each other and that they will just start to rebuild.
[06:00:05]
OK, that's going to do it for this hour of EARLY START. Our thanks to Eleni Giokos in Dubai. I'm Rahel Solomon in New York. "CNN THIS MORNING" starts right now.
