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Isa Soares Tonight
Iraqi Kurds Deny Involvement in Plan to Send Forces into Iran; Iranian Building Used for Torture Destroyed in Bombing; Israel Orders New Evacuations for Southern Beirut; Governments Rush to Evacuate Citizens Stranded in Middle East. President Trump Fires Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem; U.S.-Israel War With Iran Enters Day Six; Israel Launches New Strikes on Iran and Lebanon. Aired 2:00-3p ET
Aired March 05, 2026 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:00]
ISA SOARES, HOST, ISA SOARES TONIGHT: Hello, and welcome everyone, I'm Isa Soares, welcome to our viewers, of course, right around the world.
We're going to have the very latest you would expect on the war with Iran in just a moment.
But first, I want to bring you the breaking news out of Washington this hour. U.S. President has in the last few moments fired Homeland Security
Secretary Kristi Noem. She was, as you all know, in charge of the Trump administration's controversial handling of migrants in the United
States.
And she came under intense scrutiny following the death of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis earlier this year. President Trump says her last
day on the job will be on March 31st. He said that on a social media posting. We know that she will be replaced by Republican Senator
Markwayne Mullin.
This in the last few minutes, President Trump firing Kristi Noem as DHS Secretary. We'll have much more on this story as it develops. And the
timing -- for the time being, I do want to turn our attention to these very fast-moving developments that we're getting in the Middle East, in
the Gulf, and here's the very latest to bring you up-to-date on the very latest on this war on Iran, a sixth day.
And yet, another sign of how the conflict is expanding to more and more of Middle East, CNN just got these pictures, going to show you -- them
to you, of an Iranian missile strike on an oil refinery in Bahrain. So far, there are no reports of injuries, and it comes after Azerbaijan
says drones struck near an airport along its border with Iran, injuring two people.
Explosions were also heard in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, as that country says it shot down Iranian missiles and drones. Donald Trump, meanwhile,
now says he should have a say in picking Iran's next supreme leader. In a series of interviews, the U.S. President dismissed the possibility of
Ayatollah Khamenei's son ruling Iran, calling him a lightweight.
And residents of Beirut, Lebanon, are fleeing parts of the city after Israel ordered an evacuation. Israel is stepping up attacks on
Hezbollah, including its first hit on targets in northern Lebanon. Right now, CNN correspondent Fred Pleitgen and his photo journalist and
producer Claudio Otto(ph) are making the long drive to Tehran.
And CNN is the first U.S. network in the country since the start of the war. It is important to note, though, that CNN is operating in Iran only
with permission from the government. Here is Fred's latest report.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're making fairly good progress towards Tehran. It is a very long drive, though.
Some things that we are seeing, we already went past one place where apparently there had just been an airstrike.
There was thick black smoke billowing over one place, so it seemed like a fairly fresh airstrike. Also, some destroyed buildings that we saw
from our vantage point as we were driving past. The other thing that I would also say is that there are definitely more checkpoints than usual.
We did see checkpoints with fairly heavily-armed security personnel. Other than that, though, it seems as though, things are going on and we
certainly don't see any sign of order collapsing here. Taking a quick break for a coffee along the way.
We've been driving for several hours. There's a couple of things that we've noticed. Number one is that, first of all, all the shops are open,
all the shops are really well stocked, even with fresh things like for instance, fruits and vegetables, coffee obviously also available as
well.
And then also the gas stations. There's no long lines as gas stations fuel seems readily available and you just don't see any sort of degree
of panic anywhere.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Our Fred Pleitgen and team in Iran. And we are covering events in the region from a number of places. Let me go to Nick Paton Walsh,
who is following all developments for us from Israel. And Nick, let me get first to your take on what we've been hearing just today.
In fact, we're seeing Israel attacking on two fronts. And I think that is clearly -- they're stepping up striking Iran, also striking, as we
were saying in northern Lebanon, I think it was for the first time since the war began.
[14:05:00]
Can you give us a sense of what you're hearing from the IDF about its aims there? And I see you looking up at the sky. I was just wondering
if you're seeing anything.
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, we've just noticed more and more planes coming in and out of here on clear
little uptick suddenly in traffic in and out of Tel Aviv airport. It seems certainly in the skies here as a regular, but probably of little
consequence compared to what we should be talking about. Which is --
SOARES: Yes --
WALSH: The expanding IDF evacuation orders inside of Lebanon themselves. Yes, you point out rightly, there has been a strike to the
north of Lebanon in Tripoli, the IDF saying they've gone after Hezbollah leader there.
But certainly, I think we've just heard in the last minute of another evacuation order in the Beqaa Valley, three separate settlements there.
