NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-16-2025 6PM EST

Episode Date: December 16, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Rylan Barton. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says he will not release video of a deadly airstrike on a suspected drug smuggling boat in the Caribbean. NPR's Quill Lawrence reports the decision reverses President Trump's earlier comments that he would have no problem releasing the footage to the public. Hegseth says the U.S. is at war with drug traffickers and can legally kill them on suspicion. Nearly 100 people have died in strikes on small boats. Critics call it murder. Even under the laws of war, the September 2nd strike is controversial because two survivors of an initial strike were targeted and killed

as they clung to burning wreckage and waved in distress. Hegeseth says the Congressional Armed Services Committees, the Hask and Sask, will see the full video on Wednesday. Of course, we're not going to release a top secret, full, unedited video of that to the general public. Hask and Sask and appropriate committees will see it. Reactions from lawmakers that have already seen the video have fallen mostly along partisan lines. Quill Lawrence NPR News.

President Trump is expanding a travel ban, adding more countries to a blacklist, making it harder or even impossible for their citizens to come to the U.S. NPR's Michelle Kellman reports that this is part of the Trump administration's efforts to restrict travel and immigration. Earlier this year, Trump named 12 high-risk countries banning or restricting their nationals from coming to the U.S. Now five more countries are being added to the list, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan, and Syria. According to a White House proclamation, the administration is also banning anyone holding documents issued by the Palestinian Authority. It's also imposing partial restrictions on 15 other countries, including Senegal and Cote d'Ivoire, whose teams will be playing in the World Cup next year. The White House says there are carve-outs for athletes and diplomats or individuals whose entry, quote, serves U.S. national interests.

Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, Washington. Hiring slowed last month as U.S. employers added just 64,000 jobs. NPR's Scott Horsley reports the unemployment rate rose to its highest level in four years. Healthcare and construction were some of the only industries to add jobs in November. Factories cut jobs and so did delivery services. The pace of hiring has slowed sharply since the beginning of the year. Concern over a weakening job market led the Federal Reserve to lower its benchmark interest rate last week for the third time since September. The Labor Department's ability to monitor the job market was hampered this fall by the six-week government shutdown.

Both the October and November jobs numbers were delayed, and the survey used to track unemployment was not conducted in October. The unemployment rate for November was 4.6 percent, that's up from 4.4 percent in September, and the highest jobless rate. since the fall of 2021. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. Stocks dipped today. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. A driver who injured more than 130 people when he plowed his car into a crowd of soccer fans

celebrating Liverpool's Premier League Championship has been sentenced to over 21 years in prison. Prosecutors said Paul Doyle flew into a fury because he couldn't get where he was going fast enough to pick up friends. Doyle had pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm. This year's Arctic report card is out today. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric administration says the warming of the Arctic region is having impacts worldwide. Barbara Moran from

Member Station WBUR reports the findings detail the warmest and wettest year recorded in the Arctic. What happens up in the Arctic doesn't always stay up in the Arctic. It's warming directly influences global sea level rise, weather patterns, and wildlife migrations, says Matthew Drunken Miller. He's a scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colorado, and lead editor of this year's report. The northern part of our planet is really the refrigerator for the planet. It keeps our planet cool. And whether you are close to the Arctic or far from the Arctic, when the Arctic falls and it warms, it's having an impact on the global climate. The Arctic is warming more than twice as fast as the rest of the planet. For NPR News, I'm Barbara Moran in Boston.

Rome has opened a subway station deep beneath the Coliseum that includes ancient artifacts. Commuters can view displays of ceramic vases and plates, stone wells, and suspended buckets. They can also see the ruins of a cold plunge pool and thermal bath from a first century dwelling. This is NPR News from Washington.