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U.S. And Israel Attack Iran, Tehran Retaliates Across Middle East; Senior U.S. Official: Military Plan Includes Series Of Escalating Strikes; Trump: U.S. Military Has Begun "Major Combat Operations In Iran"; United States Attack Iran, Tehran Retaliates Across Middle East; Trump: United States Military Has Begun "Major Combat Operations In Iran"; Iran Launches "Large Scale" Drone Attack At Israel. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired February 28, 2026 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: And thank you for joining us. We have viewers with us from around the world. This is CNN's breaking news coverage of the U.S. and Israel launching a major attack on Iran. I'm Victor Blackwell at CNN's world headquarters in Atlanta.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Becky Anderson at our Middle East (INAUDIBLE) headquarters here in Abu Dhabi in the UAE. Thank you for joining us.

We've just got video of some of the destruction in Iran after a number of U.S. and Israeli strikes. This is in Tehran, the capital, of course. What's left of a building is on fire.

We're told this is the square where the former Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is known to live. Israeli strikes targeted Iran's current supreme leader and president, amongst other officials. But it's not clear if they were hit in the attacks.

Shortly after the first strikes in Iran, President Donald Trump posted a message on social media saying the U.S. tried to make a deal with Iran on its nuclear program. He had been threatening potential strikes for weeks, saying the U.S. would hit Iran if the government used lethal force against civilians. CNN can't independently verify how many people have died in the anti-government protests around the country, but recent reports say the number killed is in the thousands.

Well, both President Trump and the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, are calling for Iran's people to rise up against its government.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: To the great, proud people of Iran, I say tonight that the hour of your freedom is at hand. Stay sheltered. Don't leave your home. It's very dangerous outside. Bombs will be dropping everywhere.

When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: And U.S. embassies across the Middle East are urging Americans to shelter in place, as many other Middle Eastern countries are reporting missile attacks. Those are the sirens in Bahrain, one of the countries reporting those strikes. Now, officials say a missile hit the surface center of the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet in Bahrain. You can see here smoke billowing.

And you can see here a missile flying over Erbil, Iraq. Jordan and Qatar said that they also intercepted missiles. Our team is up and covering the breaking story from around the world.

We'll get to Paula Hancocks in a moment. But first, we'll go to CNN's Jeremy Diamond in Tel Aviv. Jeremy, what's happening there?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, Victor, we have been witnessing over the last few hours the beginnings of Iran's retaliation for those U.S. and Israeli strikes targeting a variety of Iranian targets over the course of the last several hours. So far, we haven't witnessed any major impacts in Israel as a result of what an Israeli military official tells me have been dozens of Iranian ballistic missiles that have been targeted at Israel. It appears that the majority of those have so far been intercepted.

This all began at about 8:15 a.m. local time here this morning, with air raid sirens sounding across the country, warning Israelis of a state of emergency due to the fact that the United States and Israel had begun launching strikes against Iran. Those strikes cast off the diplomatic track that had been moving forward over the course of the last several weeks. It came just one day after the Omani foreign minister, who was mediating these negotiations, said he believed that a deal was potentially at hand.

But it seems like President Trump and the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, lost patience with those negotiations and decided to go the military route instead, striking dozens of targets inside Iran. Everything from Iran's ballistic missile program, its nuclear facilities, as well as senior Iranian targets. I'm told by two Israeli sources familiar with the matter that the supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, was the target of some of these Israeli strikes, alongside several other senior Iranian figures.

[07:05:10]

And we've been witnessing the Iranian retaliation across the Middle East. Not just here in Israel, but strikes that have actually made impact near U.S. bases in other countries in the Middle East, particularly in the Gulf. This is a very volatile situation and one that certainly has the potential to escalate much, much further. A very perilous moment for the Middle East. And lastly, I would just note that we've just learned that Iran has also fired dozens of drones at Israel. Those typically take a bit longer to actually reach their targets here. They do tend to be intercepted, in particular by Israeli jets. We will see.

