NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-17-2025 10AM EDT

Episode Date: October 17, 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 Kourva Coleman. Today marks one week into the Gaza's ceasefire. A dispute is growing over the bodies of the remaining 19 Israeli hostages in Gaza. And Biers Rob Schmidt's reports from Tel Aviv, it's threatening the ceasefire.

In a statement, Hamas said recovering the 19 bodies of the remaining Israeli hostages may take some time because it requires special digging equipment that it needs from outside Gaza. Hamas said the bodies are buried in tunnels under the rubble of bombed out buildings. Hamas's militant wing leaked a video to Al Jazeera showing its men searching for the bodies of hostages, The Jerusalem Post reports that an 81-person rescue team from Turkey is prepared to assist in the search for bodies but was barred by Israel's government from entering Gaza. Israel has accused Hamas this week of holding back these bodies and violating the ceasefire agreement, while Hamas says its inability to find the bodies reflects the complex situation on the ground in Gaza as society attempts to rebuild. Rob Schmidt and Pierre News, Tel Aviv.

Former National Security Advisor John Bolton is at a federal courthouse in Marlon, morning. He's been indicted on 18 counts of allegedly mishandling classified information. Bolton worked in the first Trump administration, but is now a fierce Trump critic. President Trump has repeatedly denounced Bolton. Former Deputy Assistant Attorney General Elliot Williams says that the case may involve Bolton's conduct and the president's statements. Two things can be true at the same time. Prosecutors could have put together an indictment that raises some damning allegations about John Bolton and his conduct, and at the same time, the President of the United States has impermissibly injected himself into a number of matters, including John Bolton's.

I would say, if I were John Bolton's defense attorneys, that the president's repeated statements about John Bolton do cast at least some doubt on the indictment. He spoke to NPR's morning edition. Stocks opened higher this morning, as American Express reports strong demand for its new platinum credit card. NPR Scott Horsley reports the Dow Jones Industrial average rose about 120 points in early trading. With government data on consumer spending held up by the federal shutdown, analysts are watching for other clues, including the big credit card companies. American Express says its quarterly profits jumped 16 percent, thanks in part to robust spending by wealthy

MX cardholders. The company also says it's fielded half a million requests for its new perk-laden platinum card, despite raising the annual fee to nearly $900. And the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is suing the Trump administration over its plan to charge $100,000 for new high-tech visas. The lawsuit says the fee is unlawful and would harm U.S. businesses. Scott Horsesley-Mpaire News, Washington. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial averages up about 100 points at 46,057. This is NPR.

The federal government is well into. its third week of a shutdown. And today is the deadline for the Trump administration to give a federal judge a list of all federal government layoffs of employees. These include riffs that have already happened or those that are planned. The federal judge has temporarily blocked the layoffs in response to a lawsuit by federal employee unions. There was a debate last night among the candidates running for mayor in New York City. They included former Governor Andrew Cuomo and Democratic frontrunner Zorant Mamdani. NPR's Brian Mann has more. Mamdani was the main target in the mayoral debate facing blistering attacks from Cuomo,

whose running is an independent and Republican Curtis Sliwa. They criticized Mamdani's membership in the Democratic Socialists of America and his past calls to defund the NYPD. Cuomo described Mamdani as inexperienced. This is no job for on-the-job training. Mamdani kept his focus on pocketbook issues and the city's high prices. That's why I'm speaking about child care because it's pricing out New Yorkers from the city. It's why I'm speaking about freezing the rent. With just over two weeks to go before Election Day, Momdani has led in every poll by double digits. Brian Mann, NPR News, New York.

Officials in Anchorage, Alaska are getting ready to receive up to 2,000 people evacuated from Western Alaska. The coast was pummeled last weekend by the remnants of a typhoon. A couple of Western Alaskan towns have been destroyed. One person was killed by the storm and two others remain missing. Part of Alaska remains under a federal disaster declaration. I'm Corva Coleman, NPR News. Fall in love with new music every Friday. At all songs considered, that's NPR's Music Recommendation podcast, Fridays are where we spend our whole show sharing all the greatest new releases of the week.

Make the hunt for new music a part of your list. life again, tap into New Music Friday from All Songs Considered, available wherever you get your podcasts.