The IDF have told people to get out of that as well. That overshadowed ultimately, though, by the larger order given today.
People to get out of the southern suburbs of Beirut. That could be half a million-plus people on the move. Now, I'm -- scenes of extraordinary
anxiety inside of Beirut and concerns too, I think amplified by a comment made here while up the northern border actually of Lebanon by
the Israeli Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich.
Who said that they may turn Dahieh; that southern suburb where Hezbollah have had a stronghold for so many decades into rubble. He essentially
said it might make the same fate as the southern city of Gaza, Khan Yunis, devastated by the conflict with Israel over the past years.
So, obviously, heightened anxiety inside of Beirut. And a sense, too, today, of the scope of what Israel may indeed be planning. The defense
minister has been clear. They want to see Hezbollah disarmed. But we've seen also two evacuation order in southern Lebanon as well.
So, a true amplification certainly of Israel's aims to the north, seeing an opportunity against a weakened Hezbollah certainly to what they would
consider to be finish the job.
But the impact on ordinary Lebanese, not to be understated in the slightest, but importantly as well, over Iran, we just heard hours ago
of the 13th wave of Israeli air strikes being launched.
The 12th, they gave us some detail as to what that was aiming at. That was underground bunkers where ballistic missiles, surface-to-air
missiles were being held. And I think a sense that the Israeli part of the Iran attack is certainly relentless.
We see, you know, two waves so far today that we've learned of, and it's clear too, of the civilian toll there with this morning, the latest
count from a U.S. based human rights group, saying 1,100 Iranians had died in that too.
So, Fred, clearly working towards a scene in Tehran where you're likely to see much more of the damage on the capital itself.
SOARES: Nick Paton Walsh for us this hour in Tel Aviv. Thanks very much, Nick. As I promised our viewers, the breaking news that we have
out of Washington at the top of the show, of course, and that is the firing of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
I want to go to White House, and our Kristen Holmes is there. Do we have a sense at this hour what the catalyst, Kristen, was for this?
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: We do, and just a reminder, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security has been
under enormous amount of scrutiny over the last several months. We know that the immigration tactics of ICE and Border Patrol have been largely
seen by Americans as unfavorable.
There were the two shootings that we saw in Minneapolis, which actually prompted Kristi Noem to be moved out of Minneapolis, and Tom Homan; the
border czar to be brought in.
But we are told -- and you can see a picture of Noem there, that the catalyst for this was the Senate Judiciary hearing, in which she was
confronted by both Republicans and Democrats, and in particular, an exchange that she had with a Republican Senator Kennedy over this $200
million ad campaign.
The ad campaign featured Kristi Noem on camera, talking and asking people who are in the country illegally to self-deport. Two hundred
million dollars is an enormous amount of money. And Noem was asked if President Trump had signed off on this.
She said in very certain terms, yes, he did. President Trump grew very angry after watching this back-and-forth. He called members on the Hill,
saying he had never said that. And in fact, today in an interview, he said it on the record that he had never signed off on any of those ads,
that he didn't even know about it before they were -- actually came to fruition.
So, he began calling lawmakers, talking about potentially firing or replacing Kristi Noem. He floated several names, and now, we have seen
one of those names is going to replace her. This is the Oklahoma Senator, Markwayne Mullin.
This is one of the names he had been discussing. President Trump says that is who is going to be the new Department of Homeland Security
Secretary. The reason why this is so fascinating is, of course, he'll have to be confirmed.
But generally-speaking, it is much easier when senators are put in these roles for confirmation. Now, the other part of this is that, President
Trump announced that Kristi Noem is moving to another job, which he says is the special envoy for the Shield of America.
[14:10:00]
So, they've clearly provided an off-ramp for the secretary here. But this is the first removal of a cabinet secretary in President Trump's
second term, and that is by design. That is because President Trump and Chief of Staff Susie Wiles did not want this to look like a revolving
door like it did the first time.
So, the fact that he actually took this extraordinary step really says something to the level of anger and frustration he had towards Kristi
Noem.
SOARES: Kristen, thank you very much, indeed, for laying it all out for us there on the breaking news story. Appreciate it. I want to return, of
course, to the war that we are seeing with Iran as the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran widens, and it widens by the day.
Questions are swirling about the supply of crucial interceptor ammunitions. I want to show you a map that shows the yellow strikes from
Iran and its proxies. You can see hitting all over the region as you can see in that map, from Cyprus to Oman.
Iran has successfully utilized low-cost drones called the Shahed drone to carry out its retaliation. They're able to fly low and slow, a
feature that makes them harder to detect as well as intercept than ballistic missiles. If the name Shahed drones sounds familiar to you,
well, it's because Russia has been using them against Ukraine for years.
