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Isa Soares Tonight
U.S. Says The Ceasefire With Iran Is Still In Effect Despite Attacks In The Strait Of Hormuz; World Health Organization Says There May Be Rare Human-To-Human Transmission Of Hantavirus On Board MV Hondius Cruise Ship; Family Of Iranian Nobel Peace Prize Winner Narges Mohammadi Says She's Between Life And Death After Being Transferred To Hospital From Prison; Trump: Iran Should "Wave the White Flag Of Surrender"; Hegseth: Ceasefire With Iran Is Not Over; Clashes In Strait Of Hormuz Put U.S.-Iran Ceasefire At Risk; Narges Mohammadi's Family Fearing For Her Life. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired May 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: A very warm welcome to the show, everyone, I'm Isa Soares. Tonight, the U.S. says the ceasefire with Iran is
still in effect despite attacks in the Strait of Hormuz. We'll have the very latest for you on the situation this hour.
Then the World Health Organization says there may be rare human-to-human transmission of hantavirus on board a cruise ship, where three people have
already died. Plus, I'll be joined by the brother of Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi, as her family say she's between life and
death after being transferred to hospital from prison.
We'll have that and much more ahead for you. We do begin this hour with the ceasefire between the United States and Iran that as of this hour, may be
hanging just by a thread after Both sides traded fire around the Strait of Hormuz.
Many are wondering whether the truce is actually holding. A short time ago, U.S. President Donald Trump was asked what Iran needed to do to violate the
ceasefire.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They know what to do, and they know what to do --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Very good, well written --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: They know what not to do more importantly, actually, and you know, they fired them in little boats with peashooters. You know, the
peashooters? Little boats with little -- you know what? Because they don't have any boats anymore.
The Navy is comprised of -- they call them little boats --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's well observed, little boats.
TRUMP: And they're fast. Yes, they're so fast that they had eight of them and they were all gone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, earlier, the President's Defense Secretary insisted the truce remains in place despite the Pentagon acknowledging Iran has attacked U.S.
forces more than ten times since the ceasefire began.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE HEGSETH, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE, UNITED STATES: No, the ceasefire is not over. Ultimately, this is a separate and distinct project, and we expected
there would be some churn at the beginning, which happened. And we said we would defend and defend aggressively, and we absolutely have.
Iran knows that, and ultimately, the President is going to make a decision whether anything were to escalate into a violation of a ceasefire. But
certainly, we would urge Iran to be prudent in the actions that they take to keep that underneath this threshold.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: And while Secretary Hegseth is painting Operation Project Freedom as a success, well, consider this before the war, about 3,000 vessels per
month passed through the Strait, an average of about 100 a day.
On Monday, the U.S. says two U.S.-flagged ships transited the waterway. Well, Iran's chief negotiator vows Tehran will preserve the new status quo
and maintain its grip on the Straits, saying we have not even begun yet.
The UAE, meanwhile, says that its air defenses are currently dealing with the missile threat from Iran, which comes on the heels of attacks like this
one launched on Monday. Let's get more on all these angles for you.
Our Nic Robertson is in Islamabad while Alayna Treene joins us, you can see there from the White House. Nic, let me start with you. President Trump in
the last few hours has basically said that Iran should be waving the white flag of surrender. I mean, how likely is that to happen at this juncture?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, we've just heard from the President of Iran saying precisely the same thing, the United
States expects us to surrender, and is clearly indicating they have no intention of doing that.
The alert warnings in the UAE earlier on this evening, indicating there might be a current threat imminent, appear to have turned out to be nothing
over the past three hours, there have been no missiles incoming. But of course, last night, 19 missiles did impact there.
And it really does appear as if President Trump has sort of blinked on that to say that the ceasefire is still intact, talking about it in terms of the
threat to his own troops, but also in terms of it appears to be regional stability.
And, of course, late last night, the Iranians said, well, we didn't fire those missiles on the UAE. I think that's clearly something that doesn't
sort of carry a lot of credibility at the moment. And of course, you know, the White House and the mediators here in Pakistan can all sort of go back
to Intelligence and satellite-type data and see if the Iranians were telling the truth.
Regardless of that, the President has decided not to let either the actions of missiles hitting the UAE or the Iranian attempts to target U.S. forces
in the Strait of Hormuz, to sort of off-track what he's trying to achieve in terms of diplomacy.
