NPR News Now - NPR News: 04-18-2025 2PM EDT

Episode Date: April 18, 2025

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Janine Hurst, NPR News in Washington. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the U.S. is ready to abandon the U.S.-Russia peace talks soon unless there are clear signs of progress on a deal. At the White House today, President Trump was asked about Rubio's comment. Now, if for some reason one of the two parties makes it very difficult. We're just going to say you're foolish, you're fools, you're horrible people, and we're going to just take a pass, but hopefully we won't have to do that. U.S.-Ukrainian, Russian, and European officials met in Paris over a peace deal

agreement this week. This comes a day after Trump and Ukrainian President Zelensky said they were close to signing a resources deal for the U.S. to get rare minerals from Ukraine. A federal judge has once again blocked Doge staffers who are operating inside the Social Security Administration from accessing sensitive personal information. And peer Stephen Fowler reports the data is on millions of Americans. U.S. District Judge Ellen Lipton-Hollander wrote late Thursday that the legal issue isn't with the work that DOJ wants to do inside the Social Security Administration, but rather how they want to do the work. Last month, Hollander issued a temporary restraining order

blocking DOJ staffers from sensitive Social Security databases because they couldn't explain why they needed unfettered access to personally identifiable information. And granting the preliminary injunction, the judge said that's a question the Trump administration still can't answer. Stephen Fowler, NPR News. A dozen aid groups operating in Gaza have published a joint statement saying the humanitarian situation there is at a breaking point. Ampires Ayyub Atrawi reports Israel's government has barred the entry of all food, medicine,

and vital supplies for seven weeks now. The Palestinian Red Crescent says only three out of 30 of its ambulances in Gaza City are operating because there's no fuel. And all of Gaza's bakeries shut down weeks ago because there's no flour. Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz says the blockade is a tool to pressure Hamas and this week said no humanitarian aid is going to enter Gaza. He says any future mechanism for delivering aid would include the use of private companies. A statement signed by 12 aid groups in Gaza including Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders and Medical Aid

for Palestinians says this new mechanism Israel's considering for allowing aid into Gaza would set a dangerous global precedent and eliminate any remaining space to deliver aid independent of military and political motivations. Eya Beltravi, NPR News, Dubai. At Florida State University, a vigil is planned on the campus today for victims of a mass shooting yesterday near the student union that left two people dead, six others injured. Hospital officials say three patients are now in good condition, another in fair condition, and two others are expected to be released today. People are being allowed in the building today

to gather belongings left behind in yesterday's chaos. There's no word on a motive. This is NPR News. New research shows as much as 17 percent of the world's crop lands could be contaminated with toxic metals. As NPR's Jonathan Lambert reports, the polluted soil could be affecting more than 1 billion people. Toxic metals like lead, arsenic, and cadmium can get into soils through natural processes and human activities like mining. Metal-laden soil can reduce agricultural productivity and contaminate food in ways that harm human

health. A study published in the journal Science combined computer modeling with over 750,000 soil measurements to estimate that 14 to 17 percent of global croplands had concerning levels of pollution. Hotspots include parts of southern Europe, the Middle East, and India, which the researchers say could reflect human activity dating back to ancient civilizations. Jonathan Lambert, NPR News. Good Friday services got underway at St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City today. But notably absent from the service, Pope Francis, who is still recovering from spending

weeks in the hospital in February as he was treated for pneumonia. The Vatican says he will have limited involvement in Holy Week services, which culminate with Easter on Sunday. Vice President Vance, a Catholic convert, is spending Easter weekend with his family in Vatican City, but he won't be meeting with the Pope. Wall Street is closed today in observance of Good Friday. Yesterday the Dow ended the day down 527 points. I'm Janene Herbst, NPR News in Washington.