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This episode of News Today examines the second month of the West Asia war as US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday that Iran should agree to a deal or face a more intense phase of the war.
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00:00Good evening, you're watching News Today at 9pm. I am Preeti Chowdhury, our big talking points this evening.
00:06While we focus on the ensuing war in West Asia, is Trump buying time for a ground attack?
00:12Their boots and ground are concerned. Does ground invasion look inevitable now?
00:16Also, domestic politics peaking. Mamata versus Election Commission only getting water where the pitched battle is concerned.
00:26It was the second month of the West Asia war begins and there is no clear off-ramp in sight.
00:32The escalation intensifying on ground and mixed messaging. Here are the top developments of this hour.
00:38U.S. Secretary of State presents one-month war report cards, says boots on the ground are not ruled out
00:44and Iran must cut a deal or face a more intense war.
00:48He claims U.S. strikes are creating havoc, even as talks gain momentum with the next few days, now seen
00:56as decisive.
01:00U.S. bunker buster strikes targeted Iranian ammunition depot in Isfahan, hitting fortified and underground military sites.
01:08U.S. media reports say over 900 kilograms penetrator bombs were used in the attack on the ammunition facility, triggering
01:16massive explosions.
01:17Isfahan, a key military hub, also hosts critical installations, including Iran's Padra Air Base.
01:26A drone strike hit a fully loaded crude oil tanker anchored near Dubai.
01:31The impact triggered fire and caused huge amounts of damage.
01:35But authorities say the blaze was swiftly contained with no oil spill.
01:39No casualties have been reported yet and all 24 crew members are reportedly safe.
01:46Iran now moves to monetize control, pushing a toll plan in the Strait of Hormuz.
01:52With reports of multi-million dollar charges per ship, reports suggest select ship are being charged up to $2 million
01:59for safe passage,
02:00after strict wetting and clearance by Iranian forces.
02:06Signals from Washington suggest the U.S. may not want a prolonged war.
02:10Western media, quoting U.S. officials, said Trump's close aides has claimed that U.S. is willing to end the
02:15campaign against Iran,
02:17even if the key shipping route, Strait of Hormuz, remains closed.
02:25Big questions that we asked this evening.
02:27Trump buying time for a ground invasion, a ground attack, boots on ground.
02:32Does boots on ground now look inevitable?
02:36What will Trump count?
02:38What will, in fact, Trump count as victory?
02:41And dialogue bids serious for diversion because there is mixed signaling in terms of the commentary we've heard
02:46from the top key people where this war is concerned.
02:50How long, though, can Iran fight back, despite the high threshold of pain that we have seen?
02:58All right, let's quickly cut across to our guests this evening.
03:01Michael Patrick Mulroy, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, retired CIA and U.S. Marine.
03:08He joins us, as well as John Rossumando, geopolitical and national security strategist.
03:15He'll join us in just about a short while from now.
03:19All right, I want to cut across first to Michael Patrick Mulroy.
03:25Mr. Mulroy, my first question, you know, I was reading the Wall Street Journal this morning,
03:29and if Western media is to be believed, then Trump has told his, President Trump has told his close aides
03:35that he would possibly end this war, even though the Strait of Hormuz remains shut.
03:41For someone who looks at strategy, I'd like to ask you, what does this really mean when the stated objectives
03:47have not been met and abandoned before it is achieved?
03:54It's also good to be with you, my fellow guests in your audience.
03:57I don't think the U.S. can end this conflict without reopening the Strait of Hormuz, without that being considered
04:05a significant strategic failure.
04:07Yes, the U.S. has made substantial, and Israel, gains when it comes to the military objectives of degrading the
04:17nuclear program,
04:19the ballistic missile and suicide drone program, and of course the military at large.
04:24But the biggest, I think, factor right now is that Iran has taken the Straits, now actually making money off
04:33of the Straits.
04:34They're making money off the fact that it's closed since we've removed sanctions on the sale of their oil that's
04:40already afloat.
04:43And essentially, the Strait was open before we started this.
04:46So if we just decide to go home, that is not going to be considered a success for the United
04:54States.
04:54It's going to be considered a failure.
04:56I don't think that's what's going to happen.
04:58It might be some attempt to get allies to assist with opening the strait.
05:03But essentially, unless we come up with a negotiated settlement, it's going to require probably troops to be inserted, to
05:11take islands, to take key terrain around the strait itself to force open.
05:18You know, do you reckon, do you also sense, and you know, like I said, we're reading the Western media,
05:23you know, that is what is being reported.
05:25But on the other hand, the kind of commentary that's coming in, the Secretary of War, you know, with what
05:30Pete Hexit also said, there's mixed messaging.
05:32At one end, it smacks of desperation.
05:35And on the other hand, there's aggression.
05:39Yes, I think that's fair.
05:41That's a fair point.
05:42We hear that the negotiations are going very well, that the Iranians accepted all 15 points.
05:49And then we hear that we're just going to leave and go home with the strait still being closed.
05:56It's literally impossible to put those two concepts together.
06:00Either the negotiations are going well, of which case we would need – they will open the strait.
06:06That's the point.
06:07Or we're just going to go home because we don't want to actually force it open.
06:12And I can understand why that's a big decision.
06:15If you're going to send troops in there to take these islands like Karg Island, Abu Musa, Laraq, and others,
06:22we're likely going to take significant casualties.
06:25And this would be a big escalation.
06:27And, of course, Iran is going to respond substantially, targeting, I would assume, the oil and gas infrastructure of the
06:34partner countries we have in the Gulf region.
06:36And that's going to drive energy up even further, potentially exponentially, and cause the problem to be even more substantial.