But those are now en route to Israel. So, this targeting and this back and forth is certainly going to continue throughout the day. And in fact, expected to continue for several days. Victor.

BLACKWELL: Jeremy Diamond reporting from Tel Aviv. Jeremy, thank you. Becky, the scope and scale of the response continuing to expand in this retaliation from Iran.

ANDERSON: That's right. That's right. Explosions here in Abu Dhabi, in the UAE, and heard over Dubai as well, in the past couple of hours. Joining me now is CNN Correspondent Paula Hancocks, who is here in Abu Dhabi. What have we learned about the strikes here, Paula, and around this Gulf region?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, this is really an unprecedented level of military attack that these Gulf nations are undergoing at this point. As you mentioned, we have been hearing several explosions here in Abu Dhabi. We've heard from the ministry of defense saying that they have intercepted a number of those Iranian ballistic missiles, is what they called it, calling it a blatant attack.

They have said, though, that one person has been killed by falling debris as well. A shelter-in-place warning here. Also, the airspace is closed.

Going over to Qatar, this is where Al Udeid military bases, the largest U.S. military installation in the Middle East. And also the targets of Iran back in June of last year, when those U.S.-Israeli strikes were hitting the nuclear facilities. That, once again has become a target. We've heard from officials there that they have intercepted a number of missiles. In fact, just in the past ten minutes or so, saying that a second wave has been intercepted into that area.

Then, you also have Bahrain. This is where the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet is based. We understand that has been targeted as well. And in Kuwait. We're also hearing about Jordan. They're saying that they have had to intercept a number of missiles.

So, the level of military attack that these Gulf nations are under at this point is really quite remarkable. Most of these are not countries that are accustomed to being under this level of attack. But all of these places have a shelter-in-place warning at this point. All of the authorities are saying, stay indoors. Do not go outside unless you absolutely have to. Stay away from windows and stay safe. Becky.

ANDERSON: We just had a statement from the UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemning, in the strongest terms, Iran's blatant missile attacks targeting this country and brotherly nations, they say. They denounce in the strongest terms the blatant missile attacks that targeted the UAE. Several brotherly nations in the region considering these acts a flagrant violation of national sovereignty and a clear breach of international law and reserve the right to respond. Paula Hancocks, thank you.

We've learned that the U.S. has mapped out a plan of escalating strikes. Each phase lasting a day or two, then pausing to assess the damage. Joining me now by phone is CNN's Chief National Security Analyst Jim Sciutto. And, Jim, this is your reporting. Just catch us up on what your -- what your sources are telling you.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: A series of strikes escalating. And each phase of those strikes lasting 36 to 48 hours, followed by a pause, in part to assess battle damage, to see what targets hit, but also to assess Iran's response. Of course, we're getting quite a sense of Iran's response already with the -- with the number of countries they've been striking in retaliation.

But that idea gives you a sense of just how expansive this is, right? That, of course, there's been some speculation prior to today that the president wanted a very quick -- very quick strike early on and then -- and then move on.

[07:10:10]

But our -- my understanding is that we're looking at a series of strikes here that could last a number of days and even perhaps longer. And again, that at each stage, the U.S. will be assessing whether they have achieved their goals and also how Iran is responding. My understanding as well is that to date, the majority of U.S. weapons used have been cruise missiles fired from ships, some from the air, targeting a number of positions inside the country, including air defenses.

And what's -- why that's indicative, of course, is that you destroy the air defenses early to then give you a path later for further strikes. In other words, break down the door, and then you're inside and able to carry out further strikes over those multiple phases.

ANDERSON: Yes. And, Jim, we've just been looking at videos, while you've been speaking, of smoke billowing out of what we understand to be the -- and this is the image, the residence of the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. And you can see the area -- the darkened area is his compound there, right in the center of the picture. Now, it's not clear whether he was in residence. I'm told, very unlikely, he was. But the symbolism of taking out that building -- that residence not lost on anybody.

