NPR News: 03-02-2026 2PM EST

0:00With the rise of prediction markets, you can bet on anything, from weather to what President Trump will say in his next press conference. I'm not a fan of Trump, though I do spend most of my day listening to him and tracking what he's doing. On the Sunday story, who's winning big on these apps and who's losing? The Sunday story from the Up First podcast, listen now on the NPR app. Lie from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. The Trump administration is predicting the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran will not be drawn out. The president's outlook is four to five weeks. President Trump was presiding today over a medal of honor ceremony at the White House, where three U.S. Army soldiers were being honored for their sacrifices, two of them posthumously. Addressing the country's latest losses, President Trump expressed condolences for the deaths of four American soldiers in Kuwait as a result of the current war. NPR Steve Pashivaram reports Trump

1:00defended his decision to take military action. Trump says there were, quote, grave threats posed to America in the Iranian regime. He says the U.S. warned Iran not to rebuild their nuclear capabilities and that Iran didn't listen to those warnings. Trump also says that Iran would have soon had missiles that were capable of hitting the U.S. An Iranian regime armed with long-range missiles and nuclear weapons would be an intolerable threat to the Middle East, but also to the American people, our country itself. Trump claims the strikes on Iran was the administration's, quote, last-best chance at keeping Iran's nuclear capabilities in check and preventing Iran from investing in terror groups. Deepak Shivaram and P.R. News. Yes, Meen Farouk is project director for the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula at the International Crisis Group. She spoke about the options for U.S. allies in the Middle East who are being hit by Iran's retaliatory strikes. Within their plans to consider what kind of retaliation or

2:01response they are going to have to respond to those Iranian attacks, they are doing it in coordination with the U.S. We've seen a joint statement by all the countries with the exception of a man. So the U.S. will remain their strategic ally. Yes, Meen Farouk on NPR's morning edition. The Pentagon says it's cancelling military fellowships at several colleges and universities, including Princeton, Columbia, and MIT. From a conversation, G.B. H. and Boston, Kirk Karepp has a report school officials say they were caught off guard. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth calls the institutions, quote, woke breeding grounds. He announced the military is dropping fellowships at 13 universities in a video statement Friday. This comes a few weeks after the Pentagon cut ties with Harvard, ending all military training, fellowships, and certificate programs at the Ivy League School. Hegseth has a master's from Harvard School of Public Policy. An MIT spokesperson says the university stands by its long record in military education,

3:03noting that more than 12,000 officers have been commissioned through MIT, and more than 150 of them have gone on to become generals or admirals. The university says its surprise the administration would take those opportunities off the table. For NPR News, I'm Kirk Karepp as in Boston. This is NPR. Meen Farouk state-run media say the military huntup has granted Amnesty to thousands of prisoners, including those jailed or inhiding for their political dissent. There is no sign that former leader Ong San Suu Chi would be released from confinement. The Amnesty coincides with a national holiday honoring Myanmar's farmers. The parliament is also weeks away from convening for its first session in more than five years. There is a celestial event coming early tomorrow morning. A total lunar eclipse will redden the moon. NPR Zamy Held reports this phenomenon is called a blood moon.

4:04The moon orbits Earth, which orbits the Sun. A few times a year they all line up, creating a kind of cosmic shadow show called an eclipse. It's lunar when the Earth is in the middle, casting its shadow onto the full moon. It looks red because the shorter wavelengths of blue and violet can't quite get through Earth's atmosphere, but the longer wavelengths of red and orange can, and a blood moon is made. It happens gradually over hours. In the U.S. totality starts Tuesday morning around 3 a.m. Pacific, that's six eastern. It can also be seen from parts of Asia, Australia, Central and South America, Africa and Europe miss out. NASA says this is the last total lunar eclipse for almost three years. The next, New Year's Eve to ring in 2029. Amy Held and PR News. At last, check on Wall Street. The Dow is down 148 points at 48,829. S&P is down 7. NASA has up 44 points. This is NPR News.