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What We Know with Max Foster
Oil Prices Jump After Trump Says He'll "Take The Oil" In Iran; Spain Bars U.S. From Using Bases, Airspace For Iran Attacks; IDF Suspends Battalion Involved In Assaulting CNN Crew; Some TSA Workers Start Receiving Their Back Pay; Trump: "No Problem" With Russian Oil Tanker Reaching Cuba. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired March 30, 2026 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:27]
MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: The U.S. president makes new threats to Iran.
This is WHAT WE KNOW.
Contradictory remarks from Donald Trump on Iran sparking fears of a wider war and a devastating economic impact. The president today threatening to
completely obliterate Iran's power plants and oil wells if Tehran doesn't agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. That's after saying the U.S. is in
talks with a new and more reasonable regime, Secretary of State Marco Rubio says it's not quite clear how decisions are being made in Iran, though.
Earlier, the White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked whether targeting civilian infrastructure such as energy sites could be considered
a war crime.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Of course, this administration and the United States armed forces will always act within
the confines of the law. But with respect to achieving the objectives of Operation Epic Fury, President Trump is going to move forward unabated. And
he expects -- expects the Iranian regime to make a deal with the administration.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: CNN's Kristen Holmes is at the White House for us.
I mean, it's a legitimate question, isn't it, if the civilian population relies on a power center and that power center is taken out?
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. I mean, this was, as this reporter noted, generally is considered illegal and would be
considered a war crime to go after these kinds of infrastructures. And it's really unclear what President Trump is doing here because as you noted,
these two things he said in just one post, it wasn't as though they were moments behind or in front of one another. In the same post that he said
that the U.S. was negotiating with a new and more reasonable regime. Then he said that if they did not reach a deal, that he would be bombing or
completely obliterating all of their electric generating plants, oil wells and Kharg island, which of course would target civilians.
This is not the only point of confusion here. What we heard from the press secretary was this idea that the United States and Americans will know who
to believe when it comes to either Iran or the United States. That being because the U.S. continues to say that we're having these positive
negotiations, that things are going in a good direction, whereas Iran continues to say that that's not true, that things aren't going in a good
direction, that much of the proposal that the United States made was, quote, "unreasonable".
But there is also this kind of split within the administration as well. It's not just the two opposing sides, Iran and the U.S. It's President
Trump and Marco Rubio, for example, when you have President Trump, he is out there saying -- he told "The New York Post" that they were negotiating
with the parliamentary speaker. You have the secretary of state saying he doesn't want to say who is doing the negotiating for Iran, because they're
worried that person's life will be in danger. You have President Trump saying this is a new, reasonable regime. You have Secretary of State Marco
Rubio calling the Iranians that they're dealing with lunatics.
So, where are these two things marry? That is the big question here and one we have not been able to get to the bottom of. Of course, all of this is
happening on the backdrop of the idea that President Trump and the White House, the administration as a whole, has not ruled out putting troops on
the ground. And it certainly seems as though that is the direction that this is heading in, as we kind of hear these threats escalating from
President Trump.
FOSTER: Kristen, I appreciate it, from the White House there.
Well, what we don't know is will President Trump go through with these threats on Iran?
Joining us now is our global affairs commentator Sabrina Singh.
Thanks for joining us.
I mean, that -- it was an interesting question, wasn't it, about the war crimes angle to attacking energy infrastructure. Because inevitably, there
will be a knock-on effect on the civilian population.
SABRINA SINGH, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Yeah, it's good to be with you. I think any attack on energy infrastructure could be considered a war
crime. I mean, there's no military objective to hitting energy infrastructure or desalination plants that millions of not only Iranians
rely on, but those in the region, including in Saudi and Qatar.
So, you know, when we look at what these administrations objectives are that, you know, continue to be ever changing, but if we just look at the
pure military objectives and what they've laid out of destroying their, you know, their navy and their ballistic missile programs and potentially
addressing that their nuclear program as well, energy infrastructure is something that would lie outside of that, and I think deserves a lot of
criticism and a lot of scrutiny if that is something that the administration plans to pursue.
FOSTER: But it would potentially be an own goal going for oil infrastructure in particular, wouldn't it? Because that would take more oil
out of the global market. And, you know, that is the issue in the West right now.
SINGH: Well, that's exactly right, too.
[15:05:00]
I mean, this would not only put just more stress and severe pressure on oil markets. It would cause gas prices here in the United States to rise. It
would cause fertilizer prices to go up for farmers all over the world. And then you're going to see countries, particularly those in Asia, that are
already impacted by liquefied natural gas, not being able to get out of the region because they rely on it so much, turning to alternate energy sources
such as coal. So, which is, as we know, very dirty.