06:45And it's unclear whether that will completely clear the strait because it's not just the military saying it's open.
06:52It also has to be open and safe enough for commercial vessels and their insurers to think it's open.
07:00All right.
07:01But, you know, Mr. Mulroy, also what's happened is it's not about strategic installations that Iran is threatening to attack
07:06and is attacking.
07:07The latest that has come in is that it's going to go after, you know, from the 1st of April
07:11in Gulf countries, American companies, Apple, Google.
07:15Now, you know, that changes the landscape and the theater of this war as well.
07:19Joining me is also Dr. Weil, our West Asia strategist.
07:23Dr. Abad, thank you.
07:24You know, in midst of all of this, from the Iranian side, what's the sense that you are getting?
07:31Because where Iran is concerned, till now they've said that they are not in direct talks.
07:37But when we are speaking of boots on ground, despite the high threshold of pain, we've seen, you know, Iran
07:43portray.
07:44Boots on ground would completely change the situation.
07:47Is Iran ready for it?
07:50Absolutely.
07:51Iran is ready and prepared.
07:52They have been preparing for this war.
07:54They knew that the Americans and the Israelis will attack them ever since the Iranian revolution has taken place.
08:00And they have been planning it.
08:02And they knew that this is an extension of war.
08:04So, therefore, any kind of an adventure by the United States in taking Gark or anywhere put on the ground,
08:10I think it will be like, you know, a mashing potato for the Iranians, because they are already preparing for
08:16this scene.
08:17And having said that, I would say that the United States, they are so coward, they are not able to
08:22even to intervene militarily or put a boot on the ground.
08:25They are just using the sky and the navy, which are 1,500 kilometers away, and they're attacking the Iranian.
08:33It's a clear indication they don't have any strategic ambiguity about the really options or objective of this war.
08:41First, they said it is the nuclear issue of Iran.
08:45Then they said, well, it's the ballistic missile.
08:47Then now they're saying the Strait of Hormuz, where the Strait of Hormuz was open even before the United States
08:52took place.
08:53Now the president of the United States saying it is the oil of Iran.
08:57So, clearly, he is saying it now openly that it is the oil of Iran, after all, and the Strait
09:02of Hormuz and the corridors of all the global trade taking place in this part of the world.
09:07It's a part of the American strategy of squeezing all the Asian countries, which is primarily China and the rest
09:13of Asia.
09:14And then America thinking that by doing any kind of a ground operation in the region, they will succeed.
09:19This is an illegitimate, a violation of the international law.
09:23It's an illegal war, and Iran is in a defensive position, and they will continue to make the American and
09:29the Israeli plead
09:30till they understand that they cannot take this war on their own terms,
09:35and they will teach them a lesson that they will never repeat in the history to come.
09:39John Rosamundo, to bring you into this conversation with all the kind of mixed messaging that we are getting in,
09:45you know, at one end criticizing the NATO allies, now more and more NATO allies refusing America to use their
09:51air bases.
09:52There's all of that, you know, documentary on one side.
09:55Do you now see boots on ground inevitable?
10:00Well, I think that if you look at the movement of all the American Army, Marines, A2nd Airborne,
10:092nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, the president doesn't just move things just for his health.
10:17I think that he knows that Iran isn't going to give in, and he's going to likely move to take
10:27some of the islands
10:28in the Strait of Hormuz in an attempt to reopen the strait.
10:34There's no doubt that, you know, we will suffer casualties, but I think that the president's goal is relatively narrowly
10:43tailored,
10:44and the idea aims largely to fracture the regime and to develop dissensions on the inside of Iran.
10:56You know, but on the contrary as well, on that front, you know, Mr. Rosamundo,
11:00the sheer fact that the president says that there is a deal, Iran is desperate for a deal,
11:05Iran's turned around and said we're talking to no one.
11:08Well, I mean, you have a lot of wars where you have secret third-party discussions going on.
11:15I mean, the reports have been indirect discussions between Pakistan and Iran on behalf of the U.S.,
11:23and, I mean, if the Iranians were to admit that they're talking, it would have some political ramifications.
11:32So, don't always believe what you hear.
11:37You know, but, you know, on that note, Mr. Rosamundo, where you say don't believe what you hear,
11:42there's so much commentary coming, and sometimes even from the president of America and the secretary of war,
11:47that, you know, things change dramatically because it's what you hear yesterday is not what you heard today.
11:53Well, one thing about Donald Trump is he's a master of the head thing.
11:57I think that he's trying to play psychological mind games with the Iranians so that they don't know what to
12:03expect.
12:04I mean, it's just sort of, you know, apart from the course with dealing with Donald Trump,
12:08he likes keeping everything to the vest about what he's really thinking
12:13and throwing out confusing messages to confuse his enemies.
12:18So, the audience for that is in Tehran, not among us in the peanut gallery of the commentariat.
12:29All right.
12:30So, you know, Mr. Mulroy, would you reckon to what Mr. Rosamundo just said,
12:35that these are all attempts to confuse the audience there,
12:39because the messaging that comes across is that possibly there is confusion where this war is concerned.
12:45You've been a strategic expert, and, you know, for a moment, you know,
12:49let's speak of what has gone down in the last couple of days where NATO allies are concerned.
12:54You saw that kind of message that came in from President Trump today vis-a-vis the United Kingdom,
12:59and, you know, then you have France that has refused for America to use any of its air bases.
13:06There are definitely going to be operational consequences of this in isolation.
13:13I mean, it certainly could be strategic ambiguity where they're trying to essentially get in the head of the Iranians,
13:19which, you know, to be fair, the United States and Israel has taken out a large part of their leadership.
