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Early Start with Rahel Solomon

Two Killed In Abu Dhabi by Missile Debris; Iran Rejects U.S. Proposal On Ending War, Lays Down 5 Conditions; Meta And YouTube Found Liable In Social Media Addiction Trial; Senate Again Fails To Advance DHS Funding Package. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired March 26, 2026 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: -- legal action against a longtime Trump rival. The president's housing chief issued two new criminal referrals targeting New York Attorney General Letitia James, accusing her of suspected homeowners' insurance fraud. James attorney says the move is part of a, quote, revenge campaign.

This is the second time the administration has issued criminal referrals against James. Her previous case was dismissed.

Thank you for watching NewsNight. You can also catch my show The Arena at 4:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN. CNN's coverage continues, next.

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the U.S. and all around the world. I'm Rahel Solomon, live this morning from New York.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: And I'm Becky Anderson live from our Middle East and Gulf programming headquarters here in Abu Dhabi in the UAE. And we begin with new attacks across the Middle East as the war with Iran nears the one month mark here in Abu Dhabi.

Authorities this morning say two people have been killed from an intercepted ballistic missile. We are seeing damage as well in Israel where the IDF says an emergency crew responded to an area east of Tel Aviv after it was hit by debris from an Iranian missile.

Meantime, U.S. Central Command says it's still targeting Iran's military infrastructure and its capabilities even as Washington steps up diplomacy efforts to bring the war to an end. The White House says that talks are proceeding, but Iran's foreign minister denies any negotiations, saying there's only been an exchange of messages. Here's President Trump's take.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: They are negotiating, by the way, and they want to make a deal so badly, but they're afraid to say it because they figure they'll be killed by their own people. They're also afraid they'll be killed by us. (END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, we are now learning that Iran is building up defenses on what is known as Kharge Island to protect against a potential U.S. ground attack there. The tiny island has handles nearly all of Iran's oil exports.

Meantime, two sources tell CNN that Trump administration officials are working to arrange a meeting in Pakistan this weekend to discuss an off ramp to the war. The current plan has Vice President JD Vance traveling to the country, but officials caution the timing, location and who may attend are still fluid.

All right. Eleni Giokos is in Dubai. She's following developments tracking the war's effect on fuel prices and supply. What's the latest, Eleni?

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Becky. And what we're seeing across the board is incredible chain reaction of these higher oil prices. And I just want to really focus on some of the things that we're seeing in Asia. You've got long queues India supply constraints strains their gas stations running out of fuel because a lot of people are hoarding.

But also the Strait of Hormuz supplies East Asia with around 90 percent of its oil. You're seeing similar stories out of Thailand, similar stories out of Philippines as well. But I want to show you what's happening in the Strait right now. And this is really on the back of what we've been seeing in the last 27 days.

Iran has de facto control of the Strait of Hormuz. And you can see all those vessels that are gathered in the Gulf, the Persian Gulf on that side, and they're not really getting through. What we're hearing from experts is that you've got to coordinate directly with the Iranians to get safe passage. They're also saying that there's a toll fee to be paid and how these vessels are getting through is going very close to Iranian territorial waters and then able to pass into international waters thereafter.

So this has really become a flashpoint for this war and President Trump trying to figure out how to bring down oil prices. And the only way it can be done is if there's a complete opening of the Strait of Hormuz from the Iranian side. They want sovereignty over this choke point.

They've also brought up a new potential threat, and that is in the other straits, Baba El Mandeb, which is in the Gulf of Aden. And if that choke point is also then under threat and risk, and it only takes one strike, or even just the threat of the notion of a risk where shippers will then stay away from that area as well, and essentially just choking off so many important ports in the entire region.

What we're seeing in terms of negotiations and conversations, I mean, the prospect of a potential diplomatic off ramp, while the discussions of trying to deter Iran's nuclear capabilities and Iran's missile capabilities now, this is very much one of the priority points, not only for the United States, but also for the Gulf region as well.

In the meantime, Brent crude prices after earlier this week coming down, after the good news, perhaps, of finding some way to converse with the Iranians and finding a diplomatic off ramp, they're up once again. Becky, you've got Brent crude prices increasing today.

[04:05:02

I think there's a reality check about the supply constraints that are hitting the entire world. And of course, even if the world, you know, the war ends today, does that mean a sense of normality the day after? And a lot of experts are telling me that the effects are going to be felt for the long term, for a month, two months and perhaps until the end of the year.

