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to tap into their strategic oil reserves as the Iran-Word Disrupts global energy markets. The head of the International Energy Agency, or IEA, spoke today to announce the coordinated
release of 400 million barrels of crude.
And beer's Camilla Dominozki reports that's the largest release of stock piled oil in the group's history. The IEA was formed in the wake of the oil crisis of the 1970s, to protect against future disruptions to oil supply. Member countries had to agree to hold stockpiles in reserve in case of emergency.
“The near closure of the state of Hormuz, the essential waterway through which about 20% of”
the world's oil and gas passes, is precisely that kind of emergency. Releasing that oil could help stabilize prices, but there's a limit on how much oil can be pulled out of storage at a time, you can't pull it all at once. Let's say global reserves are not enough to make up for the daily shortfall created by the war.
Camilla Dominozki and PR news. Lebanon's health ministry says a red cross paramedic is died of wounds sustained in an Israeli air strike. More than 570 people have been killed in Lebanon, and PR's Jawad Rizkala has more from Beirut.
The ministry says red cross paramedic use a fast-saf with on the rescue mission Monday in the southern town of Mejdel Zun when an Israeli strike hit his ambulance. He died a day later from his wounds.
The ministry said it's the first red cross ambulance struck by Israel since October
“2023, though other civil defense ambulances were also hit.”
The Lebanese red cross said it deeply regrets the loss of a volunteer devoted to humanitarian service, adding paramedics are not military targets under international humanitarian law. The Israeli military previously told NPR, the accusation of deliberate targeting was "absurd" saying it only attacked military targets. Jawad Rizkala and PR news Beirut.
In the U.S., artificial intelligence company Anthropics says billions of dollars in revenue could be at stake in its legal fight with the Pentagon. Anthropics is suing to block the defense department's designation of the AI company as a supply chain risk, and Beirut's Bobby Allen reports. Anthropics says some of its current and future work could be in jeopardy if the Pentagon
labeling it a supply chain risk remains.
The stand-off is over Anthropics refusing to allow its powerful AI models to be used for
autonomously through weapons and surveilling American citizens. It is the first time the U.S. government has designated a non-eversarial country with a label, which is usually used against firms that could sabotage American interests like China's Huawei. While it's $200 million contract is a fraction of Anthropics $19 billion in annual revenue, the company says being on a federal black list will spook some customers
to the tune of billions of dollars. The Pentagon says AI companies cannot dictate how the government will deploy its technology, especially in wartime operations. Bobby Allen and PR news. "You're listening to NPR."
The government says consumer prices rose in February by 2.4% compared to the same time a year ago. However, this report does not capture the sudden jump and gas prices after the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran started. That data will be seen next month.
Officials in Northern Indiana say two people were killed yesterday after a tornado plowed through the region. Several people were also hurt in the community of Lake Village, southeast of Chicago. Damage in the township is substantial. Parts of Illinois also got tornadoes.
Water is a tornado watch now posted from most of Ohio. Student Lombara Wars could be getting wrong information from the companies hired to manage their loans. That is one takeaway from a new investigation by the nonpartisan government accountability office.
And PR's Corey Turner has more.
“GAO found the U.S. Department of Education stopped two key pieces of oversight under President”
Trump. One staff used to listen back to recordings of phone calls between borrowers and call center workers to make sure they were getting accurate information. And two, Department staff would do special data accuracy checks because loan service or records can be pretty unreliable.
Before these reviews stopped, GAO found that four of the five servicers failed that data check. The Trump administration says these reviews do not meaningfully measure service or performance. But Department officials told GAO the problem was staff capacity. The reviews stopped early last year as the administration began cutting the student loan
office by nearly half, Corey Turner and PR news. And I'm Corva Coleman, NPR News from Washington.