13:25So, it's unclear, quite frankly, right now, who actually has the authority to bind the regime in any kind of
13:32agreement.
13:33I do think, and I agree, the fact that we have the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit already there,
13:39the 11th on the way, the IRF from the 82nd Airborne Division partially there and the rest coming,
13:48and then a large portion of our special operations moving in that direction right now indicates to me
13:54that this is likely going to result in some kind of ground operation.
13:58Limited, yes, both in time, duration, and objective, but I don't think we would move a strategic asset like a
14:05MU from Indopaycom to the Middle East if we didn't intend to use it.
14:09So, unless there is real negotiations that can go somewhere, which, in my opinion, would be an end to the
14:17conflict and an opening of the strait,
14:19this looks like it's going to escalate substantially, and it could happen within the next few weeks.
14:25We'll have the assets in place by then, and we'll probably give an ultimatum, my assumption,
14:30that they either close the straits or that we will force them open.
14:34It's a huge political decision, obviously.
14:37Introducing ground forces into this is, you know, politically risky, if you will.
14:43But I do think, ultimately, if the U.S. military is tasked with it, they will accomplish the mission.
14:49The question, of course, is going to be at what cost, and that is something I'm sure that military planners
14:55are looking at right now.
14:56Mr. Malra, the cost of war is already but escalating, and it's not just, you know, where you're talking about
15:03heating installations.
15:04We're also talking about, you know, where countries could also be losing patients.
15:09You have where Iran has now struck a Kuwait crude oil tanker, and the strategic calculus for countries like Kuwait,
15:17for countries like the UAE, how do you see that pan out if this continues to escalate, like you said?
15:26So, I mean, I would totally agree that the countries in the region are paying a pretty hefty price for
15:33the Iranian action.
15:34The question is going to be, are they going to endure it?
15:37Are they going to push the United States to try to end it quickly or not?
15:42My biggest concern is, ultimately, at the end, they might consider the U.S. military presence in their country to
15:48be a liability.
15:49I personally think it's an asset, and I think we should make sure that they continue to think that way
15:55because it's an asset for us.
15:57But my concern right now, having dealt with most of our, all of our allies, quite frankly, in the region,
16:03that they are concerned about that,
16:05that if they're going to be struck just because the U.S. has a presence in their country, that they
16:11might want to reconsider that.
16:12And, of course, it's not just we expected to be struck in the military facilities in these countries.
16:17We didn't necessarily expect them to hit civilian infrastructure and the oil and gas infrastructure.
16:23And I think that's going to require some serious discussions with our partners and allies at the end of this.
16:28But, ultimately, I do think it's in their interest.
16:31I do think it's in our interest.
16:32We need to make sure that they continue to think that way.
16:35Dr. Waila Awad, because Iran does understand that, keeping in mind the latest news that filtered in a short while
16:44ago,
16:44because Iran has claimed, come the 1st of April, Iran's going to go after all American companies in the Gulf
16:50countries.
16:50You're talking about Apple, Microsoft, and so on.
16:53Well, absolutely, because what happened is you can see the systematic way of the American and the Israeli using artificial
17:00intelligence
17:01and attacking 17,000 targets in Iran.
17:04They have been already started with the infrastructure of the Iranians,
17:08and now they are going for the civil installation and the water installation,
17:13and including the energies and the oil.
17:16And that gives you a clear indication there is a desperate move by the United States and Israel
17:21on making Iran go to their own demand and dictate them that you should surrender,
17:26which does not have the dictionaries of the Iranian people on their, you know,
17:31on their vocabulary, that they will never surrender to the American.
17:35And I think the Iranians understood the American game plan.
17:38What the United States is doing, with respect to your guest on the panel,
17:43that I would say that the American president is enhancing the fall of the American empire.
17:48If the United States does not use unconventional way of attacking Iran by some dirty bombs
17:54or some kind of a technology they're going to use,
17:57I can assure you it is an enhancing that American expulsion from the region
18:01will be one of the major targets, even in Iraq or in the GCC,
18:06because they realize that they have been supporting and defending the American bases
18:10rather than the American bases defending these countries.
18:14So I think the message is very clear for the United States,
18:17and I think the president of the United States understood the game plan.
18:21He's trying to find an honorable exit.
18:23But because of this Trumpstein, of the Epstein file that has been hijacked by the Israelis,
18:29he's unable to move out.
18:30And he's sitting and playing golf in his own home, and he's continuing this war,
18:35and he wanted to continue bombardment just for fun.
18:38What do you expect?
18:39The people of the region are dying, and we lost people.
18:42I have people in Iran who have been sleeping in the bathroom for the last four weeks
18:47because the Americans are attacking civilians.
18:49They are not attacking only military bases.
18:52They said it's the safest part in the house is the bathroom, but we are resilient.
18:57We will not surrender.
18:58And they have just contributed their goal to the government,
19:02continue the fight to bring back the pride of the Persians.
19:06You know, I want to bring in John Rosamundo in all of this,
19:09because, Mr. Rosamundo, the fact is it's not just rhetoric from the Iranians
19:15where they speak of nuclear weapons or dirty bombs being used.
19:20We've had the news of a UN-affiliated official who's resigned,
19:23accusing the international body of preparing for a scenario
19:26involving the possible use of nuclear weapons in Iran.
19:31Now, somewhere down the line, there is fear that, you know,
19:35the dimensions of, there is a move from contingency planning
19:39to possible operational considerance, and that is ominous.
19:44Well, considering that Iran doesn't have nuclear weapons,
19:48or at least it says it doesn't,
19:51the only time the United States or Israel would use nuclear weapons
19:54is if they were used against them.
19:56We want to talk about dirty bombs.