So this is the new normal in terms of the oil supply shock for it's the International Energy Agency says is the largest we've ever seen in the history of global markets.

ANDERSON: This really is a war with a significant global impact at this point. Eleni, thank you.

Paula, just get us up to speed on what we understand to be the latest on U.S. Troop deployments, whilst at the same time we continue to hear talk, at least of talks potentially in Pakistan. What's the latest?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, we are hearing optimism, but at this point, the optimism is just coming from one side. It's just coming from the Trump administration. We heard from the White House press secretary saying that talks have not hit a dead end, that they were continuing, they are productive saying that they are going by a timeline of four to six weeks for this war. We have heard a number of different timelines from this administration.

But then when you hear the Iranian side, we are hearing from the foreign minister, for example Abbas Araghchi, saying there are no talks, there are no direct talks, but there are messages being passed around saying that they know there are a number of countries that are working their back channels that are trying to create something that could end in a ceasefire.

But we have heard very clearly from Iran they're not looking just for a cease fire. They want reparations for the damage that has been done. They want an acknowledgment that they are in control of the Strait of Hormuz and other conditions that would not be acceptable to the United States or certainly Israel as well.

So at this point, sources familiar with what is going on say the White House is trying to push for this meeting in Pakistan. They believe that it would be the vice president, JD Vance, who would be leading these discussions, as sources say that Iran objected to the fact that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the two that were leading the discussions 27 days ago when they failed, would not be acceptable to them.

Turkey has also been suggested as a possible location if the security situation was not sufficient in Pakistan for the White House. But we are still hearing very different things from all sides. Israel is skeptical of this creating any room for diplomacy.

And at the same time, we do see sources telling us that Iran is beefing up its security, its anti-aircraft landmines, anti-armor mines along the shoreline of Kharge Island that you mentioned that to make sure that it would be a very risky operation for the U.S. military to try and take that island. Becky.

ANDERSON: Good to have you. All right. Eleni and Paula for you this morning. Well, Iran has responded to a 15-point U.S. proposal to end the war with five conditions of its own. State media reports that the demands include an end to aggression and assassinations, the establishment of concrete mechanisms to ensure war does not resume, guaranteed sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz and the payment of war damages and reparations.

Sat a news conference on Wednesday, Iran's foreign minister said the U.S. is essentially backing down when it pursues negotiations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABBAS ARAGHCHI, IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): They talk about negotiations. They talk about other things. This is precisely an admission of defeat. Weren't they calling for unconditional surrender then why are they now speaking about negotiations as the right course?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: All right. We continue to see sustained missile and drone attacks from Iran across the Gulf, including on the UAE and on Bahrain and threats to widen the conflict further. Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the name we are hearing a lot lately when it comes to diplomatic talks, is posted on X saying, quote, based on some data, Iran's enemies with the support of one of the regional countries are preparing to occupy one of the Iranian islands.

All enemy movements are under the full surveillance of our armed forces. If they step out of line, all the vital infrastructure of that regional country will without restriction become the target of relentless attacks.

[04:10:05]

Hasan Alhasan is a senior fellow for Middle East Policy at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. He joins us from Manama in Bahrain. What did you make of Ghalibaf's post there and the threat?

HASAN ALHASAN, SENIOR FELLOW FOR MIDDLE EAST POLICY, INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES: Well, it's a threat to begin with to commit many war crimes because obviously it's both illegal and illegitimate to target other countries vital national infrastructure, especially those that have no military purpose whatsoever.

So, obviously we're in a no holds barred kind of situation here. And I think this would be absolutely catastrophic for all of the parties involved because I suspect that whatever Gulf nation he's referring to would obviously have the ability to retaliate in kind.

I think this is an attempt really to try and dissuade and deter broader regional participation and support for U.S. led efforts to open or I think more precisely to secure the Strait of Hormuz should negotiations and talks between the U.S. and Iran amount to nothing. And there is a high possibility that these talks don't go anywhere.

And so I think we heard at least from two countries in the region, the UAE and Bahrain, expressing willingness to join and support the U.S. led coalition to secure the Strait of Hormuz. I think from their perspective it's impossible to live in a situation where Iran gets to route ships and impose tolls and taxes and essentially exert unilateral control over the Strait of Hormuz.

