Chapter 1: What recent actions has the U.S. taken regarding Venezuelan oil?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. The Trump administration says the U.S. has seized a tanker off the coast of Venezuela. Attorney General Pam Bondi posted on social media that the U.S. executed a seizure warrant because the tanker was transporting sanctioned oil from Venezuela to Iran.
Bondi says the tanker is part of an illegal oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations. Ukrainian officials are expected to present new peace proposals to U.S. negotiators. This comes ahead of talks with leaders from about 30 countries supporting Ukraine's efforts to end Russia's nearly four-year-old full-scale invasion.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has objected to a proposal to cede land to Russia as part of a peace deal. President Trump says Zelensky has to be realistic about the war.
There was a poll that came out. 82% of the people are demanding a settlement be made, Ukrainian people. They want to see a settlement be made. I understand that. They're losing thousands and thousands of people a week. They want to see it ended.
Foreign military aid for Ukraine has declined this year. Meanwhile, Russia shows no sign of budging in its demands for land and a weakened Ukrainian military. Many Afghan soldiers who fought under CIA leadership during the war in Afghanistan have struggled since fleeing to the U.S., Some say they didn't get enough support navigating the immigration system. NPR's Brian Mann reports.
The Afghan accused of shooting two National Guard soldiers was part of a CIA zero unit fighting the Taliban. Some zero unit fighters, including Daoud, now say after coming to the U.S., they didn't receive help getting permanent asylum or work visas that would allow them to start new lives.
It's like that feeling of like you did something that nobody is appreciating and the promise that was given to you by your employer was a fake promise.
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Chapter 2: What peace proposals are being discussed for Ukraine?
Daoud spoke on condition of anonymity because he fears for the safety of families still living in Afghanistan. Daoud and an aid group called FAMIL that works with zero-unit fighters say at least four men have taken their own lives since coming to the U.S. The CIA declined comment. Brian Mann, NPR News.
The Federal Reserve is making it a little cheaper to borrow money. NPR's Scott Horsley reports the central bank lowered its benchmark interest rate today.
The quarter point rate cut was widely expected, but it was not a unanimous decision. Two members of the Fed's rate-setting committee wanted to hold rates steady today, while one wanted a larger half-point reduction. By lowering its benchmark rate, the Fed hopes to prop up the job market, which has been showing signs of weakness.
The economy saw a net loss of jobs in both June and August, and the unemployment rate has been inching up. The central bank has now cut interest rates at three consecutive meetings, but with inflation still running well above the Fed's target, policymakers signal they'll be cautious about cutting rates further next year. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.
The U.S. stock market neared its all-time high today. This is NPR News from Washington. Elon Musk says his efforts leading the group known as the Department of Government Efficiency were only somewhat successful and he would not do it over again. Musk made his remarks in an interview with conservative influencer Katie Miller.
He defended the Doge effort, but acknowledged how difficult it is to remake the federal government quickly and how much his businesses suffered because of it. The British author Sophie Kinsella, who wrote the bestselling novel Confessions of a Shopaholic, has died. She was 55 and was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2022. NPR's Fatima Al-Kassab reports.
Sophie Kinsella, whose real name is Madeline Sophie Wickham, sold more than 45 million copies of her books around the world. Dubbed the Queen of Romantic Comedy, she first wrote novels under her real name before publishing her Shopaholic series under the Kinsella pseudonym. Like the main character, Kinsella started out as a financial journalist before becoming an author.
She once said the inspiration for her best-selling series was how shopping had become a pastime and nobody had written about it. The first two shopaholic books were adapted into Hollywood films starring Isla Fisher. She went on to write 10 shopaholic novels in total. Her most recent novella, What Does It Feel Like?, was a semi-fictional account of her cancer diagnosis.
Fatima al-Kassab, NPR News, London.
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