NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-29-2024 5AM EST

Episode Date: November 29, 2024

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dave Mattingly. Israel and Hezbollah continue to accuse each other of violating terms of a 60-day ceasefire that went into effect this week in Lebanon. The Israeli military says it conducted an airstrike in Sidon yesterday along the Mediterranean coast. Israel says it was targeting a building used by Hezbollah to store mid-range rockets. During the ceasefire, Israeli forces are to withdraw from Lebanon, and Hezbollah is to move its fighters away from the border.

In Gaza, the fighting goes on between Israel and Hamas. Antoine Renard is with the UN's World Food Program. He says Palestinian civilians who have been displaced by the war continue to struggle. People cannot cope anymore. There is barely any food coming in while markets are empty. Now with the rain and winter sweeping away tents, it is a daily struggle for survival. The Gaza Health Ministry says more than 44,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since Hamas attacked southern Israel in October of last year. President

Biden has said he plans to make one final push to get a ceasefire in Gaza before he leaves office in January. Lobbyists from energy and chemical companies are among those attending UN talks in South Korea. They're trying to agree on a treaty to cut plastic pollution around the world, as NPR's Julia Simon reports. Plastic is mostly made from byproducts of oil and gas. The International Energy Agency says demand for oil is falling as people use more electric vehicles, but many in the oil and petrochemical sector see the future of their industry increasingly reliant on demand for plastics. At the United Nations talks currently underway in South Korea, one of the solutions on the table is a plastic production cap.

But fossil fuel industry players are pushing back. They argue for more recycling, even though a lot of plastic cannot be recycled. A new analysis from the Center for International Environmental Law finds there are a record 220 registered fossil fuel and chemical industry lobbyists at the Plastic Talks. Julia Simon, MPR News. Democratic strategists continue to analyze President-elect Donald Trump's win over Vice President Harris in the November election.

NPR's Alaina Moore reports. Democrats have long argued some of the biggest losses for Kamala Harris came from voters under 30, especially in the former blue wall states. Harris also lost ground among Asian American and black voters in certain key swing states. But above all, Latino voters had some of the largest shifts to the right. It's a group that had been trending less Democratic in recent elections. 2024 was a major move toward Trump, and this support gave him a crucial boost in places like Nevada and Pennsylvania. Alaina Moore, NPR News, Washington. This is NPR News from Washington.

This is Black Friday, one of the busiest shopping days of the year in the U.S. The National Retail Federation says it expects a record number of people, more than 183 million, to shop in-store or online through Cyber Monday. Retailers are offering discounts on items such as toys, electronics, and clothing to entice holiday shoppers to spend money. NPR's Laurel Wamsley says tomorrow is designated as Small Business Saturday. This marks the 15th year of Small Business Saturday. Last year, U.S. consumers spent an estimated $17 billion at independent retailers and restaurants on that day. Two-thirds of Americans say they would only shop at small businesses if they could, according to a survey by AT&T Business.

Nearly three-quarters of respondents said they believe small businesses offer better, more distinctive holiday gifts. Supporting the local economy was the top reason cited for shopping at small retailers. A recent survey found that optimism among small business owners rose last month, though inflation remained their biggest concern. Laurel Wamsley, NPR News. Canada's antitrust watchdog is suing Google. It accuses the tech company of anti-competitive practices in its

online advertising. The country's competition bureau says its investigation found Google maintains market dominance by illegally linking its ad tech tools. A Google spokesman says the company disagrees with the findings saying buyers and sellers have plenty of choice and it looks forward to defending its position in court. Trading resumes on Wall Street this morning after yesterday's break for Thanksgiving. I'm Dave Mattingly, NPR News in Washington.