NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-30-2024 1AM EST

Episode Date: November 30, 2024

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Live from NPR News in New York City, I'm Dwahlees Iqautao. Hezbollah's leader has given his first televised speech since a U.S. brokered ceasefire stopped the fighting Wednesday between Hezbollah fighters and Israeli soldiers. From Beirut, NPR's Lauren Freire reports. In a pre-recorded address from an undisclosed location, Hezbollah chief Naeem Qasem, whose predecessor was killed by Israel, said his group had scored a divine victory. We meet today in a state of victory and divine success.

An even bigger victory, he said, than in the last Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006. But the damage to Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based, is much worse, estimated at some $8.5 billion, according to the World Bank. Qasem pledged to work with the Lebanese army to implement terms of this ceasefire, which gives Israel and Hezbollah 60 days to withdraw from their current positions, and tasks Lebanese soldiers and UN peacekeepers with policing the Israel-Lebanon border area. Lauren Freyer and PR, Beirut.

Economist and analyst are expecting record online shopping this Black Friday. Already, e-shopping on Thanksgiving Day hit a record high, up nearly 10% from last year, according to Market Watchers. At a Louisiana shopping mall in New Orleans, Houston resident Farron Kennedy says physically shopping at stores has been a family

tradition since she was young. Me, my mom, my godmother, we always come to the sales after Thanksgiving. They used to just do toy stores. But as we grew older, we just talked about it. Now we're like in the mall, like everyone wants to shop, look good. So we've moved past the toys. Shoppers in other parts of the country said they were drawn to stores for the steep discounts, in some cases as much as 50 to 70 percent off shoes, handbags, and

electronics. A new study out this week finds that breathing in dirty air can change the DNA inside people's cells and that can lead to problems during pregnancy. And Perez-Alon Alejandra Baronda has more. Tiny bits of pollution called PM2.5 are so small 30 flecks or even more can fit across a human hair. When people breathe them in they don't just hurt their lungs. The particles can get into people's bloodstreams and then they can affect all kinds of cell functions and even impact DNA. A team of scientists, including researchers from Harvard and Stanford, found that exposure to this kind of pollution

during pregnancy can modify the DNA of individual cells. The pollution trigger changes in the immune response that led to more inflammation in both mother and fetus. Previous studies have shown that inflammation can be dangerous for both. It can increase the chances of developing problems like preeclampsia. The researchers say it is more evidence that cleaning up the air would help people be healthier. Alejandra Borunda, NPR News. And I'm Doha Lysa Icautel, NPR News in New York City. Ukraine has returned eight children from the occupied territories and Russia.

NPR's Hanna Palomerenko reports from Kyiv that seven of the children were returned through Qatar's mediation and another one through a humanitarian corridor. Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmitry Lubynevich reported that eight children aged 6 to 16 were returned to Ukrainian- controlled territory. He emphasized that some of the children have health problems and will receive further medical care. The return was carried out as part of Bring Kids Back UA, an action plan initiated by Ukraine's president. According to the Ukrainian National Information Bureau, more than 19,000 Ukrainian children remain deported or forcibly resettled.

Hanna Palamarenko, NPR News, Kyiv. In Syria, a fresh rebel offensive in the country's 13-year-old civil war has spread to the second large city of Aleppo. The rebel fighters are said to be in control of more than half of that city, according to a UK-based war monitoring group called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Meanwhile, unverified videos circulating on local news channels show fighters in Aleppo, but state-run media reports suggest government forces have taken back control of parts of the city.

After more than five years of reconstruction work, the Notre Dame Cathedral is reopening this weekend. I'm Dwahle Saikow-Tau, NPR News in New York City.