NPR News: 03-15-2026 12AM EDT

0:00Live from NPR News in New York City, I'm Dua Halisai-Kaltal. The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran is now entering its third week with the U.S. threatening more possible attacks on a Persian Gulf island, a place where 90 percent of Iran's crude exports are handled. And Piers Keri Khan has the latest. An official in the region who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly told NPR that Israel is estimating one more week of fighting in Iran. The official said Israel is working on preparing the public here to accept the government's new line that this will not be a war leading to Iranian leadership change, but a war that puts Israel in a much better security situation. And Piers Keri Khan in Tel Aviv, U.S. Central Command said U.S. forces successfully struck 90 Iranian military targets on Harg Island, meanwhile Defense Secretary Pete Hexas says the U.S. obliterated Iran's navy and has near total control of Iranian airspace.

1:05A controversial al-Quds day rally in support of Palestinians went ahead in Toronto on Saturday. As Dan Carpenshuk reports, that was after a judge throughout an injunction request from the Ontario government to prevent the rally from taking place. The judge's decision came Saturday afternoon, less than an hour before the al-Quds rally was set to begin. On Terry O. Premier Doug Ford's government filed an application seeking to block the rally. Ford said he was extremely disappointed with the ruling. On Friday, Ford had said the al-Quds day has long been a venue for anti-semitism, hatred, intimidation, and the glorification of terrorism. There were some tense moments, especially during a counter-demonstration, but a heavy police presence appeared to prevent any major confrontations. At least two people were arrested. A lawyer for the rally organizers said the injunction application was an absurd attempt to abrogate the rights of freedom of speech in assembly. For NPR News, I'm Dan Carpenshuk in Toronto. The first train in six years that departed Beijing to the North Korean capital of Pyongyang

2:07started running again this week. NPR's Emily Feng reports China's state airline will also begin flights again to North Korea. In 2020, North Korea closed its borders to fend off the then-needs in COVID-19 pandemic. That shot of access to the Hermit Kingdom, even denabering China, which is a close economic and political partner of North Korea's. But this week, trains will run between Beijing and Pyongyang again, four times a week, and Air China will resume flights to North Korea at the end of March. Both countries are run by autocratic communist rulers. In North Korea, China has had a close economic, though sometimes politically strained relationship for decades. The two countries still do about $2 billion worth of trade each year, much of it passing through the northern Chinese border town of Dandong separated only by the Yalu River from North Korea. Emily Feng and Pyongyang news. This is NPR. A spacecraft, the size of a large box of cereal, should soon start helping to answer a big question, whether there is life on planets outside our solar system.

3:13Jopalca reports. The spacecraft is called Sparks, an acronym for Star Planet Activity Research Cubesat. Cubesats are a class of tiny, inexpensive probes that can still do significant scientific research. Sparks has an ultraviolet telescope that will be used to study solar flares coming from stars that might have planetary systems. Understanding those flares is key to understanding whether an orbiting planet might have an atmosphere that could sustain life. This was built and is operated at the Arizona State University. It launched in January. Ground controllers have now checked out its instruments and say it's ready to start making scientific measurements. For NPR News, I'm Jopalca. The Pentagon has outlined new editorial guidance for stars and stripes, the independent military newspaper for U.S. service members stationed overseas, but the eight-page memo, which now bars some syndicated features, bars, comics, and limits the use of wire services is being criticized as a threat to the First Amendment.

4:15The papers editor-in-chief Eric Slavin told NPR that he's concerned for his staff reporters who could be court-martialed for possible violations of what the Defense Department might not like. The new so-called modernization changes were released days ago, and just weeks after a Pentagon spokesman accused stars and stripes of, quote, woke distractions. This is NPR News. With March Madness getting underway, coaches are pushing their players to the limits. But an investigation finds that in some instances, tough coaching can go too far. She would call us idiots, stupid, worthless, low off the low. On the Sunday story, coaches accused of emotional abuse and the players who pushed back. The Sunday story from the Up First Podcast, listed now on the NPR app.