NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-02-2025 10PM EST

Episode Date: December 3, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Rylan Barton. Republican Matt Van Epps has won a special election for a congressional district in Tennessee, according to a race call from the Associated Press. He defeated Democrat Afton Bain by about nine percentage points with about 95% of the vote in to fill the seat vacated by Republican Congressman Mark Green. President Trump won the district with about 60% of the vote last year. Peace talks between the U.S. and Russia have wrapped. up for the day in Moscow without a breakthrough, though Russia's lead negotiator did call the meetings

constructive. NPR's Eleanor Beardsley reports from Kiev that Ukrainians are not surprised. Ukrainians say Russian President Vladimir Putin does not want peace. He continues to bomb their cities nearly nightly and believes he's winning in the east, even though Russia lost 25,000 soldiers during the month of October alone. Putin cannot stop. That's Ukrainian military analyst Mikhailo Samus. He says Putin has been trying to destroy Ukraine since 2014. These operations in Crimea and still, he didn't destroy Ukraine. So he's angry and he will continue. Samoos says Ukrainians cannot give in to Putin and will never agree to give up territory.

He says the most Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, can sign for is a ceasefire because there will be no real peace as long as Putin exists. Eleanor Beardsley and PR News, Kyiv. Defense Secretary Pete Hanks, cited the fog of war in defending the decision to strike an alleged drugboat in the Caribbean sea for a second time, saying he did not see that there were survivors. During a cabinet meeting at the White House, Hegg Seth said, quote, the thing was on fire and that he didn't stick around after the first strike. He says the admiral in charge of the mission had made the right

call in ordering it. A UN committee says abuse and torture of Palestinians and Israeli prisons gravely intensified after the Hamas led attack on Israel and the start of God. Gaza's war. NPR's Aibatari reports the committee called on Israel to establish an independent commission and prosecute those responsible, including senior officers. Palestinians released from Israeli prisons since the start of Gaza's war have borne signs of abuse. They've described rape and military detention, severe beatings, prolonged starvation, and attacks by trained dogs. Palestinian authorities say 81 prisoners have died in Israeli jail since late 2023. The UN Committee Against Torture says reports indicate

a, quote, de facto state policy in Israel of organized and widespread torture. Israel did not respond to requests for comment on the report. The committee says Israel does not have a distinct defense criminalizing torture, with legislation actually allowing some exemptions as, quote, a necessity of defense. Aya-Botrawi, NPR News. The Northeast is seeing its first major winter snowstorm of the year. Some parts of Northern New England are expecting up to 10 inches of snow. Many school and government offices have closed in the region.

This is NPR news from why. Washington. Pop singer Sabrina Carpenter and the publisher of the Franklin the Turtle Children's book series are disavowing the Trump administration's use of their work. Carpenter's song, Juno, was used in a video montage depicting ice raids. She tweeted that the video is evil and disgusting and asked not to involve her music in such agendas. Publisher Kids Can Press condemned a post by Defense Secretary Pete Hegeseth showing Franklin

the Turtle holding a bazooka. Wildfires in the Western U.S. have changed in recent decades because of human-caused climate change. That's the finding from a new study out today. And as NPR's Alejandra Burunda reports, the smoke from those more dangerous fires is hurting people's health. Wildfires aren't new in the West. In fact, many Western habitats evolved with frequent burns. And for thousands of years, native people managed many Western landscapes with fire. But fires in the West are getting bigger, smokier, and more destructive.

And at least part of that change is because, of human-caused climate change, according to a new study in the journal PNAS. Since 1997, climate change played the primary role in increasing smokiness, especially in the CERAs and the Cascades. And that smoke hurts people's health. During and after fires, hospitals see increases in visits for respiratory problems like asthma and COPD, and scientists are increasingly concerned about long-term health effects, too. Alejandro Buruna, NPR News.

A beloved albino alligator named Claude at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco has died at age 30. The museum plans a public memorial and people can share memories via email or post. This is NPR News from Washington. This message comes from Wise, the app for using money around the globe. When you manage your money with Wise, you'll always get the mid-market exchange rate with no hidden fees. Join millions of customers and visit Wise.com. T's and Cs apply. Thank you.