What we covered
• Strikes on Iran: The Israeli military announced that it was carrying out a new wave of attacks on Tehran, a week into a war that has roiled the Middle East. The Iranian capital’s Mehrabad Airport was seen on fire, video showed.
• Facing retaliation: Gulf nations continue to fend off retaliatory strikes, with Saudi Arabia and Dubai reporting they intercepted attacks Saturday morning.
• Trump’s terms: US Central Command said the US military struck more than 3,000 targets inside Iran since the US-Israeli joint attack last weekend. US President Donald Trump raised the stakes on Friday, saying there will be no deal with Iran until an “unconditional surrender.”
• Kurds targeted: Since it was revealed that the CIA was working to arm Iranian Kurdish groups, their camps have been targeted by drones and missiles. CNN visits one camp in northern Iraq to hear from the residents.
Dubai intercepts strike as Iran continues attacks on Gulf neighbors
The Dubai government said it had intercepted a strike on Saturday, as Gulf nations continue fending off attacks from Iran.
The full statement:
On Friday, the United Arab Emirates intercepted nine ballistic missiles and 109 drones on Friday, according to its Ministry of Defense.
Pakistani man with ties to Iran convicted in 2024 plot to assassinate US politicians
A federal grand jury on Friday convicted a Pakistani man accused of plotting to kill US officials, including President Donald Trump, in a foiled 2024 scheme allegedly backed by Iran.
Asif Merchant, who prosecutors say is a trained operative of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was convicted of murder for hire and attempting to commit an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries after he sought to hire hit men to carry out the political assassinations in the US.
The conviction in a New York courtroom comes as joint US-Israeli strikes have taken out scores of Iranian leaders and as the conflict continues to widen in the Middle East.
According to the Justice Department, Merchant testified that the IRGC sent him to the US in 2023 to scout possible recruits to stay in the country. He returned to the US the following year, he said, with a mission to recruit people to assassinate one of three specific US political figures, to steal documents, and to arrange a protest.
Prosecutors said authorities learned of the assassination plot after Merchant asked an acquaintance to connect him with hit men — and that acquaintance tipped off law enforcement. Undercover officers posing as hit men met with Merchant in June 2024 and he was arrested the following month.
“This was not the first attempt by Iran to harm our citizens on U.S. soil; the other efforts also failed,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a news release, adding, “Let this verdict serve as a reminder that the FBI is committed to detecting such threats and preventing acts of violence, and we will hold accountable anyone who tries to interfere with our democratic system.”
The plot was one of several Iranian-linked threats against Trump during his last presidential campaign.
Merchant faces up to life in prison.
Israel said it launched "broad-scale wave of strikes" against Tehran. Iran is firing back
Israel is intercepting multiple waves of Iranian attacks on Saturday, after it launched a “broad-scale wave of strikes” against Tehran in the early hours of the morning.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said their strikes on Tehran targeted “the Iranian terror regime infrastructure.”
Explosions were heard in various parts of the city, with plumes of smoke and flashes of light seen on the horizon. Dramatic footage showed Tehran’s Mehrabad airport – located near the center of the Iranian capital – and its airplanes on fire. It’s not clear if the airport was struck directly. The extent of the damage to the airport is also unclear.
Hours later, Iranian strikes began heading toward Israel. The IDF repeatedly warned that its air defenses had been activated, and instructed the Israeli public to shelter in place.
CNN has reached out to the IDF for comment.
Saudi Arabia repels waves of drones headed for its Shaybah oil field
Saudi Arabia has intercepted and destroyed 16 drones heading toward one of the largest oil fields in the Middle East, Shaybah, in the early hours of Saturday, according to the kingdom’s defense ministry on X.
The ministry did not elaborate on the origin of those drones.
Shaybah field, located in the remote Empty Quarter desert with few residents, is a massive oil and gas field with crude production of one million barrels per day, according to Saudi Arabia’s state-owned petroleum firm Aramco, the field’s operator.
CNN has reached out to Aramco for comment.
In 2019, the field, along with other oil facilities in the country, was the subject of large-scale drone attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels. The attack sparked a fire at Shaybah’s natural gas facility but caused no injuries or disruption to its oil operations, Aramco said at the time.
What we know about Tehran's Mehrabad airport, shown in flames after latest strikes
Dramatic footage showed Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport on fire after airstrikes hit the Iranian capital in the early hours of Saturday, state media reported.
The airport, which opened in 1938, is located near the center of the sprawling capital city. It is owned by the Iranian government and considered the busiest in the country.
Since 2004, most international flights have been handled by the Imam Khomeini International Airport, located outside the city. Mehrabad, however remains a crucial domestic hub.