[14:05:00]
And we got a very interesting insight to that from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth today, when he was asked a question about the sort of the
hardliners and the moderates, and he spoke about how there had been outreach, both covert and overt, to the -- to Tehran to allow Project
Freedom to take place, and how they view and differentiate the moderates and the hardliners in Tehran. This is how he explained it out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HEGSETH: And we're communicating both overtly and quietly to the Iranians to allow this defensive operation to happen on behalf of the world. There
are some actions the IRGC takes sometimes that are outside the bounds of what maybe Iranian negotiators would like.
That's their job to rein that in, and ultimately create a condition for a deal, right? That's not something I talked about in these remarks, but
that's happening in real time. Iran has an ability to make that deal. But what we're demonstrating with Project Freedom is, they don't control the
Strait.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: Yes, so there you have it. The conditions for a deal, it does appear that the sort of blink and try to miss what the IRGC has been doing
in terms of its threat and kinetic activity, to try to focus on the possibility of a pathway for talks with the more moderates in Tehran.
Can that be successful? I think where we stand today, that is that -- that's a very difficult question to answer. But that is -- that seems to be
the direction the White House is pushing in.
SOARES: Let's go to the White House. Alayna, let me pick up with you then. I mean, first of all, the question that many are asking on this side of the
pond is, I mean, if this is not a violation of a ceasefire right between both sides, what then would constitute a violation in the eyes of the White
House?
And speak then to the strategy that Nic was highlighting there? What is the strategy from the White House going forward in terms of the diplomacy, the
negotiations and the pressure campaign here?
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think you asked such a great question, Isa, because I think the reality that we've seen on the
ground, particularly throughout yesterday with this exchange of fire between the U.S. and Iran, but also Iran hitting that port in the United
Arab Emirates.
A lot of people saying, well, that looks like a violation to us. But clearly, the Pentagon and the White House coming out today to say, no, that
does not meet the threshold without, and this is a question that was just asked a little bit over an hour ago to President Trump himself.
What is then the threshold for violating the ceasefire? The President wouldn't answer that. And really, the Pentagon, both the Defense Secretary
and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs arguing that really, that is a determination that President Trump has to make and has yet to make.
And I think what's clear in all of this is the same thing, Isa, we've been hearing in our conversations with people here at the White House, is that
the President still really does want diplomacy to work. He is preferring to have a deal, some sort of peace agreement be struck, rather than to have
the U.S. military return to all-out war, to more major combat military operations.
And another thing I took away from what we heard from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth this morning is that when he talked about Project Freedom,
this idea of the President pushing for the U.S. to guide these ships through the Strait of Hormuz, he referred to that this morning as a
separate and distinct project from the war itself.
And that's partly why they're arguing that the ceasefire does remain intact. But a huge question, of course, is what does this look like moving
forward? And what is kind of the breaking point for President Trump?
Because I can tell you, you know, from the conversations we've been having over the last several days, last week included, again, he was preferring
and prioritizing some sort of negotiation and diplomatic off-ramp to this war.
But he's also, in recent days, got very frustrated with the state of where things stand and really with Iran's inability to come together behind
unified proposal to get those negotiations back on track in earnest.
And that's partly why you saw them try to force this movement through the Strait, and why the President is acting on this. He's under immense amount
of pressure, oil prices hit the highest level that they've been yesterday during this Project Freedom, its first day of kind of moving in operation.
We're also seeing, of course, the President has his China trip slated for next week. That's another pressure point that he is facing as well, to try
and get these ships moving. And so, things still remain at a standstill on the level of negotiations.
But I do think the key question, of course, is going to be, when does President Trump hit his breaking point? At least for now, they argue it has
not yet been reached.
[14:10:00]
SOARES: Alayna, thank you very much indeed. And our thanks to Nic Robertson who joins us this hour from Islamabad. Well, let's stay with this story,
I'm glad to welcome CNN military analyst Colonel Cedric Leighton, a well- known face here on the show.
Colonel, so good to see you. Let me just pick up really what we were talking about just there with Alayna Treene because U.S. Defense Secretary
Pete Hegseth, as you probably heard today has insisted that the ceasefire is not over, even though, as Alayna and both Nick was saying in Islamabad,
you know, both sides have been exchanging fire right in the Strait of Hormuz.
Is it over in your eyes? Because, you know, as you heard from Alayna Treene, no one's quite sure, particularly the White House, what constitutes
a violation here.
CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes, that's exactly right, Isa, it's great to be with you again. One of the factors here is really the
definition of a ceasefire and whether or not it is holding is in the eyes of the White House and more specifically, the President of the United
States.