Jim, I do want to ask you. Donald Trump did not specifically describe this coordinated action with Israel as regime change war. But he did call on the members of the revolutionary guard to surrender and called on the people of Iran to rise up against the regime. Hearing sort of differing narratives from Israel.

One military official telling CNN this is specifically about military targets. You've listened to Donald Trump's eight -- near eight-minute video this morning, released just after this attack started. What did you make of the regime change narrative, as it were, to put it loosely?

SCIUTTO: Well, the president is not saying regime change explicitly. Right? And to your point, he's saying -- encouraging the Iranian people to rise up. Israeli officials are more forward-leaning on their targets, being explicitly Iranian leadership.

They have not said right up to and including the supreme leader, but that they are specifically targeting Iranian leadership. And early indications seem to be that they believe that they've hit some of those targets. So, whether that was -- this is a highly coordinated strike between -- a series of strikes between the U.S. and Israel. You know, it's unlikely that they would be at loggerheads as to the ultimate goal here. But at least, the president is not -- is not stating regime change outright.

And listen, you know, it may be part of the assessment to see how far they get along and whether the regime can survive this. Right? And that seems to be part of President Trump's communication here is that, you know, he would be quite happy, it seems, if the people were able to help bring down this government. But he's not saying specifically that that is a U.S. goal here that he's at least committing himself to.

ANDERSON: Yes. Jim, it's good to have you. Thank you very much indeed. Jim's reporting today that these strikes -- this coordinated action with Israel from sources speaking to him looks as if it will be over a phased period with these strikes escalating, and then sort of being the -- then stopping for a period of assessment -- damage assessment, and then picking up again. We will see what happens over the coming hours and days.

It is about four hours now -- sorry, six hours now since we got word of the first attacks hitting Iran. We're monitoring developments across the Middle East. Iran's foreign minister promises to respond with authority after strikes from the U.S. and Israel. We are seeing some of that response already, both in Israel and across this Gulf region. Stay with us. We have more after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:19:29]

BLACKWELL: More on the breaking news this morning. President Trump has declared that the U.S. is now in a major military combat operation in Iran. Let's now bring in David Sanger, CNN political and national security analyst, and also CNN military analyst and Retired Air Force Colonel Cedric Leighton. Let's bring them into the discussion. Gentlemen, good morning to you.

And, Colonel, let me start with you. It's been a few hours since we've spoken with you. And since then, the scope and scale of the Iranian response -- the retaliation has broadened. I wonder what your reaction is to what we're seeing as there are the -- these intercepts across the region.

[07:20:09] CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes. Good morning again, Victor. The -- I think one of the big things here is that the Iranians were very quick to respond. So, they knew that something was going to happen. They had time to prepare.

And even though the U.S. and Israel had targeted their areas, you know, where they have their missile launchers and where they actually store their missiles, they were still able to muster a fairly large arsenal, at least, at the moment to impact areas, especially in Iran, the Persian Gulf region. So, what that tells me is that the Iranians not only were prepared, they had some pretty good intel.

And they were able to react in a way that really shortened the timeline from what had had been back in June to what it is now. And that is, I think, a significant change in their posture. And it shows that they really believe that their regime is being threatened by these attacks.

BLACKWELL: David, take us into the White House. The last we heard from the president is that he was not happy about the progress, or lack thereof, in the talks with the Iranians. Is it clear what the escalation was -- or the point was that went from continuing the talks, which at last check are still scheduled for next week, to what we're seeing today?

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL & NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, raises a really interesting question, Victor, which is, were they engaged seriously in these talks, or were they just going through the motions here to see whether or not the Iranians were ready to capitulate, as Steve Witkoff, one of the lead presidential negotiators, had put it? And there's nothing about Iran's history that would suggest that they would capitulate to the United States, but the regime's entire identity is built around resistance to the U.S. So, I don't think that President Trump was putting much stock in these negotiations.

What's truly fascinating to me about this is that there was not an immediate triggering event. The Iranians were further from their nuclear ambitions than they'd been in some time, thanks to the president's previous attack on Iran in June, which hit those nuclear sites. But his goal this time is quite different than that.