19:58The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
20:03fired missiles laced with radiological munitions against U.S. troops back in 2020.
20:11So, I mean, look who's talking.
20:14The IRGC is deliberately moving its missiles,
20:17moving its military assets into civilian areas,
20:22and they're trying to get civilians killed.
20:25That's what they're all about.
20:27They don't care about their people.
20:29The only thing this regime is about is regime survival.
20:33That's what they're after.
20:36I think that if you look at what Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
20:42and the head of the UAE are saying,
20:45they can't tolerate this regime to continue.
20:48So, it's not just, you know, the U.S. being viewed as the problem.
20:53It's Iranian extortion and Iranian intimidation of its neighbors.
20:59If Iran were a normal country,
21:02it wouldn't be trying to subvert and intimidate its neighbors.
21:06You know, I'm going to take these final comments because, like I said,
21:09there are divergent views even on this panel.
21:11But I want to ask all three of you one question, if I could.
21:14You know, from a military and an intelligence perspective,
21:17what is a viable ramp-off look like right now to you, Mr. Mulroy?
21:23So, I do think that the United States can state that we have met most of our military objectives
21:30and we soon will meet all of them.
21:31So, we've degraded their nuclear program even further,
21:35all their strategic military assets, whether it's the ballistic missile program,
21:39almost their entire Navy.
21:40I think we can announce that and I think it'd be accurate.
21:43I'd then look to have a strategic pause where we could go re-engage our partners,
21:49particularly the ones that have a very capable naval force.
21:52So, most of them are, of course, in Europe.
21:55And talk about now that we have essentially stopped our combat operations,
21:59it's time to open up the strait.
22:01And I think we'd have more reception from them if we did it that way.
22:05And then perhaps once Iran sees that there's a large coalition coming their way,
22:11they'd open it.
22:12If they don't, then I think we'd have to force it open
22:14because that is essentially, if we don't, allowing Iran to keep the world hostage economically.
22:22Mr. Rosamond, to you, what is the viable ramp-off look like?
22:27And importantly, because with what we are heading towards, boots on ground,
22:31do you reckon that we are reaching a point beyond which one will not be available?
22:36Well, I agree.
22:37We're at a tipping point.
22:40The president alone is the one who's going to make the decision.
22:43I don't see any diplomatic way out.
22:48The IRGC has said that even if the United States decides to back down,
22:53it won't stop firing missiles and sending drones and attacking U.S. assets
23:01and those of our Gulf allies.
23:03So I think that, you know, it's not just the United States that needs to back off for a strategic
23:11pause,
23:11then the Islamic Republic, but then now China and Russia would be there rearming them for the next fight.
23:20Dr. Rawat, you know, posing the same question, and also if I can add, the sheer fact that Iran has
23:26decided to maybe take a toll where the Strait of Hormuz is concerned,
23:29a high tax for tankers to pass, they seem to be open to the idea of opening the Strait of
23:35Hormuz.
23:35And do you reckon that this is also somewhere down the line a move for a ramp-off of sorts,
23:43an off-ramp of sorts?
23:45Well, I think the Strait of Hormuz has never been closed.
23:49It is partially closed for the Americans and the adversaries who joined the Americans in this misadventure.
23:55And the main objective, which nobody is focusing, actually speaking,
23:59even if the American is looking for an honorable exit,
24:03that elephant in the room is Netanyahu, who wanted to continue the war on Lebanon and Syria.
24:08Now he's expanding his annexation of the south of Lebanon into Yarmouk River of Syria, where he wanted to expand.
24:16So therefore, we need to focus more on the territories of the Palestinians in West Bank and Gaza Strip,
24:22where he wanted to expand and he wanted to kill 10,000 of prisoners,
24:26that it is because they have passed a law in Israel to assassinate all the or kill all the prisoners
24:33inside Israeli jail.
24:34I think the focus will be more in West Asia to focus on the Israeli's objective.
24:40So the American objective in this region is two.
24:43One is to squeeze the Strait of Hormuz at Bab al-Mandeb and Red Sea
24:47and make the countries like China, India and South Korea and Japan bleed.
24:52But the second part, the regional war, is fighting on behalf of Israel.
24:57All right. You know, OK, as I thank all three of our panelists, I'd like to address the elephant who's
25:02not in the room,
25:03which is President Netanyahu.
25:05And I want to bring in someone who spent the, you know, the bigger part of this war in South
25:11Lebanon, my colleague.
25:12I thank all our panelists. Thank you for taking the time and joining us this evening.
25:16And I want to cut across to my colleague, Ashraf Wani, like I said, who spent the majority of this
25:22war stationed
25:23in what could easily be called one of the hottest, the hottest areas, and that is the south of Lebanon.
25:30I am so happy to have him back with us.
25:33He's in the studio.
25:35And we are very proud of your reporting, Ashraf.
25:37And as a journalist, you always know it comes with the territory that you have to go into war-toned
25:43areas
25:44and you have to, you know, put yourself out there.
25:47But glad to see you back.
25:49And let's start from the strategic point of view, where our last guest left us,
25:56where he said that one needs to look at where you have Israel,
26:00because nobody's really speaking of how Israel is trying to expand its footprint,
26:05especially in the south of Lebanon, and one needs to look at that.
26:09Ashraf, you were there.
26:12How many days ago you were there?
26:13Because Ashraf was coming after a report, and we used to be very worried in the newsroom.
26:18He was coming back to the newsroom, and he used to go to the site there and report.
26:22But Ashraf, please tell us first, if you look at your eyes.
26:26Absolutely pretty.
26:27Actually, it is not anything new.
26:30I have seen the Taliban war with the Taliban and the army of Afghanistan.
