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NPR News Now

NPR News: 03-21-2026 3AM EDT

21 Mar 2026

Transcription

Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.

Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?

0.031 - 9.869 Unknown

This message comes from the United States Postal Service, dedicated to putting reliability at the core of USPS Ground Advantage to help businesses operate smoothly.

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10.21 - 35.418 Dale Willman

More at usps.com slash ground advantage. Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Willman. Iran is threatening to strike recreational and tourist sites around the world in retaliation for the continuing attacks on that country by the U.S. and Israel. And while President Trump has posted on social media that he's considering winding down the military operations in Iran, the U.S.

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35.458 - 44.169 Dale Willman

military is now deploying three more warships to the Middle East, along with more than 2,000 Marines. Trump Friday gave an assessment of how the fighting is going.

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44.349 - 57.376 Donald Trump

We're doing extremely well In Iran, the difference between them and us is they had a Navy two weeks ago. They have no Navy anymore. It's all at the bottom of the sea.

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58.177 - 69.154 Dale Willman

The U.S. is temporarily lifting sanctions on some oil from Iran, as NPR's Julius Simon reports. This marks a major reversal for the Trump administration as oil prices climb.

69.314 - 75.043 Julius Simon

The Trump administration had stepped up sanctions on Iranian oil when it returned to office last year.

Chapter 2: What recent threats has Iran made in retaliation to U.S. actions?

75.023 - 96.167 Julius Simon

But that was then. As the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran enters its third week, the Strait of Hormuz is still closed. And oil prices have risen around 45 percent since the war began. This new lifting of sanctions applies to Iranian oil and oil products that are currently loaded on ships. It will last until April 19th. U.S.

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96.187 - 110.625 Julius Simon

Treasury Secretary Scott Besant says the decision is expected to quickly add about 140 million barrels to the global oil market. which uses about 100 million barrels of oil each day. Julia Simon, NPR News.

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110.645 - 125.803 Dale Willman

Earlier this year, when President Trump was threatening to take control of Greenland, Danish soldiers were prepared to blow up that island's airport runways to prevent a U.S. invasion. That's according to Danish and British media, as NPR's Lauren Freer reports from London.

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126.037 - 144.668 Lauren Freyer

Denmark, which governs Greenland, sent troops there at the start of the year and apparently armed them with enough explosives to destroy the island's main runways. They were also given blood bags to use for transfusions in the event people were wounded by combat. Several European countries also sent troops under cover of a joint military exercise.

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145.108 - 167.164 Lauren Freyer

But Danish media report the real reason was to prepare the island's defenses for a possible U.S. invasion. This was back in January when Trump, after capturing Venezuela's president, said the U.S. needed Greenland very badly and that he wanted to buy or just take it. His threats caused a row within NATO because Denmark and the U.S. are both members. Lauren Freyer, NPR News, London.

167.33 - 176.84 Dale Willman

Officials in Costa Rica say at least two people were killed and one other was injured following a U.S. military strike on a boat off that country's coast. The U.S.

Chapter 3: How is the U.S. military responding to the situation in Iran?

176.86 - 201.622 Dale Willman

Central Command says the boat was smuggling drugs. It's the latest in a series of strikes that began last year in the Pacific and Caribbean oceans. Stocks fell across the board on Friday. The Nasdaq closed down by 2 percent. You're listening to NPR News. Hundreds of people are heading to Cuba this weekend, delivering some 20 tons of humanitarian aid.

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202.103 - 224.187 Dale Willman

The country has been on the verge of collapsing since President Trump imposed an energy embargo on Cuba in January. A small group of activists arrived in Havana on Wednesday, taking supplies to hospitals. Cuban doctors working abroad are a major source of money for the Cuban government, but more than half a dozen countries have started sending those doctors home or phasing out the arrangement.

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224.207 - 228.96 Dale Willman

As NPR's Gabriela Emanuel reports, this comes as a result of U.S. pressure.

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229.075 - 245.799 Gabriela Emanuel

For more than 60 years, Cuba has sent doctors and other medical professionals abroad to work in underserved communities. The Cuban government is often paid a hefty sum, and the doctors make a small fraction of that. Stephanie Panakelli-Batalla is at the University of Warwick in the UK.

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246.04 - 253.21 Unknown

It is the highest income of foreign funds for Cuba. So it's a huge support to the Cuban economy.

253.19 - 253.691 Gabriela Emanuel

The U.S.

Chapter 4: What changes have occurred regarding U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil?

253.731 - 271.502 Gabriela Emanuel

calls the system human trafficking and it has threatened to cut off U.S. assistance to countries that participate. Now Guatemala, Jamaica, Guyana, Honduras and others are bowing out of their arrangements with Cuba or are trying to pay the doctors directly. Gabriela Emanuel, NPR News.

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271.482 - 295.519 Dale Willman

CBS News is shutting down its radio news service. The familiar sound of their hourly newscast has been heard across the country for 99 years. Edward R. Murrow offered reports for CBS documenting the Blitz of London during World War II, often broadcasting from a rooftop while bombs could be heard in the background. The storage service will end its broadcasts in May. I'm Dale Willman, NPR News.

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295.539 - 307.387 Unknown

Water is abundant. We take showers, fill our glasses, and flush our toilets with it. But what if one morning you try to turn on the tap and nothing comes out? That is a reality that many people already face.

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307.848 - 310.773 Julius Simon

For much of the world, normal is gone.

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311.394 - 319.107 Unknown

What happens when our most vital resource runs out? Find out on Shortwave, listen in the NPR app, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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