In fact, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has offered to help other countries fend off Iranian drones and missiles. Former U.S.
ambassador to NATO, Kurt Volker tells CNN, that's probably a good idea. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KURT VOLKER, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO NATO: These are the Shahed drones, Iranian designed. There are vast numbers of these, and they are
very inexpensive. Here, the Ukrainians have developed inexpensive means of taking them out.
So, they're not using the high-end Patriot missiles to go after all of these drones. And I think there's actually some coordination that should
be happening between the U.S. and Ukraine about developing some of the same techniques that the Ukrainians are using, and maybe even getting
some Ukrainian assistance to come up with a better way of handling these large numbers of Iranian drones.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Let's get more on the military buildup in the Middle East. Joining us now is Colin Clarke; the Executive Director of the Soufan
Group. Colin, great to see you. I will get to the Shahed drones in just a moment.
I do want to get your take first on this line that we are seeing out of "Axios", the President telling "Axios" that he needs to be personally
involved in selecting Iran's next leader a bit more -- a bit like Venezuela with Delcy Rodrguez. I wonder whether he's in a position, you
think, to do that. Would Iranian leadership acquiesce to that?
COLIN CLARKE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SOUFAN GROUP: Thanks for having me, Isa. Well, look, this isn't an episode of the apprentice. He doesn't
just get to pick world leaders as he pleases. The Iranians are going to have something to say about that too.
And given the fact that we're in an ongoing hot conflict and war with Iran, I don't think they're likely to acquiesce or capitulate on Trump's
chosen individual to lead their country. Really, what this is all heading toward to me is a low-level insurgency.
We're going to see a balkanized country with various ethnic and religious groups fighting for power for the foreseeable future.
SOARES: Right, and given that you've mentioned that, I do want to tap into your expertise in the region, and I wonder what you make, then,
Colin, of what we are hearing now from multiple sources that the CIA is working to arm Kurdish forces with the aim of fomenting a popular
uprising in Iran. I mean, speak to the strategy, and indeed, more critically, the risks here.
CLARKE: Yes, so, it's actually amazing to me as somebody that lived through the Iraq war that we're repeating some of the same mistakes that
we made in the Iraq invasion. So, we can go back even further than that, and go back to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan when the U.S., the
Saudis, the Pakistanis worked together to supply the Mujahideen with stinger missiles.
That ultimately came back to bite us, we ended up fighting many of these same groups. And so, it's really a kind of very shortsighted and myopic
strategy to me. Furthermore, if I were the Kurds, I don't know why I would trust the United States, because every opportunity we get, we
leave them in the dust.
And so, it speaks to their desperation, but I just don't think this is a well-thought-out strategy. You know, it's -- we've gone in and totally
upended this country and it shows by the little thought we've put in what happens next. It almost seems like it's being made on the fly.
SOARES: Yes, look, there isn't much strategy, at least, not being communicated, unless there is. And we are just not being told. But the
administration, as you know, as you've been hearing, they've been calling the fight so far. And we heard this yesterday repeatedly, a
resounding success, Colin.
Though, the war, as we pointed out at the top of the show is expanding by the day, expanding horizontally. Today, it was Azerbaijan. We now
have heard the administration in the last 24 hours talking about four goals.
[14:15:00]
Just give us your thoughts. I mean, is it a success because it's certainly getting more complex. Speak to what you were seeing right now
and how you see this progressing.
CLARKE: So, I think, you know, there's a reluctance to identify what's happening now. You even have members of Congress trying to kind of
perform mental gymnastics or verbal gymnastics to say that we're not in a war. It's starting to sound like a little bit like Putin's special
military operation.
I don't know that I'd want to be compared to that. Look, when -- you know, when you look at insurgencies or longstanding conflicts, one of
the things that prolongs these conflicts is complexity. And complexity is driven by the amount of actors involved.
Both states and non-states, bring Azerbaijan into the mix, bring the entire region, the Turks, the Kurds, this is really going to transform
the region, but not in the way that the Trump administration is hoping. I think we're very likely to see the beginning.
We did 20 years in the global war on terrorism fighting against Sunni Jihadists. What we have now could be the beginning of another ten, or
twenty years, fighting Shia extremism in the region, all drawing back to what's happening now.
SOARES: Yes, sure, really learning our lessons from history. That is for sure. Colin, great to see you as always. Always appreciate your
analysis. Colin Clarke there for us. And still to come tonight, the conflict in the Middle East is putting European leaders in a tough spot.