That was meant to basically hit individual sites. The president made clear in his statement that this is about triggering regime change by -- so, going after the leadership that the populace engages in an uprising. And he asked them outright to go do that. And we have not -- never really seen in history a moment where a country triggered regime change in another country merely with airstrikes, with no troops on the ground.

BLACKWELL: Yes. And so, let me bring that to you, Colonel, what the president is aiming for, his goal expressed in this address. Can that be achieved with an air campaign only?

LEIGHTON: I'm very skeptical. And, you know, speaking as an Air Force guy, I, you know, find it difficult that air power would be able to achieve those kinds of goals alone. Air power, in conjunction with other forms of power such as land power, ground forces, special forces going in. But we have no indication that I'm aware of, at least, that special forces have gone into, in essence prep the battlefield to engage in battle space preparation.

And that is something that -- you know, if they haven't done that, that would be a serious deficiency when it comes to this kind of a campaign. Because air campaign -- an air campaign alone can start to shape the battlefield, but it cannot result in a final decisive victory or a capitulation as David was talking about earlier.

BLACKWELL: Colonel, let me stay with you for this and what you make of the new reporting from Jim Sciutto in which the U.S. military plan, according to his conversation with a senior official, is to continue with escalating series of attacks with one or two-day period, with pauses to reset, and then assess battle damage. Put that into some greater context for us.

LEIGHTON: So, in air campaigns, it is sometimes quite normal to have a -- kind of a phase where you drop a lot of bombs and then you pause to assess what has happened. And that's exactly where that battle damage assessment phase would take place. The problem with those pauses is that those pauses often give the adversary time to reconstitute themselves.

[07:25:03]

So, if this is part of the plan, I hope they have a -- you know, kind of a branch off from that plan to take into account that the adversary is going to move in that direction. They're going to try to reconstitute themselves. They're going to try to avoid getting targeted in these areas. And it will be one of those situations, I think, Victor, where it's going to be difficult to truly assess the exact impact that these strikes have had and accurately assess what that impact is.

BLACKWELL: All right. Colonel Cedric Leighton. David Sanger. Thank you both.

LEIGHTON: You bet, Victor.

SANGER: Thanks to you, Victor.

BLACKWELL: And next. President Trump is advocating for regime change. He's calling on Iranians to one -- if this is finished, take over their government. Our team coverage of breaking news continues after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:30:19]

BLACKWELL: "BREAKING NEWS in the Middle East. The U.S. and Israel have launched an attack on Iran. And Iran has retaliated with its own strikes.

Sources tell CNN that Israel has targeted Iran's supreme leader and president.

And shortly after the initial strike, President Trump said this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: To the great, proud people of Iran, I say tonight that the hour of your freedom is at hand. Stay sheltered. Don't leave your home. It's very dangerous outside. Bombs will be dropping everywhere.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Let's bring in now, Becky Anderson, who's been my co-anchor for these last few hours.

(CROSSTALK)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well, CNN's Nic Robinson, joining me now --

Thank you, Victor.

CNN's Nic Robinson, joining me now from London. And Nic, we are getting the first reaction from a key negotiator at the table with the U.S. and Iran in talks over the past couple of weeks.

The Omani foreign minister, who was in Washington yesterday, just posted the following. "I am dismayed. Active and serious negotiations have yet again been undermined." He spoke directly to the U.S. "This is not your war," he said.

What are you hearing from your sources in this region?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Several things. One is that if you look to the west of the region towards Lebanon, a lot of anticipation about how Hezbollah may respond in the region, at the moment.

Previously, they said that they would stay out of a fight. That seemed to imply that they thought that, that might be a limited fight. And the question for Hezbollah would obviously be, does their engagement and getting involved in trying to attack U.S. bases in the region, is that going to save the regime in Tehran?

And that, from what I understand at the moment, is a question that appears to be in the balance.

