NPR News: 09-20-2026 6AM EDT

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What happened in the massive drone attack in Russia during the election?

Windsor Johnston 0:00
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. At least two people were killed and twenty others were injured in a massive drone attack inside of Russia overnight. It came as the country completed the third and final day of parliamentary elections. The BBC Steve Rosenberg reports the Kremlin accused Ukraine of trying to disrupt the vote, but said polling continued.
Steve Rosenberg 0:23
According to Russia's Defence Ministry, overnight the country's air defences shot down more than 1,100 Ukrainian drones over Russia. In a statement, the mayor of Moscow, Sergei Sabyanin, claimed that since yesterday, four hundred and fifty drones targeting the Russian capital had been repelled. But he admitted that the Moscow oil refinery, one of Russia's largest, had been hit, and not for the first time.
Windsor Johnston 0:48
The BBC Steve Rosenberg reporting authorities evacuated about four hundred people from a heavily damaged apartment building. Two airports in Moscow have reopened after they were forced to temporarily close.

How are the Trump administration’s drug‑price deals with Pfizer and Eli Lilly structured?

Windsor Johnston 1:01
To Trump administration, agreements with drug companies are now public. A consumer advocacy group obtained them through a public records request, but heavy redactions leave questions about what the companies promised and how patients could benefit, NPR Sydney Lupkin reports.
Sydney Lupkin 1:18
Public Citizen says it has received two of the Trump administration's most favored nation deals with drug companies. The deals are aimed at getting US drug prices in line with those paid in other wealthy countries. And the administration has announced 26 of them since last fall. But the text of the deals had not been made public, and Public Citizen had to sue the government to get the agreements with Pfizer and Eli Lilly. While many of the details are redacted, the documents show terms that Public Citizen calls concerning. For instance, if Eli Lilly stops selling a drug in another country, that country's price will be excluded from the calculation of the US discount under the deal. The documents also show that Pfizer's deal expires at the end of Trump's term.

Why are mortgage rates climbing above 7% and what does it mean for homebuyers?

Sydney Lupkin 2:03
Sydney Lefkin and PR News.
Windsor Johnston 2:05
New reports out this week could show how rising costs are reshaping the housing market. MPR Steven Bissaha reports mortgage rates are climbing quickly, putting home ownership further out of reach for many buyers.
Stephen Basaja 2:17
It's possible average mortgage rates will rise above 7% for the first time since January 2025. We'll find out Thursday when Freddie Mac releases its weekly average for the 30-year fixed rate mortgage. The cost of borrowing across the economy has been climbing, both because the Federal Reserve raised interest rates last week and because the bond market has been shaken for months over concerns about government debt and inflation. On Thursday, we'll also Get sales numbers on newly built homes in August from the U.S. Census Bureau.

How is Cuba coping with the latest nationwide blackout and its oil blockade?

Stephen Basaja 2:47
According to the National Association of Realtors, existing home sales in August fell two percent from a month earlier. Steven Bissaha, NPR News.
Windsor Johnston 2:56
This is NPR News in Washington. Cuba is restoring power after another nationwide blackout left millions of people in the dark. The latest collapse comes nine months into a US oil blockade that has deepened the island's fuel crisis, NPR's Ada Peralta reports from Mexico City.
Eder Peralta 3:17
Cuba's electrical grid has been on the ropes for years, but ever since the U.S. enacted an oil blockade in January, nationwide blackouts have become commonplace. This year there have been at least six total collapses. The Cuban government says this one started in the West and spread to the whole island on Friday.

What are the allegations in the antitrust lawsuit against major AI companies?

Eder Peralta 3:34
By Saturday morning, some of the grid had come online and most of the capital Havana had been restored. Even outside these blackouts, Cubans have been living With precious little electricity, often going more than thirty hours at a time without power. The US government says the oil blockade is intended to bring a political transition in Cuba, but the Cuban government says right now there are no active negotiations with the United States.
Windsor Johnston 4:00
A new lawsuit accuses four leading artificial intelligence companies of illegally agreeing to slow development of the technology.

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