And so, I think that in this particular case, the President has not decided exactly what constitutes a violation. You know, obviously, when you look at
it in -- you know, normal terms, any type of incident like this, where there's -- you know, a serious attack, I would characterize it at least as
a serious attack on Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates.
That's one example of violating a ceasefire. Of course, any attack on any armed element of the U.S. Navy, that is also a violation of the ceasefire,
and any attack on merchant vessels would also be a violation of the ceasefire.
So, all three of those categories were basically breached. I -- you know, over the last 24 or so hours, and that would indicate that the very -- in
the very best interpretation would be that this is a tenuous ceasefire, and that the United States is doing as much as it possibly can to keep it
going, keep the ceasefire going, and to hold that ceasefire at the moment.
So, that's what the United States wants. They want to keep the ceasefire as a -- you know, as basically a state of fact in their minds --
SOARES: Yes --
LEIGHTON: And then from there, they can advance negotiations.
SOARES: It sounds very much like a political decision as we heard from Alayna Treene there. Let me just pick up with what we heard from Secretary
Hegseth that Nic Robertson was alluding to, that, you know, the U.S. plans to guide these ships now through the Strait of Hormuz in what he's calling
Operation Project Freedom.
And they were talking about looking guided missile destroyers over 100 land and sea-based aircraft, multi-domain unmanned platforms. I mean, this
sounds, colonel, complex, costly and requires patience.
LEIGHTON: Yes, for sure. And Isa, that's a very good way of putting it. I think that what it reminds me of is the -- what we called Operation
Southern Watch and Operation Northern Watch in Iraq between the first Iraq war and the second Iraq war.
So, what those operations were basically designed to minimize Saddam Hussein's use of aircraft over certain zones in the northern part of Iraq
and in the southern part of Iraq. This is somewhat similar that it requires a very large commitment of U.S. forces in the region.
That large commitment of U.S. forces, I -- you know, sounds not only like a lot of personnel and material and weapons systems in which it absolutely
is, but it also is something that has to be looked at very carefully from the Pentagon's perspective, because the more you use these resources in a
kind of a standoff, peacekeeping-type role, that then takes them away from possible combat operations.
So, that, you know, the transition between something like a static thing like Operation Project Freedom versus an active combat kinetic operation,
like you would see in Operation Epic Fury, those are, you know, very distinct roles for the military.
The military can do both of them, but they often swap out personnel and weapon systems when they transition from a more status quo-type situation,
like Project Freedom would be as opposed to a kinetic operation, which requires active generation of sorties and basically bombing campaign.
So, they're quite different missions. And it requires a very careful monitoring of the situation and an understanding of the operational
environment before you transition from one to the other. And that's, I think, going to be a very difficult thing for them to do if they're not
careful.
SOARES: And there's another element of this, and I think we discussed it last week, which is the cost, right? Last week, we were talking about
potentially so far, the war costing $25 billion, and that was then, apparently, we found out that apparently that's twice.
[14:15:00]
It's supposed to be twice more than that, about 50 billion so far. And this strategy, colonel, what do you make then of the strategy from President
Trump? Because he believes that Iran will crack, Iran, clearly playing the long game here, hoping to build pressure on Washington.
How do you see this play out? Because Tehran has been warning today that it has additional ways to complicate matters for the United States when it
comes to the Strait of Hormuz here.
LEIGHTON: Yes, Iran is definitely playing the long game here, and they have, you know, a lot of capabilities in that regard.
First of all, geography helps them, and as you mentioned, the cost situation is one that is extremely difficult for the U.S. to really master
and for us to really get a whole handle on it, because the cost includes such things as the damage to U.S. military facilities in the Middle East,
which was considerable.
And that is something that has not only been under-reported, you know, as far as the media is concerned, but definitely under reported by the
Department of Defense itself. And that is something that, you know, does increase the cost factor and the risk factor.
So, this is a very risky situation that we find ourselves in, and the overall strategy is one that really was not well thought out at the
beginning of all of this. This was the wrong time to actually go after Iran. There were times in the past to do it.
There may be times in the future to do it, but there was no precipitating action and no preparation as a result of that, or at least minimal
preparation that should have been much more extensive from a planning perspective and from a force deployment perspective.
So, it's a very tenuous type operation because of that lack of preparation. Doesn't mean that the Pentagon can't catch up, and they're basically
playing --
SOARES: Yes --
LEIGHTON: Catch up right now with this kind of -- these kinds of operations. But what it does show is that I think the military
establishment here in the United States was caught off guard by the President's move to go after Iran in conjunction, of course, with the
Israelis.
