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Chapter 1: What are the key objectives of President Trump's Middle East trip?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dave Mattingly. President Trump has arrived in Saudi Arabia on the first leg of his trip to the Middle East. The president was greeted at the airport in Riyadh by the Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, at an arrival ceremony. The BBC's Mike Thompson has more on Trump's first extended foreign trip of his second term in the White House.
Aside from chasing lucrative business deals in this oil-rich region, President Trump is likely to focus on several turbulent topics, from the wars in Gaza and Ukraine to nuclear negotiations with Iran. Persuading Saudi Arabia to normalise relations with Israel was one of his big objectives, but that currently looks too big an ask, with Israel set against any progress towards a Palestinian state.
Chapter 2: How might President Trump's visit influence the Gaza ceasefire?
But it's hoped that Mr Trump's brief presence in the region could yet push Hamas and Israel towards an elusive and lasting ceasefire deal in Gaza.
Chapter 3: Will President Trump attend peace talks between Ukraine and Russia?
That's the BBC's Mike Thompson. The president will also visit Qatar and Saudi Arabia on his Mideast trip. Separately, President Trump says he's open to the idea of traveling to Turkey on Thursday to attend potential peace talks between Ukraine and Russia. Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, says he plans to make the trip.
Chapter 4: Who is Idan Alexander and why was his release significant?
Russian President Vladimir Putin has not committed to the direct talks. Idan Alexander has been reunited with his family in Israel after being released by Hamas. The 21-year-old American-Israeli was released by the militants yesterday after being held captive for more than 19 months. The Israeli soldier was among those taken when Hamas attacked southern Israel in 2023.
He was released to the Red Cross and then flown by helicopter to a hospital in Tel Aviv to be evaluated. Hamas says it released Alexander as a goodwill gesture to the Trump administration. Dozens of white South Africans have arrived in the U.S. The Trump administration welcomed them as refugees at Washington Dulles International Airport yesterday.
Chapter 5: Why are white South Africans being welcomed as refugees in the U.S.?
NPR's Michelle Kellerman says that's despite the administration pausing all refugee arrivals from war zones around the world.
At an airport hangar, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau met with families of white South Africans, mostly farmers, who the Trump administration claims have faced racial discrimination.
We are excited to welcome you here to our country where we think you will bloom.
The ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Jeanne Shaheen, calls it baffling that the Trump administration is admitting Afrikaners for resettlement while blocking thousands of, quote, legitimate asylum seekers. She wants the administration to explain why it is prioritizing white South Africans over refugees from Afghanistan, Sudan, and Myanmar.
Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, the State Department.
This is NPR News. Court filings show the Corporation for Public Broadcasting rejected an effort by President Trump's Department of Government Efficiency to assign a Doge team to the CPB. NPR's Stephen Fowler has more.
After President Trump attempted to fire three Corporation for Public Broadcasting board members and before an executive order claiming to defund PBS and NPR, Doge attempted to embed with a nonprofit. Court filings in a case challenging the alleged firings revealed Department of Government Efficiency staffers tried to set up a meeting with CPB leadership late last month.
CPB leaders denied that request, citing federal law that establishes the independent nonprofit outside of the control of the federal government. The request comes as the president is launching a broad assault against the country's two largest public broadcasters. At the same time, Doge has sought to embed itself in numerous independent agencies Trump wants to shutter.
Stephen Fowler, NPR News, Atlanta.
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