26:38But one thing is different.
26:39When you go to the country where Israel is involved in the conflict,
26:44whether it is Gaza or whether it is Lebanon,
26:46there is no difference between a journalist and a civilian
26:49and a Hezbollah fighter, or we can say the enemy fighter for IDF.
26:53So that was visible three days back when three journalists,
26:57one girl also among them, were assassinated by Israel,
27:02knowing that their vehicle was carrying a bold sticker of press on it.
27:07And despite that, that particular car was targeted.
27:11Targeted killings of journalists.
27:12It was a scared thing for me also,
27:16because otherwise, in other wars, whether it is Afghanistan,
27:19whether it is Pakistan, whether it is the Arab uprising,
27:22the journalists are not being targeted by the armies.
27:24But the Israel army has something, other guidelines for it.
27:28They have not only targeted the journalists in the Gaza,
27:31but also in the Afghanistan.
27:33But as far as with our last, this guest's comment,
27:37there is no doubt that what a lot of people now say,
27:42the America has dragged, Benjamin Netanyahu has dragged,
27:46dragged Donald Trump into this war.
27:49There is some weight in it.
27:50Actually, Benjamin Netanyahu himself knows he only cannot fight Iran.
27:57That is why he has pursued him that probably there are nuclear weapons for the last 30 years.
28:04He has said that Iran is one week away from making the nuclear bomb.
28:07But so far, there are not any evidences or any proof
28:11that there was any kind of a nuclear weapon activity inside the Iran.
28:15That on the other side, but the major goal, the greater Israel,
28:19for which we have seen from 2023, the Gaza war,
28:24we have seen the war on the Lebanon, on the Hezbollah, on the Lebanon, South Lebanon.
28:31In fact, South Lebanon was captured by Israel in 78.
28:34Then they left that part of the Lebanon after a lot of pressure in 2006 by U.S. and U
28:42.N.
28:42And now, once when the main source of these proxies, what the world calls Hezbollah, Hamas and Houthis,
28:50they thought that probably if they are going to drag the Americans into this war,
28:55the main route, the support line of these proxies will cut off.
29:00And also, Preeti, here is one of the interesting things.
29:02There is not immediate danger or threat of Israel from Iran.
29:07But if there is an immediate threat for Israel,
29:11that is from Hamas in Gaza, from West Bank,
29:14and also the major threat from the South Lebanon,
29:18where it is the stronghold of Hezbollah.
29:20Because the attacks from these proxies on Israel are perfect,
29:25they are quick, they are immediate,
29:27and they create damage inside Israel.
29:30Talking to the Hezbollah, Hezbollah has managed in the 2024 war
29:34to push almost all one lakh of population from the northern Israel into the safer places.
29:39That was a mass displacement inside the Israel.
29:43And for that, they fought for the one year.
29:45And even if they brought the Hezbollah on a ceasefire
29:49with the involvement of French and other Western countries,
29:54that was only motive behind that,
29:55so that their displaced population could get back to the northern parts.
29:59But now once again, when this war was started now on 2nd of March by Hezbollah itself,
30:04after the assassination of the Iranian Supreme Leader,
30:07now they have managed to create that kind of situation once again for Israel,
30:12which is now the voices we are seeing are coming out in Israel.
30:17not only they are suffering the casualties in the south Lebanon in their security forces,
30:21but also the migration of civilians in the northern part of Israel.
30:25Well, you know, that's what, because there is a sense that this was Prime Minister Netanyahu's way of increasing the
30:30footprint of Israel,
30:31and that is happening now.
30:33But Ashraf, for a moment, away from Prime Minister Netanyahu, away from Israel,
30:37reflect on your own journey as a reporter on ground.
30:41It wasn't easy. We saw that.
30:42You know, there were bombs going off, but yet there was a strange sense of normalcy in Lebanon,
30:49because while bombs are going off, life is also going on at the same time,
30:53and you seem to report on that.
30:54People are sitting in cafes, a bomb drops, and people come back into that cafe.
30:58Yes, people get used when any country or any section of the population goes through with this situation.
31:05They find means and ways to live in that kind of situation.
31:10That was also for the two decades in Afghanistan.
31:14That was also frequently even in the Kashmir in the 90s when the militancy was at its peak.
31:19So people find the ways and means how to live, how to live with the times,
31:23and same is the situation in the Lebanon.
31:25They are not the first time in the war.
31:26In fact, also in the Iran, because they have fought already the ten years of war,
31:30one decade war with the Iraq, and then were also, last year, 12 days war,
31:35and same kind of a quantum of bombing from the U.S. and Israel.
31:39And now they are used to it, and in fact, that is the sense that why,
31:42despite all the bombing campaign in Tehran, in Iran, people and some part of life goes on there.
31:49Same scenario with the Lebanon, because but one change, what this time is,
31:54and the people are even standing with the Hezbollah in the south Lebanon,
31:58particularly because that is the stronghold, is that the mass displacement, that is the major issue,
32:04not only for those families who are displaced currently, they are near about one-fifth of the Lebanese population.
32:10Only 60 population and more than a million people are displaced, and those living on the roads in kind of
32:19rains,
32:20or tough weather conditions, and all the things, because whatever they manage to make for their families,
32:26for their homes is left unattended, and those bombs are being bombed in absence of them in the south Lebanon.
32:33That is some kind of a tragedy, what is different at this time, and also the displacement,
32:38because not only the displacement means that you are moving, you not know when you are going to return back
32:43to your home,
32:43or whether you are going to return back home, or it will be occupied by the Israel.