And Bahrain has been sponsoring a resolution at the U.N. Security Council trying to advocate for the use of force under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter --

ANDERSON: Yes.

ALHASAN: - -to be able to secure and mount a global coalition to allow shipping to resume through the Strait. So -- but it's important to note that not all of the Gulf countries have expressed themselves in the same way.

If anything, Oman position is probably the least favorable to a military coalition to secure the Strait. Qatar has been distancing itself from the fighting as well. And we haven't really heard anything from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia as to whether they would participate or not. So there isn't a GCC consensus on this issue at the moment.

ANDERSON: And I think that's a really important point. We have heard some significant statements from the UAE. So I want to bring our viewers' attention to this Wall Street Journal piece by Yousef Al Otaiba, he's the UAE ambassador to Washington. This was published in the past 12 hours or so and he writes, and I quote, a simple ceasefire isn't enough. We need a conclusive outcome that addresses Iran's full range of threats. Nuclear capabilities, missiles, drones, Terror proxies and blockades of international sea lanes.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, the UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, posted on X quote, we will never be blackmailed by terrorists.

What's your assessment of these statements and perhaps a slightly deeper dive on where you do see the region's posture at present? Because I think you're absolutely right to point out there are definitely some differences of opinion at this point.

ALHASAN: Yes, I think to contextualize, I think from the UAE's perspective, that's quite clear. I think they see it as a net negative if things were simply to go back to the status quo ante, to the way it was -- to the way things were before the war, because essentially Iran will have demonstrated its ability to control shipping or at least to stop shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. It will have crossed multiple red lines of striking at GCC and Gulf civilian targets and going after U.S. military assets as well.

And so this is not, I think, a situation that anyone in the region would want to normalize because there is, of course, always the risk that another cycle of conflict and another cycle of violence would simply reignite in the future, and then we would see a repeat of the same cycle.

And in the meantime, the Gulf states would have lost billions of dollars, if not tens of billions of dollars in lost exports, in damages to infrastructure, and so on.

And so I think from the UAE's perspective, they're seeking a more definitive resolution to these challenges, which would prevent them from reoccurring in a future cycle of violence. Now, what does that mean? I think the onus, obviously, is on these countries to define the end state that they want, especially in the absence of a clear strategic direction and objectives from the U.S. administration.

[04:15:09]

Now, whether this resolution is achieved militarily through a continued degrading of Iran's nuclear facilities, ballistic missiles, drone capabilities, the industrial sort of base that supports Iran's military production, there could be conceivably a way militarily to continue degrading these, but it could also be achieved diplomatically through a more comprehensive agreement with Iran that ensures limits on Iran's ballistic missiles and drone capabilities as well.

Now, the devil is in the details. Will Iran agree? How will the parties enforce such an agreement? But I think there are multiple ways that these objectives could play out.

But again, not everyone agrees with the UAE's desire to see this through in the sense that it seems as though at least some countries in the region would prefer to see a more rapid resolution of this conflict and to try and cut the losses that countries in the region are already seeing as opposed to continue fighting this war indefinitely.

ANDERSON: Hasan, it's good to have you. Thank you very much indeed for joining us. Hassan Alhasan is in Bahrain this morning. I'm here in Abu Dhabi in the UAE.

Still ahead, other news, a big win for critics of Big Tech. How a landmark verdict could shape the future of social media. More on that is after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:21:11]

SOLOMON: Welcome back. A California jury has found YouTube and Meta liable in a landmark case about social media addiction. The companies were accused of intentionally getting a young woman addicted to their sites and harming her mental health. The jury found Meta and YouTube negligent in the design of their platforms. They were ordered to pay a total of $6 million in damages.

Now YouTube and Meta are planning to appeal. But this case could be a watershed moment for social media companies and how they operate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK LANIER, PLAINTIFF'S ATTORNEY: These social media companies make their money off what they call the attention economy. They're selling the time we spend on their platforms and that's fine if they want to do that business, but they must do it responsibly. They can't take advantage of young pre-developed minds and purposefully engineer addiction into their platforms so that those children spend more time than they should just to profit the companies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: CNN's Clare Duffy has more on how this case could mark a crucial moment for social media companies and accountability.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: This case was brought by a now 20 year old named Kaley and her mother, accusing Meta and YouTube of intentionally designing addictive features that got her hooked as a young woman and caused mental health challenges like anxiety and body dysmorphia.

