NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-17-2024 2PM EST

Episode Date: December 17, 2024

NPR News: 12-17-2024 2PM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Every weekday, Up First gives you the news you need to start your day. On the Sunday story from Up First, we slow down. We bring you the best reporting from NPR journalists around the world, all in one major story, 30 minutes or less. Join me every Sunday on the Up First podcast to sit down with the biggest stories from NPR. Live from NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Lakshmi Singh. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has visited a strategic high point in Syria

that the Israelis now control. He and his defense minister say they plan to keep troops there for a while despite outrage across the Arab world. Here's NPR's Michelle Kelliman. Mount Hermon is the highest peak in the Golan Heights. Israeli troops took over a Syrian post there following the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime. And now the Israelis say they plan to stay as long as needed. During a visit, Defense Minister Israel Katz described the summit of Mount Hermon as, quote, Israel's eyes, saying from there they can observe Hezbollah in Lebanon and keep watch on the Syrian capital,

Damascus. Arab states have expressed anger over the Israeli moves into Syria, calling it a land grab. The UN is also expressing concern. Israel has moved into a buffer zone where the UN has had peacekeepers for 50 years. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, Tel Aviv. Investigators are trying to trace the origin of the firearm that a 15-year-old girl allegedly used to carry out yesterday's mass shooting at her private school in Madison, Wisconsin.

A student and teacher were killed and several students and a second teacher were injured in the attack at Abundant Life Christian School. The shooter apparently killed herself. Vice President Kamala Harris shared her feelings about the shooting as she addressed young people today in a Washington, D.C. area suburb. Kamala Harris, Vice President of the United States of America As we hold our loved ones close this holiday season, we as a nation must renew our commitment to end the horror of gun violence, both mass shootings and everyday gun violence that touches so many communities in our nation. The Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions reports guns have been the leading

cause of death among children and teens, accounting for more deaths than car crashes, overdoses or cancers. It based its findings on numbers from 2022, the most recent year of finalized data available. Demand for electricity across much of the country is growing faster than the supply needed to keep power on when the weather is very colder, very hot. And PRS Jeff Brady reports a new assessment shows a transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy is the primary reason. Most at risk is the region west of the Great Lakes and parts of Louisiana and Arkansas. A new report from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation

says those areas are at high risk of not having enough electricity when demand peaks during a typical summer or winter. Extreme weather poses an even greater challenge. Electricity demand is expected to surge over the next decade. That's because the country is switching from fossil fuels to electric power to reduce greenhouse gases. The report says climate-friendly sources of electricity, such as solar, wind, and nuclear,

aren't being built fast enough to meet the increasing demand. That's Jeff Brady. It's NPR News. A San Francisco tech consultant's been convicted of second-degree murder for the fatal stabbing of cash app founder Bob Lee last year. The jury's verdict against Nima Momeni carries anywhere from 16 years to life in prison. There are reports of more possible drones spotted around Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, days after the site was closed for hours because of unexplained aerial activity thought to be drones. According to a press release, the latest sightings took place overnight. Similar mysterious drone activities were reported near the air base last Friday and Saturday. House Intelligence Committee members are soon to receive a closed-door security briefing on drones.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it has confirmed that a child in California did not catch bird flu from raw milk, but new cases continue to pop up around the country, including most recently in Louisiana. Here's NPR's Will Stone. Health officials in Marin County had reported a suspected case of bird flu after a child there consumed raw milk. The child suffered from fever and vomiting, but follow-up testing by the CDC was not able to detect bird flu. Scientists say the risk of a human catching the virus from raw milk is unknown. In theory, it's possible.

What's clear is that raw milk can harbor other dangerous pathogens independent of bird flu. Meanwhile, a person in Louisiana has been hospitalized with a suspected case of bird flu after being exposed to dead and sick birds. Most cases in the US have been mild, so this latest one stands out and underscores that the virus can be quite dangerous. Will Stone, NPR News.

I'm Lakshmi Singh, NPR News. Listen to this podcast sponsor free on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or any podcast app I'm Lakshmi Singh, NPR News.