NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-19-2025 12PM EST

Episode Date: January 19, 2025

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It still feels a bit surreal to me that I got to spend an hour talking with filmmaker David Lynch in the last year of his life. Life is such a gift and can be enjoyed and it's all okay. Nothing to worry about, really. I'm Rachel Martin. My conversation with the legendary filmmaker David Lynch is on the Wild Card Podcast, the show where cards control the conversation. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Nora Rahm. Three Israeli women who have been held

hostage by Hamas in Gaza since October 7th, 2023, are now back in Israel. Israeli military officials say they will undergo an initial medical assessment in southern Israel. The women were released as part of a ceasefire agreement that went into effect today. President Biden said the deal that he first put forward in May has finally come to fruition. I've worked in foreign policy for decades,

and this is one of the toughest negotiations I've been part of. Many of you who follow these negotiations will attest that the road to this deal has been not easy at all and a long road. But we've reached this point today because of the pressure Israel built on a mosque backed by the United States. Biden also referenced the Trump team's involvement in the final days of the negotiations, saying he was pleased the U.S. spoke as one voice.

He urged the incoming administration to support U.S. allies in the region. President-elect Trump wrote, Save TikTok, in a post on his social platform. It comes the morning after the video app was blocked for millions of Americans. NPR's Bobby Allen reports. All eyes are on what Trump might do to rescue TikTok after he takes office Monday. Trump, who tried to ban the app during his first term, now says he will find a way to reverse the ban that took effect Saturday night.

The Supreme Court recently upheld the ban law on national security grounds. Trump has vowed to delay the law for 90 days, but already some congressional Republicans are pushing back on that idea. Also being discussed is a plan to wall off TikTok from China with the help of software company Oracle. That company's co-founder, Larry Ell Ellison is an ardent Trump supporter. Other ByteDance-owned apps also went dark Saturday, including video editing app CapCut and social media app LemonEight. Bobbi Allen, NPR News. Trump's border czar Tom Homan says the incoming administration is rethinking

his plans for immigration raids in Chicago after he said word of them leaked. Homan said to Washington Post, no decision has been made, but officials in Chicago are still concerned. Sarah Karp of Member Station WBEZ reports. Beardress Ponce de Leon is the deputy mayor for immigration. We acknowledge that it's a range of emotions. You know, on the one hand, some surprise. On the other hand, anger, sadness,

concern, but also hope because we are a city where people have protected immigrants in the past. Ponce de Leon says the city has been working to make sure departments and sister agencies, like police, parks and schools, know that the Welcoming City ordinance prohibits them from working with immigration officials. She stressed these agencies don't know residents' legal status and won't share it. Also she says community organizations have been holding Know Your Rights sessions across the city. For NPR News, I'm Sarah Karp in Chicago. This is NPR News in Chicago. Danielle Pletka This is NPR News in Washington.

On his last full day in office, President Biden pardoned five people, including the late civil rights leader, Marcus Garvey. He also commuted the sentences of two others. The president said all the clemency recipients had made significant contributions to improving their communities. Supporters of impeached South Korean President Yoon Sang-yul attacked a courthouse which had issued an arrest warrant for him. NPR's Anthony Kuhn reports nine police officers were injured and dozens of protesters were

arrested. The Western Seoul District Court issued the warrant around 3 a.m., after which protesters stormed the courthouse, assaulting police, smashing windows, and destroying office equipment and furniture. It took some 1,400 riot police several hours to regain control of the scene. Acting President Choe Sang-mok expressed strong regret at the violence which he called unimaginable in a democratic society. Choe ordered tighter security for government facilities and a police investigation into

the attack. Yun himself called for supporters to express themselves peacefully and for police to be tolerant. Yun faces charges of insurrection for his brief imposition of martial law last month. Anthony Kuhn in PR News, Seoul. Today is the Orthodox Christian feast day of Epiphany. Thousands of Russians observe the day by cutting holes through ice in lakes and rivers and taking a bath in the frigid water. The Associated Press is reporting some communities are canceling the tradition this year because of the weather.

An unusually warm winter has left the ice too thin for participants to bathe safely. I'm Nora Rahm, NPR News in Washington. For every headline, there's also another story about the people living those headlines. On weekdays, Up First brings you the day's biggest news. On Sundays, we bring you closer with a single story about the people, places, and moments reshaping our world. Your news made personal every Sunday on the Up First podcast from NPR.