NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-15-2025 1AM EST
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Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Wilman.
Police in Providence are releasing the person of interest
they had in custody in connection with Saturday's shooting
at Brown University,
At least two people died in that shooting and nine others were injured.
MPR's Luke Garrett, meanwhile, reports that the shooting is renewing Democratic calls for stricter gun safety laws.
Connecticut, Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat, tells CNN he's not hopeful that GOP-controlled Congress will pass new gun legislation.
The Republicans in Congress don't ever meaningfully break from this president.
So until they get the OK from President Trump to break with the gun lobby, I think the chances of us getting something done are slim.
Murphy says the Trump administration's defunding of mental health and gun prevention programs is making the country more dangerous. Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana tells CNN Congress already passed a firearm safety law in 2022. And I would argue that if the facts are known, you will see that Congress has acted. According to data from the gun violence archive, this year, there have been at least 43 shootings on college or university campuses that caused injury or death. Luke Garrett NPR News, Washington. Australian Jews living in Israel are mourning the deaths of at least
15 people in Sunday's mass shooting at a Hanukkah celebration on Bandai Beach in Sydney.
Dozens of other people were injured in that attack.
Police say a father and son are suspected.
Jerome Salkalowski has more from Tel Aviv.
An Australian canter chants a prayer of mourning at a vigil on a beach in Tel Aviv.
Hundreds of people crowd around and light candles in memory of the Bondi Beach massacre victims.
Ellie Parks said his grandparents and many Australian Jews of their generation were survivors of the Holocaust.
They went to Australia to escape the anti-Semitism of the old world.
When we grew up, we thought we were the blessed Jews.
We were the ones who didn't have to deal with all that.
And unfortunately, the last few years have shown us that that isn't quite true.
But he said the vast majority of Australians are horrified by the attack
and also want the kind of country that was a haven for.
for his grandparents. Jerome Sokolovsky, NPR News, Tel Aviv.
U.S. and Ukrainian officials met in Berlin Sunday. Ahead of peace talks taking place later
this week. Ukrainian president, Vladimir Zelensky, said he might be willing to drop Ukraine's
bid for NATO membership under a potential U.S. plan to protect the Eastern European nation.
Zelensky told reporters through a voice message that in the absence of Ukraine actually
joining NATO, the U.S. appears to be offering security guarantees, similar to our
Article 5 of the Security Alliance's charter.
And now, it's not clear how this U.S. provision would work,
but NATO's Article 5 requires member states to defend a member under attack.
And Ukraine needs this because Zelensky says Russia has a history of ignoring treaties and breaking promises.
That's NPR's Geronika Kissis reporting from Kiev, and you're listening to NPR News.
Almost continuous rain has caused heavy flooding in Washington State for the last five days.
And even after that rain is expected to tape off early Monday morning,
a soggy earth may cause more problems.
Scott Greenstone at member station, KUOW, has more.
In Seattle's suburbs, dams are straining to hold back all the water
as even more rainfall is about to hit the region.
Heavy winds of around 50 miles per hour are also expected.
Reed Wolcott is a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
We are completely saturated. There are still trees submerged. Soils are extremely loose. It does not take 50-mile-an-hour winds to knock over trees.
Landslide risk is high in many areas. Mudslides have already hit the tiny town of Tjikin on the shores of Lake Chelan. For NPR news, I'm Scott Greenstone in Seattle.
Two people were found dead Sunday at the Los Angeles home of acclaimed director, Rob Reiner. Los Angeles police say the bodies have not yet been.
identified, but L.A. fire officials say one is a male approximately 78 years old,
while the other is a woman, approximately 68 years old. The deaths are being treated as apparent
homicides. In a closely watched trial, a court in Hong Kong has found activist and media tycoon
Jimmy Lai guilty of all the charges he faced. Prosecutors had alleged that Lai colluded
with foreign forces, including the U.S., to target the governments of Beijing and Hong Kong with
severe sanctions. Lie has denied all the charges. He could face life in prison when sentenced.
I'm Dale Wilman, NPR News.