Do they join the U.S.-led military operation or stay on the sidelines? We'll examine that just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Well, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says the U.K. and the U.S. are working together in Middle East, that is despite what appears
to be strained relationship, of course, with President Donald Trump.
The Prime Minister told reporters that Britain is sending another four fighter jets to Qatar to strengthen its defensive operations in the
region. Earlier this week, if you remember, President Trump lashed out at him for not allowing the U.S. to use British air bases in the Chagos
Islands.
Prime Minister Starmer though, says the U.S.-U.K. bond remains strong. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEIR STARMER, PRIME MINISTER, UNITED KINGDOM: The special relationship is in operation right now. We're working with the Americans in the
deployment from our bases. We are working together in the region.
The U.S. and the British working together to protect both the U.S. and the British in joint bases where we jointly located.
[14:20:00]
And we're sharing Intelligence on 24/7 basis in the usual way. That is the special relationship -- that is the special relationship in
operation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, U.S. allies in Europe, whether they like it or not, are being pulled into the war in the Middle East. French President Emmanuel
Macron after initially saying the strikes on Iran violated international law, now says France will send its nuclear-powered aircraft carrier,
that's the Charles de Gaulle, to the eastern Mediterranean.
France will now allow the United States to use an airbase on the French mainland, but only for non-combat purposes. If we turn our attention to
Italy, because Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni says Italy is also sending air defense aid to Gulf states.
In part, she says, to protect the thousands of Italian civilians and troops that are stationed in the region. And if we go to the other side,
to Spain, and focus on what we're seeing out there, Spain, along with France, along with Italy, has agreed to bolster defenses for Cyprus,
which was hit by a drone attack this week.
As you know, that's after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez denounced American-Israeli strikes on Iran, igniting, as we've been showing you on
the show, a rift with U.S. President Donald Trump. I do want to go deeper now into this balancing act of European leaders are facing with
our international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, who is in Riyadh right now.
Nic, like many European leaders, you know, they've been -- we've seen -- they've been pretty reticent, right? About getting involved in this
operation. But now, they're being drawn into this conflict to protect national assets, so European assets. Just speak to this balancing act
that we've been seeing out of Europe.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, it's really interesting to me, because I was having a meeting with a Saudi official
earlier in the week, and that was just after Iran or its proxies had tried to strike the British Airbase, Akrotiri in Cyprus.
And he said, look, that is a calculated effort by Iran to draw Europe into the conflict. And I was thinking, well, you know, that was an
attack against the British Air base. You know, Iran has said that it will attack those types of air bases in the region if it thinks the
United States is using them, even though Keir Starmer has been very clear any British base had not been used for offensive action by the
United States.
But, you know, a few days later, here we are -- yes. What the Saudi official was saying, because they studied this very closely, they
understand -- they understand. And I think we can't stress that enough. The tactics that Iran uses, you have the situation.
It's not just France and Italy and Spain and the Netherlands that are -- that are sending their warships now, along with Britain, when it can get
HMS Dragon out of harbor, the frigate it's sending. But Greece is sending two naval assets as well to Cyprus as well as some four F-16
aircrafts.
It does appear that the sort of effort to strike against Cyprus has drawn many European countries closer to standing with European partners.
And Prime Minister Keir Starmer and other European leaders finding a way to try to accommodate the requests of the United States, I believe.
France now has agreed for its bases in mainland France to be used by the United States at their request, only for defensive measures here. But we
have, you know, Mark Rutte, today saying that -- the NATO Secretary- General saying that Iran is close to becoming a threat to Europe.
We have NATO later today now adjusting their ballistic missile defense posture towards, you know, defeating threats that may come from Iran.
So, yes, it is the tendrils of this war are reaching in and drawing in European powers.
SOARES: Yes, and Nic, I'm just going to pick up on that NATO line, because I think, I wonder if you can expand a bit more on what terms
what that means, because when I came down from the office, I did see that tweet from NATO allied command operations suggesting they were
increasing.
I think it's their alliance ballistic missile defense posture, sorry, it's quite -- it's quite a mouthful. I'm guessing that's off the back of
that missile that was making its way to NATO ally Turkey that you and I were talking about in the last kind of 24-48 hours. What exactly does
that mean?
ROBERTSON: That means that NATO member nations, there are 32 of them now, will now orient defense posture to be looking at the skies towards
Iran. And perhaps, we don't know, but of course, they're already stretched along the border facing Russia, supporting Ukraine.
So, this will further stretch what NATO does. But what it does is quite simply say NATO perceives a threat to its member states, and it must
respond to that.
