NPR News: 03-11-2026 5PM EDT

0:00Who should win the Oscar for the best original song this year? On the latest all songs considered from NPR music, we rank the nominees. I think Diane Warren should have won two Academy Awards. The problem is very often the lyrics are not much more insightful than you would find on the nearest throw pillow. Here's the NPR music podcast on the NPR app or wherever you get podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton, President Trump says he will tap the US's strategic petroleum reserve to try to reduce gasoline prices that have risen due to the Iran war. Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency, which the US is a member of, agreed to tap its reserves with a coordinated release of 400 million barrels of crude oil. NPR's Camila Domenoski reports. 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 Strait of Hormuz, the essential waterway,

1:00through 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. Analysts say global reserves are not enough to make up for the daily shortfall created by the war. Camila Domenoski, NPR News. Israel continues to hit what its sensor regime targets in the Iranian capital, as Iran has fired back into Israel, and multiple countries in the Gulf say they intercepted missiles and drones today, as NPR's Kerry Khan reports. Air raid sirens sounded repeatedly Wednesday in central Israel as residents scrambled into shelters. Defense Minister Israel Kat said the war in Iran will quote, continue without any time limit until we decisively win the campaign. In the UAE military officials say its air defense systems responded to incoming missiles and drones from Iran. Saudi Arabia Kuwait and Qatar also said their systems intercepted incoming missiles.

2:04According to a UK maritime organization, three ships in the Strait of Hormuz were hit by projectiles. Kerry Khan and NPR News Tel Aviv. The Justice Department has quietly restarted a program that allows some people with felony records to regain their federal gun rights. NPR's Jacqueline Diaz has more. The 22 people, the Justice Department approved to get their guns back, lost their second amendment rights because of felony convictions decades ago. The DOJ maintains that the people on this list pose no public safety risk and had committed their felony crimes many years ago. That is, except for one, Arizona State Senator Jay Kaufman. He was indicted in an Arizona fake electric scheme from 2020. He received a pardon from Trump last year, but still faces those charges in Arizona. A DOJ official said Hoffman poses no risk to public safety. Hoffman didn't respond to NPR's request for comment. Jacqueline Diaz and NPR News. Inflation stayed elevated last month as gas prices rose and gas prices are expected to push

3:08inflation much higher when inflation data for this month is released in early April. The US stock market remained relatively calm, even as the price of oil climbed again. This is NPR News from Washington. Britain is ending the centuries-old tradition of hereditary aristocrats sitting in Parliament's House of Lords. Yesterday, the Lords dropped objections to a bill passed by the House of Commons that removes dozens of dukes, urls, and others who inherited seats in the unelected upper chamber. A previous government removed most hereditary seats in 1999, but left some in place. An Iranian official says its men's soccer team will not compete in this summer's World Cup after the US and Israel's military campaign that killed Iran's supreme leader, NPR's Becky Sullivan reports. Speaking on State TV, Iranian sports minister Ahmad Donia Mali said, quote, under no circumstances can we participate in the World Cup. Iran qualified for the World Cup last year and the team is set to take part in three group stage games when the tournament begins in June. Two of those games would be in the Los Angeles

4:11area in the third in Seattle. It's not clear if the team has formally withdrawn from the tournament. FIFA has not commented. Pulling out of a World Cup is unprecedented in the modern era. FIFA regulations say Iran could be fined hundreds of thousands of dollars or face a ban from future competition. And it's unclear whether another team would take Iran's place or how FIFA would decide who gets in. Tournament rules say FIFA has broad discretion to make those calls. Becky Sullivan NPR News. Kansas City Chiefs Tiedend Travis Kelsey has put off retirement one more time to return for a 14th season that are known by some as Taylor Swift's fiance. Kelsey says he still loves the work and the game. He says he also wants to play once more with quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who season last year ended three games early with a torn knee ligament. You're listening to NPR News from Washington.