NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-14-2024 11AM EST

Episode Date: December 14, 2024

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Ho ho ho! Santa here, coming to you from the North Pole. We're the elves in our podcast division of just completed work on this season's best gift for public radio lovers, NPR+. Give the gift of sponsored free listening and even bonus episodes from your favorite NPR podcasts, all while supporting public media. Learn more at plus.npr.org. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Louise Schiavone. South Korea's National Assembly has voted to impeach South Korean President Yoon Sung-yol after Yoon's declaration of martial law 11 days ago. The vote was 204 to 85 in the assembly the lawmakers declared Yoon had violated their constitution and their

laws. Yoon will be suspended from his presidential duties and Prime Minister Han Deok-su will take over as acting president. South Korea's constitutional court now has 180 days to consider the impeachment and if it's upheld, Yoon will be removed from office and an election for a new president must be held within 60 days. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Jordan huddling with Arab foreign ministers and the

UN envoy on Syria. NPR's Michelle Kellerman reports that the U.S. wants to see a secular state emerge following the dramatic fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime. Secretary Blinken met with the UN special envoy to compare notes on Syria. To again think through how we can support the Syrian people in this time of both opportunity but also a real challenge. U.N. Envoy Gare Pedersen says it's critical to have an inclusive political process that brings together all communities in Syria.

He also wants to make sure that state institutions don't collapse, leading to chaos and infighting. The U.S. has carried out strikes to keep ISIS from reemerging in Syria. Israel has taken up positions in a buffer zone near the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, drawing criticism from Arab states and the U.N. Michelle Kelliman, NPR News, Tel Aviv. Ukrainian drones overnight struck an oil facility in Russia about a hundred miles from its border with Ukraine. The facility has been a key fuel supply point for Russian troops according to Ukraine's military. The strike came a day

after Moscow launched a massive aerial attack using drones and cruise and ballistic missiles on Ukraine's battered energy grid. President-elect Trump is attending today's Army-Navy game with some guests who are courting controversy and PR's Amy Held has more on who to expect in Trump's suite at Northwest Stadium outside Washington, D.C. Today's game represents a storied rivalry in college football, and Trump is hosting guests who know something about divisiveness.

Pete Hegseth, his pick for defense secretary, is reportedly attending. Accused of sexual assault and excessive drinking, which he denies, Hegseth has struggled to build Senate support. And Vice President-elect J.D. Vance says Daniel Penny accepted his invitation. The Marine veteran was found not guilty of criminally negligent homicide after putting Jordan Neely in a chokehold on a New York City subway last year. Republicans have accused the district attorney in the case of overreach, the same DA Alvin Bragg who secured a conviction against Trump on felony counts of falsifying business records

to try to influence the 2016 election. This is NPR News. About half of a population of seabirds in Alaska died during a recent marine heat wave, according to a new study. Researchers are calling it the largest single species die off ever recorded in modern history. Sophia Stewart Rossi of member station KUCB reports. Scientists say about four million common mers starved to death in Alaska during a two-year warming event that began a decade ago.

An underwater heat dome known as the Blob disrupted the seabird's marine food web in the North Pacific Ocean, and research shows the population may not ever fully recover. About a quarter of the world's population of the common myrrh used to live in Alaska before this event. Scientists say this seabird could now be more vulnerable to predators representing a lasting change in the ecosystem. Scientists say this die-off is an example of how human-caused climate change can lead to rapid and permanent damage to wildlife. For NPR News, I'm Sophia Stewart Rossi in Unalaska, Alaska. A McDonald's employee in Altoona, Pennsylvania gave the tip that led

authorities to apprehend Luigi Mangione in connection with the fatal shooting last week of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. The question is, will that worker receive any or all of the up to $60,000 in reward money posted by the FBI and the NYPD's Crime Stoppers program. Officials say probably, but it'll take time. Police say more than two dozen tips help them track the suspect. And those tipsters may be eligible for part of the pot. Plus, rewards require a conviction and a trial will take a while.

I'm Louise Schiavone, NPR News.