The footage of flames emerged after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it launched a “broad-scale wave of strikes” against Tehran in the early hours of the morning.
The extent of the damage to the airport is unclear. It is also not clear if the compound was struck directly. CNN has reached out to the IDF for comment on whether it had targeted the airport.
One frequent flyer said the airport was Tehran’s “first real international airport,” recalling fond memories of families gathering to greet or say farewell to loved ones traveling to or arriving from America and airport security complimenting her wedding dress during a luggage inspection.
“We all love it… despite the fact that the airport was outdated and needed expansion and rebuilding,” they told CNN, speaking anonymously.
“It was one of those good old-fashioned, middle size airports in the Middle East, and it took us right through the main square. The staff took special pride working at the airport. It was a coveted job, and a hot job to have, as everyone was so handsome or good looking.”
Among its key routes within Iran, Mehrabad handles 94 weekly flights to Mashhad (MHD), 69 to Ahvaz (AWZ) and 51 to Shiraz (SYZ) airports, according to Flightrader24.
Other popular destinations within the country include Kish Island, Tabriz city and Kerman city.
Eugenia Yosef contributed reporting
Iranian operatives have been plotting things for a long time: CNN analyst
CNN Chief Law Enforcement and Intelligence Analyst John Miller breaks down the potential terror threats facing the United States at home as the war with Iran grinds on.
Gulf states continue fending off strikes as dawn breaks in the Middle East. Get caught up
The US military has struck more than 3,000 targets inside Iran since launching Operation “Epic Fury” last weekend, Central Command said.
Catch up on more news here:
- More strikes: Airstrikes hit the Iranian capital in the early hours of Saturday, state media reported. A video circulating on social media and geolocated by CNN showed Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport on fire. And as dawn breaks in the Middle East on Saturday morning, countries in the Gulf continued to fend off retaliatory strikes from Iran.
- Warning from Iran: Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi on Friday said European countries that join attacks against Iran will be “legitimate targets” for Tehran.
- Dignified transfer: Vice President JD Vance will join President Donald Trump Saturday at a dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base for the six US service members killed during the initial days of the war with Iran, a White House official tells CNN.
- Regarding Russia: Trump deflected Friday when asked about reports, including from CNN, that Russia is providing Iran with intelligence about the locations and movements of American troops, ships and aircraft. “What a stupid question that is to be asking at this time. We’re talking about something else,” the president told Fox News’ Peter Doocy during a White House event on college sports.
CNN’s Samantha Waldenberg, Mitchell McCluskey, Yong Xiong, Ross Adkin, Katie Polglase, Lauren Kent and Laura Sharman contributed reporting.
Vance, Melania Trump to join president at dignified transfer for US troops killed
Vice President JD Vance will join President Donald Trump Saturday at a dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base for the US service members killed during the initial days of the war with Iran, a White House official tells CNN.
The president also announced in a social media post that first lady Melania Trump will be joining him at Dover, along with members of his Cabinet.
Second lady Usha Vance is expected to be in attendance as well, a second White House official said.
The transfer will honor the six US service members who lost their lives in a drone strike on a makeshift operations center in Kuwait as part of Iran’s retaliation to the US attack on the country.
The service members are Maj. Jeffrey R. O’Brien, Capt. Cody A. Khork, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert M. Marzan, Sgt. 1st Class Nicole M. Amor, Sgt. 1st Class Noah L. Tietjens and Sgt. Declan J. Coady.
In Iranian Kurdish camp, war is a reality even before the much-vaunted offensive
There’s an eerie silence in the streets of the Iranian Kurdish Azadi camp in Northern Iraq. The roads are empty, the windows boarded shut and in the heart of the camp, at the newish-looking colorful playground, there is no laughter.
Since it was revealed that the CIA was working to arm Iranian Kurdish groups ahead of a ground offensive into western Iran, camps like this one, belonging to the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI), have become a regular target for not just Iranian drones but also ballistic missiles.
One of the KDPI leaders, Amanj Zibaee, shows us the site of one of those strikes, near the camp’s medical facility.
“No military forces here, nobody, no one,” Zibaee says. “But sure, after the start of this war we had some fighters just to guard and keep our people safe.”
Zibaee says these attacks by Iran have intensified in number and strength over the past few days but they are not a novelty for a group well accustomed to Iranian ire.
The KDPI is part of a coalition of six Iranian Kurdish groups, based in Iraqi Kurdistan, that formed an alliance just days before the US and Israel started bombing Iran. They say they are willing to fight for their objectives of greater rights and autonomy, but the group’s deputy secretary-general, Mustafa Mawlwdi, says they need more guarantees – including weapons – from President Donald Trump and his administration.