32:48That is the big question with those displaced people, and also that is the biggest worry, not only for the
32:54Lebanon, but also…
32:54I am going to ask you one moment, one quick question before I let you go, which is, what was
32:58your moment,
33:00where you felt that, you know, I escaped just by the skin of my teeth, that it was so close,
33:07and I got lucky?
33:08Yes, absolutely, actually…
33:09Did you have a moment like that?
33:11It was very, very pretty, there was a moment, actually that was one of our breaking stories,
33:15world exclusive story for India today, when the bridge, first major bridge was bombed by the Israel,
33:22which connects the southern Lebanon with the rest of the country and the capital Beirut.
33:27I was the first journalist who, on the second day, I tried on same day, but I was not allowed
33:32by the Lebanese army on second day,
33:35early in the morning at 6, I left for that spot, when no journalist was thinking about that story.
33:40When I went there, and we showed those pictures of bombing and the quantum of damage by dead bombing to
33:47that bridge on the Letani River,
33:49then all the media came to cover that, and that was not kind of a thing which was seen in
33:57a good way by the Israel,
33:58and that spot was also bombed. In the presence of journalists and the civil society members on that day,
34:04there was, luckily there was no casualty, but some journalists got injured in the secondary bombing on the same bridge,
34:11which was just to create a kind of panic among the journalists. And also, one interesting story you must listen
34:19to.
34:20Last time in 2024, when I went to cover the Lebanon war, when Hassan Nasrullah, the commander of Hezbollah, was
34:29assassinated, I was there.
34:30I used to spend most of my days inside Beirut in a hotel known as Ramadha. On this trip, when
34:38I went to Beirut, I was supposed to stay there.
34:42I went there after checking in Beirut, but there was no space. Some of the displaced families had already taken
34:50shelter in that particular hotel.
34:52Because I had some advantage there, I was known to that area, and I was able to see where I
34:57can do lives, I can report where I can go.
35:00Then I moved to other hotel. On second day, I'm getting news that same hotel was targeted by Israel, and
35:05the target were four Iranian diplomats.
35:08See how narrow escape it was for me. Otherwise, I was prepared to stay in same hotel, the Ramadha hotel
35:15in the central Beirut.
35:16All right, well, Ashraf, we are very glad that, you know, you escaped both the situations. We are very happy
35:24to have you back.
35:25And take good care, and we'll see you on the other side. Hopefully, at least for, you know, the coming
35:33days, not in a war zone.
35:35But thank you for giving us your account as a journalist there.
35:40Welcome back, you're with us on news today. Well, while a war continues and rages on in West Asia, an
35:46electoral battle is playing out in India.
35:50Not one, but five, but we'll focus on the state of West Bengal.
35:54Well, a battle between the incumbent government, which is Mamata Banerjee, versus the Election Commission.
36:01Mamata Banerjee has now alleged large-scale manipulation, and the BJP has taken her on on that.
36:07Bengal's voter list has become the ground zero of a very high-stakes battle.
36:24War over voters in Bengal.
36:29Videos of bag full of documents being brought to the Election Commission office in Kolkata
36:34went viral on Tuesday, leading to protests by the TMC, which claimed these were Form 6 submissions
36:41to add voters in violation of norms.
36:45We don't know how much we've been killed.
36:47This is a bad thing.
36:50This is a bad thing.
36:51Whose name is an original man,
36:54whose name is cut and deleted,
36:57can't be killed by the man.
36:57We can't get killed by the man.
36:59We can't get killed by the man.
37:04What do you say?
37:05What do you say?
37:06Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the BJP of a bid to add thousands of ineligible voters.
37:38Mamata has also returned to the Election Commission of India.
37:41alleging a grave conspiracy, claiming BJP is importing fake voters, manipulating forms
37:48and repeating a pattern seen in other states.
37:52The Chief Minister letter to the Election Commission comes a day after Party MP Abhishek Banerjee
37:58met the poll panel flagging what he called Form 6 theft and voter fraud.
38:04The Chief Electoral Officer has rejected charges leveled by the TMC.
38:10My knowledge is not done.
38:11I am not done.
38:13I am not done.
38:14I am done.
38:15I am done.
38:15I am done.
38:16I am done.
38:16I am done.
38:18I am done.
38:19I am done.
38:20I am done.
38:20I am done.
38:21I am done.
38:21I am done.
38:24This is not my work.
38:25The BJP has hit out at the TMC.
38:34The BJP has hit out at the TMC.
38:57In a setback to Mamata, the Calcutta High Court has dismissed a PIL by Kalyan Bairaji challenging
39:04the transfer of over 200 IAS and IPS officers.
39:09At the heat of the storm is special intensive revision.
39:13EC data shows 58 lakh names deleted after enumeration.
39:18Voters cut from 7.66 crore to 7.08 crore.
39:23Over 60 lakh names were under judicial scrutiny.
39:27The Election Commission last week published the first and second supplementary lists
39:31but remained tight-lipped on the number of deletions or the precise figure of cases disposed
39:37of on that list, drawing criticism from various quarters.
39:43With allegations of fake voters, mass deletions and administrative reshuffle, Bengals' electoral
39:50roles have become a decisive factor in the high-stakes political world.
39:56Bureau Report, India Today.
40:02All right.
40:03I spoke to Dr. Shashi Panja, West Bengal Cabinet Minister.
40:07She's also in the Frey this election earlier on.
40:09The question I'd asked her was, Dr. Panja, it's come down to two issues.
40:14Of course, the SIR has been an issue with the TMC.
40:18But having said that, you speak of the Form 6, which entails additions, and Form 7, which entails deletions.
40:25You say that these forms are flooding the Election Commission and there is no transparency in that.
40:32The question, Dr. Panja, is that the EC says very clearly that this is all out in the open.
