NPR News: 02-28-2026 6PM EST
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What major event regarding Iran is discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janine Herbst. President Trump says Iran's supreme leader is dead, though Iran hasn't confirmed his death. A source tells NPR it happened in Israeli strikes. The U.N. Security Council is meeting an emergency session today over the U.S. and Israeli military strikes on Iran. The Secretary General is urging diplomats to help bring the region back from the brink, as NPR's Michelle Kellerman reports.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres opened the session by condemning the, quote, massive U.S. and Israeli military strikes against Iran, as well as the Iranian strikes on seven Gulf states. Military action carries the risk of igniting a chain of events that no one can control in the most volatile region of the world. Iran is telling the UN that it has the right to respond, describing U.S. military bases in the region as legitimate military targets. Israel's ambassador brushed off criticism, saying while some call this aggression, Israel sees it as a necessity, adding that the time for the Iranian people to take control of their future is, in his words, very soon. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, Washington.
And in Tehran, some residents say security forces reinforced their presence in the streets after the attacks. NPR's Jaina Raff has more.
One West Tehran resident told NPR by phone that bakeries and supermarkets were packed.
How is the U.N. responding to the military actions in Iran?
She said streets were almost empty in residential neighborhoods she had seen, apart from a show of force by internal security forces. Many of them are on the streets on motorbikes showing off their guns. They want to create fear, she said. The woman did not want to give her name in fear of retaliation by the Iranian regime. The Iranian government told citizens it expected the Iranian capital and other big cities to be the main focus of strikes and advised them to leave the cities if they could. Jane Araf, NPR News, Amman.
An effort to limit the ability of the president to carry out sustained military action in Iran without the approval of Congress is taking on a new urgency. NPR's Sam Greenglass explains.
The strikes, which began early Saturday, were launched without congressional authorization. Article 1 of the Constitution gives Congress, not the president, the power to declare war. A U.S. official says the Secretary of State notified several top Democrats and Republicans shortly before the attack. While most congressional Republicans have praised the operation, most Democrats and a few Republicans want an immediate vote on a resolution to prevent further unauthorized action in Iran. Similar resolutions focused on President Trump's intervention in Venezuela narrowly failed earlier this year. But with Trump signaling a more sustained operation in Iran, the calculus for some lawmakers could change.
Sam Greenglass, NPR News, Washington.
And you're listening to NPR News. President Trump is ordering the U.S. government to cut ties with AI maker Anthropic and stop using its products. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth designated the company a supply chain risk. This after Anthropic said it wanted assurances that the military would not use its AI for fully autonomous weapons or for domestic surveillance. Anthropic says it will challenge the supply chain risk designation in court. Meanwhile, hours later, OpenAI said it reached an agreement with the Pentagon. Outer space viewed from Earth tonight features an unusual number of visible planets. NPR's Amy Held reports the display is expected to last through the weekend.
It's called a planetary parade. Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, and Mercury all visible to the naked eye. Plus Neptune and Uranus with the help of binoculars or a telescope. Viewing conditions are best soon after sunset without clouds or artificial light getting in the way. Looking up to catch a planet or two isn't so unusual, but seeing this many is. As they orbit the sun, the planets of our solar system only align like this with optimal visibility every few years, NASA says. And unlike faraway stars, which twinkle and look fixed in place, the word planet comes from the ancient Greek for wanderer.
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