SOARES: Any worth pointing out to our viewers, the Strait of Hormuz wasn't a problem, right? Prior to this war starting. This wasn't the reason why
the U.S. when -- and Israel went into war. Colonel, great to see you as always. Thank you very much indeed. Colonel Cedric Leighton there.
Well, with the fragile ceasefire in the gulf apparently holding for now, oil prices are easing a bit today. Both Brent crude, as you can see in WTI,
are down for Monday. It would appear the markets are waiting to see if President Trump's plan to guide ships, of course, through the Strait of
Hormuz, as I was speaking there with Colonel Cedric Leighton, will actually work.
Prices at the pump in the U.S. are now up more than 50 percent from where they were at the start of the war, and energy analysts say they will keep
going up until the Strait is reopened. Well, the World Health Organization says some human-to-human transmission may have occurred on the cruise ship
hit with hantavirus outbreak.
Three people have died on board the MV Hondius anchored off the Cape Verde islands near Africa's west coast. Officials say the priority right now is
to evacuate two crew members who are showing symptoms. A top W.H.O. official says the vessel will likely head to the Canary Islands, and it's
still unclear how this outbreak actually started.
And Nada Bashir has been on the story, she joins me now. So, Nada, what more are we learning about this outbreak?
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the concern, as you mentioned --
SOARES: Yes --
BASHIR: Isa, right now is that they do believe there may have been human- to-human transmission of this virus, which is, of course, a concern. But at this stage, the World Health Organization has been very clear, they believe
that the risk to the general public is low.
They do not believe that this is a virus that spreads, for example, in the way that the flu might spread or that COVID had spread quite rapidly
amongst the public. But of course, this is something they are still looking into.
And what they believe at this stage, the working assumption is that two of those who died as a result of this virus, the Dutch couple, they believe
they may have transmitted this virus off of the vessel. So, on one of the stops, potentially, they have said in Argentina, for example.
And then of course, brought that virus back onto the vessel. And of course, there are very strict hygiene measures now in place, as you mentioned,
there is a focus now on seven believed symptomatic cases. Two of those are confirmed.
And they are focusing, of course, on evacuating those two crew members as soon as possible and in a safe manner to isolate them, to prevent any
further spread --
SOARES: And is that going to happen -- is that going to happen in the Canary Islands? Is the cruise ships -- do we have any clear idea from the
W.H.O. what the next steps are here to prevent --
BASHIR: That is --
SOARES: This from spreading even further?
BASHIR: Well, that is the assumption at this stage, that it will take place on the Canary Islands. There's no clear port that's been outlined as a
reception point, of course, this is going to have to be a very tightly- controlled process, and they will be working with local health authorities to ensure that this is carried out seamlessly and without the risk of
further spread of this virus.
[14:20:00]
At this stage, no confirmation from the Spanish authorities, but of course, there is real concern around the potential for continued spread on board
the vessel itself.
SOARES: Give us a sense of the numbers, the people -- how many people on board that vessel, and what is happening inside? I mean, it's -- I find it
astonishing, it's hard to get anyone inside the vessel to actually talk to us. I think --
BASHIR: Yes --
SOARES: That does say a lot. But also, are they isolated? How is this being handled? Do we know what's happening inside?
BASHIR: So, it's understood that there are around 150 people on board, and they are now practicing very strict hygiene measures. There is some
isolation, ongoing --
SOARES: Some sort of quarantine --
BASHIR: Exactly.
SOARES: Yes --
BASHIR: And so, anyone with symptoms potentially will also be, of course, very tightly quarantined. And it's important to note that the symptoms that
are being reported are very similar to your average flu. We're talking about fevers, acute respiratory distress -- the sort of development.
But of course, issues with feeling sick, having a slightly upset tummy --
SOARES: Some malaise in general --
BASHIR: Exactly --
SOARES: Yes --
BASHIR: So, there is that concern that, of course, people are afraid and may be developing normal symptoms, but of course, afraid that this might
then be related to hantavirus given the already spreading, and of course, the W.H.O. now saying that there has been that person-to-person
transmission, which of course, there was some question about that.
SOARES: Yes --
BASHIR: But again, the clear message that the W.H.O. has also been sending is that there isn't at this stage, a greater risk to the general public.
So, the hope is that this can be a controlled situation.
SOARES: I know you'll stay across it for us, Nada, thank you very much. Nada Bashir there with the very latest. And still to come tonight, his name
may not be on the ballot, but American voters are focused on Donald Trump.
