NPR News Now - NPR News: 04-20-2025 2PM EDT

Episode Date: April 20, 2025

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Noor Ram live from NPR News in Washington. I'm Noor Ram. Russia and Ukraine are blaming each other for carrying out attacks in violation of a temporary Easter Day ceasefire. The truce proposal was announced in a unilateral move by Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday. NPR's Charles Maines reports. Charles Maines Even before the Easter ceasefire technically went into effect, both sides voiced skepticism

the truce would hold. Putin warned of possible Ukrainian provocations, and Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, suggested the offer was more gimmick than peace gesture. Today, Russia's defense ministry said Ukraine carried out hundreds of artillery and drone strikes on Russian-occupied territory in Ukraine. Intern Zelensky said Russia continued shelling and assault raids across the frontline. Neither claim could be independently verified. The ceasefire attempt comes as President Trump has threatened to abandon efforts to negotiate

an end to the conflict if he didn't see immediate progress towards peace. Charles Maynes, NPR News, Moscow. Pope Francis had a brief meeting with Vice President J.D. Vance this morning in his residence inside Vatican City. Megan Williams reports. The Vatican says Pope Francis met privately with Vance on Easter morning to exchange holiday greetings.

The brief encounter came a day after Vance held more formal talks with senior Vatican officials. Francis still recovering from pneumonia did not attend those meetings. Vance, a Catholic convert, has publicly clashed with the Pope over immigration. Francis has called President Donald Trump's crackdown a, quote, disgrace and indirectly rebuked Vance for using Christian values to justify hardline immigration policies. The Pope called the immigration policy a, quote, major crisis for the U.S. For NPR News, I'm Megan Williams at the Vatican.

As he is still recovering, the 88-year-old pontiff did not celebrate Easter mass, but did appear in St. Peter's Square in his potmobile, drawing cheers and applause. A standoff continues between two branches of government. The judiciary says the Trump administration must facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego-Garcia, who was illegally deported to a Salvadoran prison. The executive branch says he's now in the custody of El Salvador and nothing can be done. Congressman Tom Emmer, a Republican member

of the third branch, defends President Trump, saying he believes the administration is following the law. This is isolated incidents like the order that was issued after midnight this morning, saying that they're going to delay some deportations so that the lower court process can continue. These will happen on a case-by-case basis. Emmer was interviewed on CNN. On NBC, Republican Senator John Kennedy said he didn't see the case of Abrego Garcia as part of a wider pattern. He called it a screw-up.

You're listening to NPR News in Washington. The National Weather Service issued a flood watch today for parts of Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, Arkansas, and southern Illinois. Oklahoma was hit by severe weather yesterday. Police say two people died when their car was caught in floodwaters. Members of the Who have confirmed their longtime drummer, Zach Starkey, is back in the band, days after reports had been let go. The British rock group said recent communication issues

have now been resolved. The BBC's Simon Jones reports. ["The Rock and Roll Band"] After a very rock and roll bust up, the band are back together. The Who's gigs last month at the Royal Albert Hall in London may have thrilled their fans. But Pete Townsend and Roger Daltrey expressed concern about what they called the evolved drumming style of Zack Starkey, who is the son of the Beatles drummer Ringo Starr.

That led to a spat being played out in public. The band have admitted this blew up very quickly and got too much oxygen. But now they say they back Zach and are moving forward with fire in their bellies. The BBC's Simon Jones. The Boston Marathon is tomorrow, the world's oldest and most prestigious annual 26.2 mile race.

Organizers expect more than 30,000 runners from 128 countries. They also say there's no evidence that participation by foreign athletes has declined because of increased border security. I'm Nora Rahm, NPR News.