“Now Trump is saying if the [Iranian] Kurds go to Iran he would support them,” Mawlwdi explained. “But speaking only is not enough. With only words neither us or anyone else would do it.”
Iran has renewed threats that “all facilities of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq” will be “extensively targeted,” if a single Iranian Kurdish fighter crosses the border, leaving the Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government “very worried.”
Tehran certainly seems intent on showing it’s paying attention. A few hours after we left, another message: Iran fired another two missiles and three drones toward the camp.
CNN's Fred Pleitgen reports live from Tehran
CNN’s Fred Pleitgen and photojournalist Claudia Otto were the first journalists from a US network to get on the ground in Tehran.
CNN’s Erin Burnett, who is reporting out of Tel Aviv, Israel, spoke live tonight to Pleitgen from the Iranian capital.
CNN operates in Iran only with government permission.
Gulf states continue to fend off missiles and drones
Countries in the Gulf continue to fend off retaliatory strikes from Iran as the conflict enters its eighth day. Here’s what we’re seeing as dawn breaks in the Middle East on Saturday morning:
Saudi Arabia: Multiple drones approaching Saudi Arabia’s Shaybah oil field were intercepted and destroyed, the kingdom’s Ministry of Defense announced on X early Saturday. A ballistic missile heading towards the Prince Sultan Air Base was also intercepted and destroyed, the ministry said.
Bahrain: Sirens again sounded in Bahrain early this morning and residents were urged to head to the nearest safe place, its Ministry of Interior said on X. The Defense Force said it has intercepted 84 missiles and 147 drones targeting the kingdom since the war started last Saturday, boosting the tally by six missiles and four drones in the past 12 hours.
Kuwait: Armed forces downed 12 Iranian drones and 14 missiles on Friday, according to state-run Kuwait News Agency.
United Arab Emirates: The UAE intercepted nine ballistic missiles and 109 drones on Friday, according to its Ministry of Defense which said its forces remains “on high alert” to deal with any incoming threats.
US has struck more than 3,000 targets inside Iran, CENTCOM says
The US military has struck more than 3,000 targets inside Iran since launching Operation “Epic Fury” last weekend, Central Command said.
The strikes have targeted ballistic missile sites, command centers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and “military communications capabilities,” among others, Central Command said on Friday in a post on X.
The strikes had “damaged or destroyed” 43 Iranian ships, it added.
White House splices Iran war footage with clips from video games and movies
The White House posted videos of Iran war footage spliced with clips from video games, Hollywood movies and TV shows, including Call of Duty and “Iron Man.”
CNN’s Jake Tapper reports:
Tehran's Mehrabad Airport on fire as airstrikes target Iran
Airstrikes hit the Iranian capital in the early hours of Saturday, state media reported.
A video circulating on social media and geolocated by CNN showed Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport on fire after the strikes. It’s not clear if the airport was struck directly.
Iran’s state broadcaster reported that explosions were heard and smoke was seen in the eastern and western parts of Tehran.
Earlier, the Israeli military announced that it was carrying out a new wave of attacks on Tehran.
Meanwhile, Iran launched strikes at Tel Aviv, Fars News reported.
A CNN team in Tel Aviv witnessed explosions in the sky.
And in Saudi Arabia, the Ministry of Defense said four drones were recently intercepted and destroyed as they headed toward the Shaybah oil field.
"Extremely likely" gas prices will keep rising due to the war, says analyst
Gas prices have spiked to the highest in the 11 months before the war with Iran, even though the Trump administration said prices were much lower than they had been.
Patrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy, talks about what could happen in the coming days on “The Lead.”
Trump deflects when asked about reports of Russia providing intel to Iran
President Donald Trump deflected Friday when asked about reports, including from CNN, that Russia is providing Iran with intelligence about the locations and movements of American troops, ships and aircraft.
“What a stupid question that is to be asking at this time. We’re talking about something else,” the president told Fox News’ Peter Doocy during a White House event on college sports.
Russia is providing Iran with intelligence about the locations and movements of US troops, ships and aircraft, according to multiple people familiar with US intelligence reporting — the first indication Moscow has sought to get involved in the conflict. CNN’s Natasha Bertrand reports.
Asked about the same reports, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told CBS News’ “60 Minutes” that the president is “well aware of who’s talking to who.”
“We’re tracking everything,” Hegseth said in the interview airing Sunday.
“The American people can rest assured their commander-in-chief is well aware of who’s talking to who,” he added. “And anything that shouldn’t be happening, whether it’s in public or back-channeled, is being confronted and confronted strongly.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Friday that the prospect of Russia sharing intelligence with Iran is “clearly” not making a difference in the war with Iran.
“It clearly is not making a difference with respect to the military operations in Iran, because we are completely decimating them,” Leavitt told CNN’s Kristen Holmes.