I think, when we look and this really gets to the point of the -- of what the Omani foreign minister is saying, and the level of frustration that comes across in his messaging there. He was in Washington yesterday, was at the White House. He did meet with the vice president. He did deliver a headline upbeat statement that Iran had gone further in forswearing a nuclear weapon that it had ever done before, and he took that as a very important moment.

I think a number of things have happened here, and I think part of it may contribute to his frustration. The Omanis, of course, the mediators on Thursday, negotiating talks, proximity talks between the U.S. and Iran in Geneva. And the outcome of that meeting was that there were to be technical talks along the same lines on Monday in Vienna, in Europe. And there was really a narrative here that was appeared in place, that diplomacy was on track.

It appears also that the illusion of diplomacy on track has been, perhaps, reinforced because the president wasn't hovering around the White House, waiting near the -- near the Situation Room there, he was in other parts of the United States.

In Iran, that may have created the impression that there was a degree of sort of safety. The airstrikes that have happened didn't happen overnight. They happened after daybreak. And that really analyzing this contributes to an overall picture that there was the creation or the existence of a sense of diplomacy through this weekend that perhaps would have given some sense to Iranian leaders that it was perhaps safer to go back to daily routines after spending the night in bunkers, and then, the air strikes happened.

It creates the impression that there was a behind the scenes narrative that all of this was planned. And for this point, the Omani foreign minister would be hugely frustrated that somehow, he could have been caught up in sort of portraying that image of negotiations on track, no strikes, therefore imminent.

ANDERSON: You are making the point that this operation started early in the morning on the first day of Iran's calendar week., of course. That being -- that being Saturday. Nic, thank you.

Nic Robinson in the house. Victor.

BLACKWELL: All right. Becky, thank you.

Let's fill out the U.S. domestic picture here. Several lawmakers now, they are weighing in on these strikes.

[07:35:02]

Senator Ruben Gallego posted this on X: "I lost friends in Iraq to an illegal war. Young working-class kids should not pay the ultimate price for regime change and a war that hasn't been explained or justified to the American people."

Now, in support of President Trump, Senator Lindsey Graham posted this. "As I watch and monitor this historic operation, I'm in awe of President Trump's determination to be a man of peace, but at the end of the day, evil's worst nightmare. Well done, Mr. President."

Let's bring in Zach Cohen now.

Zach, an open question this morning. Since the strikes has been a notification of members of Congress, and what do we know about that?

ZACHARY COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, Victor. I'm told that at least some members of the so-called Gang of Eight, which is made up of top Republican and Democratic lawmakers from both the Senate and House, were notified by the Trump administration before this joint U.S.-Israeli operation started.

But, at the same time, sources saying that in those cases, the administration did not provide a comprehensive legal justification for the upcoming operation. This is something that has been raised publicly by mostly Democrats, who have questioned whether or not the president has the legal authority to conduct a large-scale operation like what we are seeing play out right now without Congress's approval.

At the same time, though, as you mentioned, some lawmakers like Lindsey Graham, a Republican, applauding the president today. I'm told too that several lawmakers were surprised by the scale of what we are seeing from the U.S. military, along with the Israeli forces that are carrying this operation out.

I'm told this was done by a joint force of U.S. military assets, including those from the Navy, the Air Force, the Army, Space Force, and the Marines. So, all the branches, or most of the branches, involved in this ongoing operation.

I'm also told too, that as time plays out, we do expect this to go on for several days. That's what the military is planning for. Again, you are definitely going to hear more questions being raised as this news breaks from lawmakers though, who feel the administration has not been forthcoming enough with information about their intentions as it relates to Iran.

BLACKWELL: Yes, and we'll look ahead to the partisan breakdown of notification. As you'll remember, ahead of the June strike on Iran, the Republican members, Speaker Johnson and Leader Thune in the Senate, they were notified, not all the Democrats in the Gang of Eight were.

Zach Cohen reporting from Washington. Thank you so much.

