The US Iran and Israel keep opening fire in a regional war that was supposed ...
President Trump is still pursuing peace and throws in a passing threat against Tomon. At what point would we say the war is back on? I mean, our team is that is Steve Inskeep and this is a first from MPR News. A US Senate race in Texas went from safely Republican to uncertain. Republicans nominated the scandal plate, state attorney general.
They overwhelmingly rejected the incumbent Senator who had easily won the seat in the past. What does that mean for the party's chances of keeping control of the Senate? Also, the Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo is getting worse.
What is life like in the city of almost a million people that's at the center of the outbreak?
“Stay with us. We've got the news you need to start your day.”
Each story you hear on planet money starts with a question. What happens if we refund tariffs? Why are grocery so expensive? An NPR we stand for your right to be curious because the forces shaping our world can be hard to see. Follow NPR's planet money wherever you get your podcasts and start seeing how the economy really works. At what point would we say the Iran war is back on?
Yeah, peace talks continue between the U.S. and Iran, but sort of exchange is a fire. We're tracking attacks spanning from Lebanon to the Strait of Hormuz and Emen and Gaza, where despite a ceasefire there is really attacks have been intensifying. NPR International correspondent Ayah Betrawe is following all of this from Dubai. Hi there.
Hey, good morning. Um, let's start with the situation in the Gulf. What's happening?
“All right. The U.S. says its forces shut down Iranian drones around the Strait of Hormuz,”
and that they struck an area along Iran's coast overnight. That's according to a U.S. official who spoke with NPR.
Now, this morning Iran's revolutionary guard says it responded to that U.S. attack on Bundar Abbas,
by targeting quote the American base from which that attack originated and quit this morning so that it intercepted drones. So it appears the Iran's attack was on U.S. positions there. Also, the revolutionary guard says it fired at an American commercial vessel, trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz yesterday and forced it to turn around. But Steve, as you said, all this is happening alongside an effort by both sides to
permanently end the war. Yeah, although Israel, the U.S. ally here is insisted it does not favor making a deal with Iran, and also that regardless of any deal, it wants to continue its war in Lebanon. This other front, what is happening there? What's happening there is that Israel just issued evacuation warnings for one of the country's
biggest cities there, tire. This displacement for tire and southern Lebanon really expands Israel's war, pushing it deeper into Lebanon. And Pierre's Jain Arraf and Joedd Rouskala were speaking with families fleeing tire near the main coastal road who told them they have no idea where they're going to sleep and that they had no choice but to flee because of Israel's deadly airstrikes on that city. Now, there's already more than a million people displaced by Israel
in this war in Lebanon, and people are sleeping on sidewalks in the capital bay route with shelters overflowing. Lebanon's health ministry says nearly 3,300 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in this war, hundreds of them are women and children, and more than 100 medics in first responders. And Israel says that more than 20 Israeli soldiers and several civilians have been killed by his balafire. But Iran says there can be no deal with the U.S. without that war and Lebanon
also ending. So, Israel ending that war is going to be key. I appreciate hearing more than a million people displaced that is like the entire population of my home city and the Anapolis a million people. So, how is President Trump moving ahead with negotiations given all the exchanges of fire you just described? You know, it's hard to say if a deal is imminent, but all indications are that Trump is pursuing a diplomatic solution with Iran
“right now, not more war. That's what Gulf Arab states want as well, including mediators like Oman,”
which has long been a neutral, peaceful, and trusted go between for Washington and Tehran. But yesterday, Trump shocked people with a threat to blow up Oman. It was in response to a question at the White House about whether Iran and Oman, which bordered the state of her moves, would control access to this waterway under any deal. Have a listen. Nobody's going to control its international waters and Oman will behave just like
everybody else who will have to blow them up. They understand that. They'll be fine. Now, meanwhile, Steve, a person familiar with the matter and not authorized to speak publicly, told NPR Trump just shared with Israel's Prime Minister and several leaders in the region a draft of the Iran deal for their comments. And to emphasize, this is only an interim deal to extend the current ceasefire to reopen the state of her moves. This would not include details
on Iran's nuclear program and again, Iran is insisting for that deal to happen that war and Lebanon has to end. Okay, so many, many things you have to be negotiated and
NPR is able to try. Thanks as always. Appreciate it. Thanks, Steve. There are two ways for Democrats
To think about their chances of winning a majority in the Senate this fall.
their chances are slim. Democrats need to pick up four seats, which requires them to win some
“very red states, possibly including Texas. Now, the other way suggests their chances are better.”
Republican retirements, divisive primaries, and President Trump's low approval seem to give Democrats a chance in red states possibly including Texas. And if you're a Stephen Fowler, has an assessment. Stephen, good morning. Good morning. Okay, start with Texas. Ken Paxton, State Attorney General, won the primary, knocked off Senator John Cornean. So, what makes that race a little harder for Republicans? Well, now there's no
incumbancy advantage there. Paxton had decisive margins in this week's runoff, but there was lower turnout. And the official Republican Senate campaign arm spent months running brutal attack
ads against Paxton, and he's now their nominee. All the wild Democrat James Tolerico has been
a fundraising juggernaut has weighed more party unity behind him. It's a favorable environment for Democrats, and he is already leaning in on the myriad scandals that have plagued Paxton's time
“in office. Okay, so Democrats feel good about their candidate. Republicans feel a little less good”
is this pattern repeated in some other states? Well, I also want to note that's kind of the inverse of the 2022 midterms where Republicans had the structural advantage trying to knock off Democrats in a redder year, but he had Trump back nominees fall short in competitive states like Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Arizona. But you are right. There are several states this year where Democrats have the best candidates they could actually hope for against vulnerable incumbents
and they're hoping to ride away. Okay, so we mentioned Texas already, but walk us across the whole map here. Democrats need to hold on to Georgia and Michigan and flip four of the following, North Carolina, Maine, Ohio, Iowa, Texas, and Alaska. Some of those are red states. Others a bit more purple. In a normal year, you may think that's a specific task. I mean, Democrats haven't one statewide in Texas in three decades, for example, but the way polls are looking and with the
“demographics of Texas and particular, that could very likely be that 51st seat for Democrats.”
