NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-26-2025 3PM EST

Episode Date: January 26, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Louise Schiavone. President Trump's hardline migration policies have provoked a diplomatic spat with Colombia, one of Washington's closest allies. Colombia's government is refusing to accept deportation flights, prompting Trump to threaten the country with sanctions. Reporter John Otis has more. During its first week in office, the Trump administration has carried out deportation flights to several Latin American countries.

But when it tried to send two plane loads of deportees to Colombia, President Gustavo Petro refused to accept them. He cited the poor treatment of Brazilians who were recently deported from the U.S. and arrived home in handcuffs. A migrant is not a criminal and must be treated with dignity, Petro said on X. In a post to social media, Trump responded by threatening steep tariffs on Colombian exports, financial sanctions, and visa restrictions on government officials and relatives of President Petro.

For NPR News, I'm John Otis in Bogota, Columbia. Some Republican lawmakers are defending President Trump's decision to fire multiple independent inspectors general on Friday night, roles tasked with overseeing government agencies. This even as Trump failed to provide timely notice to Congress. NPR's Eleanor Moore has more. GOP allies like South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham acknowledged Trump should have notified Congress before firing the inspectors general. Still, he told CNN's State of the Union that he backs the president's move. The question is, is it okay for him to put people in place that he thinks can carry out

his agenda? Yeah. He won the election. What do you expect him to do? Just leave everybody in place in Washington before he got elected? This makes perfect sense to me. It comes a day after Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, who chairs the Judiciary Committee,

demanded more information from Trump on the firings, saying in a statement, there may be good reason the IGs were fired. We need to know that if so. Elena Moore, N and PR News Washington. Israel has missed a deadline to withdraw from Lebanon as part of a ceasefire agreement with the militant group Hezbollah. Some Israeli forces remain and today they fired on Lebanese people trying to return to their homes. 22 people are reported dead, dozens are wounded,

and PR's Emily Fang reports. This weekend, the Lebanese army accompanied villagers who were attempting to return to their homes near the border with Israel. That's when they say the villagers were shot at by Israeli forces. The Israeli army said that it fired warning shots at, quote, suspects who were approaching their troops. The Lebanese army said one of its soldiers was also killed by Israeli forces. And it said that Israel is violating the ceasefire agreement by not withdrawing completely. Israel says it won't withdraw until it's sure Hezbollah has removed all of its fighters from the area.

Emily Fang, NPR News. This is NPR. China's Lunar New Year travel rush is in full swing with billions of trips as the world's largest annual migration hits its peak. NPR's Awen Sao reports. The Lunar New Year holiday begins Wednesday, marking the start of the Year of the Snake. New Year's Eve on Tuesday is a time for family gatherings. The travel rush started on January 14th.

Over 40 days, people are expected to take around 9 billion trips, mostly by car. The festival is traditionally a time for families to reunite. Many of China's migrant workers use all their vacation days for this annual trip, often their only chance to see parents and children. Alvin Cao, NPR News, Beijing. The Philadelphia Eagles and Washington commanders face off this afternoon for a spot in the Super Bowl. Frank Langford is there for the action in Philadelphia. I'm here at Lincoln Financial Field in the parking lot, a huge tailgate, very festive, a sea of green, lots of cheese steaks and when

you talk to fans, when you talk to analysts, the key questions in this game, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts knee. Will he be able to be mobile and be able to get run out of the pocket? And then finally, Jaden Daniels, the rookie phenom quarterback for the Washington commanders, pinpoint passing and extraordinary poise. Whoever wins this game, of course, ends up heading to the Super Bowl. Frank Langford NPR News, Lincoln Financial Field. Tonight the Kansas City Chiefs face the Buffalo Bills for the AFC title game and the Chiefs look for their third consecutive Super Bowl win. I'm Louise Schiavone, NPR News, Washington.