NPR News: 12-13-2025 3PM EST
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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. U.S. Central Command says two U.S. soldiers and one civilian were killed in an ambush by a single ISIS gunman in Syria today. Three other service members were wounded in the attack. President Trump spoke about the incident on his way to Baltimore just a short time ago.
So we mourn the loss of three great patriots in Syria. You know how it happened. It was An ambush. Terrible.
The Pentagon says the soldiers' mission was in support of counterterrorism operations in the region. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said the attacker was killed by partner forces. The Israeli military says it has killed a senior Hamas commander, one of the architects of the October 7th attacks on Israel. NPR's Hadil Al-Shauchi reports the strike took place near Gaza City today.
The Israeli military said it has killed Ra'ed Saad, a Hamas senior official who Israel says was the second in command of the group's military wing. A video released by the Israeli military showed an airstrike on a vehicle they said Saad was riding in. Hamas did not confirm Saad's killing, but in a statement condemned an Israeli strike on what they called a civilian vehicle west of Gaza City. Hamas did not say who was in the vehicle. Saad's killing would be the highest-profile assassination of a Hamas leader by the Israeli military since a ceasefire deal was reached in October. He was a close ally of Azzedine al-Haddad, who took over Hamas's military wing after Israeli forces killed Mohamed Sinwar last May.
Hadil Al-Shalchi, NPR News, Tel Aviv.
A federal appeals court has issued a partial stay in an ongoing court battle between California and President Trump over the state's National Guard troops. Dana Cronin from member station KQED reports the stay goes into effect on Monday.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta says the ruling means that the troops, who have been stationed in Los Angeles for the last six months, will no longer be deployed, at least as the case continues to play out. The Ninth Circuit granted a request by the Trump administration to keep the troops under federal control for now. In a statement, Bonta celebrated the ruling, calling it, quote, gratifying and a hard-fought step in the right direction. For NPR News, I'm Dana Cronin in San Francisco.
Floodwaters are slowly receding across parts of Washington state after days of record rainfall. Scott Greenstone of member station KOUW reports rivers are expected to stay high for several more days.
It could be, unfortunately, that more damage is coming because right now with all the deeply saturated earth from all this rainfall, right, there's a high risk of landslides across the region. A couple landslides have already closed some regional highways for periods of time.
That's Scott Greenstone reporting. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. As the Pacific Northwest faces the threat of more flooding, the National Weather Service is warning of near-record cold temperatures in parts of Minnesota and North Dakota as snowfall moves into the Ohio Valley today. Forecasters say parts of the Mid-Atlantic region and parts of the Northeast could also see snow tomorrow. The actor Peter Green has died. He was known for playing villains in movies like Pulp Fiction and The Mask. He was found dead in his apartment in New York City yesterday, according to his manager. NPR's Chloe Beltman reports Green was 60 years old.
The tall, angular character actor excelled at playing bad guys, sometimes in comedies. Here Green is, hamming it up as Jim Carrey's nemesis in the 1994 slapstick superhero movie The Mask.
The police are looking for The Mask, so we'll give them The Mask.
That same year, Green played a ruthless security guard in the gangster movie Pulp Fiction and went on to work steadily in movies and on TV.
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