So, the impact of hitting energy infrastructure is not only like you said, I'm going to have impacts on the oil and gas prices in the market, but it's
going to have catastrophic effects for the region and potentially very long term impacts for the global markets. And something that we probably won't
recover from for many years.
FOSTER: I also wanted to ask you, Sabrina, about what Spain's foreign minister said today, that the U.S. war with Iran, profoundly illegal and
profoundly unjust, also saying that Spain will not allow U.S. military aircraft to fly through Spanish airspace or use Spanish bases to attack
Iran.
They're really not -- well, they're completely resisting pressure from President Trump. Very bold move.
SINGH: Yeah. It's quite interesting what you're seeing Spain doing. At first, it was the United States can't use I believe it was two of the bases
in Spain. But now they're closing all airspace, which does present some challenges for the United States. Ultimately, that's a sovereign decision
that Spain is making.
I think the fear that Spain is likely considering is what is the retaliation going to be from this administration. I mean, we know Donald
Trump uses the threat of tariffs as a lever of power that he can pull at any time. I would expect at some point that we see some type of Truth
Social post going after Spain and potentially, you know putting more tariffs on that country to raise costs for them. At the end of the day this
type of escalation, you know, on the United States part, if we do resort to some type of tariff measures against our own ally, isn't good for anyone.
And so, you know, what you really want to see here is some diplomatic talks happening behind the scenes to try and de-escalate the situation, to try
and get Spain to potentially open up their airspace. Maybe it's not using their bases, but their airspace and trying to calm the tensions. But I -- I
fear tomorrow, we might be waking up to a Truth Social post from the president really going after Spain and their economic interests as well.
FOSTER: Yeah, you can definitely see that.
CNN global affairs commentator Sabrina Singh, really appreciate it. Thank you.
Now, an Israeli oil refinery was struck by a missile today near the city of Haifa. Israeli officials say the missile was intercepted, but pieces of it
still struck a storage facility that's located near the main base of the Israeli navy. It was unclear if the missile was fired by Iran or by
Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has condemning a surge in settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. He's vowing to bring those
responsible to justice, saying, quote, grave offenses against innocent people undermine the rule of law.
Accountability is rare for this near daily -- for the near daily attacks against Palestinians and their homes, their cars, their land. The U.N.
Human Rights Office says the violence is coordinated and strategic, accusing Israeli authorities of playing a central role in directing,
participating in or enabling the attacks.
Now, a CNN team covering the settler violence witnessed the military's role firsthand after a brutal attack on Palestinians last week. Soldiers stepped
in but targeted our journalists and Palestinians instead of the assailants. The IDF has now suspended the battalion involved.
Here's a brief reminder of what happened to Jerry Diamond and his crew
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Producer Abeer Salman identifies us as journalists before translating the soldiers'
commands.
ABEER SALMAN, CNN PRODUCER: Sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down.
DIAMOND: So the soldiers just immediately came up and started pointing their weapons directly at us, telling everyone to sit down immediately.
Obviously, we're not posing any threat here.
DIAMOND (voice-over): The commander comes straight for our camera and within seconds --
DIAMOND: What are you doing? We're journalists. What are you doing?
DIAMOND (voice-over): A soldier has just put photojournalist Cyril Theophilus in a chokehold, forcing him to the ground.
DIAMOND: Don't touch him like that. Don't touch him like that. Give me my phone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Jeremy joins us now from Tel Aviv.
I guess, Jeremy, you didn't seem very shocked at what was happening, but it is rare to actually see this on camera. And that's what led to the
accountability in this case, do you think?
DIAMOND: Yeah, it certainly is a big factor in all of this. I mean, we've seen the steps that the Israeli military has taken have been fairly
unprecedented, both in speed and in scope. You know, within about 48 hours of our report airing, the Israeli military's chief of staff took personal
responsibility of this investigation and decided to suspend the entire battalion.
[15:10:08]
That's hundreds of soldiers from operational activity in the West Bank, sending them for training for an undetermined period of time. One of the
soldiers who spoke to us in that report has been dismissed from the IDF altogether. Another, the one who assaulted my cameraman, Cyril Theophilus,
he is now under investigation by Israel's military police unit. We will be tracking that.
But as you say, a lot of this has to do with the fact that it was caught on camera. It has also to do with the fact that we've seen this growing
settler violence that has unsettled the Israeli security establishment in recent weeks. But I think we also have to be honest, that it has to do with
the fact that we are journalists working for an American news network, working for CNN, because too many times, Max, we have seen total lack of
accountability as it relates to similar incidents involving Palestinian journalists and involving Palestinian civilians.
