NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-28-2024 11AM EST

Episode Date: December 28, 2024

NPR News: 12-28-2024 11AM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Oh, oh, oh, 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 plus 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 dot NPR dots org Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Nora Rahm. Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Azerbaijan's leader today for the crash of an Azerbaijan airliner in Kazakhstan this week that killed 38 people. He called it a tragic incident. The Kremlin says Russian air defense systems were firing because of the Ukrainian drone

strike, but he stopped short of saying that Russia was responsible for the crash. The health ministry in Gaza says Israel's army has detained the director of one of the last functioning hospitals in northern Gaza. The announcement comes after the Israeli military shut down the hospital, saying it was being used as an operating base for Hamas fighters. The hospital staff denies this. NPR's Emily Fang reports. For weeks, the staff of Kamal Adwan Hospital in North Gaza refused to evacuate despite orders from the Israeli army. The hospital's director insisted that some of his patients

would die if moved. But on Friday, after weeks of intense shelling and deadly strikes near the hospital, the Israeli military forcibly shut it down. The Gaza health authorities at parts of the hospital were later burned down. This is Noor Amoukayed, a nurse in the hospital's ICU unit. She said in a voice note shared by her sister with NPR that the Israeli military first set fire to buildings surrounding the hospital before shelling sections of the hospital itself. Emily Fang, NPR News, Tel Aviv, Israel. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says the government will reach its debt limit by mid-January.

NPR's Rafael Nam reports. Sometime between January 14th and January 23rd, the U.S. will hit its debt limit. That's according to a letter sent by Yellen to Congress on Friday. But Yellen says the U.S. can adopt so-called extraordinary measures to continue paying its bills. These are essentially accounting moves to conserve cash, like suspending some planned investments. Yellen did not say how long the U.S. can do that for. Some analysts believe the U.S. could stretch its money until summer. But it would likely be up to the incoming Republican Congress and the next President, Donald Trump, to raise or suspend the debt ceiling. Otherwise, the U.S. risks a devastating default. Raffael Nam, NPR News. The Department of Health and Human Services is considering whether health care providers

should be required to do more to prevent cyber attacks. Ann Neuberger is the US Deputy National Security Advisor for Cybersecurity. She says huge numbers of Americans have been affected by breaches of health information. In the last five years, there's been an alarming growth, a thousand and two percent, in the number of Americans affected by large breaches of health care information, over 167 million individuals in 2023 alone. The proposed rule would require the health care providers to add new cybersecurity measures. You're listening to NPR News.

Pro-Russian hackers are taking responsibility for a cyber attack in Italy today. Italy's cyber security agency says 10 official websites were hit, including the Foreign Ministry. It says it acted promptly and the impact of the attack was mitigated in a few hours. UNICEF says more than 473 million children live in areas affected by conflicts, a record high. These conflicts span the globe from Haiti to Lebanon, from Myanmar to the Democratic Republic of Congo. NPR's Gabriella Emanuel has more. UNICEF says there are more conflicts now than at any point since World War II. And since the world's population has more than tripled since then,

the total number of kids affected is at an all-time high. Joe English is with UNICEF. Everywhere where we have data, the numbers are worse than they have ever been. Growing up in a conflict zone makes a child more likely to be out of school and malnourished, he says, and there are often long-lasting impacts on a child's mental health. Gabriella Emanuel, NPR News. Actor Olivia Hussey has died. A statement from her family said she died peacefully at home yesterday, surrounded by

loved ones. No cause was given. Hussey was 15 years old when she was cast as Juliet in the 1968 film adaptation of Romeo and Juliet. Hussey won a Golden Globe for her portrayal. Decades later, she and actor Leonard Whiting, who played Romeo, sued Paramount Pictures, alleging they were filmed in the nude without their knowledge. The lawsuit was dismissed. Olivia Hussey was 73. This is NPR.