NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-16-2025 5AM EDT

Episode Date: October 16, 2025

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In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life. Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors on our new show, Sources and Methods. NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people, helping you understand why distant events matter here at home. Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. President Trump says he's stepping up efforts to fight violent crime in the U.S. Speaking from the Oval Office alongside the director of the FBI on Wednesday, Trump said teams of federal agents will be deployed to additional cities.

These are great cities that can be fixed. I'm going to be strongly recommending at the request of government officials, which is always nice, that you start looking at San Francisco. I think we can make San Francisco. there's one of our great cities 10 years ago, 15 years ago, now it's a mess. And we have great support in San Francisco. So I'd like to recommend that for inclusion, maybe in your next group. The White House has increased federal law enforcement resources and mainly Democratic cities over the last several months.

It's a move that has faced a number of legal challenges. A judge in Oregon on Wednesday extended the temporary restraining order against Trump's plan to send the National Guard to Portland. for an additional two weeks. Gaza is facing a number of questions about its future just days into Israel's ceasefire with Hamas. NPR's Greg Mirey reports it's not clear when the region will have a formal government. At this moment, no one can legitimately claim to be in charge of the two million Palestinians in Gaza. The Hamas leadership has been eviscerated by two years of war. A ceasefire plan calls for a committee of technocrats.

to take over, though it's not clear when this will be established or how much authority it will have. Hamas civilian police are back on the streets, but have been clashing with Palestinian clans, which are essentially armed gangs. Looming over all of this is the staggering challenge of rebuilding a territory where an estimated 90 percent of the buildings have been damaged or destroyed. Greg Myrie, NPR News, Tel Aviv. Hundreds of people on coastal Alaska are being force from their homes as a powerful storm slammed into native villages. Evan Erickson, a member station, KYUK, reports many residents don't know if they'll be able to return to their communities. Hundreds of evacuees awaited a flight to Anchorage at the National Guard

Armory in Bethel. Their fleeing remote communities devastated by the remnants of Typhoon Hulong on Sunday. Jodi Agimuk and his family lost everything in their home community. of Kipnuk. Seven family members. All my kids, my wife, and two stepdaughters, feeling heartbroken. Just please. I hope we won't have a hard time finding place. The storm has left more than 1,000 without homes. State officials are rushing in aid with winter just weeks away. For NPR News, I'm Evan Erickson in Bethel, Alaska. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Several Pentagon reporters have turned in their press credentials after refusing to sign new restrictions imposed by the Defense Department. Secretary Pete Hegseth had given journalists until Tuesday to pledge that they would only cover topics approved by his office.

Those who declined were told that they would lose access to the building. Many say they plan to keep reporting with or without that access. Oklahoma's top education official is backing off a plan to require Bible instruction in public schools. Lionel Ramos, a member station K-O-S-U reports. Oklahoma's previous superintendent had mandated that every classroom in the state have a Bible, and every teacher include the Ten Commandments in their curricula. It quickly faced a legal challenge and has wound up in the state's Supreme Court. The state's new superintendent, Lyndall Fields, now says he's nixing the plan.

Oklahoma Department of Education spokesperson Tara Thompson says the agency plans to file a motion to dismiss the case. Are we spending taxpayer dollars wisely and as good stewards? And if the answer to that is no, then we need to start looking at rescinding or making changes to things that have been put in place. It's a stark shift away from what Fields predecessor, Ryan Walters, intended and what prompted a coalition of parents, teachers, and faith leaders to file the lawsuit last year. For NPR news, I'm Lion O Ramos in Oklahoma City. traded mixed across Asia today. Markets in Japan and China posted gains while shares fell in Hong Kong on Wall Street, Dow Futures are trading higher at this hour. On Wednesday, the Dow lost 17 points. This is NPR News. I'm Rachel Martin. If you're tired of small talk, check out the Wild Card podcast. I invite your

favorite celebrities to open up about the big topics we all think about but rarely talk about. Tune in this fall to hear Matthew McConaughey, Shonda Rhymes, and Padma Lock Talk about everything from grief and God to ambition and forgiveness. Watch or listen on the NPR app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.