There are many times where these Israeli military says they are going to launch a review or an investigation of a certain incident, and ultimately,
we don't see any kind of disciplinary action taken, as we saw in this case. And it is, you know, the bigger picture here is important to note for that
reason.
And it's also important to note that we haven't yet seen a concrete plan from the Israeli military to tackle this huge surge in settler violence.
You know, since the war with Iran began, we have seen seven Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers, according to the Palestinian health
ministry. That's nearly as many Palestinians were killed by Israeli settlers in 2025 altogether, when that number was nine, according to the
United Nations.
So, you can see the massive surge that is happening in that. And in many cases, as we saw in our conversations with these soldiers, the Israeli
soldiers are taking a page right out of the playbook supporting Israeli settler actions. And in this case, you know, as one soldier told me, trying
to protect one of these illegal outposts with the hope that one day it will be legalized by the Israeli government.
And that's exactly what we've seen over the course of the last two and a half years, as this Israeli government has legalized dozens of illegal
outposts that were established by Israeli settlers on the ground, sometimes protected by Israeli soldiers. And so that is the pattern that we have
seen. And while we certainly saw the Israeli military take swift action, in our case, we are still waiting to see what the broader pattern of behavior
is and whether it will change at all -- Max.
FOSTER: It's really important reporting. Jeremy, I really appreciate you as ever joining us.
Now in the U.S., airport security wait times seem to be easing back at last, pretty much to normal actually. A week ago, travelers were stuck for
hours in long lines, some that stretched out into parking lots. Today, with some TSA workers getting back pay, lines took significantly less time to
get through.
Ryan Young joins us from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta.
I kind of imagining people turning up three hours early and flying through and thinking, what's going on, stuck, stuck in security forever.
RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR U.S. CORRESPONDENT: Look it. Yeah, it's a good thing though, because when you saw so many people crying last week about
the fact of missing their flights, their vacations, people were scared about their honeymoons. Now we are seeing the numbers sort of return back
to normal. In fact, they're better than normal.
If you look behind me, that is the wait time right now at the south checkpoint here in Atlanta, zero minutes. And the main checkpoint is under
four minutes. So that's a win when you think about it.
But as we were talking to some the TSA folks, the money started showing up last night. They're not going to get a full paycheck in terms of like their
overtime that they worked over the last few months until Thursday.
But still, some of them are being evicted from their homes. That's something that we heard from some of the TSA agents here. They're still
upset and worried about how long this could continue to drag on.
And I want to tell you something. Most of the people that we talked to are mad at Congress, and they're still pretty angry about how long this went on
for. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YOUNG: People are mad at Congress because they're like, how do you get paid and the TSA agents don't get paid? What do you think about that?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, yeah, I'm mad. Yeah. I don't think that they should be holding the American public hostage.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mad at congress is appropriate.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they're on their spring break right now. So -- and getting paid for it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got here at 5:00 in the morning and, my flight was 11:00. I mean, 5:00 in the afternoon and my flight was 11:00 at night. And
I still missed it. I didn't get to the TSA to like 1:30 in the morning.
YOUNG: So, you were taking any chances today?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chances today
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YOUNG: Yeah. Big impact here. If you think about it. This weekend we had a huge soccer match here in America, USA versus Belgium. You had a lot of
people flying in from all over the world to see that game. We have the World Cup coming up. The Masters is early next month.
So, when you think about all these big sports that are coming to this area, you almost have to have this TSA cleaned up so that people can fly through.
[15:15:03]
In fact, take a look over here at those lines over there, those are pretty empty. If you think about a Monday where all the business travelers are
flying through this airport, pretty clear sailing, especially after what we were showing you last week when this place was just jam packed with people.
The good news so far is no lines, no waiting. If you got somewhere to go, now's the time to buy the ticket -- Max.
FOSTER: Looks like a different airport.
Ryan, really appreciate it. Thank you.
YOUNG: A hundred percent.
FOSTER: Coming up, a CNN exclusive from Cuba. We'll hear from the grandson of former leader Fidel Castro and the issues where he might actually agree
with U.S. President Trump.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Moscow says it's broken the fuel blockade imposed on Cuba by the U.S. Russian state media reports a tanker with nearly 730,000 barrels of
oil has reached a Cuban port. These reports aren't yet verified by CNN, but President Donald Trump, who restricted vital fuel shipments from Venezuela
to Cuba, says he's okay with the development and won't retaliate. He also says the fuel must only be used for humanitarian purposes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have a tanker out there. We don't mind having somebody get a boatload because they need -- they have
to survive. It wouldn't bother me.
REPORTER: So, that report is true, as far as you know?