Okay, so you just named about half a dozen purple or red states. Democrats would need to win several of them. How do you get to the point where a Democrat would win in a heavily revubblican state? Think about it like a game of tug of war. And in this case, Republicans have to contend with Trump not being on the ballad cheering people on, and then maybe having some of his supporters not showing up to help, plus some of the moderates who might be opposed to
Paxton might stay home too. Then on the other side, Democrats are hoping to bring back some of the people that they lost in recent elections, and they're anchored by a base of supporters who are also stronger, more energized, and more determined to vote, and that may be enough to pull Toleriko across the finish line here. Okay, so that is the way things would look in Texas, but we mentioned these other states. I guess in some states, the candidates are not entirely settled,
right? Right. Still worth watching. Iowa Democrats on Tuesday have to decide who they want to face off against representative Ashley Henson. The options there are Josh Turck and Zach Walls, and then Michigan's primary is the beginning of August. And that's one where Republicans are actually feeling the most optimistic for our flip right now. We know Steve, this is politics. So things
always change. Well, that's a good point. There are states where Democrats are on the offensive,
trying to flip a seat, but they are desperate to hold on in places like Michigan as well. Steven, thanks so much. Thank you. That's NPR political reporter Stephen Feller, who's in Atlanta. Some of the news now, the director general of the World Health Organization is expected to arrive today in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is struggling to contain any bola outbreak. Officials say there are more than 1,000 suspected cases in over 200 suspected deaths,
though the figures are likely far higher, neighbouring Rwanda and Uganda, have closed their borders with Congo. We're joined now by Emmett Livingstone from the DRC's Capital Ken Shasa. Welcome back. Thank you for having me. Okay, before even making the visit, the WWHO director general described Eastern Congo as "catastrophic collision of disease and conflict. How bad is it?" Catastrophic is the word that really sums it up. The WHO director general may see it
for himself when he travels later this week to the epicenter in a Tory province in eastern Congo. This is a region driven by militia violence and extreme poverty, and the health system there is a broken shell. The heart of the outbreak is a remote gold mining town called Mongualu and health workers in NGOs there face huge challenges. Some residents don't believe that Ebola exists. There have been violent attacks on the hospital and on Ebola isolation
tense and parts of the town are now no-go zones. I've been speaking to Dr. Esther Sturck,
A tropical disease specialist for doctors with our borders in Mongualu.
many community deaths and suspected patients arriving at hospital. This is probably only a small
“proportion of all cases at the moment. One of the big challenges is the lack of diagnostics”
capacity where often it takes many, many days before the laboratory results come out. So put simply the hospitals and NGOs are overwhelmed and struggling to keep up with the scale of the outbreak. We heard a say that Rwanda closed their border. Rwanda closed its border. The neighbouring countries must be very concerned. neighbouring countries are really on high alerts. Uganda has so far recorded seven confirmed cases according to its health ministry.
“But concern is now spreading internationally as well. It's not just regional. Canada has”
announced a 90-day entry ban for residents from Congo, Uganda and South Sudan. Last week the US banned non-citizens who had traveled to any of those three countries from entering. The White House confirms the US is establishing a facility in Kenya for Americans who may have been exposed to Ebola but who aren't showing symptoms. And Secretary of State Marka Rubio said that the administration and a quote "cannot and will not allow any cases of Ebola to enter the United States."
“What are the most urgent needs right now? The immediate priorities are containing the virus and that”
requires PPE, a ramping up of testing capacity, isolation units and tracing known contacts of suspected Ebola cases. There are major gaps in diagnostics, delays of days in confirming cases who are
showing symptoms, which is slowing a response. A security and access remain critical issues in
conflicted areas like a TURRY and there is $500 million of international age that has been pledged. But much of the work on the grant is still only just beginning and the delivery of aid is hampered by insecurity, by logistics, by weak health infrastructure. And unfortunately in some places, by corruption, unlike some other Ebola strains, there is currently no vaccine for this one, and for many communities help us only arriving after the death have already been buried.
Okay, we will continue listening for your reporting from Congo, Emmett Livingstone, in Kanchasa. Thanks so much. Thank you.
And that's up first for this Thursday, May 28th, I'm Steve Inscape.
And I mean, Martinez today's episode of what first was edited by Miguel Macias, Megan Pratz, Tara Niel, Tina Crya, behind LBRDC and Lindsay Totti was produced by Zietbuch, and yet mass our director is Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott, our technical director is Carly Strange, and our deputy executive producer is Kelly Dickens. Join us again tomorrow. [Music]