We’re a week into the war. Here’s what you should know
US President Donald Trump said there will be no deal with Iran until “unconditional surrender.”
And what would that look like? The president will decide, his spokesperson said.
Catch up on other headlines here:
- CNN interview: Trump said Iran’s leadership has been “neutered” and he’s looking for new leadership that will treat the United States and Israel well, even if that’s a religious leader and it’s not a democratic state. He expressed confidence in the ease of picking a new leader — which he’s said he must be involved in — and again compared the mission to Venezuela, where the US captured Nicolás Maduro earlier this year and put his deputy in power.
- US gas prices: The president suggested he wasn’t worried about rising gas prices in the US. But US retail gas prices, already up 34 cents a gallon since the start of the latest war in the Middle East, could rise as high as $3.90 a gallon later this month, according to an oil analyst.
- On the ground: The Israel Defense Forces said it struck an Iranian “command center” in Beirut’s Dahieh neighborhood, among other targets. Hours after the US Embassy in Baghdad warned that hotels in Iraqi Kurdistan could be targeted by pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, a drone exploded near a hotel in Erbil. And a security force headquarters belonging to the Kurdish armed group Kurdistan Freedom Party was struck by a drone attack, according to Iranian state media and confirmed by a spokesperson for the group.
- US and Spanish tensions: Tensions between the US and Spain are running high after Spanish President Pedro Sánchez denied a US request to use two Spanish bases where the US has operated for years for the operation against Iran. Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who has emerged as Europe’s harshest critic of the war, defended his decision to send a warship to help defend Cyprus, even as he doubled down on his criticism of the joint Israeli-US strikes.
- Displaced people: The number of people displaced in Lebanon after Israel renewed strikes and issued sweeping evacuation orders is close to half a million, the Norwegian Refugee Council estimated.
- Wounded soldiers: Eight Israeli soldiers have been injured, including five who were seriously wounded, by projectile fire from militant group Hezbollah toward Israeli territory near the border with Lebanon on Friday, according to the Israel Defense Forces. Also the Ghanaian Armed Forces said two of their soldiers serving in the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, were “critically injured” after their position came under missile fire.
- Russia’s role: Russia is providing Iran with intelligence about the locations and movements of American troops, ships and aircraft, according to multiple people familiar with US intelligence reporting on the issue, the first indication that Moscow has sought to get involved in the war. Also, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone call during which they “agreed to continue contacts,” Russian state news agency TASS reported, citing the Kremlin.
- CNN investigation: The impact of the US and Israeli airstrikes across Iran has extended beyond hitting security infrastructure, also damaging nearby civilian sites including hospitals.
CNN’s Donald Judd, Issy Ronald, Patrick Sung Cuadrado, Dana Bash, Frederik Pleitgen, Chris Isidore, Evan John, Tamar Michaelis, Sophie Tanno, Charlotte Reck, Natasha Bertrand, Jim Sciutto, Zachary Cohen and Jennifer Hansler contributed reporting.
US-Israeli bombs strike dangerously close to civilian sites, CNN Investigates finds
The impact of the US and Israeli airstrikes across Iran has extended beyond hitting security infrastructure, also damaging nearby civilian sites including hospitals, a CNN investigation has found.
CNN found one impact crater measuring at least 40 feet (12 meters) wide at the offices of Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB in Tehran. Seen on satellite imagery, its diameter is consistent with those left by 2,000-pound bombs. On detonation, this weapon sprays white-hot metal fragments that can be lethal up to 1,000 feet away.
That crater lies just 100ft away from the Gandhi Hospital. Verified videos from the strike’s aftermath show shattered glass, collapsed walls and patients – including babies – being evacuated from the facility. Satellite imagery shows a communications mast at the broadcasting complex wiped out after the attack.
Wes Bryant, a former US special operations tactical air controller, told CNN there’s “no way this was not at least something equivalent to a 2,000-pound bomb.”
Strikes also hit the police headquarters, flattening buildings, per satellite images. Videos show damage to several other hospitals in the immediate neighborhood. Bryant assessed this indicated the use of multiple munitions with a payload of 500 pounds or lower.
On Thursday, the World Health Organization confirmed it had verified 13 strikes on Iranian healthcare facilities.
A school in southern Iran was also directly struck, killing more than 160 students and staff, state media reported. It sits roughly 200ft from an Iranian military base, which was also hit. Neither the US nor Israel has acknowledged responsibility for that strike. A gymnasium in Fars province was also struck; Iranian media reported around 20 volleyball players were inside at the time. The target was unclear, but a police station lies nearby.
CNN has approached the US and Israeli militaries for comment on these strikes and asked what steps they are taking to prevent civilian harm.