We will look at a vote today which could tell us if the President is losing his grip on the Republican Party. And then later, a desperate plea from
Narges Mohammadi's family for her to receive the specialist medical care she needs. I'll speak to her brother next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Well, voters in Ohio and Indiana head to the polls today in a pair of important primaries ahead of the November midterms. The vote in Indiana
is seen as a key test of Donald Trump's power in the Republican Party.
He is urging voters to reject seven Republican state senators who voted against his call to redistrict the state. And it comes as polls show the
President's popularity hitting historic lows, especially among Republicans and independents who don't like the war in the gulf and his handling
critically of the economy. Mr. Trump scoffs, though, at the polls and says they are fake.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: They give me fake polls. They tell me about polls and this -- you know, it's interesting.
[14:25:00]
They did a poll on the war with Iran, and they said only 32 percent of the people like it. But when you explain it like, is it OK for Iran to have a
nuclear weapon? It wouldn't be 32 percent. But even if you said that, there'd be a 32 percent because the polls are fake.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, let's get more on all of this. Go to our Jeff Zeleny who joins us from Washington. Jeff, great to see you. Look, this has been
interesting, of course, for everyone watching right around the world. Just put this into perspective for our -- for our audience, because this is a
real -- it's a major test, I think, of President Trump's presidency. So, what is the significance then of these elections?
JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: There is no doubt, and just hearing the President there certainly sounds like any
embattled president who is struggling to explain himself. If only the people understood more, they would support me more.
Well, the reality is, it's the White House's job and his job to explain the war in Iran, and it's one of the things he really has not done. And that is
one of the things that is hanging over these Midterm elections here in the U.S.
There's going to be many of them this coming month, but today in Ohio and Indiana, there's a somewhat different chapters of elections going on. Let's
start with Indiana. The reason this matter is, there's been this big redistricting war over the last year, redrawing congressional maps, hoping
to hold on the Republican majority.
The President, the White House have been in the middle of this. You'll remember last December, Indiana, a deep red Republican state said, no, we
are not going to redraw our maps. So, some Republicans stood up to the White House.
Now, the White House and the President are trying to elicit some revenge here. We shall see if it works. So, the White House and the President are
paying undue attention to seven-state Senate seats. Normally, these would be local affairs, not nationalized at all, but they have poured millions of
dollars into try and effectively unseat these Republicans who went against the wishes of the White House last year in this redistricting gambit.
So, we shall see if the President is as successful. My guess is, he wins a few seats or his preferred candidates win a few seats and he loses a few
seats. But the reality is, what it's going to show us. Are there cracks in the armor going forward here? Are there cracks in this Trump coalition that
is so important to him?
And in Ohio, a couple of interesting races as well. But the fact that we're even talking about Ohio is all we really need to say, because it has
trended Republican in recent years. But this year, it is absolutely a swing state, largely because of the economy. There's just no doubt about it.
SOARES: Let's talk about those cracks, because we were mentioning those polls, even though we know, as we heard there from the President, he scoffs
at them, because we are six months out, right? From these key Midterm elections.
And his polling, quite frankly, is not looking great. Sixty four percent of people disapproving of his handling of the job. Do we have a sense of what
is driving this? Is it mostly economy-related? Is it war? Is it clear from your vantage point, from the conversations you've had, Jeff, what is
driving this?
ZELENY: I think it's all of the above. The -- if I had to pick two reasons, it would be the economy --
SOARES: Yes --
ZELENY: And exhaustion at Trump. And that is encapsulating a lot of things there. But the economy, first and foremost, this year was intended to be
one on affordability, where the President was talking about how he is driving costs down.
And even more than his disapproval rating, the specific question about how do you believe the President's handling of the economy is, he is deeply
underwater on that number. And that is one of the reasons he was re-elected in the first place.
Talking about the economy, talking about bringing down the price of groceries and things. But the Iran war has led to soaring gas prices, and
that has led to this unease in the economy. So, they are absolutely tied together, and there's -- it's impossible to delink them, if you will.
But the economy is a concern of the White House. And the President may say those polls are fake, but the reality is, his advisors know that it's a big
challenge. And we're talking about control of the House of Representatives here. That is the biggest worry of the Republicans.
If Republicans lose control of the House, which happens to many incumbent presidents, their party often loses control of the House. He could be in
for a real different second half of a second term in office.
SOARES: Yes, and it doesn't matter how many times he says the oil prices will come down once the war is over, when you go and fill up, and if it
does not -- going down, that is not -- that is not --
ZELENY: Right --
SOARES: Good, right. Thank you very much, always great analysis, Jeff, great to see you. Jeff Zeleny there.
