What we're covering
• No Iran deal: US President Donald Trump said he’s not prepared yet to reach a deal with Iran to end the war, adding that US strikes “totally demolished” most of Kharg Island but “we may hit it a few more times just for fun.” He also urged countries to help the US secure the Strait of Hormuz by sending warships to the Middle East.
• Strikes pound region: Munitions have fallen at several locations in central Israel, said authorities. Meanwhile, Gulf countries continued intercepting strikes, with Kuwait International Airport suffering damage.
• Service members identified: The Pentagon named the six air crew who died in Thursday’s KC-135 refueling aircraft crash in Iraq. It said the incident is still under investigation.
• F1 calls off races: Grand Prix races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, initially slated for April, have been called off due to the conflict.
The IRGC could be directing Iran's wartime strategy. More about the group
It has been a week since Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei its new supreme leader, and the public has yet to see him.
Some analysts, however, say it’s not his visibility as supreme leader that matters most, but the cohesion of the institutions beneath him. Powerful security bodies such as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are likely directing Iran’s wartime strategy, regardless of Khamenei’s presence.
What is the IRGC?: The IRGC is an elite wing of the Iranian military established in the aftermath of Iran’s revolution in 1979 as a parallel security institution to the national army. The group’s goal was to protect the revolutionary government and its leaders, although it grew to be seen as a deep state more powerful than the army and one with a vast business empire.
What do they do?: The Revolutionary Guard chief reports directly to the supreme leader. The IRGC holds deep influence over domestic politics and the economy, with interests extending to and beyond the construction, telecommunications, auto and energy industries.
In 2009, its Basij subgroup cracked down on anti-government demonstrations and helped secure the position of hardline then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Designated “terrorists”: Trump officially designated the IRGC a terrorist group in 2019. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council then declared the US a “state sponsor of terrorism” and American troops operating in the region as “terrorist groups,” according to IRNA, Iran’s state-run news agency.
US allies in the region also consider the Revolutionary Guards a major security threat, with Bahrain and Saudi Arabia adding the IRGC to their terror lists in 2018. The European Union declared the group a terrorist organization this year after Iran’s violent crackdown on anti-government protests.
CNN’s Leila Gharagozlou, Adam Pourahmadi, Nadeen Ebrahim and Tamara Qiblawi contributed to this report.
What to know about the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway Iran is blocking
We’ve just brought you reporting on US President Donald Trump’s renewed calls for other countries to send warships to help the US secure the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran has repeatedly warned that vessels passing through the strait would be targeted amid the ongoing war in the region.
At least 16 vessels have been attacked in and around the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman since the conflict began February 28, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).
A narrow waterway that bypasses Iran and Oman, the Strait of Hormuz is the main route for shipping crude from oil-rich countries such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to the rest of the world.
Iran controls the strait’s northern side. About 20 million barrels of oil, or about one-fifth of daily global production, flow through the strait every day, according to the US Energy Information Administration, which calls the channel a “critical oil chokepoint.” According to the EIA, “very few alternative options exist to move oil out of the strait if it is closed.”
The strait also carries about one-fifth of global trade in liquefied natural gas.
Energy analysts have warned that oil and natural gas prices are likely to remain elevated until the strait is passable.
Major container shipping companies, including Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC and CMA CGM, are also diverting vessels away from the waterway and the region, according to logistics firm Freightos.
CNN’s Catherine Nicholls contributed to this report.
FCC chair threatens TV networks amid Iran war coverage — but his warning rings hollow
President Donald Trump’s attack dog atop the FCC, Brendan Carr, garnered lots of attention on Saturday for threatening the licenses of local broadcasters over news coverage he deemed to be “fake.”
Carr has very little power to follow through. Television stations are not at serious risk of being banned from the airwaves as a result of Carr’s crusade.
However, his comments still carry weight, since Carr represents the US government and advances Trump’s policy agenda. The administration keeps taking extraordinary actions and applying extreme pressure to crack down on news content and entertainment that the president dislikes.
Thus, critics called Carr’s latest threat “authoritarian” and “unconstitutional,” and some suggested that he did it for attention, to publicly pressure local stations licensed by the FCC.
On Saturday, Carr followed up on one of Trump’s Truth Social posts complaining about news coverage of the Iran war by posting a warning on X.
“Broadcasters that are running hoaxes and news distortions — also known as the fake news — have a chance now to correct course before their license renewals come up,” Carr wrote.
“The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their licenses if they do not.”
