NPR News: 04-04-2026 10PM EDT

0:00Live from NPR News, in New York City, I'm Dua Halice, Icaotel. For the fourth time since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran, a nuclear power plant on the southwestern coast of the country has been struck, according to Iranian media. NPR's Deep Harvaz reports a possible radiation leak would not be limited to Iran. The nuclear power plant in Boucher, which is on the country's coastline on the Persian Gulf, was struck by a projectile from a strike to its perimeter on Saturday, killing one of the plant's security personnel. The International Atomic Energy Agency says that no increase in radiation levels have been detected in the area. But in a statement posted on X, the agency's Director General, Rafael Grossi, said that the nuclear power plants in surrounding areas must never be attacked. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Adalkchi noted on X that any radioactive fallout from the plant will, quote, end life in neighboring Gulf-Arab countries. Radioactive material from the damaged plant could leak into the Gulf, contaminating waters

1:03vital to states like Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. Deep Harvaz, NPR News, Vaughn, Turkey. The European Commission is being asked by several European Union governments to impose an extra tax on energy companies for the profits that they're making due to the Iran war. Terry Schultz reports the proceeds from such a tax could be used to help consumers deal with price spikes. Finance and economy ministers from Austria, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Spain want the European Commission, the EU's executive body, to introduce what they call a solidarity levy on energy companies, similar to one imposed when Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 created an energy crisis. The call comes amidst soaring fuel prices sparked by the Iranian regime's closing of the Strait of Hormuz after the U.S. and Israel launched military strikes on Iran. The five ministers made the recommendation in a letter to EU climate commissioner Bukhya Hostra urging him to take the action to signal to EU citizens and businesses that the

2:04block is trying to help those suffering from the price rises. For NPR News, I'm Terry Schultz and Brussels. The unemployment rate is down a tenth of a percent in March, and the Labor Department says about 178,000 jobs are added. However, revisions from February show a loss of more than 130,000 jobs. Heather Long is author of the Everyday Economics Newsletter and Chief Economist with the Navy Federal Credit Union. On the one hand, the economy is still growing. We got this AI boom, but on the other hand, the middle class is frustrated. You can't change jobs, and obviously the gas prices and the tariffs are having a real impact on people. She said companies are spending a lot of money on AI technology so they don't have money left to hire more employees or give pay raises. This is NPR News from New York. Organizers of a Buddhist Lao New Year festival near New Iberia, Louisiana say they have

3:08canceled all programming for tonight and are praying for the victims of an alleged drunk driving incident that took place earlier today. A 57-year-old man is in police custody after apparently driving into a crowd, injuring more than 20 people, officials say at least 13 were taken by ambulance to a local hospital, to others were taken by helicopter. The local sheriff's office identified the driver as Todd Landry and charged him with driving while impaired. Marmalade that orange preserved favored by Pattington Bear may have to be renamed, so producers in the UK can sell it in the European Union. Vicki Barker has that story. To both spritz, the term orange marmalade is a redundancy. The marmalade on British breakfast tables is invariably orange flavored. Problem is, the term marmalade is a more generic term in Europe. With the British government close to striking a post-Brexit trade deal with the European

4:09Union, well, that cherished marmalade would have to be sold and labeled as, quote, citrus marmalade to conform with EU standards. Back in the 1970s, Britain was able to win a special dispensation from Brussels to grant British marmalade protected status, but with the UK now out of the European Union, its bargaining power is approximately zero. For NPR News, I'm Vicki Barker in London. And this is NPR News in New York. 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.