NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-03-2025 4AM EDT

Episode Date: August 3, 2025

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Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Willman. As part of his trip to Israel, U.S. Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff met Saturday with family members of hostages still in Gaza. In a statement after the meeting, he said that he was committed to bringing all 50 remaining hostages, both living and dead, back to Israel. NPR's Emily Fang met afterward with some of those families. The hostages' families chanted, You are not alone, we are with you.

And they held pictures of their loved ones after meeting with Kof. Here's Ruby Chen, the father of Itai Chen, an Israeli soldier and one of two remaining U.S. citizens held in Gaza. Just listening to each family member, what he has to say and hear their pain and make it personal.

And I think that by itself is commendable. The Israeli government believes both Americans are no longer alive. Hen and other families are pushing for an immediate ceasefire with Hamas so the approximately 20 hostages still believed to be alive can come home, along with the remains of Henson and other hostages who've died in captivity. Emily Fang in Peer News, Tel Aviv. Democratic senators are continuing to attack President Trump's trade war with much of the rest of the world. This week Trump announced new tariffs for more than 60 nations.

Senator Chris Coons of Delaware says he's hearing a lot of complaints from business leaders in his states. I've heard one consistent theme from business. They need predictability and this chaos around Trump's tariffs isn't good for any business in America. Trump's trade wars increased the average U.S. tariff from two and a half percent at the start of 2025 to 18.3 percent now. That's the highest average rate since the Great Depression. Justice Department officials in Los Angeles are accusing a Southern California man of providing money to ISIS. We have more from Steve Futterman.

The complaint accuses Mark Lorenzo Villanueva of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. The government says according to Western Union records the 28-old sent 12 payments totaling more than $1,600 to a pair of intermediaries who identified themselves as Islamic State fighters. Villanueva is a legal permanent resident originally from the Philippines. According to the complaint, Villanueva at one point said, someday soon I will be joining. At the time of his arrest, the FBI recovered what appears to be a bomb from his home. The charge he faces carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

For NPR News, I'm Steve Futterman in Los Angeles. Police are continuing at this hour their search in a mountainous area of western Montana for 45-year-old Michael Brown. They say Brown shot and killed four people in a bar in Anaconda Friday morning and they say they consider the Army veteran to be armed and dangerous. His niece says Brown has struggled for years with mental illness. You're listening to NPR News. University of Colorado football coach Deon Sanders told the world on Monday that he underwent bladder reconstructive surgery. The surgery changes to the way

one uses the restroom. Sanders joked about this during his press conference saying that he now depends on the adult diapers known as Depends. Sarah Bowden reports that the Pro Football Hall of Famers openness is now helping others. An estimated 85,000 people in the U.S. will get bladder cancer this year, and some, like Sanders, will have to have their bladder removed and then get reconstructive surgery. Dr. Max Cates is a urologist at Johns Hopkins University. He says patients can feel ashamed about the changes to their body, so he applauds Sanders' sharing about his recovery. The way Sanders did that was so authentic and almost loving.

Kate says the attention Sanders is bringing to bladder cancer will save lives. For NPR News, I'm Sarah Bowden. The World Dog Surfing Championship is taking place near San Francisco this weekend. Organizers say about 15 to 20 animals are registered for the competition at Pacific Estate Beach. While the main event focuses on individual dogs catching waves, there are also heats featuring more than one dog surfing on a single board as well as dogs surfing with humans. Cat videos are no longer just for the internet. A 73-minute compilation of the videos is being shown this weekend and more than 500 independent movie theaters across the U.S. and Canada.

A portion of the proceeds will benefit cat-focused charities and shelters. The Cat Video Fest is now in its eighth year and is expanded into international markets as well. I'm Dale Willman, NPR News.