NPR News: 04-01-2026 3AM EDT

0:00Live from NPR News, I'm child Snyder. President Trump is planning to deliver an address to the nation tonight. The White House says he'll give an update on the Iran War. Trump's address comes as a straight-up or moves remains largely shut down, sending oil on gas prices sharply higher, and appears to even saw how it reports. Nationally, a gallon of regular gas at the pump now costs on average more than $4. Not really all that much higher when Americans are paying a week ago, just a few cents more, but if you compare it to a month ago before the war with Iran began, we are paying more than a dollar per gallon extra. And this does have a huge psychological effect. I mean, think about that big sign in front of gas stations, the one that you pass every day with that big four at the front. Plus, it really has been well since gas was north of $4 a gallon. That was more than three years ago, and it was due to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The price of a barrel of Brent crude has ease, but remains above $100 a barrel.

1:02A Russian tanker has docked in Cuba, bringing 730,000 barrels of oil. It's the first time in three months an oil tanker has reached the island. Cubans have been hit by widespread blackouts since the U.S. Institute of Fuel Blockade in January as Katie Silver reports. Fisherman watched under the early morning sun as the ship docked at the Matanzas Port. Across the country, Cuban's cheered. This energy minister posting on social media to thank Russia for sending a much-needed energy lifeline. It was not certain that the Trump administration would allow the tanker to proceed, given the blockade. But Trump said the delivery was, quote, no problem, and that they have to survive. Cuba has faced a series of long-power blackouts and severe shortages of food and medicine. Analysts estimate that Russian shipmen could make enough diesel to power the Caribbean island for nine or ten days. It's unclear what happens after that. For NPR, I'm Katie Silver in Mexico City. NASA, preparing to launch Yardimus 2 Moon mission.

2:03The crew made up of four people, including the first woman and black man on a lunar mission. But NPR's Katie Arittle reports that NASA has not been talking much about these first lately. When the crew was first announced a few years ago, NASA officials were proud to highlight these achievements. But that was before President Trump returned to office and signed executive actions targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts across federal agencies. Since then, NASA has removed language from their website, celebrating the crew's diversity. AJ Link is from the group, Black and Astro. I think it's really important to explicitly highlight the inclusion of not just black folks, but other marginalized folks that have been left out of the industry and to back away from that or to erase that, I think, is wrong. After this mission, NASA is planning for another, possibly returning to the moon's surface. Katie Arittle and Pierre News. This is NPR News. Officials in Iraq say an American journalist has been kidnapped and Baghdad.

3:05The journalist has been identified by one of the outlets she worked for as freelancers Shelley Kiddelsen, a U.S. officials blaming in a wrong-backed Iraqi militia. Buckingham Palace says King Charles's state visit to the U.S. will go ahead in late April. The King will be hosted by President Trump, as it appears to be about a couple of reports. The statement from the palace says the King's visit will celebrate the historic connections and the modern bilateral relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States. In a post on social media, President Trump says the visit will include a beautiful banquet dinner at the White House. King Charles will also address Congress. Opposition lawmakers in the UK have called for the trip to be cancelled as Trump continues to criticise the UK over the Iran War. There's also the difficult topic of the King's disgraced brother Andrew, who was arrested over his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in 2019.

4:07Democratic Congressman Rokana has asked King Charles to meet with Epstein survivors during his trip. Fatemr Alkasab, MPON News, London. Listen 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.