40:39You have absolutely no proof to substantiate that this is being done under the table or illegally.
40:45It's political rhetoric is what the Election Commission is saying.
40:51Actually, these are very serious concerns of the All-India General Congress because these are concerns relating to the voting
41:01rights of the people of Bengal.
41:02What we are seeing in short to tell you is that the Bharatiya Janata Party is trying to bring in
41:10the Haryana, Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar model into Bengal for the forthcoming Vedansava elections.
41:19So they are trying to manipulate the voter list.
41:25Now, first of all, the SIR itself was a process of exclusion, not of inclusion.
41:34There has been extensive disenfranchisement.
41:38Still, we are fighting with the entity of logical discrepancy, again deletions.
41:44So deletions are of legal voters.
41:48At the same time, there's a strange thing happening in the main office where the chief electoral officer sits.
41:56And there we have collected footage yesterday and even today, further on, of people, bags and bags of Form 6.
42:08These are Form 6 with, if it had an annexure 4, we would know that is a new, you know,
42:16a person becomes 18 or 19 or 20, 21, trying to fill it up.
42:20These are not those Form 6 with annexure.
42:22So these are Form 6, where it appears there are voters are being imported.
42:30I mean, they are being created from various states of India so that they can be incorporated in the voter
42:36list, just like you saw the voter lists which had been tampered with in these states I just mentioned.
42:44Okay. But, Dr. Panja, the fact is, in all of the states that you have just elucidated, there was no
42:50substantial documented proof to prove otherwise.
42:53That's what the Election Commission has said. In this case, the Election Commission has said this is due process and
42:59the voter list will be frozen soon and it will be all out in the open.
43:02The other point, Dr. Panja, what you have contended with is transfers that have taken place under the watch of
43:09the Election Commission where the West Bengal bureaucracy is concerned.
43:12You approach the court. Now, the Calcutta High Court has said and upheld the right of the Election Commission to
43:18make these transfers.
43:22They upheld what? They said, yes, it is the prerogative of the Election Commission to transfer. Very correctly so.
43:29We have nothing to say, but we just wanted to flag a very unnatural phenomenon which is happening only in
43:35Bengal and not in the other states.
43:38There are other states also going to elections. They are going to face elections. Nothing happens.
43:44Okay.
43:45This is what was unnatural.
43:47Thank you, Dr. Panja. I appreciate it.
43:49Okay.
43:52All right. Okay. So this is what, you know, I had spoken to Dr. Panja earlier on. Let's cut across
43:57right now to our panel this evening.
44:00Joining me, Sanju Verma, BJP National Spokesperson, Reju Datta, TMC Spokesperson.
44:04Sanju Verma, the fact is the Election Commission says that everything is out in the open. It's due process.
44:10But I'll tell you what is not out in the open and maybe you can help me understand that.
44:14Every other state that is going into election, be it Kerala, be it Tamil Nadu, be it Assam,
44:20the date when the Form 6 and Form 7 lists will be frozen has been given out.
44:25Strangely, not for West Bengal.
44:28That is what adds to the speculation that the Election Commission is not being transparent.
44:34You know, Preeti, first and foremost, let me make one thing very clear.
44:37Mamata Banerji casting aspersions at the Chief Election Commission is like ulta chor kotwal ko dante, chori upar sa seena
44:46jori.
44:46I fail to understand. This is with no offense to you, Preeti.
44:49Why is media not discussing the fact that in 2026 three major pronouncements happened by the Supreme Court castigating Mamata
45:00Banerji in no uncertain terms?
45:02First, the Supreme Court said how can you barge into an ongoing investigation?
45:06Does the enforcement director have no fundamental rights?
45:09And who are you to dictate terms to the Supreme Court?
45:13You, as in Mamata Banerji.
45:15The second, when the Supreme Court said you say that you are a welfare state and you have withheld dearness
45:22allowance for so many state government employees.
45:25How can you call yourself to be compassionate? Release the DA for all state government employees immediately.
45:32But the most damning critique of Mamata Banerji happened when the Supreme Court said this.
45:38She has stalled the orange line of the Kolkata metro.
45:42And the Supreme Court used these words, abdication of constitutional responsibility, an obstinate government, an obdurate chief minister.
45:51And the Supreme Court said that the way you have used the Kolkata police as your personal property,
45:58the Kolkata High Court should have transferred the chief secretary and DGP much before the chief election commission decided to
46:07do that after the model code of conduct came into place.
46:11Derediction of duty.
46:13This is the term used for Mamata Banerji by the Supreme Court.
46:16But media ko yeh discuss nahi karna hai.
46:18Media ko discuss karna hai.
46:19Mamata Banerji has cast allegations at the CEC.
46:23Who's Mamata Banerji?
46:24She can see the writing on the wall.
46:26She has been able to smell the coffee and Preeti.
46:28One last point.
46:30This entire narrative of insider versus outsider.
46:34Bohira Gotto.
46:35What did Sashi Panja tell you?
46:37You know, BJP is getting the Haryana model, Uttar Pradesh model.
46:40Kirti Azak is from Bengal.
46:42He's from Bihar.
46:44He's a TMC MP.
46:45Sushmita Deva Rajya Sabha MP.
46:47Is she from Bengal?
46:48She's from Assam.
46:49Yusuf Pathan, another MP of TMC.
46:52Is he from Bengal?
46:53He's from Vadodara.
47:00I just want to say one more thing.
47:03What did Mamata Banerji say recently, Preeti?
47:06She said,
47:10If you dare to challenge me, I'll create a political upheaval.
47:15Mamata Banerji has forgotten she's the chief minister, though she has only a few weeks left.
