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Today's top stories
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last night that he is expanding his invasion of Lebanon. Officials say over a million people in Lebanon have been displaced and more than 1,200 people have been killed. On Saturday, among those killed were three Lebanese journalists covering the Israeli invasion of their country's south.
- 🎧 The geography of events happening in Lebanon is worth understanding, NPR's Lauren Frayer tells Up First. Last week, Israeli officials said they would take Lebanese territory up to the Litani River, which sits 10-20 miles north of the current borders. A few days later, they ordered residents to evacuate a zone extending about 10 miles beyond that, north of the Zahrani River. Now, the prime minister's latest announcement has caused more confusion and fear in the area. Israel says it wants to create a buffer zone so Hezbollah cannot fire rockets across the border into northern Israel, which Hezbollah continues to do. Israel occupied the zone in the 1980s and '90s, and many who live there fear history could be repeating itself.
The critical Strait of Hormuz remains closed to almost all oil tankers. Meanwhile, an additional 2,000 U.S. troops have reached the Middle East, and more are on the way. Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have also joined the war. President Trump says negotiations with Iran are going well, and that Tehran will allow 20 oil tankers to pass through the strait today "out of respect."
- 🎧 The U.S. has around 50,000 troops in the Middle East, and the expanding force will provide Trump with additional options. However, the numbers remain relatively small, meaning they could carry out specific raids or operations, NPR's Greg Myre says. But the number of troops in the Middle East isn't enough for a major, sustained ground invasion. Trump and the Pentagon have not hinted at any specific mission, but the most urgent issue is the strait, which has sparked speculation that the troops may be part of an effort to open it to oil tankers, Myre says.
For over 40 days, Transportation Security agents haven't been paid, resulting in lengthy lines at airport security checkpoints across the U.S. as many call out sick or quit. Congress has yet to reach a deal to fund TSA due to a disagreement over immigration enforcement. Trump is ordering the Department of Homeland Security to find the funds to pay TSA employees within its budget, though the execution of this order remains unclear.
- 🎧 The Trump administration says TSA staff could receive pay as early as today. Even if those paychecks go out, a few issues remain, NPR's Joe Hernandez says. For one, close to 500 TSA officers have quit so far during this partial government shutdown. In addition, Congress still has to figure out how to fund DHS, but lawmakers just left for a two-week recess.
- ➡️ Even after TSA workers receive their paychecks, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents could remain at U.S. airports, according to White House border czar Tom Homan.
- ➡️ If long TSA lines cause you to miss a flight, here are some strategies to help you rebook.
The Supreme Court will hear arguments on Wednesday on whether all U.S.-born children should continue to automatically receive citizenship. This decision, not expected for a few months, could change a long-standing practice that the Trump administration has challenged. Public opinion on the topic is mixed: Many Americans support citizenship for children born to parents who are U.S. citizens or to those who immigrated to the U.S. legally. However, views differ significantly when it comes to children born to parents who immigrated illegally. Here's a closer look at how Americans feel about the issue.
Picture show
Across the U.S., from large cities to small towns, millions protested the Trump administration's policies on Saturday. "No Kings," a network of progressive groups opposing the administration's agenda, organized the protests, which mark the third wave of demonstrations since Trump began his second term. Last year, millions also attended the protests in June and October. Take a look at some images from the demonstrations, including an ice sculpture and large crowds marching.
Behind the story
by Jaclyn Diaz, general assignment correspondent
Back in January, I attended the U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting in Washington, D.C. Many of the leaders of America's biggest and smallest cities and towns were there to talk about major issues affecting them all. One of the biggest concerns? Federal immigration enforcement.
At that point, Minneapolis was in headlines after it was inundated with federal immigration agents. LA, Portland, Ore., and other communities had already experienced their own surge months before. I heard directly from mayors who talked about the impact these raids were having on their communities — and on their budgets. Portland Mayor Keith Wilson was especially emphatic about how badly his city's police department was affected by the federal immigration protests in the summer and fall. Decreased police manpower contributed to longer call response times and police officer overtime, he said.
I realized there was a story to examine that went beyond the latest breaking news. There was an outsized financial impact to these communities, and American taxpayers were the ones covering the bill.
What I didn't expect was reporting to take weeks. It was harder than expected to get responses from many cities and police departments on what I thought were pretty simple questions: How much did your community spend on overtime for policing during these operations? And how does that compare to prior years?
My story gathers together some data that I was able to get my hands on — only after circumventing police departments who demanded I file a Freedom of Information Act request — and going directly to mayors offices, a city controller or city councilmembers. In most cases, I was not able to easily find financial data to compare from years earlier. Accessing this data was especially difficult in Los Angeles, where I learned the city's police department keeps a lot of information close to the chest. Even politicians in the city struggle to obtain financial data, according to the LA Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez. And when I asked for this information, from say police departments, they said it's difficult to get some of that information sorted in a timely manner.
I find it interesting, and frustrating, that information that should be public and easily accessible was so tricky to get. After all, these funds are paid for by the taxpayer.
3 things to know before you go
- The iconic Market Theatre of South Africa, a force for change born during the darkest days of apartheid, is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Legendary South Africans like actor John Kani and playwright Athol Fugard made their names at the theater.
- Blooper reels, once common in comedy films, are fading from cinema partly due to the rise of dramatic post-credit epilogues and the shift from DVDs to streaming platforms, experts say.
- Drought can drive higher antibiotic resistance in soil bacteria, and that resistance may be spreading to human infections, according to new research in Nature Microbiology.
This newsletter was edited by Yvonne Dennis and Treye Green.
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