NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-18-2025 8AM EDT

Episode Date: October 18, 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 Giles Snyder. As Israel marked one week since a ceasefire in Gaza, Hamas release remains of a hostage late last night. NPR's Rob Schmitz reports from Tel Aviv. The body Hamas returned Friday night was identified as Eliyahu Margulit,

who was killed on the day of the October 7th attack two years ago in the border kibbutz of Niroz. There are now 18 deceased hostages left in Gaza. Israeli officials say they believe Hamas has the ability to release additional bodies of hostages from Gaza, despite the group saying that it would need special digging equipment. in order to recover the rest of the deceased hostages. Margulitz remains are the 10th Hamas has returned since the ceasefire went into effect. Democrats in Washington considering new legal action against House Speaker Mike Johnson for delays in swearing in the newest member elected to Congress.

NPR's Claudia Rosales reports that Arizona Democratic Representative-elect at Alita Grahalva will now enter her third week without getting seated. Congresswoman elect Griehalva plans to sign on to a bipartisan petition to force release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. One last signature is needed to trigger a related House vote, but Griehalva tells NPR she needs to be seated first. I remember on election night, someone came up to me and said, I don't think they're going to swear you in because of those Epstein files. And I thought, oh my gosh, that's very much a conspiracy theory. Like, that's not going to happen. And here we are. Not so, says Speaker Johnson, who says he'll swear in

when the government shutdown ends. But now the Arizona Attorney General and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries are considering suing Johnson to end the delays. Claudia Grisales, NPR News. A lawyer for former New York Congressman George Santos has told the Associated Press that Santos left a federal prison in New Jersey late last night. President Trump ordered Santos' release commuting his more than seven-year sentence for fraud and identity theft. No, King's rallies planned this weekend in big cities and small towns across the nation in protest of the Trump administration's policies. That includes Salt Lake City, Utah, where a protest in June ended in a deadly shooting. Martha Harris, a member station, KUER, reports on how local organizers are approaching today's demonstration. At the city's June March, a safety volunteer saw a man carrying a rifle and shot into the crowd, killing a bystander. This weekend's protest is being put on by a different. organization. Jamie Carter is with the host group Salt Lake Indivisible. As the event got closer and closer, the feelings that were being brought up were to be still very raw. And that is one of the

reasons we decided to cancel the march. They were also concerned about safety. Instead of a march, they're hosting a rally that will be followed by a dance party. They're telling everyone, including volunteers, to leave weapons at home. For NPR news, I'm Martha Harris in Salt. Lake City. This is NPR News. President Trump says Ukraine and Russia shut up where they are and negotiate. Trump made the statement on social media after seeming to back away from supplying Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles during Friday's White House meeting with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky. The meeting came a day after President Trump spoke by phone with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and announced a tour planning to meet in Hungary. Nobel Prize winning physicist

Chongning Yang has died. China's official Shinwa News Agency says Yong died of an illness in Beijing today. Shenhua did not give further details. He was 103. Yang shared the Nobel in 1957 with Songda Li. The two were the first Chinese-born Nobel Prize winners in physics. Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Otani hit three home runs and pitched six endings of shutout ball last night, leading the Dodgers to the World Series. Chuck Hornbach reports. The Dodgers defeated the Milwaukee. Brewers by a score 5 to 1 sweeping the team's National League Championship series. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says Shohei Otani's hitting and pitching was probably the best

performance ever in postseason baseball. And there's been a lot of postseason games and there's a reason why he's the greatest player on the planet, you know, what he did on the mound, what he did at the bat. Next up for the Dodgers in the World Series will be the winner of the American League championship series between the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays. For NPR News, I'm Chuck Kwormbach. The American League series is heading into game six tomorrow night. The Mariners hold a three games to two lead over the Blue Jays.

This is NPR News.