TRUMP: Well, I would say I told them if a country wants to send some oil into Cuba right now, I have no problem with it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: CNN's Patrick Oppmann has been following reports of the tanker's arrival, joins us now from Cuba.
It's not entirely clear why he allowed a Russian tanker in and not Venezuelan one, but nevertheless, it's exactly what they need right now.
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, absolutely. When you're a country running on fumes, any bit of fuel at this point is hugely helpful.
Although, you know, this container ship, this oil ship, while it is bringing what sounds like a lot of gas, it's only going to really help
Cuba's power situation for about perhaps two weeks.
[15:20:05]
Not even that, according to energy analysts.
Russia has decided to donate oil to Cuba. Of course, Venezuela did it for years and is under a de facto U.S. control at this point. So, it was
Vladimir Putin who decided to essentially break U.S. sanctions. That's what he's doing right now.
And the Trump administration says that this is a case-by-case basis. They're essentially looking the other way because it does not seem like
they want to confront the Russians. We should point out, though, that Cuba already owns the Russian government over $1 billion that goes back to the
Cold War, when the Soviet Union used to subsidize this island. So surely this latest shipment is going to go on that tab. It remains to be seen how
much more oil Vladimir Putin is willing to send.
FOSTER: Take us through this member of the Castro family you've been speaking to
OPPMANN: You know, this interview came out of nowhere. Really? We had been talking with Sandra Castro for a while. It didn't seem like he was going to
talk to us. And then my phone rang on Saturday night and he said, come over immediately.
And I was shocked by a number of things that Fidel Castro's grandson told me in this interview. But again, so many Cubans are suffering at the
moment, suffering very, very dire conditions. And shockingly, Sandro Castro says he is one of them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OPPMANN (voice-over): In this social media satire video, Donald Trump arrives in Cuba to buy the island. While this Trump is a fake, he's dealing
with a real member of the Castro family. Fidel Castro's grandson, Sandro Castro, an influencer and nightclub impresario who says he has no interest
in politics, the very public face of an otherwise still mysterious family that has held power in Cuba for nearly seven decades.
At an interview in his apartment in Havana, Sandro Castro says he is a sign of the changing times on the communist-run island.
OPPMANN: And what would your grandfather, Fidel Castro, say that you're more capitalist than communist?
SANDRO CASTRO, FIDEL CASTRO'S GRANDSON (translated): My grandfather was a person who had his principles like everyone else. But he also respected
others' opinions. That's my way of thinking.
OPPMANN: But all the capitalists had to leave Cuba.
CASTRO (translated): There are many people in Cuba that think in a capitalistic way. There are many people here who want to have capitalism
with sovereignty.
OPPMANN (voice-over): When we arrived for the interview, the neighborhood Castro lives in is in a blackout, a near constant condition these days with
the U.S. oil blockade and power plants breaking down. Sandro Castro's apartment is lit by an electric generator, but from his balcony, the
surrounding houses are in near-total darkness.
He shows me his one-bedroom bachelor pad, how he lacks paint for the wall. How his fridge is nearly empty except for the Cuban beer he's always
drinking.
I point out that the appliance is a foreign brand that most Cubans could never hope to afford.
His famous last name, Sandro Castro wants people to know, doesn't come with any special treatment in Cuba, on the edge of economic collapse.
CASTRO (translated): We have to fight as we say in Cuba. It's tough, so tough.
OPPMANN: Even -- even for Castro.
CASTRO (translated): Because you suffer through thousands of problems. In a day, there might not be electricity, no water. Goods don't arrive. It's
so hard, really hard.
OPPMANN: But being a Castro must help you
CASTRO (translated): My name is my name, I am proud of my name logically. But I don't see this help you are talking about. I am one more citizen.
OPPMANN (voice-over): Cuba faces unprecedented U.S. pressure to open politically and economically. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a Cuban
American, has been reaching out to Cuban officials, including members of the Castro family. In one of his videos, Sandro Castro pretends to receive
a call from Rubio, who he then hangs up on.
Rubio has said Cuba needs new leadership, and that could include Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel stepping down. Despite Fidel and Raul Castro's
support for Diaz-Canel over many years, Sandra Castro says he is no fan.
OPPMANN: Do you think President Diaz-Canel is doing a good job?
CASTRO (translated): I would not say he is doing a good job. For me he is not doing a good job. There are a lot of things he should have been doing
for a while now, and today that is hurting our lives.
OPPMANN (voice-over): Cuba's leaders reject attempts to blame them for the crisis, and Sandro Castro says officials have questioned him about his
often surreal and critical postings as well. Cuban exiles regularly attack him online, he says.
