NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-15-2025 6PM 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 Herbst. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today called for the creation of a European army. He told the annual Munich Security Conference that the continent can no longer be sure of U.S. protection.

Three years of full-scale war have proven that we already have the foundation for a united European military force. And now, as we fight this war and lay the groundwork for peace and security, we must build the armed forces of Europe. It's not clear whether European leaders will agree. Meanwhile, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, also at the Munich conference, hit back at Americans for meddling in his country's election after Vice President Vance scolded European leaders over their approach to democracy, and he also met with the leader of a German far-right party. Three Israeli hostages held by Hamas have been released. The sixth group freed as part of a fragile ceasefire deal with Israel that nearly collapsed this week. In exchange, Israel released more than 350 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.

In Piers Hadil, Al-Shulchi has more. The three male civilian hostages released are 36-year-old dual U.S.-Israeli citizen Sagih Dekelkhan, 29-year-old Russian-Israeli Alexander Trupanov, and 46-year-old Argentinian-Israeli Yair Horn. The hostages were brought onto a stage where a slogan on a large poster alluded to President Trump's plan to transfer Gaza's entire population to neighboring countries. The banner said, No Migration Except to Jerusalem. The three hostages were handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross in

Khan Yunis, a city in South Gaza. Among the 369 Palestinian prisoners and detainees freed by Israel on Saturday are 36 who served life sentences in Israeli prisons convicted for deadly attacks against Israelis. Hadil Al-Shalchi, NPR News, Tel Aviv. The board of OpenAI says it's turned down Elon Musk's more than $97 billion offer to buy the company. As NPR's Bobby Allen reports, the bid comes amid Musk's ongoing lawsuit against the chat GPT maker. The board of OpenAI says it has unanimously rejected Musk's unsolicited proposal to take over the company. In a statement, chairman Brett Taylor says OpenAI is not for sale, calling Musk's offer an attempt to undercut one of his competitors.

At the same time, Musk's lawyers are advancing a lawsuit against OpenAI, seeking to stop the chat GPT maker from converting from a non-profit into a for-profit operation. OpenAI received some of its first funding from Musk, and the billionaire White House official says OpenAI is violating its founding principles as a research lab. But OpenAI has published emails from Musk when the company started showing him supporting the idea of converting to a for-profit business. Bobbi Allen, NPR News.

You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Doctors say Pope Francis spent a restful night at the hospital, ate breakfast today, and received the Eucharist. And they have modified the treatment for his respiratory tract infection and say tests show some improvement. This, a week after the 88-year-old was admitted to the hospital after a week-long bout of bronchitis. The Vatican canceled his audiences through Monday at least. When Francis was a young man, he had part of one lung removed and has battled other health problems. In men's hockey, the U.S. and Canada play tonight in Montreal in the Four Nations Face-Off Tournament. A once-friendly rapport has turned icy.

And Piers Amy Held reports Canadian fans have been using the U.S. national anthem as a platform to protest President Trump's rhetoric. It started a couple of weeks ago, Canadian crowds booing the Star-Spangled Banner at basketball games and hockey, too. Thursday night in Montreal, as the U.S. faced Finland, some fans jeered, even though the announcer had asked for respect. On the other hand, O'Canada got an unusually enthusiastic sing-along. Many Canadians feel betrayed by President Trump's trade war and annexation threats.

Pausing for patriotism in sports has been a tradition for more than a century. So too has the national anthem provided a platform for dissent. U.S. center J.T. Miller says the booing is not all bad and that it fires the team up. Tournament play shifts to Boston next week. Amy Held, NPR News. And I'm Janine Herbst, and you're listening to NPR News from Washington.