[14:25:00]
And let's not forget, it was only a couple of days ago, there were concerns among European Intelligence agencies that in an effort to sort
of drive-up international condemnation of the U.S. and Israel striking Iran, there could be the possibility of Iran using sort of terror
proxies inside of Europe to destabilize.
Of course, that hasn't materialized. But we do know that the Intelligence agencies, the police services within Europe have gone up to
a heightened level of preparedness for that. And I think as well -- let's look at the GCC Foreign Ministers phone call with the EU Foreign
Ministers today.
You know, there was a lot of talk about the EU supporting the GCC countries and condemning Iran's actions here. But also, there was a very
practical steps that were put -- being discussed that could be taken. The European Union has two naval missions right now, one off the coast
of Somalia, one off the coast of Yemen.
And there was discussion about moving those frigates closer to the Straits of Hormuz, because obviously, it is a major economic issue for
European powers if oil can't get to international markets, the same as it is for all countries around the world.
They have naval assets. They must now consider whether or not they put them in harm's way, how they do that, do they do it with the United
States or others?
SOARES: Nic, thank you very much. I'm glad you left me in the Strait of Hormuz because as we leave you, I'm just going to show our viewers the
oil markets. The stock markets, first of all, and these jitters of course, that Nic, was talking about, not just of the war that we're
seeing in Iran, but the concerns over the Straits of Hormuz.
The fact that the oil can't make its way out, natural gas can't make its way out. And the impact this is having on markets right across the
board. If I show you, the Dow Jones down more than 2 percent, S&P down 1.30 of a percent, and Nasdaq also down.
It really is among the Dow, the lowest of the day. But you can see numbers are dropping sharply, given of course, what we are seeing out of
the Straits of Hormuz, and indeed in Iran. We'll come back to the markets in about ten minutes or so.
Still to come tonight, possible U.S. support to arm Kurdish rebels to fight against Iran. What the regional government says. We'll have a live
report from Iraq, from our Clarissa Ward. That is next
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:30:00]
SOARES: Welcome back everyone. Iraqi Kurds are denying involvement in a plan to arm Kurdish groups and send them into Iran. Kurdistan's
autonomous regional government said Thursday any campaign across the eastern border is, quote, "completely unfounded." Sources have told CNN
the Trump administration and the American CIA is working to arm Kurdish forces hoping to trigger an uprising in Iran. While the Kurdish people
are an ethnic minority group in the Middle East without an independent state. Our Clarissa Ward has more on background.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Everyone is watching to see whether Kurdish fighters will launch a ground offensive
into Iran. So, who are the Kurds?
WARD (voice-over): They're one of the largest stateless ethnic groups in the world. About 30 to 40 million people spread across a mountainous
region spanning Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire a century ago, they were promised a state of their own,
it never materialized.
In Iran, Kurdish armed groups have fought the government for decades operating from bases along the Iraqi border. Multiple sources say the
CIA has backed some of those groups as they prepare for a possible ground offensive.
In Iraq, the picture is very different. Kurds here built a powerful autonomous region after the fall of Saddam Hussein and worked closely
with the United States in the fight against ISIS. But they're wary of provoking Iran and are trying to stay neutral, calling for peace and
stability.
In Syria, Kurdish militias became one of Washington's most effective partners against ISIS, controlling much of the Northeast. But they were
ultimately forced to give up some of that territory to the government in Damascus.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: Some important background there from our Clarissa Ward who joins us now from Erbil. And that context, that background, Clarissa, is
so important because it is very complex and it add some clarity, of course, to some of the mix message and reports we are hearing
So, let me get your perspective, first of all, on what we heard from President Trump today in various interviews he's done where he said, he
would be all for, he said, Kurds launching an uprising in Iran. He said, I think it's wonderful that they want to do that. What are you hearing
about the potential conversations, if there are any, between Iranian Kurds and the administration, and how realistic this is?
WARD (on camera): So, our understanding, Isa, according to a number of Iranian Kurdish officials here, is that there have been conversations
between the Trump administration and these different groups, and there has been consistent support from the CIA for at least a few months, even
before this war began to try to arm those Iranian Kurdish groups with a view to having them go in and try to foment some type of unrest inside
Iran.
Now, understandably for the leadership of Iraqi Kurdistan, this is very dangerous territory and they don't want to have any part in it. In
fact, the first lady of Iraq, who is a Kurd herself, put out a statement just a few hours ago saying, quote, "leave the Kurds alone. We are not
guns for hire."
We've also seen the leadership here in Iraqi Kurdistan go so far as to send forces to the border to prevent any Iranian Kurdish groups from
crossing that border. And you can understand why. The Iranians have warned the leadership here that there will be retaliation. And, Isa, we
have seen a steady stream of missile and drone strikes on the camps and bases that are used by these various Iranian Kurdish militias in
Kurdistan.