OPPMANN: Why do you think there are people, that hate the Castro family so much?
[15:25:00]
CASTRO (translated): It's complicated. Many Cubans would have liked to have been capitalists. I think the majority of Cubans want to be
capitalist, not communist. That has created a hatred which is not productive.
OPPMANN (voice-over): Sandro Castro says he supports Trump's calls to open the economy, if not his threats against the island. At the end of his
video, he takes the U.S. leader on a tour of Havana, hope from at least one member of the Castro family that historic deal with the U.S. and opening on
the island are possible.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OPPMANN: And you heard Sandro Castro say there that he's been warned by officials not to make controversial and outrageous videos and comments. He
says that he is standing by his style, his ability as a Castro to speak out and will keep doing so.
FOSTER: That's fascinating insight and completely unexpected as well. Patrick, thank you so much.
Still to come, another deadly day in Lebanon. Next, we'll hear from the Israeli commanders planning more military action across the border.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Let's get you caught up then with the latest on the war with Iran. Just a short time ago, Donald Trump's press secretary said talks with Iran
are going well. But she wouldn't confirm who the U.S. is actually talking to. It comes after the U.S. president earlier today threatened to
obliterate Iran's energy sites, including oil wells, if the Strait of Hormuz isn't open quickly.
UNICEF says Israeli strikes on the southern part of Lebanon have displaced 20 percent of the country's population in just three weeks. It estimates
19,000 children are forced to leave their homes every single day.
CNN's Jim Sciutto traveled to the other side of the border to a town in northern Israel, as the IDF expands its operations against Hezbollah.
[15:30:02]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NISAN ZEEVI, SECURITY SQUAD VOLUNTEER: Let's go to the --
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Okay.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): It's a fact of life on Israel's northern border that incoming Hezbollah fire comes frequently and without warning
SCIUTTO: So, this is life up in the north. They say about 40 warnings like that a day. We just had two of them in the span of five minutes.
Combination of rockets, sometimes anti-tank missiles, but also increasingly drones. And some of them can't be intercepted.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): The kibbutz Kfar Giladi lies just about a mile from the border with Lebanon. After the October 7th, 2023, Hamas attacks, Israel
evacuated communities like these. But during this war, they're staying.
ZEEVI: You know, our children in the shelter for more than 29 days, in a shelter, not allowing to go out. You know, all this, the economic ecosystem
collapse.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): What's different now is that Israeli forces are pushing into southern Lebanon. They say to push Hezbollah further back.
CAPTAIN "M", IDF COMPANY COMMANDER: At the hills, past the wall, you would see --
SCIUTTO (voice-over): This company commander, the IDF only allows us to identify him as Captain "M", regularly leads operations inside Lebanon.
SCIUTTO: What leads you to go across? Is it a particular threat or is it just establishing a regular presence?
CAPTAIN "M": It's a bit of both. More often than not, it's a concrete threat that we'll get from intelligence that we have terrorists that are
trying to, to come near the border that we have ammunition that is stored somewhere, that there are tunnels that are still around, whatever it is.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): Visiting the north himself Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Israeli forces would push even further into
Lebanon.
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): In Lebanon. I've just instructed to further expand the existing security zone
in order to decisively thwart the threat of invasion and to push anti-tank missile fire away from our border.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): It's a move that Zeevi and other northern residents welcome.
ZEEVI: This time, the IDF actually did what us, the civil society that settled here years ago, expect them to do.
SCIUTTO: Which is?
ZEEVI: To go in front of us, not behind us. We cannot be the first line with Hezbollah.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): The Israeli government now speaks of military operations all the way up to the Litani River, some 20 miles into Lebanese
territory, to create this so-called buffer zone. Israel has now forced hundreds of thousands of Lebanese civilians from their homes in the
southern part of the country. And yet, Hezbollah fire continues. Today, the IDF is prepared to operate inside Lebanon for as long as they are ordered
to.
CAPTAIN "M": I can tell you that when we get an order, we will do whatever we need to do. And I think and I want to believe that the army will make
decisions for what is best for the Israeli civilians that live here.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): The questions for Israel are how much further into Lebanon and for how long? For now, Israeli officials leave those questions
unanswered.
Jim Sciutto, Kfar Giladi, northern Israel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Well, it is the final moments of trade. Currently, on Wall Street, stocks have taken a downturn at the start of the week, down a fifth of 1
percent. The Dow just turning negative there after spending most of the session actually in the green.
This is our Business Breakout.
Wall Street forecasters are increasingly expecting a rate hike as the conflict with Iran drags on. The Federal Reserve chair says Americans
expectations for inflation will shape its response to the -- to the war. The U.S. economy is suffering its fifth consecutive year of elevated
inflation, with the war threatening to push it even higher.