In reality, the FCC has not denied a license renewal in decades. Any government action against a licensee would cause a protracted legal battle, even more so given the current media-bashing climate, because a station would likely cite Trump’s retributive streak and mount a First Amendment case.
Strikes continue to pound the Middle East. Here's the latest from the region
Munitions have fallen at several locations in central Israel, authorities reported early Sunday morning, with emergency workers reporting two people needed treatment.
Police officers are “currently handling several impact sites of munitions” in the Tel Aviv district, said a police spokesperson, adding that officers “and bomb disposal experts are currently working to isolate and secure the impact sites. At this stage, there are no reported casualties.”
Earlier, the Israel Defense Forces said it had identified “missiles launched from Iran” toward Israel.
Other Middle Eastern nations also intercepted several strikes over the past day. Here’s the latest from the region:
UAE: Dubai authorities confirmed on Sunday that sounds heard over the affluent Marina neighborhood and Al Sufouh beachfront area were due to interceptions. The defense ministry reported it “engaged nine ballistic missiles and 33 unmanned aerial vehicles launched from Iran” on Saturday. On the same day, a fire broke out at a key UAE oil hub at the port of Fujairah when debris fell as a drone was intercepted.
Saudi Arabia: Defense authorities reported on Sunday that it intercepted seven drones in the capital Riyadh and in the eastern region.
Qatar: Officials said late Saturday that it “successfully” intercepted four ballistic missiles and several drones launched from Iran.
Kuwait: Air defense systems responded to two drones targeting the southern Ahmad Al-Jaber Air Base, resulting in “material damage” within the base’s vicinity, reported Kuwait News Agency late Saturday. The civil aviation authority also reported a radar system being hit after the Kuwait International Airport was targeted by several drones.
Iraq: A drone attack hit the UAE Consulate General in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, injuring two security personnel and damaging a building, the UAE’s foreign ministry said in statement Saturday, adding that the strike was “the second time in a week.”
The race is off: Formula 1 calls off April events in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia
Formula 1 and its governing body FIA said the Grand Prix races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia will not happen in April because of safety concerns related to the Iran war.
Both countries have been struck during Iran’s response after the United States and Israel launched a wave of attacks on Iran.
The announcement was made early Sunday morning in Shanghai ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix.
F1 was due to race in Bahrain on April 12 and in the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah on April 19.
Catch up on Trump's latest comments on the war with Iran
President Donald Trump said Saturday he is not prepared to reach a deal with Iran to end the war and renewed calls for other countries to send warships to the Middle East to help the US secure the Strait of Hormuz.
More on his comments:
Iran deal impasse
“Iran wants to make a deal, and I don’t want to make it because the terms aren’t good enough yet,” Trump told NBC News during a phone interview, adding that any agreement would need to be “very solid.”
When asked what those terms might include, the president declined to provide details. “I don’t want to say that to you,” he said.
He also told NBC News the strikes on Kharg Island “totally demolished” most of the island but that “we may hit it a few more times just for fun.”
Call for countries to send warships
Trump claimed that “other countries” will be sending warships “in conjunction” with the US to secure the Strait of Hormuz.
It is unclear which countries the president is talking about and whether any countries have agreed to send ships. Trump wrote later in a lengthy post on Truth Social, “Hopefully China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others” will send ships to the region.
In response to CNN’s requests for comment, neither China nor the UK confirmed whether they are sending warships to the strait.
On supreme leader Mojtaba
Trump also raised doubts about the status of Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, noting that he has not appeared publicly since assuming power.
“I don’t know if he’s even alive. So far, nobody’s been able to show him,” Trump said.
“I’m hearing he’s not alive, and if he is, he should do something very smart for his country, and that’s surrender,” the president added, describing reports of Khamenei’s death as “a rumor.”
CNN’s Riane Lumer, Alejandra Jaramillo, Max Saltman and Billy Stockwell contributed reporting.
6 US service members killed in Iraq plane crash identified
The Pentagon on Saturday identified the six air crew who died in an aircraft crash in western Iraq on Thursday.
They are 33-year-old Maj. John A. Klinner of Auburn, Alabama; 31-year-old Capt. Ariana G. Savino of Covington, Washington; 34-year-old Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt of Bardstown, Kentucky; 38-year-old Capt. Seth R. Koval of Mooresville, Indiana; 30-year-old Capt. Curtis J. Angst of Wilmington, Ohio; and Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio.
The crew members were aboard a US Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker refueling aircraft when it crashed in western Iraq on Thursday, the US military said, adding that the incident was “not due to hostile fire or friendly fire.”
The Pentagon said Saturday the incident is still under investigation.
