NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-11-2024 7AM EST

Episode Date: December 11, 2024

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Live from NPR News in Washington, Ankora Vakulman, the man accused of killing United Health Care's CEO Brian Thompson, has been denied bail in central Pennsylvania. Details are beginning to emerge about suspect Luigi Mangione, who reportedly suffered a major back injury years ago. NPR's Odette Youssef says Mangione used his social media accounts to talk about a domestic terrorist who used bombs to kill people. On his Goodreads account, for example, he posted an excerpt from the writings of Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber.

So we might wonder how that may relate to a trajectory toward political violence. Also, one of the pictures on his ex-account banner is an x-ray of a spine with four large screws inserted in what looks like major surgery. Now, we don't know for certain that this is his x-ray, but there are reports that he may have sustained this injury on a surfing accident in Hawaii. NPR's Odette Youssef reporting. The Israeli military has carried out an extensive bombing campaign in Syria where the situation remains fluid. NPR's Daniel Estrin reports from Tel Aviv. Israel says it has destroyed the majority of

Syria's advanced weapons. Over the last several days the Israeli military says it has struck most of the Syrian military's strategic weapons stockpiles. That includes Israeli strikes on hundreds of targets. Syrian naval vessels, air defense radars, Scud missiles, cruise missiles, fighter targets, Syrian naval vessels, air defense radars, Scud missiles, cruise missiles, fighter jets, helicopters, drones, anti-aircraft batteries, airfields, and dozens of weapons production sites in Damascus and other Syrian cities. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the aim is to prevent the weapons from reaching extremist Islamist groups, and he warned Iran not to reestablish itself in Syria.

In Cairo, top Israeli security officials held talks to try to advance a ceasefire and hostage exchange deal in Gaza. Danielle Estrin, NPR News, Tel Aviv. The Franklin fire in Southern California continues to burn northwest of Los Angeles. None of the fire has been contained. Many homes in the beach city of Malibu are threatened. However, Steve Futterman reports conditions may be turning in favor of fire crews. As the orange glow of the fire dramatically

flared up once more against the nighttime sky, there was an important sign of hope. The powerful winds, which hours ago were rapidly spreading the fire, have begun to slowly but clearly diminish. This has allowed fire crews to go after hot spots as they come up. LA County Fire Chief Anthony Moroney says structure damage has been relatively small. We do have preliminary reports that seven structures are destroyed and eight structures are damaged. Red flag wind conditions are expected to remain in effect until this evening. Mandatory evacuation orders are still in place, but fire officials say they hope the worst

is over. For NPR News, I'm Steve Futterman in Malibu. This is NPR. Reports from Afghanistan say there has been a deadly explosion in the capital, Kabul, according to the Taliban's Interior Ministry. It says that the blast killed the Taliban's acting minister for refugees. There's been no claim of responsibility for the explosion. As you finish up your online holiday shopping, you're probably keeping an eye on when your

packages will be delivered to your front door. Meanwhile, scammers are waiting for their chance to trick you. And as Jenna McLaughlin explains, Have you ever received a text message or email claiming that your package can't be delivered? An urgent missive pressing you to update your address or payment method to avoid shipping delays? Well, it turns out this kind of message is an extremely popular kind of scam aimed at stealing money or sensitive personal information.

Antivirus company Norton says these kinds of scams are on the rise, especially during a busy time for online shopping. One of the most prevalent activities we do in our digital life actually is online shopping. That's Leila Bilge, who directs spam research at Norton. Bilge says these fraudsters are only getting smarter. Now they're even spying on local post offices to steal information about people who are expecting packages to be delivered soon. Jen McLaughlin, NPR News. The motoring club, AAA, predicts that more than 119 million people will travel for the

upcoming holiday in the U.S. That's the time period from December 21st through New Year's Day. That's about 64,000 more travelers compared to the previous record set in 2019. AAA says nearly 8 million passengers are expected to fly. This is NPR.