Asian stock markets saw a big sell off to begin the trading week in Japan. The Nikkei closed down nearly three percent after falling as much as almost
five percent earlier in the session. Asian economies that import much of their energy from the Middle East are feeling the brunt of oil disruptions
in the Strait of Hormuz.
And Australia's cutting fuel taxes from Wednesday to help ease the rising cost of fuel caused by the war. A three-month cut in the fuel tax will see
the price of gasoline and diesel drop by about 17 U.S. cents a liter. The Australian prime minister is also calling for de-escalation in the Middle
East, saying it is in the global economy's interests and staying with the oil crisis.
While Asian countries were first to feel the squeeze after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, JPMorgan is warning other continents will start to notice
the effects of depleting oil stocks in the coming weeks.
Anna Cooban is with me.
And that's because I believe the stocks they would have received from the Middle East that have been disrupted haven't actually gone through yet.
[15:35:03]
Just explain - just explain it.
ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS & ECONOMICS REPORTER: So, basically, what JPMorgan was saying is that once the Strait of Hormuz was basically closed
on February the 28th, at the start of this conflict, the clock was set. And so, most of -- well, 60 percent of Asia's oil comes from the Middle East,
and they get it first. So, between 10 to 20 days. And so that's why we're seeing more physical shortages. So literally the physical absence of oil in
parts of Asia, along with high prices.
And then as we get to the 20 to 35-day mark after a ship leaves the Strait of Hormuz, that those shipments go to Africa and Europe. And then after 35
days to go to United States. And so, what they're saying is, is that early April, we're going to start seeing in Asia, but early April, we're going to
start to see the impact in Africa, and by mid-April in Europe. And then further down the line in the United States.
FOSTER: So, the U.S. and Europe are less dependent on Middle East oil. But what we're seeing is a large chunk of the market coming out. So, they have
to rely on their own supplies, which then depletes those inventories. So, it does affect Europe in America, even though they do have some of their
own supply.
COOBAN: Yes, that's exactly right. They are more insulated. They're not as facing the immediate shock that Asia is at the moment.
There are no physical shortages yet in Europe. They're really just dealing with high prices at the moment. But at the moment being the key phrase here
is that there's only so much oil in supply or inventories, and then they have access to supplies in the Atlantic basin and from the United States.
But fundamentally, high oil prices are bad for everybody. And were seeing that being passed on to consumers. And we're seeing governments in Europe
now take these energy saving measures like we've seen in Asia.
FOSTER: And this is inevitable, isn't it? Because no matter what happens today or tomorrow with the war, you've got this gap in the supply chain,
which is moving through the world.
COOBAN: Yeah. If things are to remain as they are with the Strait of Hormuz basically blocked off to the vast majority of vessels, this is an
inevitability. And then also we've seen the Houthis really get involved in a big way in the war over the weekend, firing missiles at Israel. They
haven't yet attacked ships in the Red Sea, but this would be absolutely --
FOSTER: That's the other route the Saudis using.
COOBAN: It's next door to the Strait of Hormuz. It's how a lot of these oil diversions, oil is being diverted through this other strait, the Bab-
el-Mandeb Strait. But now, that's severely being threatened because people are worried that the Houthis, who are now really involved in this conflict,
are going to start attacking ships in the Red Sea through the strait like they did a few years ago. So, if that happens, this will be a whole other
level.
FOSTER: Okay. Anna, thank you.
Still to come. It took just three minutes and they were gone. Three paintings have vanished from a museum in Italy. And it's not the only heist
raising eyebrows in Europe.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:40:49]
FOSTER: Thieves in Europe have run away with two very different bounties in separate heists. Four hooded thieves stole three paintings from a museum
in northern Italy more than a week ago. We're only finding out about it now, though. The heist took just minutes as thieves stole works by Renoir,
Cezanne and Matisse worth an estimated $10 million in total.
The museum has gone public with the news. There's no arrests have been made, so who knows where the pieces are?
In a separate heist, robbers, perhaps with a sweeter tooth, have grabbed more than 400,000 KitKat chocolate bars from a truck traveling between
Italy and Poland. The chocolate weighed around 12 tons. So far, there's no trace of the chocolate or the truck.
So, what we want to know is why would thieves want to steal artworks or chocolate for that matter?
Joining us now, Robert Wittman, former art detective for the FBI and author of priceless.
Thank you so much for joining us.
I guess they steal these things -- they steal these things quite often to resell, right. And on that level, the KitKats are going to be easier.