ZELENY: My pleasure, thank you --
SOARES: And still to come tonight, the U.S. says it has obliterated Iran's nuclear facilities. But satellite images show otherwise. We'll see which
key sites in the supply chain may have survived the strikes. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:32:50]
SOARES: U.S. President Donald Trump says Iran should wave the white flag of surrender because its military is, quote, "totally gone." He insists a
ceasefire is holding, despite a flare-up in attacks. Mr. Trump wouldn't say what would constitute a ceasefire violation, telling reporters only, you'll
find out.
An Israeli source says if the truce does collapse, Israel is considering escalating strikes against Hezbollah across Lebanon. The two sides are
already exchanging fire daily, even after President Trump extended a truce first announced in April. The source says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu wants U.S.-imposed restrictions lifted so the IDF can resume high-intensity fighting.
Let's bring in our Jeremy Diamond in Tel Aviv. And that is another question, right, Jeremy? It's like, when is a ceasefire not a ceasefire?
But let's talk then about what we're hearing from this Israeli source, saying that if the ceasefire collapses with Iran, that Israel is eyeing the
possibility of its escalating attacks. What more are we learning about this pusher?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, Isa, when you think about the inception of this ceasefire in Lebanon, it all came about because
of the fact that the Iranians were demanding that there also be a ceasefire on that front of the war, in addition, and as part of, the broader U.S.-
Iran ceasefire agreement.
Remember, initially there had been this disagreement over whether or not Lebanon was part of it. The Pakistani prime minister who helped broker that
ceasefire agreement said it was. So, did the Iranians, and eventually the United States and President Trump directly pressured the Israeli prime
minister to agree to this ceasefire in Lebanon in order for the broader ceasefire agreement to not only materialize, but to remain in effect.
And now, we are in a situation where the Israelis are watching this, you know, very fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran, preparing
for the possibility that that war could resume, both offensively and defensively, in terms of Israel's perspective. And that will also, of
course, include an escalation of its campaign against Hezbollah.
And you rightly note, Isa, that there is this question of a ceasefire in name only, because over the course of the last couple of weeks, as we've
seen the ceasefire go into effect in Lebanon, Israel has carried out multiple rounds of strikes every single day inside of Lebanon, killing
nearly 400 people, according to Lebanon's health ministry.
[14:35:00]
Hezbollah, for its part, has also been carrying out attacks against Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon, as well as against the northern part of
Israel, where we've seen drone and anti-tank missile attacks that have taken place, killing multiple Israeli soldiers and wounding dozens more as
well. And so, ultimately, this comes down to a question of political will. This Israeli source is indeed indicating to us that Israel is itching to
get back into the fight against Hezbollah in a much higher-intensity way.
For now, it seems that, you know, Israel is kind of at the whims of the United States, maintaining this ceasefire, more or less, again, at least at
a lower intensity of fighting. We do anticipate that there will be another round of talks between Israel and Lebanon's ambassadors to Washington.
Preparatory talks is how the Lebanese government is describing it to get to the broader negotiations about disarming Hezbollah and ultimately moving to
normalized relations between Israel and Lebanon, but that is a very, very long way away.
SOARES: Jeremy Diamond for us in beautiful city of Tel Aviv. Thank you very much, Jeremy. Appreciate it.
Well, U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted that Iran's nuclear facilities were obliterated in U.S. and Israeli strikes. But
according to a CNN analysis of satellite images, some key links in Iran's nuclear supply chain may have survived the bombings. In some cases, fully
intact. Our Katie Polglase has all the details for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATIE POLGLASE, CNN INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER (voice-over): This university in central Tehran is considered by the U.S. and Israel one of the very first
stages in Iran's nuclear supply chain. It was struck in mid-March by the U.S.-Israeli campaign, and it's one of dozens of sites across Iran we've
been analyzing to see how much of its nuclear supply chain has been wiped out. And the answer is not as much as the U.S. and Israel would like.
POLGLASE: That university you just saw has been under U.S. sanctions since 2012 for researching and developing weapons of mass destruction. It's a
reminder of just how long the U.S. has been tracking Iran's ability to make nuclear weapons.
And we found that in these latest strikes by the U.S. and Israel, while much of the production process has been substantially damaged, some of the
most important parts of this process, the stores of highly enriched uranium, may not have been touched at all.
