NPR News: 03-29-2026 8AM EDT

0:00Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. U.S. military forces are building up in the Middle East with thousands of Marines and sailors arriving in the region. The deployment comes as Pakistan hosts talks today with regional powers, including Turkey and Egypt in a push to broker a ceasefire with Iran. But diplomacy faces major hurdles with Tehran reporting fresh air strikes hitting multiple areas overnight. Iran is also warning it could target U.S. universities in the Middle East following reports of strikes on academic sites in Tehran. In a separate development, Iran says it will allow 20 Pakistani flag ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Betsy Joel's reports Pakistan says two ships will pass through the waterway daily under this agreement. This announcement by Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishak Dar comes days after he confirmed that Pakistan was relaying messages between Iran and the United States in an attempt

1:01to de-escalate the war between them. Iran started restricting access to the Strait of Hormuz shortly after U.S.-Israeli attacks began late last month. In addition to Pakistan, some ships from countries including China, Malaysia, Turkey, and India have passed or gotten permission to pass so far. Iran has explicitly banned ships linked to the U.S.-Israel and their allies. The disruption of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has had a major impact on crude oil prices, which rose to $110 per barrel this past week. For NPR News, I'm Betsy Joel's in Islamabad. At the Vatican, thousands filled St. Peter's Square this morning for Palm Sunday celebrations, marking the start of Holy Week, worshipers waived palm branches as clergy led a procession through the square. In his homily, Pope Leo urged the faithful to reject a vision and embrace compassion. The Pope also condemned leaders who wage war, calling the violence atrocious and mourning

2:06that faith cannot be used to justify it. California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed an executive order banning state officials from betting on prediction markets with insider information, NPR's Bavialin reports. Services like Kalshi and Polymarket allow bets on future policies, military strikes, and election outcomes. And some lawmakers are growing increasingly worried that the betting apps can be exploited by people who have access to government and military secrets. Newsom's order prevents appointees of the governor from using non-public information to personally profit on prediction markets. In recent months, well-timed bets on things like the ouster of Iran's Supreme Leader and the arrest of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro led to hundreds of thousands of dollars in profits. Kalshi and Polymarket say they already ban insider trading, relying on their own surveillance tools to catch suspicious bettors, Bavialin and PR news. This is NPR. The Department of Veterans Affairs is rolling out a new electronic health record system

3:06nationwide starting with Michigan. Officials say the system will make it easier for veterans to document exposure to hazards like burn pits and agent orange by keeping records in one place. But they warned the transition could cause delays as order records were often handled by mail and processed manually. The No Kings rallies drew large crowds of protesters in cities and towns across the nation on Saturday and some unexpected participants in Walla Walla Washington, a goat named Mr. Wiggles joined the demonstrations and a king with Northwest news broadcasting reports. Joan and Pierre Louise Montier drove Mr. Wiggles to the protest in the back of their Burgundy Honda van. They laid plastic and straw in the back and fed him carrots and apples to keep him compliant. At the event, they tied a tiara crown between his horns and put a banner on him that said

4:08the buck stops here. Pierre Louise Montier says. People don't realize that when you lose something, it's hard to get it back and it's been happening so fast, the ticking over of the democracy really. The Montiers are farmers from near here. They say farmers are having a hard time with short labor, high fertilizer and fuel costs. For NPR News, I'm Anna King in Walla Walla. This is NPR. According to this podcast, sponsor free on Amazon Music with a prime membership or any podcast app by subscribing to NPR News Now Plus at plus.npr.org. That's plus.npr.org.