ROBERT WITTMAN, FORMER SENIOR INVESTIGATOR, FBI ART CRIME TEAM: Yeah. The -- that's the whole purpose of the theft is to make money. The three
artworks were basically a trifecta, you know, Matisse, Cezanne and Renoir, some of the most famous artists in the world and very, very valuable at
that. So, the problem with that is going to be trying to monetize it. It's going to be very difficult to sell these pieces because, you know, it's a
worldwide web and people know what these things look like. And ultimately, you know, the police are the ones who buy them back, so to speak.
As far as the KitKats, that's -- that's a cargo theft. And that's a wholly different kind of situation. Those KitKats are interesting because it's
going to be hard to unload 400,000 KitKat bars. I mean, granted, I like KitKat bars, but I don't know if I want to eat 400,000 of them. And it
might be tough.
Now, you know, there is a serial number on those bars that can be identified as part of the stolen lot. So, you know, those people say a
grocer or somebody who buys ten cases, you know, he's putting himself in a position where with the right publicity, he could get caught for buying
stolen property. So, it's going to be more difficult, quite honestly, to monetize those kit kat bars in any meaningful way than it would be even for
the artwork.
FOSTER: I'm not pretending a KitKat bar is anywhere near as valuable as a Cezanne, but you could argue that it is moving in that direction. There's a
soaring price of cocoa, you know, by hundreds of percent in recent times. And actually, that's put a real premium on chocolate. And actually what
you're seeing is the chocolate makers, it's called shrinkflation, I understand, what you get in a chocolate bar is reducing because of this.
Just talk about how thieves are very attuned to spotting these trends, to finding things that they, you know, they know will sell easily.
WITTMAN: Oh, I don't know if it sells easily, Max. As much as they are attuned to the marketplace. Again, it's very difficult to monetize stolen
paintings.
And when we're talking about 400,000 kit kat bars, I mean, I don't think they're not like, you know, there's a thing in the United States called a
Hershey bar. And the Hershey bar is just pure chocolate. There's nothing in it inside of it, like the wafers that are in a KitKat bar.
So as a result, you're not going to be able to melt down the KitKat bars into pure cocoa or pure chocolate, so to speak. They're going to have a lot
of material in them that's not going to it's not going to go with it. So, it's not something I think that you can melt down to create a market for
your chocolate.
Artwork, same situation, you know, you can't do anything with an artwork. If you steal a car, you can sometimes chop the car, we call it, chop it,
and then take the parts and sell those parts for more than the actual car was worth.
But when it comes to artwork, you can't do that. Of course, you have to maintain and keep it in good, good shape. So ultimately when they advertise
it, we always, as investigators, catch the thieves when they try to monetize, when they bring the piece to market, whether in an undercover
operation or sell through auction or in any other form.
[15:45:06]
FOSTER: Just a word on the art heist, because we obviously had the Louvre heist. And then you would have thought other museums would start looking at
their own systems. But we now have a -- you know what? You know, arguably, these were, I imagine, quicker to steal than the KitKat. It took three
minutes to get these major pieces of art out of the gallery. Again, we weren't told. Again, we've got this long period of time now, which is going
to make them almost impossible to find, right?
WITTMAN: Well, the museum says that they wanted to keep it under wraps, so to speak in order to get the carbonara art squad time to go and maybe do
their investigation and get a little jump on it. I always say it's better to publicize as soon as possible because then you're going to have the help
of the public and dealers around, around their nation to be looking on the outlook, looking on being on the out -- you know, on the lookout for these
pieces.
Not only that, I always think its a great idea to offer a reward for information. Oftentimes when art thieves take an artwork, they realize
after they've taken it, they can't really do anything with it. You know, they think that they can steal these pieces and won't take but a few
minutes and they're worth $10 million, 9 million euros, and they'd have a big score. But then they find out they can't do anything with it.
So, when you offer a reward, sometimes they try to think of a way to collect the reward. And then that's how they get caught. So, there's ways
of doing these investigations that bring the thieves in. But we'll see what -- we'll see if they pick that up.
FOSTER: Robert Wittman, thank you so much for bringing those two completely, apparently, unparallel -- unparalleled stories together. I
really appreciate you giving that go.
Still to come, lifelike baby dolls that can cost thousands of dollars. We'll take a look at who's buying them and why.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Reborn dolls. They are now more popular than ever. They are hyper real dolls of children embraced by art collectors or mothers who've
suffered the loss of a child.
Christina Macfarlane explores this uncanny world of lifelike creations.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh my gosh, look at her.
CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): All around the world, grown women are falling in love with hyper realistic dolls.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I like to go out with him like this, guys, look!