47:20She's still behaving like somebody who is, you know, fighting on the streets like an opposition rowdy, you know, darbari.
47:28And my final point is only this to Reju.
47:32She is a sitting woman chief minister.
47:36And what did she say after the Hamsa Khali gang rape?
47:39I will never forget that, Preeti.
47:41It's a rape.
47:42It's a lavo affair.
47:44Or it's a pregnant.
47:46And the same attitude after Durgaapur horror.
47:49It's happened.
47:49Same attitude after South Kolkata law college rape.
47:52It's happened.
47:53Same attitude after R.G. rape and murder.
47:56It's happened.
47:56This is the attitude of the happenings.
47:58It will not fall down to Mamata Banerji.
48:00I will not do that.
48:02Okay.
48:03Sanju Verma, with no offense to you, but, like you said, no offense to me, but with no offense to
48:08you,
48:09spokespersons of political parties have a habit of skirting the question they are asked.
48:12What I asked you was, why is it that the Election Commission, which you should also be worried about,
48:16only in the state of West Bengal, has not given a date when Form 6 and Form 7 lists will
48:21be frozen,
48:21which I'll come back to if we have the time.
48:23Let me bring in Riju Datta.
48:25And Riju Datta, let me ask you the two questions.
48:27Number one, which the Election Commission has every right to accept, Form 6 and Form 7.
48:34You are saying that there is this opaqueness to it.
48:36Wait, the list will be frozen.
48:38You'll know exactly the names which have been added and the names that have been deleted.
48:44Number two, you said that the Election Commission is, in an ad hoc fashion,
48:50removing bureaucrats in West Bengal and installing the ones coming in at the behest of the government.
48:56The Kolkata High Court has upheld the Election Commission's right to do so.
49:02Okay.
49:03Preeti, first and foremost, it was a Watergate moment on your show today,
49:07where even BJP couldn't defend the Election Commission.
49:10And Miss Hua Tu Hua went into rhetoric rather than answering your direct question.
49:15So, it was something very new and big to me.
49:19But coming to the moot point and the questions that you have asked,
49:22in 2022, there was elections in Uttar Pradesh.
49:25Was the DG transferred?
49:26Was the CS transferred?
49:28No.
49:29Is the DG and CS of other states are getting transferred?
49:31No.
49:32What BJP is doing here is basically working on the orders of their Delhi bosses or the BJP bosses.
49:38Now, the main question what we are fighting here is the voting rights of the people of Bengal.
49:46Because they are the main stakeholders.
49:47They own Bengal, not any political party.
49:50What is…
49:52In Bengali, there is a very famous saying,
49:54Chudi bidda, moha bidda, jodina poro dhoda.
49:56That means thivari is an art until and unless you get caught.
49:59And the shameless Votchor Gyanesh Kumar has been caught red-handed by Abhishek Banerjee.
50:04And all videos are in the public domain on X for the world to see.
50:10Bags and bags of Form 6 have been deposited in the CEO's office.
50:15When Abhishek Banerjee asked the CEO to publish the CCTV footage,
50:19he said, I don't have the CCTV footage.
50:20He's planning to install 80,000 cameras in every booth.
50:23He does not have the CCTV footage of his own office.
50:25This is how shambolic the EC's structure is.
50:28So the bottom line is this.
50:30You gave BJP a lot of time.
50:32Give me 30 more seconds.
50:33So the bottom line is this.
50:36Amit Shah and Modi gave him a target to delete 1 crore, 25 lakh names.
50:40He's unable to do it because Mohamed Banerjee unmasked the EC in Supreme Court
50:45and on the streets of Bengal.
50:46Till now, he has been able to delete 81 lakh names.
50:49And after deleting 81 lakh names, they took a survey
50:52and they saw BJP is again losing after deleting 81 lakh names.
50:56So now what they are doing is, they are doing electoral infiltration.
51:00They are trying to change the demography of the world.
51:01Okay, Reju, because we had Dr. Panja,
51:03I'm going to give 30 seconds because we had Dr. Panja.
51:06I'm going to give 30 seconds.
51:08I'm sorry, Reju, but I'm like short on time.
51:10I'm going to give 20 seconds to Sanju Verma
51:12just because there has to be parity.
51:13We had Dr. Panja on the show.
51:15So we have two of you on the show.
51:16There's no parity for me.
51:17Your TMC, what is me?
51:19Reju, come on.
51:20Okay, okay.
51:2130 seconds to Sanju Verma.
51:22Yes, make your point, ma'am, very quickly.
51:25You know, Preeti, I don't need to respond about allegations pertaining to SIR
51:30because I just want to focus on the key electoral issues.
51:34I want to focus through your show the fact
51:37that today 98.7% of the sexual assault cases against women,
51:43even an FIR has not been registered.
51:46I want to focus on the fact that the conviction rate of crimes against women
51:52in West Bengal is winning Bengal, BJP is again losing Bengal.
51:55Okay.
51:56All right, you've made your point.
51:58Okay, okay, there's no point getting into, take this offline.
52:01I have just gone, pick up the phone, talk to each other.
52:03All right.
52:04Thank you, both of you for joining me.
52:08All right.
52:09So it's not just West Bengal that's going into election.
52:11It's also the state of Tamil Nadu
52:13and it's politics on full throttle.
52:17Chief Minister MK Stalin has officially kicked off the DMK's campaign,
52:20setting the tone with an aggressive pitch
52:22and a direct attack on the opposition,
52:24taking on Ederpadi K. Palaniswami.
52:27Stalin did not hold back,
52:29calling the AIDMK surrender to the BJP
52:31and branding EPS a branch secretary.
52:43Woo!
52:53B
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