Still ahead, our breaking news coverage of this coordinated attack on Iran by the U.S. and Israel. It will continue after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:42:21]

ANDERSON: We are tracking "BREAKING NEWS" out of the Middle East. The United States and Israel are conducted coordinated attacks on Iran.

President Trump broke the news with a video posted overnight on social media. He called the operation, "massive". The president also warning Americans, there could be us casualties.

Iran retaliating with drone and missile attacks, and not just on Israel, but across the Gulf region, targeting U.S., bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Doha, in Qatar, and Abu Dhabi, where I am broadcasting to you from, and new explosions just heard as we come to air by residents in Dubai.

I want to bring in Anwar Gargash, senior diplomatic adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates.

And Anwar, thank you for joining us this morning. On an incredibly important and quite frankly worrying day for the region and for residents of the region. Your response to the missile attacks here and around the region earlier.

ANWAR GARGASH, SENIOR DIPLOMATIC ADVISER TO UAE PRESIDENT: Yes. Thank you, Becky. Thank you very much.

It's indeed -- it's indeed the historic moment, the historic moment filled with a lot of challenges, Becky. And especially, here for us in the UAE, as many other countries. I mean, we worked very hard and sincerely to avoid this scenario, to avert a war.

This has been part of our diplomacy for a very long time, in various conversations with Americans, with the Iranians, and indeed with the Israelis, that war will not resolve things, and that the path forward is negotiations.

Unfortunately, this is Becky, been a recurring threat to the region. The whole issue with the nuclear capability of Iran, as well as missile and regional policy.

But even if it is such a complicated issue, there is no real military solution for this. And I think today, as we see a beginning of a war that we don't really understand totally the contours of it. I think it will take some time for us to understand the contours.

I think we continue to really call for a negotiated political solution.

[07:45:04]

There is a need to go back to the negotiating. The region is seen a lot of wars in the past decade, and especially in the last two years. And, you know, the current hostilities that we are seeing are not the solution. And a good -- return to the negotiating table is important.

While I say that, Becky, also, I have to really condemn in the strongest terms, really the Iranian aggression on the UAE and the Gulf countries.

ANDERSON: Can I ask you, Dr. Anwar Gargash, was the UAE given a heads up of this as described by the U.S. president, massive military operation?

GARGASH: No, I think -- I think, like every other country, the expectation of a war was looming clearer and clearer based on really the outcome of the negotiations.

But again, you know, as we came closer to the outcome, and as you -- as you know, these negotiations had different interpretations. You know, some quite optimistic and others pessimistic. I think the world overall was in a sort of in a pendulum really on what the direction was going.

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: Right. So --

(CROSSTALK)

GARGASH: So, I think as we came closer to what I would call cul-de- sac, really, of the negotiations in Geneva. It was, I think, expected that we will see the moment that we've all dreaded, to be honest. And we've worked all very, very hard to avert.

I think this is also part of it. I mean, as I condemn the Iranian aggression on the UAE and Gulf States. I think, the tax really on Iran's neighbors by Iran is very ill-advised.

I mean, all these countries have worked extremely, extremely hard in order to avert a confrontation that will engulf Iran and indeed the region.

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: Dr. Gargash, can I just ask you, the --

The Omani foreign minister has said that he is, and I quote him here, "dismayed", and that active and serious negotiations between the U.S. and Iran have yet again been undermined.

He was in Washington just yesterday, suggesting, and certainly with a message, I think, both to the U.S. administration and to the American people on a U.S. network T.V. show, suggesting that things were looking optimistic and that they just needed time.

Your response.

GARGASH: Well, again, I think he has a front row seat. Becky.

He has a front row seat. So, clearly, he has a sort of better view of where these negotiations were going. But I think, from our perspective, we always knew that, you know, we can't be in the region and have these issues every couple of years, come back again, and they had to be negotiated.

I mean, the whole, you know, sort of trilogy of -- you know, Iran's nuclear, plus missile, plus regional issue, has been a threat to a regional stability for a long time.