MACFARLANE (voice-over): They look and feel uncannily like newborn babies, with some posts racking up millions of views on TikTok.
[15:50:08]
I've been going down a rabbit hole on this phenomenon for months, and decided to head to one of the largest doll shows in the world. The big
event in the Netherlands, to understand what this is all about.
MACFARLANE: The skin feels just so incredibly real. Can I hold her?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Of course.
MACFARLANE: Oh.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's heavy for her.
MACFARLANE: She's quite happy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah.
MACFARLANE: It's a very surreal experience to be here because you are just surrounded by babies, newborns, toddlers looking at you. And there are lots
of people here pushing their baby dolls around and pushchairs carrying them in slings.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): Here, collectors and creators can stock up on everything for their reborn dolls, as they're known.
MACFARLANE: Take a look at that. Glass baby eyes for your baby heads.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This car is the for Grace Kelly.
MACFARLANE: This exact one?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, yes, yes.
MACFARLANE: Grace Kelly, this is Grace Kelly?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): And above all, they can mingle free of judgment for a change.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I live alone and babies is my hobby.
MACFARLANE: Do you enjoy carrying her in a sling like this?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. It's my therapy baby. When I say my therapy baby, they don't think you're crazy.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): The term "reborn" first came into play in the `90s, when doll aficionados in the U.S. started adding more realistic
features to factory made dolls. Now, reborns are handmade from scratch, using vinyl or silicone, and they've become a booming industry.
MACFARLANE: So, if I were to buy this now, it's 10,000?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): With reborns.com, just one of several retail websites saying it sells on average dozens a day. Many sculptors and
artists like Nathalie Moiselle from France say they make a comfortable living selling their lifelike creations worldwide.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have to insert the hair, open the mouth, create a tongue. It creates an emotion. I don't sell dolls, I sell emotions.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): And boy, can it be emotional.
MACFARLANE: And at the moment here, the baby's chest is breathing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah.
MACFARLANE: Oh my goodness, wow.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): These days, the reborn community is mainly split into two camps art and therapy.
ZOE MILLER, ARTIST: I always say to people, please don't judge.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): This is Zoe Miller, a reborn therapy advocate and artist who tries to educate people on social media. The British mother of
six says dolls came into her life after her kids moved out and amid various health struggles, including with multiple sclerosis.
MILLER: If I'm having a flare up, it can be really scary and they just give me that sense of like, everything's going to be okay. It's taking my
mind off of what's happening right now and brings my anxiety down a lot.
MACFARLANE: You have six children, seven grandchildren. People will wonder why you need to have baby dolls.
MILLER: That's fine.
MACFARLANE: Can you explain?
MILLER: Because I can't have another baby.
I'm 50 years old next year. And I love babies and I have had some trauma in my past, like many women, and I have lost babies. That leaves a scar
somewhere, you know? And that's happened to me. So, for that fact, sorry, I didn't cry then.
MACFARLANE: It's okay.
MILLER: Sorry.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): Zoe gifts reborns that she paints herself to women for therapy, including those who have lost their own children. Like
her friend Sharon.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, no. Hi, sweetie. Hey. Hi. How are you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on, sweetie. Oh, you've had a long journey, oh.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): Two of Sharon's children died tragically. One at just 21 months. In recent years, she's turned to reborn dolls to help her
cope with the grief.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have two girls and a boy now.
MACFARLANE: Boy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah.
MACFARLANE: How does that help you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It fills a big gap. I won't say it fills it completely because nothing's going to replace my children. Sorry. And --
but yeah, they really helped me. They really do help me.
Do you want to hold her?
MACFARLANE: I would love --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah. You're very welcome.
MACFARLANE: Yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That way.
MACFARLANE: Yeah. Oh my gosh. It's like having a newborn all over again. You know, it's like my body remembers.
[15:55:01]
I'm a mum of two.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah.
MACFARLANE: And my body feels a bit tricked right now, actually.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah.
MILLER: Okay. Sharon, it's very cold.
MACFARLANE (voice-over): Zoe and Sharon know a lot of people can't understand their love for these dolls, but it's clear how much they help
soothe their trauma. And I, for one, think there's nothing wrong with that.
Christina Macfarlane, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: And this just in, Celine Dion heading back to the stage, the singer has announced she is planning to perform 10 shows in Paris beginning
in September.
The 58-year-old has not performed a solo concert since 2020. A few years ago, she revealed she had been diagnosed with a rare neurological
condition, and she did make an appearance at the Paris Olympic Games opening ceremony in 2024. But pre-sale tickets for this will go on sale
next week.
I'm Max Foster. That's WHAT WE KNOW. Stay with CNN.
END
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