NPR News: 04-19-2026 5AM EDT
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston.
What are the current tensions in the Strait of Hormuz?
The Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed after Iran reimposed restrictions on the waterway. President Trump says the U.S. blockade in the channel will stay in place, warning Tehran against escalation. With the ceasefire set to expire this week, officials warn the standoff could intensify if no agreement is reached. Talks between Israel and Lebanon are set to take place in Washington this week. A temporary ceasefire appears to be holding between the two sides, but as NPR's Kat Lonsdorff reports, many people who live in Lebanon are not convinced it will lead to lasting peace.
46-year-old Abir Mohamed El-Masri has been living in a tent in a parking lot with her six kids for nearly seven weeks. She says she'd much rather be in their apartment in the southern suburbs, but...
I don't trust the ceasefire, she said.
It's more of a truce than a ceasefire. We can't go home yet. Many of the more than one million people displaced in Lebanon during this war have headed back to the south, where much of the fighting was happening, despite warnings not to. But Israel is still occupying about 10 percent of the country after destroying whole villages to create what it calls a buffer zone to keep Hezbollah from firing rockets into Israel. Lebanese people from those villages cannot return. Kat Lonsdorff, NPR News, Beirut.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at a Democratic event in Michigan, saying she's cautiously optimistic about the party's chances of taking back Congress. Harris warned President Trump has put obstacles in place that could make it harder to vote, but said she doesn't believe the November elections will be canceled.
Because if you thought no King's Day was a thing, if they cancel the elections, the people will take to the streets. They're not going to cancel elections.
Harris also urged voters to check their registration status and make sure they haven't been removed from the rolls. North Korea has fired multiple ballistic missiles into the sea today. It's the latest in a series of weapons tests. NPR's Anthony Kuhn reports Pyongyang has been developing new military technologies used in conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff says the missiles were launched from around the east coast port city of Shinpo and flew eastward into the sea. Japan also detected the launch. North Korea conducted three missile tests earlier this month, including a missile with cluster bombs and a graphite bomb that disables electrical grids. In February, North Korea listed new military capabilities it plans to develop over the next five years. It includes AI-assisted drones, nuclear-capable cruise missiles, and anti-satellite weapons.
How is the ceasefire impacting civilians in Lebanon?
Pyongyang's biggest takeaway from Ukraine and Iran, though, is that its best insurance against being attacked is its nuclear arsenal. Anthony Kuhn, NPR News, Seoul.
This is NPR News in Washington. Florida's Board of Education has pulled sociology from the list of classes students attending state colleges can choose from in order to graduate. As Katherine Welch reports, this follows a similar move at the state's 12 public universities.
The Board of Education voted to remove introductory sociology courses from counting toward general education requirements at Florida's 28 state colleges. The classes will still be available as electives. The board's chair said in a statement that general education courses cannot be used as, quote, vehicles for indoctrination. Sociology has been in the crosshairs since a 2023 Florida law banned courses that include teachings about how racism, sexism, and privilege are inherent in the country's institutions. The United Faculty of Florida called the state's earlier changes to sociology textbooks sanitizing. For NPR News, I'm Katherine Welch in Orlando.
Much of the United States is facing record drought conditions for this time of year. More than 60 percent of the lower 48 states are in moderate to exceptional drought, including nearly all of the southeast.
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