STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Fighting between the United States and Iran appears to be on hold again. That's after two days of an intense exchange of missiles and drone strikes that is testing a ceasefire between the two.
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
In a few minutes, we'll ask retired CENTCOM Commander Joseph Votel how much damage Iran has inflicted on U.S. military bases in the Gulf so far. Iran says it hit those bases this week as retaliation against U.S. attacks inside Iran, some of which coincided with a massive funeral for Iran's supreme leader.
INSKEEP: NPR's Carrie Kahn has been following all of this from Tel Aviv. Hi there, Carrie.
CARRIE KAHN, BYLINE: Hi.
INSKEEP: A mentioned the funeral of Iran's supreme leader, which I know has been going on for several days, but what was the scene there at the end?
KAHN: Last night was the end of this weeklong funeral for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and four of his family members. They were all killed in the first day of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. And here are some of the final prayers before his burial in his hometown of Mashhad.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
GENERAL PUBLIC UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: (Singing in non-English language).
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Non-English language spoken).
KAHN: State media showed these huge crowds, and you can hear these large groups of women. They're all dressed in black, and they're just weeping at the sight. These images have tried to portray just this unified country resilient against the U.S. attacks. And, Steve, there were also these images of banners and signs held in the crowds over the past days reading #KillTrump. And while at the NATO summit in Turkey this week, Trump addressed those threats, but he also brushed them off.
INSKEEP: OK. I want to ask about something else the president said. He was asked about this ceasefire, which keeps being disrupted by exchanges of fire. In Turkey, he said he thought the ceasefire was done, that it was over. So is it?
KAHN: As of now, we don't know when talks will resume. They were put on hold during the weeklong funeral of the ayatollah. And after saying he thought the ceasefire was over, though, Trump also left the door open to negotiation.
INSKEEP: OK.
KAHN: And Qatar's foreign minister, who was a lead mediator in the talks yesterday, was making a round of calls, speaking to the regional partners, attempting to just reengage all sides in the conflict.
INSKEEP: I think analysts have assumed the United States just would not want to go back to full-scale war and that the Iranians probably wouldn't either, but what do you hear in the region as the firing continues from time to time?
KAHN: I'd say the situation is very tense right now throughout the region. You know, in this latest round of attacks by Iran, not only were missiles and drones fired at multiple Gulf states, Jordan said it intercepted incoming fire from Iran too, and that's not a usual target for Iran. Iran issued new threats to the UAE just yesterday, and shipping traffic in the vital Strait of Hormuz has also dropped dramatically in the last couple days. Here in Israel, there's a concern about whether they'll get back into the war. Yesterday, Israeli army chief of staff Eyal Zamir said Israel is at the ready.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
EYAL ZAMIR: (Non-English language spoken).
KAHN: He says, "even at this very moment, our enemies continue to plot evil. The campaign is not over." And he told this graduating class of air force pilots to be ready and to be ready soon. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made similar comments. He and President Trump spoke late last night about U.S. moves in the Gulf, and that was according to the prime minister's office.
INSKEEP: And what's happening in Lebanon?
KAHN: A U.S. official told reporters yesterday that talks on implementing that peace deal between Lebanon and Israel are set to take place soon in Rome. And Lebanon's information minister also was asked yesterday if he was concerned about a return to war in light of the U.S.-Iranian attacks, and he said no.
INSKEEP: NPR's Carrie Kahn. Thanks so much.
KAHN: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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