POLGLASE (voice-over): Let's start at the beginning of the supply chain. Alongside the research, the process starts at places like these, Saghand
Uranium Mine, where the raw material, uranium ore, is mined. In recent years, Saghand Mine has expanded significantly. You can see widening pits,
growing piles of earth and diggers.
We looked at recent imagery since the latest strikes and found no evidence of damage. In fact, from between the clouds, you can still see diggers
operating at the site. So, far, this indicates this stage of the nuclear supply chain may remain untouched.
Next, the mined uranium ore is transported to production plants like this one in Ardakan. Here, it's converted into yellowcake, which is a type of
concentrated uranium. We found this plant was substantially damaged in recent strikes on March 27th. An image taken the following month shows
little change, suggesting the Iranians have not rebuilt this site yet.
After this, the yellowcake is taken here to sites like this one in Isfahan to be purified and converted into uranium hexafluoride. And it's this one,
this stage of the supply chain, that has caused the biggest headache for the U.S. and Israel.
Back last June, French outlet Le Monde found this truck visible in imagery taken just days before the strikes. These blue containers are likely
carrying uranium into the tunnels, experts told CNN. Days later, these facilities were substantially damaged in Israeli attacks. You can see
several buildings wiped out.
Then, in early 2026, Iran covered over several entrances to these underground tunnels with earth, preventing people from accessing them.
Further measures were taken this April, when these roadblocks were put up in front of the entrances to the tunnels. It could suggest there still
remains something valuable down there. They were not, however, hit in the latest U.S.-Israeli strikes.
Even experts we spoke to are unsure why. David Albright is a world-leading expert on nuclear weapons.
POLGLASE: How much of a risk in the future is that stores in Isfahan Mountain?
DAVID ALBRIGHT, FOUNDER, INSTITUTE FOR SCIENCE AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY: Well, I think it's a big risk. That's quite a bit of money in the bank. I
mean, the amount of enriched uranium they've produced was equivalent to a full years of production of their entire enrichment complex and is believed
to be mostly and almost all of it at Isfahan.
POLGLASE (voice-over): In fact, the U.S. believes this too, and their demand to remove this uranium has been a key issue in the stalling peace
negotiations. And finding out exactly how much is down there is central to determining whether Iran remains a nuclear threat.
Katie Polglase, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[14:40:00]
SOARES: Thanks to Katie for that report. Still to come tonight, a Nobel laureate who has dedicated her life to campaigning for women's rights is at
risk of dying, her family says. I'll speak with Narges Mohammadi's brother about her worsening condition next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Welcome back, everyone. Between life and death. That's how supporters of Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi are
describing her condition after her health deteriorated, you remember, last week. She's in hospital in Zanjan, near the prison where she's been serving
multiple sentences. Mohammadi's family wants her to be taken to the capital, Tehran, where she could receive better medical care, and that is
according to her lawyer.
Mohammadi won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023 while in prison for campaigning for women's rights and the end, of course, of the death penalty. You can
see Narges Mohammadi's twin children, Kiana and Ali, collecting the prize there on her behalf. Mohammadi's lawyer has said the harsh prison
conditions have caused her to lose about 20 kilograms and become unrecognizable.
We are -- we were going to speak to Hamidreza Mohammadi. I think we lost him, but I think we've got his connection back. I think we've got you now,
Hamidreza. Can you hear me?
HAMIDREZA MOHAMMADI, NARGES MOHAMMADI'S BROTHER: Yes, I can hear you.
SOARES: Good to see you again, Hamidreza. Really, I just wish that it had been for better news. I was listening today to your brother-in-law's
statements who said that Narges is at risk of dying. Just bring us up to date on what you know and how serious her condition is. Just how severe is
it?
MOHAMMADI: You know, Narges has been in prison for the last 10 years, and she has got ill several times. Most of the illnesses she has now, she got
them in the prison. In 2010, she had epileptic seizures. She had a specialist who treated her when she was out, and then she had heart
problems. She had two operations, and then the last one in 2024, she had a tumor in her leg and she got operated again. So, she had three different
specialists.
[14:45:00]
Now, when she was arrested in December, she was beaten severely. She had suffered from severe headaches since then. Then, because of the stress of
the prison that she was not supposed to be kept in, in the first place, it is illegal that they sent her to Zanjan Prison. But they kept her in the
worst conditions, and all of this, plus the problems she had before, it has caused severe fluctuations in blood pressure, too high, too low. She has
had a heart attack in the prison once. They didn't do anything, the authorities. And when she fell in the cell, she was unconscious. They had
to take her to CCU for critical care.
