NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-25-2024 6AM EST

Episode Date: December 25, 2024

NPR News: 12-25-2024 6AM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Louise Schiavone. In the Israeli occupied West Bank, the rites of Christmas were solemn at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. Midnight Mass was led by the head of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, Cardinal Pierre Battista Pizzaballa. In the streets of Bethlehem, in the shadow of war-torn Gaza, traditional Christmas lights, musical bands and masses of tourists are missing as the Middle East in general mourns the losses of the Hamas-Israeli conflict triggered two years ago by a Hamas terror attack inside Israel.

Ukraine is reporting that Russia launched a major Christmas Day bombardment. Ukraine's energy ministry says missiles have been targeting their power sector. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia launched over 70 missiles, including ballistic missiles and over 100 attack drones. Ukraine's energy operator has instituted restrictions on the supply of electricity as a result. The Danish government has increased its budget for defense of Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory. Terry Schultz reports on the move as President-elect Donald Trump repeated his desire to purchase

the island. Officials in Greenland have expressed dismay at Donald Trump's repetition of how strategically important the island is and how he wants to make it part of the US. Greenland is ours said Greenland's Prime Minister Mutte Egede. We are not for sale and will never be for sale. Denmark, which is responsible for Greenland's foreign and defense policy also just announced it would be doubling the amount it spends on protecting the island. Danish defense minister Truls Linde Poulsen said the boost would be at least 1.5 billion dollars. Defense Minister Truls Lynn Poulsen said the boost would be at least $1.5 billion. Poulsen called it an irony of fate that the defense upgrade was announced at the same time Trump was speaking about Greenland.

For NPR News, I'm Terri Schulz. President-elect Trump is promising to vigorously pursue capital punishment after President Biden this week commuted the sentences of 37 of the 40 people on Federal death row to life imprisonment. The pardons do not include cases of terrorism and hate-motivated mass murder, and three federal inmates still face execution. In his criticism of Biden's decision, Trump was not more specific about capital punishment. Nearly 40 percent of adults say they are stressed about the possibility of political discussions

coming up at this holiday. NPR's Katie Riddle reports. A recent report shows that most Americans plan to avoid political discussions over the holidays. Dr. Vale Wright is with the American Psychological Association. That's the group that conducted this survey. She says not talking about hard stuff at these moments is understandable. It's not selfish and it doesn't mean you don't care about the issues.

Possibly to evade these uncomfortable conversations, nearly 40% of adults said they were avoiding family members they disagree with this holiday season altogether. This is NPR. Armed men in Haiti opened fire at medical staff, police officers and journalists during a Christmas Eve media conference to announce the reopening of the country's biggest public hospital. At least three people were killed. The BBC's Leonardo Rocha has details. Journalists were waiting for the arrival of the Health Minister at the General Hospital

in the capital, Port-au-Prince, when the shooting began. Pictures posted online appear to show several people injured or dead inside the building. The site had been recaptured by Haiti's government in July, after being occupied and destroyed by violent gangs that control much of the city. The people of Haiti continue to suffer with unbearable levels of gang violence, despite the installation of a new transition government in April. The BBC's Leonardo Rocha.

Very few world financial markets are open this Christmas day, and Tokyo and Shanghai shares were lower, oil prices were higher. On Wall Street, in shortened trading on Christmas Eve, the Dow rose 390 points, the NASDAQ was up 266. Here's something you might identify with today. A survey commissioned by Finnish JetDry, a dishwasher rinse product, shows 65% of holiday hosts are cleaning their homes until the very moment before their guests arrive. 2,000 people were polled.

The results suggest that hosts feel lots of pressure around this time of year with the most time-consuming tasks being meal preparation, followed by grocery shopping, cleaning the kitchen, and more than half of those surveyed said that self-care is taking a backseat. I'm Louise Schiavone, NPR News, Washington.