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Episode Date: July 23, 2026

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Kristen Wright. U.S. Central Command says it carried out a 12th straight night of strikes against Iran. And Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels say they struck two oil tankers in the Red Sea. As a result, oil prices are surging. NPR's Deepa Shivaram reports. Gas prices are going up again. Inflation is up. And at the same time that Americans are struggling with these higher prices,

Defense Secretary Pete Hegset said this week that the Iran war so far has cost 30, $37.5 billion, that's with a B, which is pretty big for a price tag for a war that Trump said would end months ago. And, you know, not to mention American troops who have been killed and injured in action as well. President Trump blamed inflation on the Biden administration during a rally in Marietta, Georgia yesterday. House Republicans advanced a $95 billion budget blueprint, mostly for the war with Iran. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held direct talks with his Russian counterpart on the sidelines of a minister's summit in the Philippines today. NPR's Charles Mainz reports their conversation focused heavily on Russia's war in Ukraine. The meeting between

Rubio and Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov lasted just over half an hour. Ahead of it, Rubio said the U.S. remained open to playing a role in ending the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, if Rubio added, the opportunity presented itself. A Russian foreign ministry readout said Lavrov had informed Rubio of the real situation on the battlefield. Russia insists its forces are steadily advancing that despite Western intelligence that shows minimal Russian gains coming with heavy losses. Love Rove also said Moscow remained open to a U.S. brokered settlement, pointing to inherent agreements reached between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin during their

summit in Alaska last year. Charles Mainz, MPR News, Moscow. In India, young men and women have taken to the streets to demonstrate against the government. NPR's Dia Hadid reports this comes after police crack down on protesters trying to march onto Parliament earlier this week. The biggest protests were in New Delhi in Mumbai. The mood was joyful and defiant. Protesters sang the national anthem. They also chanted against the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in increasingly strident verses. They seem to enjoy support.

In New Delhi, organizers asked citizens, to stop sending food parcels, they were inundated with donations. These protests began as a sit-in more than 20 days ago to demand education reforms. But the mood changed after a widely respected educator on a hunger strike was forcibly taken to hospital. Thousands tried to march on Parliament on Monday, but were violently pushed back. Now protesters are chanting against the Prime Minister Modi, a man once seen as wildly popular and untouchable.

Dear Hadid, NPR News. NPR News from Washington. The European Union is fining Google, a billion dollars for breaking digital antitrust regulations. The EU says Google set up its search engine and Google Play to favor its own services over competitors. The European Commission says it is protecting consumers. In the Western U.S., summer monsoon rains are delivering much-needed moisture. But as Rachel Cohen of the Mountain West News Bureau reports, the rains also bring the risk, of floods and mudslides.

Rain can quickly escalate to dangerous flooding. In steep canyons, drywashes, or downstream of land recently scorched by wildfires, says Gillian Felton, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Grand Junction, Colorado. With those burn scars, the soil can become hydrophobic, meaning that a lot of that water that falls into the soil is just going to run right off of it. So debris flows are a big concern. In Utah, floodwaters is supposed.

past week pushed mud and trees from the cottonwood fire down the state's Beaver Canyon, forcing evacuations. Mudslides from heavy rains also disrupted travel in Colorado, closing portions of Interstate 70 and smaller roads. The National Weather Service warns more storms this week mean additional flood risk throughout the region. For NPR news, I'm Rachel Cohen in Boulder, Colorado. Tropical storm Bertha is moving west just south of Louisiana's coast. This morning, it's about 95 miles from Lake Charles. Bertha is expected to make landfall later today along the northeastern Gulf

Coast. The tropical storm is not expected to get much stronger. I'm Christian Wright, and this is NPR News from Washington. Support for NPR.