And now, they are not letting her to be moved to a hospital in Tehran with the three specialists that must supervise the operations. And at the
moment, she is not receiving any treatment, really. They haven't even been able to stabilize her blood pressure, and severe chest pain exists right
now.
SOARES: I'm so sorry, Hamidreza, that you and your family are going through this. I just want to double-check with you. You said that she suffered a
heart attack while in prison, is that correct? Why has it also taken the authorities so long to give her that medical treatment?
MOHAMMADI: I'm afraid the authorities don't want her to be treated. They see it as the best opportunity for them to say that she died in the prison.
When she had a heart attack, they did nothing. We suspect that they are doing it just to cause her death in the prison. They are killing a lot of
people, and they want Narges also to die in Iran.
SOARES: Narges' lawyer has said, and I'm going to quote here, Hamidreza, said, "The uproar being generated today by the Islamic Republic gives free
reign to Narges' captors to commit a number of atrocities and kill her slowly, as has been said, because it is a slow death." Can you just give us
a sense of the last time you've heard from her? You must be fearing right now for her safety and for her health deeply.
MOHAMMADI: Yes, me and other members of the family are really worried that she might die if she doesn't get the treatment she needs. Even now, we
don't know how much damage done to -- these illnesses have done to her health and if it is recoverable. But all of the family members, we are
doing everything we can. Those in Iran, they are running from one department to another department, meeting lawyers. Unfortunately, we have
not been able to get this permission for her to have at least one month of treatment with her specialists.
So, every day, we are waking up and waiting for the news from the hospital. But I'm afraid nothing good is going to come out of just keeping her in the
CCU. And our first demand is that she must be at least released for 30 days for her treatment in Tehran.
SOARES: My goodness, not allowing specialist treatment, given what you've just outlined for us. And while you were talking, we were seeing photos of
her children. And I just wonder how they are holding up, Ali and Kiana, because I can't even imagine what they're going through. Hearing, of
course, how much she's deteriorated, their mother's deteriorating, and the fact that she can't get the treatment, they won't give her the treatment.
What are they telling you?
[14:50:00]
MOHAMMADI: You know, first they -- after months of -- my family and the lawyers going in, talking with them. And they sent six forensic doctors
from the judiciary system. So, they are their own doctors. They went to the prison, they saw Narges, and they wrote a letter to the judiciary system
that Narges is in a terrible situation and she needs treatment.
Then the deputy of the judiciary minister traveled to Zanjan and checked it personally. And he also wrote, we don't have the written letter, but they
wrote to the judiciary system that Narges needs at least one month away from the prison in a proper treatment facility. And the prosecutor's office
called my family and said that we believe that Narges needs treatment.
And my family waited and waited and nothing happened. And then went to the prosecutor's office in Zanjan, and he denied that he is going to provide
any treatment for Narges. Everything shows that it's the intelligence ministry that is in fact controlling.
SOARES: Yes.
MOHAMMADI: It's always been like this and the judiciary system is nothing without the say-so of the intelligence ministry.
SOARES: I'm going to try and get a last question in with you. Given, of course, we know that Iran speaking to the United States via Pakistan, of
course, via the mediators. What would you like to see from this president, from this U.S. president, regarding, of course, your sister? What kind of
messaging push would you like to hear from President Trump?
MOHAMMADI: You know, President Trump had one of the toughest sanctions and pressure on Iran. And I agreed that there must be a lot of pressure on the
authorities in Iran that are killing people. But unfortunately, the war shifted focus away from people of Iran. And now, it's the Islamic regime
that's in focus instead of the Iranian people. And I'm afraid Iranian people are forgotten.
Any negotiation must be conditioned upon stopping all the executions, releasing those people who are arrested and kept in prison with no reason,
and also releasing people like Narges.
SOARES: Yes. Hamidreza, really appreciate coming on the show. Thank you very much. Wishing, of course, your sister very well.
MOHAMMADI: Thank you.
SOARES: Thank you. We're going to take a short break. See you on the other side.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:55:00]
SOARES: Well, a team of scientists believe the Great Pacific Garbage Patch could be contributing to increasing heat levels right around the globe.
According to researchers from the U.S. and China, the tiny pieces of plastic from the patch are becoming airborne and then absorbing sunlight.
Those particles then break down and get carried by wind. The garbage patch is roughly three times the size of France, or about 1.6 million square
kilometers.
That does it for this hour, very busy hour. Do stay right here, "What We Know" with Max Foster is up next. I shall see you tomorrow. Bye-bye.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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