NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-15-2025 5PM EST

Episode Date: February 15, 2025

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There's been a lot of attention on loneliness lately. 16% of Americans report feeling lonely all or most of the time. The former Surgeon General even declared a loneliness epidemic. On It's Been a Minute, we're launching a new series called All the Lonely People, diving deep into how loneliness shows up in our lives and how our culture shapes it. That's on the It's Been a Minute podcast on NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janene Hurst. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told European leaders in Munich today that Russia continues to arm itself and that Europe must unite to protect the continent. NPR's

Joanna Kisus reports the Ukrainian leader also echoed President Trump's calls for Europe to manage more of its own security. Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Zelensky recalled a phone call with Trump about setting up negotiations to end Russia's war on Ukraine. Not once did he mention that America needs Europe at the table. That says a lot. The old days are over when America supported Europe just because it always had. Zelensky said Europe should focus on creating its own army and a united security policy

that does not rely on the United States. He said President Trump respects allies that are strong. Ukraine is in talks to join the European Union and Zelensky wants the EU to be part of any talks to end the war. Joanna Kekesis, NPR News, Kyiv. Hamas today released three male Israeli hostages held in Gaza since the beginning of the war, including an Israeli American. In exchange, Israel released more than 300 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. In the sixth, such swab as part of the ceasefire

agreement. Some had been serving life sentences for attacks on Israelis, but most were detained during the Gaza war and released to their families today. NPR's producer, Anas Baba, has more. They were holding and carrying three gifts from Hamas here. The first one was a Palestinian map. The second was a certificate of their own release. And the third thing which was a sand clock that says that time is ticking here. MPR's Anas Baba reporting from Gaza. The ceasefire faces major challenges as the first

phase ends next month and there have been no substantive negotiations over the second phase. That's when Hamas would release all remaining hostages in return for ending the war. President Trump's proposal to remove Palestinians from Gaza and settle them elsewhere has also shaken talks. A group of Western senators have signed a letter asking President Trump to exempt seasonal federal firefighters from the current federal hiring freeze. CAP radio's Manola Sakaita has more. The senators describe putting a pause on hiring federal seasonal firefighters as, quote, simply irresponsible and dangerous.

California Senator Alex Padilla signed the letter. Time is of the essence. We cannot wait for the summer months to get here. We cannot wait for the fires to begin, to begin the recruitment or the training process. SONIA DARA, D You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Saturday Night Live is celebrating its 50th anniversary this weekend. Last night there was a concert at Radio City Music Hall ahead of tomorrow's three-hour live, featuring cast alumni including Eddie Murphy, Tina Fey, and Will Ferrell.

And here's Elizabeth Blair has more. The SNL celebration on Sunday begins at 7 p.m. Eastern with a red carpet special co-hosted by former cast member Leslie Jones. Cast members from across the decades are scheduled to appear on the anniversary special, including Adam Sandler, Tracy Morgan, and Jane Curtin, who played one of the Coneheads in the 1970s.

I'm Primatt. I maintain our home base and enjoy preparing mass quantities of consumables for my family unit. Saturday Night Live. Regulars like Steve Martin and Paul Simon are also scheduled to appear. SNL 50, the anniversary special, airs live at 8 p.m. Eastern on Sunday on NBC and Peacock. Elizabeth Blair, NPR News. The first locally born giant panda twin cubs in Hong Kong turned six months old today and they will make their public debut tomorrow. But they have no names yet. Right now they're called Elder Sister

and Little Brother and a contest is underway to find them permanent names. The pandas caregivers say Elder sister appears more active exploring the enclosure and climbing the tree inside while little brother mainly likes to wander around and play with the plants. Officials say Hong Kong now has the biggest number of pandas in captivity outside mainland China. I'm Janene Herbst and you're listening to NPR News from Washington.