NPR News: 04-18-2026 9AM EDT
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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. Iran's military says restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz are being reimposed, accusing the U.S. of repeated breaches of trust. A tanker has reported coming under fire today from Iranian forces while traveling through the waterway. NPR's Quill Lawrence reports the status of the strait has been shifting rapidly as tensions between Tehran and Washington continue.
Yesterday, there was a ceasefire announced between Israel and Lebanon. Iran then announced it would open the strait for commercial traffic for the duration of that ceasefire, though only along this prescribed route close to the Iranian coast. But then the U.S. said it would still maintain its total blockade of Iranian ports while these peace talks continue. And perhaps in response today, Iran's military said that the strait, no, is closed until the U.S. lifts the blockade. So it's been a confusing 24 hours.
That's NPR's Quill Lawrence reporting. There's no word on when peace talks will continue between the two sides. The U.S. Treasury Department says it's extending a one-month pause on sanctions against Russian oil to tamp down global energy prices amid the war with Iran. The decision reverses an announcement earlier this week by Treasury Secretary Scott Besant ruling out such a move. NPR's Charles Maines reports from Moscow.
The Trump administration first introduced the sanctions waiver in March, part of an attempt to level out global energy prices amid the war in Iran. The policy's extension effectively allows countries to legally purchase previously sanctioned Russian oil for the second month in a row. The Kremlin's U.S. envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, said the move amounted to an acknowledgement of the crucial role of Russian energy in maintaining the stability of the global economy. Dmitriev predicted more than 100 million additional barrels of Russian oil would soon reach global markets. Critics of the U.S. sanctions waiver say it provides the Kremlin with a windfall for its war in Ukraine in a moment when the Russian economy had otherwise been struggling.
Charles Baines, NPR News, Moscow.
At least two dozen tornadoes have been reported across the Midwest this week. Marsha Derling, who lives in Lena, Illinois, outside of Rockford, says one storm left significant damage in her area.
There's trees down. Our neighbors have trees down. The neighbor over there lost a roof. There's a house across the street and down from her. There's no roof, no trusses, nothing.
Forecasters say the threat of severe weather is now shifting east. National Weather Service meteorologist Mark Chouinard says storms today are expected to be less widespread, but still dangerous.
The threat is lower today, but there is a risk of some severe weather. The greatest threat is going to be farther east today. So generally from many portions of eastern Kentucky up into West Virginia, eastern Ohio, western Pennsylvania, southwest New York.
Officials are now assessing the damage after storms knocked out power and triggered emergency responses across several states. This is NPR News. An American delegation has met with Cuban officials in Havana, marking a renewed diplomatic effort. During the meetings, the U.S. delegation discussed the Trump administration's push for political and economic reforms, as well as demands for the release of political prisoners. The talks come as President Trump has threatened to intervene in Cuba. The United States has announced new sanctions aimed at those it says are recruiting Colombian forces to fight in the conflict in Sudan. Michael Koloke has more from Nairobi.
The U.S. Treasury Department has put in place sanctions targeting five companies and individuals involved in recruiting former Colombian military personnel to fight on behalf of the paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces, or RSF. Among those sanctioned are a former colonel in the Colombian army as well as a Colombia-based employment agency. Clashes involving the RSF and the Sudanese armed forces have been going on for three years.
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