NPR News Now - NPR News: 09-02-2025 5AM EDT

Episode Date: September 2, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington. I'm Dave Mattingley. More bodies are being found in the mountains of eastern Afghanistan where a strong earthquake has killed more than 900 people. The Afghan Red Crescent Society puts the death toll higher than that. More than 3,000 people were injured in the quake. The U.S. Geological Survey says the earthquake struck late Sunday night not far from the city of Jalalabad near the border with Pakistan. Officials say entire village. were flattened. Palestinian health officials say the latest Israeli air strikes in Gaza have killed more than 30 people as the Israeli military continues to expand its offensive in Gaza city. Authorities in Ukraine say they've arrested a suspect in the slaying of a politician

and are investigating potential links to Russia. NPR's Polina Litnavova in Kiev says the victim was Ukraine's former Speaker of Parliament. Andri Parubia was shot dead in the Western city of Leviv. He was one of the leaders of the popular uprising in 2013-2014, known as the Revolution of Dignity and former Speaker of Parliament. People gathered in Kiev to honor his memory. Former lawmaker Hannah Hopko is wiping her tears and says she believes Sparubi was on the list of prominent Ukrainians the Kremlin wants to kill. The key laws that distanced us from Moscow were related to him, says when Perubi was the parliamentary speaker, Ukraine enshrined in its constitution a course towards membership in the EU and NATO.

Polina Litvinova and PR News, Kyiv. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will be traveling to Mexico and Ecuador this week. NPR's Michelle Kellerman says Rubio's trip is part of the Trump administration's continued crackdown on illegal immigration and drug cartels as well as China's influence in the region. Mexican president, Claudia Seenbaum, says she expects the U.S. and Mexico to sign a security pact based on sovereignty and mutual respect. But U.S. officials are playing down expectations of any major policy announcements during Rubio's trip. One official who briefed reporters about the trip said the U.S. and Mexico have been working on practical steps to fight drug cartels and stop illegal migration, and there could be some new steps announced. In Ecuador, the official said the U.S. is trying to help.

President Daniel Naboya get out from under a, quote, giant albatross. That's how the official described Ecuador's debts to China. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, the State Department. Trading on Wall Street resumes this morning following the Labor Day weekend. Gold has hit a record high today amid increasing optimism from investors that the Federal Reserve will decide to lower interest rates at its next policy meeting this month. This is NPR News. New data show President Trump's immigration policies are shrinking the workforce in the U.S., NPR's Vanessa Romo reports.

Immigrants make up nearly 20% of the nation's workforce, but after more than 50 years of rapid growth, that population is now in decline, and that's affecting the labor force. A 2025 Pew Research Center analysis of preliminary Census Bureau data showed more than 1.2 million immigrants left the U.S. labor force between January and the end of July. That includes people who are here legally, as well as undocumented immigrants. Data for Mexico's central bank also show remittances sent from the U.S. to Mexico are down by nearly 5% over July of last year. Vanessa Romo, NPR News. The CEO of Nestle has been fired following the company's investigation into a relationship he had with a direct subordinate. Laurent Ferexie had served as Nestle's chief executive for about a year. The Swiss company is the world's largest.

and drink conglomerate to include coffee and bottled water. Japan's Naomi Osaka has advanced to the quarter-finals of the U.S. Open Tennis Tournament in New York. She beat number three-seed Cocoa golf yesterday in straight sets, 6-3-6-2. Bill Belichick's college football debut did not go as planned. North Carolina was blown out in Chapel Hill last night by TCU 48 to 14. The Tar Heel scored a touchdown on the game's opening possession, but things went downhill. from there for UNC. Belichick was hired by North Carolina after leading the NFL's New England

Patriots to six Super Bowl titles. I'm Dave Mattingly in Washington.