And the jury sided with Kaley on all counts in this case. They found that Meta and YouTube knew that their platforms could be harmful to young people, failed to warn users of these risks, and played a substantial role in Kaley's mental health challenges. The jury has awarded a combined $6 million in compensatory and punitive damages.

And look, $6 million between these two companies is sort of a drop in the bucket when you're talking about companies as big as Meta and YouTube. But this is Just the first step. This case now potentially creates a road for lawyers to follow in hundreds of other cases that have been filed against these two companies, as well as TikTok and Snap, which settled Kaley's case just before trial.

If these tech companies continue to lose in these hundreds of cases, we could see them potentially on the hook for billions of dollars in damages and also forced to make changes to their platforms.

Parents and advocates who for years have been raising concerns about online safety issues for children are also certainly hoping that U.S. lawmakers are watching this decision closely, watching the evidence came out in this trial, and that could motivate them to create more comprehensive online safety legislation.

Now, Meta and YouTube do say they plan to appeal. They say they respectfully disagree with this decision. That could drag out this case for months, if not years. But in the meantime, we will see these other cases starting to go to trial. So this is an important moment and just a first step as we potentially start to see a shift in how we think about who is responsible for the safety of young people online. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOLOMON: Clare Duffy. Thank you. U.S. Senate failed once again to agree on funding for the Department of Homeland Security and end a partial government shutdown. Republican lawmakers thought that Democrats had accepted their offer to fund the DHS, except for certain operations handled under Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

But Senate Democrats sent a counteroffer, sticking to the demands that they've been wanting since the start of the shutdown. That counteroffer was dismissed by top Republicans as, quote, rehashing old ground. The White House had already agreed to some concessions last week as part of broader talks.

And the partial government shutdown also making matters worse for both air travelers and TSA agents who continue to work without pay.

[04:25:00]

The Department of Homeland Security reports at least 480 TSA officers have quit since the shutdown began and more than 3,000 TSA employees didn't show up to work on Tuesday. Those still clocking in will miss a second full paycheck this weekend. The TSA's deputy administrator detailed the difficult situation that a lot of agents are facing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HA NGUYEN MCNEILL, TSA DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR: Many in our workforce have missed bill payments, received eviction notices, had their cars repossessed and utilities shut off, lost their childcare, defaulted on loans, damaged their credit line and drained their retirement savings.

Some are sleeping in their cars, selling their blood and plasma and taking on jobs, second jobs to make ends meet, all while being expected to perform at the highest level when in uniform to protect the traveling public.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: Our Ed Lavandera is in Houston, Texas. With more on the massive security lines affecting some airports.

(BEGIN VICEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The nightmare travel scenario will continue here in the coming days at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport. Officials tell us that even though on Wednesday we saw some of the lowest travel volume of the week in the lines were significantly shorter, they expect traffic at this airport to continue increasing going into the weekend. Heavy travel days like Thursday, Friday, Sunday and Monday and those lines of four plus hours long could very much be in the cards once again. The area where you're seeing behind me, even though today is a lower

volume day, there's still a great deal of waiting having to be done by these passengers who are simply trying to navigate all of this situation here and they will have to continue to do so.

We were told by according to TSA officials that there was a call out rate of about 43 percent here at this airport on Tuesday. We don't have Wednesday numbers until the day after the next day. So those are the latest numbers.

But those significant number of callouts at this particular airport that happen on Tuesday, which are the latest figures and they have been close to 40 percent throughout much of the week. And that is the reason why at the airport like here at George Bush Intercontinental, you're seeing only two of the terminals open to security screening and that is expected to continue as TSA officials are trying to make the most of where they have their manpower and how many lanes they can keep open at any given time.

But here, the bottom line though is that officials here at this airport are really urging people to plan ahead that to expect incredibly long lines once again come Thursday and Friday here at this airport. Ed Lavandera. CNN, Houston, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOLOMON: And still ahead for us, we are getting new details on potential talks between the U.S. and Iran, but both sides are sending mixed messages. We'll have the latest developments after a short break.

Plus, Israel presses ahead with operations in Lebanon without a clear endgame in sight. We'll talk to a guest who believes that Israel is falling into the same trap as the U.S. and Iran. We'll be right back.

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