ANDERSON: Yes.

GARGASH: While we see that, we've always, always held the view that these have to be addressed through a political process. And I think (INAUDIBLE) --

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: And Dr. Gargash, do you expect to see GCC retaliation? And also, what of the not explicit regime change charged by the U.S. president. But certainly, an appeal by the Iranian people to rise up and take over their government.

GARGASH: Yes. I mean, again, you know, Iran's future direction, and its feat is something for the Iranians to decide. I don't think it's appropriate for me to sort of, you know -- you know, speculate on that.

I mean, our part is to work together with the United States, with neighbors like Iran in order to ensure, you know, the stability and security of the region.

Clearly, this time, we have failed. But again, even we are in the throes of a war that, as I said, we don't really totally understand how it will develop. It's too early to tell. I think, again, the UAE calls clearly for a return to negotiations.

[07:50:00]

We are extremely, extremely dismayed and condemn Iran's enlargement of this conflict in order to include neighbors that have worked very, very hard.

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: Understood.

GARGASH: -- in order to avert this movement. But I think at the same time, we all understand that the region has to be spared a military confrontation of dimensions that we don't totally understand as of today.

And I think this is really what we are pushing forward.

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: Dr. Gargash --

GARGASH: We don't understand, I think, in the next few days, it will be a little bit clearer. So, our emphasis currently in the UAE is twofold. I think on the -- on the first front is to really come and say, let us U-turn back to negotiations and the political process. And I think you will see that this is a collective view of the region.

ANDERSON: Understood.

GARGASH: It is the UAE view with a collective view of the region. I think the second emphasis for us is to protect the UAE. And I think, here also, we are dealing with these challenges. We are, I think, in good shape, with emergency plans in place. Our air defenses have done a great job. We will continue to protect the UAE and everybody living here. And these are our priorities today.

So, I think we're moving on both fronts. But as you understand, the events also around us are, you know -- you know, it's a larger storm, so to speak. And I think the voice from the region is a voice of calm, a voice of rationality that the region does not really need another war or another -- further military confrontation.

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: Understood, understood. And Dr. Anwar Gargash, thank you so much for joining us today.

GARGASH: Thank you. Thank you, Becky.

ANDERSON: All right, you are watching CNN. This is "BREAKING NEWS". Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:56:04]

BLACKWELL: More now on the "BREAKING NEWS", the U.S. and Israel conducting a joint, and as President Trump says, massive and ongoing coordinated military campaign against Iran.

CNN senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen is back with us now. Fred, we are just learning about another wave of missiles from Iran headed toward Israel.

In addition to those dozens of drones as well. What can you tell us about Iran's strategy?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's what the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is saying. And essentially, their message is that they are much better prepared this time than the last time. They went head-to-head, of course, with the Israelis and then, later the Americans.

In June of last year, the Iranians are saying that their entire military leadership is intact, their civilian leadership, political leadership, they say, is also very much intact, and that they have a plan going forward.

And you are absolutely right. They announced just a couple of minutes ago that another wave of missiles was on its way to Israel and that more is to come. They also put forward a list of alleged targets that they had in other countries around the greater Middle Eastern region. Of course, you guys have been talking about the Gulf countries, where there have been a bunch of missile attacks, especially aimed at American installations in those countries. Then, Jordan, of course, as well, where the U.S. currently has a massive military presence as well.

And the Iranians now also saying that they have drones as part of the fold that they are also sending towards Israel, and saying that very much their military is firing on all cylinders.

Now, the Iranians are saying that, right now, they are using some of their missiles that are former generations. They say some of their newest stuff they haven't even used yet in this conflict. Certainly, what the Iranians are saying is that they have been preparing for a big face off with the United States and Israel since the last standoff they had with the U.S. and Israel, and at this time, they are a lot better prepared than last time. Victor.

BLACKWELL: Fred Pleitgen, reporting. Fred, thank you. Our special "BREAKING NEWS" coverage continues at the top of the hour. Keep it right here.

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