NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-20-2025 1AM EDT

Episode Date: March 20, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shae Stevens. The Justice Department continues to resist a judge's demand for more information about the weekend flights that carried some Venezuelan deportees to El Salvador. U.S. District Court Judge James Boesberg is now giving DOG attorneys until Thursday to comply or make a claim that doing so would harm state secrets. At a briefing on Wednesday, White House press secretary Caroline Levitt was asked if the deportation flights are continuing. We don't have any flights planned specifically, but we will continue with the mass deportations. And I would just like to point out that the judge in this case is essentially trying

to say that the president doesn't have the executive authority to deport foreign terrorists from our American soil. That is an egregious abuse of the bench. This judge cannot does not have that authority. It is the opinion of this of this White House and of this administration and that's why we're fighting this in court. Le Levitt says the White House is prepared to fight the matter all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. President Trump has briefed Ukrainian President Zelensky on Tuesday's phone call with Russian leader Putin. NPR's Mara Liason reports that the White House says

Trump's aim was to align the needs and requests of the warring nations. Zelensky had already agreed to a 30-day ceasefire plan proposed by the US. But Trump has not yet been able to get Putin to commit to a full ceasefire. Russia is insisting on conditions for a ceasefire, including the end of all military assistance to Ukraine. Russia did agree to end a tax on energy infrastructure, but continued bombing Ukrainian cities this week. The White House said that Trump and Zelensky did not discuss the proposed rare earth mineral deal that had been on the table, but they did discuss another potential deal.

According to the White House, Trump suggested to Zelensky that U.S. companies could help Ukraine run its nuclear power plants. Mara Eliasson, NPR News, The White House. The Israeli military says it's launched a new ground offensive into Gaza, sending troops back into areas they retreated from during a temporary ceasefire. As NPR's Kat Lonsdorf reports, the move comes a day after a series of Israeli airstrikes killed more than 400 Palestinians. In a statement, the Israeli military called it a, quote, targeted ground operation, saying

the aim is to expand what it calls the security perimeter, separating the enclave from southern Israel. The actions come as Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz released a video statement addressed to, quote, Gaza residents. Speaking in Hebrew with Arabic subtitles, Katz said the video was the, quote, final warning to return all the hostages

and remove Hamas from power. What comes next will be much harsher, and you will bear the full consequences," he said, warning of more evacuation orders. He said that Israel will, quote, act with force beyond anything you have ever seen. Kat Lonsdorf, NPR News, Tel Aviv. This is NPR. The Social Security Administration is preparing to impose new measures to prevent fraud. Beginning March 31, new recipients must verify their identity at an agency field office instead

of by phone or online. The change will also apply to existing Social Security recipients who want to change their direct deposit information. Move comes as the agency plans to shut down dozens of Social Security offices and lay off thousands of agency employees. China says it's executed an unknown number of unidentified Canadian citizens for alleged drug-related offenses. As NPR's Emily Fang reports, the Canadian government is requesting more information on the matter.

Canada said it asked for clemency in the cases, and neither Ottawa nor Beijing has released details about the executions. China does not disclose how many people it executes a year, but human rights groups estimate it is in the thousands. It is unusual, however, for China to execute foreign citizens. China has had rocky relations with Canada since 2018, when Canada detained a prominent Chinese tech executive at the Chinese company Huawei on behalf of the US. China then arrested two Canadians on espionage charges, leading to allegations from both

sides of hostage diplomacy. And more recently, this year, China and Canada slapped new tariffs on each other over electric vehicles and aluminum. Emily Fang, NPR News. US futures are higher in after-hours trading, when Asia-Pacific market shares are mixed, down 1% in Hong Kong. This is NPR News. There's a lot of news happening. You want to understand it better, but let's be honest, down 1% in Hong Kong. This is NPR News.