All of that contributing to a really growing sense of queasiness and unease that this could rapidly escalate and devolve into something that
is no longer in the control of Iraqi Kurdish leaders, because their fear is that the Americans keep changing their mind. One day President Trump
says regime changes the goal. The next day he says something else. And meanwhile, they will be the ones left to deal with the Iranian regime if
they do remain in power.
So, a lot of anxiety here and a lot of different messaging coming from different factions within various different Kurdish parties.
SOARES: Clarissa Ward for us in Erbil this hour. Thanks, Clarissa. Well, it was a monument to torture. Now, it's rubble on an Iranian
street. When the bombs rained down on the country, it took out at least one of the building security forces used for interrogation, abuse and
much, much worse. Jomana Karadsheh spoke to an Iranian woman who was held there about its destruction.
[14:35:00]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They terrorized Iranian women for decades, the regime's enforcers of so-called morality.
This week, one of the most notorious morality police centers in Tehran was hit in a strike.
In text and audio messages from inside Iran, women shared with us their relief when they heard that place is no more.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I'm crying because I'm so happy to know that it doesn't exist. And I'm crying because I remember
the way I was insulted and pushed around in that building.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I will never forget that one of these officers took a handkerchief that had been lying on the ground
and rubbed it on my face and wiped my makeup off.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Our time there was deeply traumatizing. I always thought about how I would go there and take my
revenge if the government fell. I'm experiencing so many conflicting emotions at this time.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): These satellite images from before and after the strike show the damage sustained by the Gisha Street complex that
also housed other regime security apparatus. Fatemeh Mosadegh says state security held her there twice. Hearing the news brought back a nightmare
she's tried for years to leave behind in Iran.
FATEMEH MOSADEGH, IRANIAN ACTIVIST: I was in the little cell. I have a friend. She was in the next room. And we tried to be calm with the sound
of crying each other. You know, she shouted me, cry louder. I want to hear you. Sorry.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): Fatemeh, a woman's rights activist and mother, was locked up in that compound twice. The second time for 16 days of
interrogations accused of working with foreign states. She says she was threatened with physical and sexual abuse that many detainees face.
KARADSHEH: The moment when you heard that it was hit, how did you feel?
MOSADEGH: Too complicated. I'm not happy. I don't like war. But at the same time, I think, oh, there is no place like that for my people, for
me to be tortured.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): For the regime's victims, seeing the walls that once caged them now crumble brings a complicated release of emotions.
Thank you, Israel. A woman filming this video says her house was damaged in a strike here. But it's OK, she says, happy to sacrifice it for the
young people who were killed by the regime.
This is what was hit in that strike, a base used by government security forces. This video from 2022 during the woman life freedom uprising
captured the savagery that emanated from that base. About a dozen agents who operated out of that place surround an unarmed protester, ram him
with a motorbike, beat him with batons. And then this. That young man who miraculously survived is Pouria Alipour. That terrifying night
forever etched on his face.
In a message, he told us, I am happy to see the destruction of this criminal base. This regime must be destroyed so a new Iran can rise.
Porya, like other victims, says he's happy to see these strikes take out the centers of the regime's repression. But at the same time, it's
painful knowing innocent Iranians are also paying the price.
Soroush Khazai (ph) is one of those Iranians. The 29-year-old visual artist was killed in a strike that targeted a regime security building
near his family's home. One of more than a thousand civilians killed so far in this war, according to activists. It's a bitter cost that comes
with this measure of long awaited justice for the regime's countless victims.
Jomana Karadsheh, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:40:00]
SOARES: Well, Israel's military says it has an urgent warning for people in Beirut's southern suburbs. Save your lives and evacuate your
homes immediately. A mass exodus is underway right now, creating huge traffic jams. Israel's finance minister is vowing the IDF will turn the
area into rubble, just like Gaza.
Southern Lebanon was already under evacuation orders as Israel blasts Hezbollah targets. Aid workers say some families are sleeping on the
streets, living in constant terror. Lebanon says more than 83,000 people have been displaced so far. Just to give you a sense of the numbers.
I do want to go to Beirut right now. We're joined by Ronnie Chatah, host of the Beirut Banyan Podcast. Ronnie, good to have you back on the show.
Let me start then with just the broader picture. These evacuation orders the Israeli military is putting out. These are entire neighborhoods,
right? We're talking tens of thousands of people. Give us a sense of whether people are heeding that call and where they're going, Ronnie.
RONNIE CHATAH, HOST, THE BEIRUT BANYAN PODCAST: They are definitely heeding that call. And just to put it in perspective, within the last 24
hours, the entire geography south of the Litani River, which is roughly 8 percent to 10 percent of the geographic area of Lebanon, was under
forced evacuation. And then this afternoon, the entire southern suburbs of Beirut, what is referred to as Dahieh, has been evacuated as well.
And you're absolutely right. People are taking it seriously. And also, traffic jams that lasted up to four or five hours that are still
ongoing. And because Lebanese take these evacuation orders seriously, it's not the first time, of course, that the Israelis have bombed either
south of the Litani or the southern suburbs of Beirut. But things are moving very fast. And it's an unusual pace for what has happened in the
last few days.
SOARES: Yes. And the last time the Israelis did bomb, the idea of the bomb, you and I were speaking. I can only imagine how deeply unnerving
this must be. Give us a sense, Ronnie, of kind of at this level of displacement, where are people going? Are there NGOs there to support
people? We were talking about people sleeping on the streets. Paint us that picture.
CHATAH: Well, I'll give you a personal example. My building is filled with displaced Lebanese that just came in from the southern suburbs. The
entire building is now housing displaced Lebanese. You have in the heart of Beirut, in Martyrs Square, which is an open public area, you have
dozens of what used to be, in the last few days, now turning into hundreds and more of displaced Lebanese on the streets, along sidewalks.
There are NGOs trying to, and this is, of course, at the last second, trying to find immediate shelter. Public schools have opened in the last
two days for the displaced. But this is an emergency situation, and it's, of course, fluid, and everyone is tense. And the tension is
because the Israelis, as of now, have evacuated the southern suburbs, but the bombing has not started.
[14:45:00]
And by bombing, I mean the type of scenario you were previously reporting on, the type of carpet bombing, what could look like Gaza,
that has not happened yet, but everyone is on edge.
SOARES: And quite rightly so, and quite rightly so. So, let's put the political, then, into this. What has been the reaction of the Israeli
government to this? What has been the reaction from ordinary Lebanese and from the Lebanese government here, Ronnie, to Hezbollah's
involvement in this fight?
CHATAH: Well, I'll answer the question in two-fold, and I'll start with the average Lebanese person that is waking up to another war. This is
probably the most unpopular war Lebanon has been involved in, in recent memory, because it's not just Hezbollah's opponents that oppose this
war.
Hezbollah's pace, the majority of Hezbollah's supporters woke up to a war that has nothing to do with Lebanon. And for that reason, there's an
unpopularity that is unusual among the average Lebanese person. And at the same time, the war is ongoing and it's escalating.
On the other end, the Lebanese government has reacted belatedly to trying to mitigate the consequences of what Hezbollah poses to Lebanon
at large. And that means following up on what the government set out to do, which is the disarmament of all sub-state groups, including
Hezbollah. Of course, that never happened.
Actually, quite shockingly, the Lebanese government claimed credit for the disarmament of Hezbollah's weapons south of the Litani. Of course,
these are where rockets are being shot into Israel. And you also have a Lebanese government waking up to the reality that Iran, at this stage in
Iranian history, poses an existential threat to the sovereignty of Lebanon.
By that, I mean the organic relationship that once existed between Iran and Hezbollah. There is no autonomy left to this group. It is under
direct Iranian supervision. Hence, the government's decision today to ban IRGC activity in the country and impose visas on all Iranians coming
into Lebanon.
SOARES: Such important insight. Not just political insight, but obviously what is happening day to day. Ronnie, really good to see you.
Please stay safe. We'll stay in touch. Ronnie Chatah there for us in Beirut.
Well, as you probably would have noticed, and we've been showing this pretty much for the whole show, the ongoing military strikes across the
Middle East are impacting oil and gas prices. We've seen stock markets. We had a little banner up there for you showing how stock markets are
doing. Oil prices, though, U.S. gas prices are now at the highest level in 11 months overall. It's a 26-cent-a-gallon increase since Friday.
In addition, China has told its top refiners to halt diesel and gasoline exports, making matters worse. No oil tankers were able to move through
the Straits of Hormuz on Wednesday. On Tuesday, only three were able to get through.
Let's have a light look at the impact on the market, and we can see a current look at the crude oil prices as well. Let me show you the stock
markets there. You see red hours right across the border, down more than 1,000 points, over 2 percent. So, really, this expanding war, as
promised, you bring oil and WTI Crude up more 8 percent.
Let's go to Matt Egan, who's in New York. Matt, I mean, these numbers, I think it's an eight-month high. It's not just the widening, expanding of
this war, but also there's concerns of the Straits of Hormuz.
MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, that's right, Isa. Look, the war is disrupting supplies out of the most critical region on the planet for
energy, and that's why we're seeing oil prices spike once again. As you noted, an 8 percent, almost 9 percent increase for WTI, the U.S. oil
contract. Some context, this is the first time that oil prices have been above $81 a barrel since the summer of 2024, months before President
Trump was elected.
And when you look at the trend here, you can see oil prices going back the last nine months or so were kind of safely around $60 a barrel. And
then look at this spike leading up to the war and going on right now. Oil prices are going almost straight up. And as you noted, the problem
is, of course, what we're seeing in the Middle East with the Strait of Hormuz, that narrow waterway right off the coast of Iran.
According to S&P, no oil tankers at all, zero, went through the Strait of Hormuz yesterday. That's down from a typical day before the war, when
normally you'd see around 60 tankers go through. And that's because the ships have been threatened. Some of them have been attacked. Insurance
carriers, they've dropped the coverage.
Now, the president, President Trump, he's promised support, right? He's offered up maritime insurance. He says that U.S. Navy could escort ships
through the Strait of Hormuz. But the market clearly wants more details.
[14:50:00]
One industry official I talked to today said, yes, this is a step in the right direction, but we need a lot more details to restore confidence.
Isa, back to you.
SOARES: Yes. Details and as soon as how will it happen, how soon will it happen. And I'm guessing as long as the Strait of Hormuz is closed,
then that continues to have an impact on prices. But also, that creates inflationary pressures, right?
EGAN: Yes, absolutely. Listen, one, it's delaying the flow of oil from Saudi Arabia, UAE and other nations in the Gulf. That's the first
problem. Secondly, it's causing storage tanks to fill up. And so, if there's not enough storage for the oil, then producers actually have to
slash their production. And then the other thing that is concerning investors, I think, is the inflationary impact that you're mentioning.
And that's why we're seeing U.S. stocks sharply lower today. Isa.
SOARES: Matt Egan, thank you very much. We'll keep our eyes on the stock markets. And still to come tonight, evacuation flights
successfully take off from the lease. We'll have the latest on how many are still stranded and how governments are working to repatriate them.
That is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Flights to evacuate those stranded in the Middle East have ramped up today with thousands leaving the region. The first German
citizens have now returned home. A flight from Oman landing this morning in Frankfurt in Israel. Flights to bring Israelis home landed at Ben
Gurion Airport as they slowly reopen airspace.
Quest Means Business, the host -- business editor and host of Quest Means Business, Richard Quest joins me now. You've been tracking,
Richard, the flights. Give us a sense of repatriation flights, how that's proceeding.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND CNN ANCHOR, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS: I think the first point is that the European Commission is
starting to make great efforts, the Union, to open Italy, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Austria. All these places are now opening up quite
considerably. And as you just mentioned, we're seeing flights from Oman up to Germany. One expects to see some more repatriation flights. And
that's the way it's going to be over the next few days as these things - - it takes time to get it underway.
Also note that Israel, the Ben Gurion Airport itself, is now supposedly open and is starting to accept more flights. The trend is going to be,
but this is really your big problem. Take a look at this, Isa --
SOARES: Wow.
QUEST: -- because it doesn't really -- exactly.
[14:55:00]
Now, these are all the various flights, but you don't need to be a genius or a rocket scientist to see this big hole in the middle. And
what that tells us, of course, is there's no flight from Dubai, from all the countries that you would normally expect to see.
And crucially, this airspace means everybody is now flying around, whether it's BA Lufthansa, whether it's Singapore, whatever. You're not
taking the most direct routes, taking longer, costing more. But that's the way you've got to go until this airspace becomes safe. And that's
not likely to happen anytime soon, as long as the missiles keep flying.
SOARES: We've got about 50 seconds left on the show. What are you hearing from airlines, from airline CEOs, Richard, about the viability
of how soon this could happen?
QUEST: I've now heard from several airline CEOs in the Middle East. They are saying, look, we're doing what we can. Things will get back
together. Once the normality of the airspace opens, things will get back to normal pretty quickly.
As for everybody else, it's the oil price, the oil price. Remember what you just heard, $80 a barrel, that's going to be a problem for the
foreseeable future.
SOARES: Yes. Oil price, Strait of Hormuz. And I know we keep an eye on the Dow Jones more than -- down more than two and -- two-tenths of a
percent. Richard, I know you have much more on your show. All of it, right. Richard, appreciate it. Thank you very much.
And that does it for myself, for myself, for Richard. Thank you very much for your company. Do stay right here, "What We Know" with Max
Foster, as always, is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:00:00]
END
