NPR News: 04-24-2026 3PM EDT

0:00Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Libby Casey. The White House says special envoy Steve Whitkoff and President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner are planning to travel to Pakistan Saturday for a new round of direct talks with Iran. Vice President Vance had been the lead U.S. negotiator, but is not planning to travel this weekend. White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt says the Iranians want to talk in person. We've certainly seen some progress from the Iranian side in the last couple of days. Again, the President has made the decision to send Stephen Jared to hear the Iranians out. And so we'll see what they have to say this week. Whitkoff and Kushner will meet with Iran's foreign minister who has arrived in Islamabad according to the Associated Press. President Trump extended a ceasefire with Iran earlier this week. The Trump administration has reportedly drafted options for punishing NATO allies. Have not been sufficiently supportive of the war in Iran. Terry Schultz reports the exclusive Reuters report on the memo says one of those possibilities

1:02is trying to suspend Spain from the alliance. Reuters says it's learned of a confidential memo outlining ways the Trump administration could punish countries that in particular were not willing to let the U.S. use their military bases or airspace to conduct strikes on Iran. NPR has not independently verified the report. The memo cited by the news agency suggests trying to suspend Spain from NATO over its blocking of access for the U.S. military. Asked by reporters at a European Union summit, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez didn't give the idea much credit. We don't work on emails, he said. We're working on official documents and positions. Asked for comment, NATO clarified there is no way a member country can be suspended or kicked out of the alliance. For NPR News, I'm Terry Schultz and Brussels. The U.S. Justice Department is moving ahead to expand death penalty executions by reinstating lethal injection and offering options like a firing squad. NPR's Jacqueline Diaz has more.

2:02The federal Bureau of Prisons is being directed to also consider electrocution and lethal gas as methods of execution. The DOJ announced these and other changes that officials say are meant to strengthen the federal death penalty and to speed the process up. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has already authorized prosecutors to seek death sentences for nine people. The Biden administration put a pause on federal executions during his time in office. But Trump ran on a promise to restart the death penalty for federal offenses. The DOJ plans to make other policy and rule changes in the coming months that the agency says will further streamline the process for seeking death sentences. Jacqueline Diaz and PR News. The Food and Drug Administration says it will offer ultra-fast review to three psychedelic drugs being developed to treat mental health conditions, including depression. This is NPR News live in Washington. The committee to protect journalists says a Kuwaiti American journalist has been acquitted

3:05of all charges related to spreading false news for posts he shared online during the Iranian War. NPR's Aya Batrawi has the latest from the Gulf. Ahmed Shahab-Deen was visiting his family in Kuwait when the U.S.'s really war on Iran began. Days into the war, he posted a video of a U.S. fighter jet crash, one of three that Kuwaiti forces say they mistakenly shot down. Shahab-Deen was detained the next day, on March 3, until his acquittal Thursday of all charges related to spreading false news and harming security, according to the committee to protect journalists. There are hundreds of others detained across the Gulf Arab states for similarly posting videos of interceptions and Iranian attacks in the war. Meanwhile, Kuwaiti's defense ministry says drones fired from Iraq hit two northern border posts on Friday, causing damage but no casualties. Aya Batrawi and PR News do bye. Officials are ordering more evacuations in Georgia for residents near a large wildfire that is destroyed scores of homes in the state's rural southeast. Deflames have been banned by gusty winds and are fueled by pine woods parched by drought.

4:07There are no reported injuries, but Georgia's governor says more than 120 homes have been destroyed. Families are beginning the cleanup process in Oklahoma after multiple tornadoes tore through the north-central part of the state yesterday. The twisters left widespread damages to homes and businesses tearing off roofs and leaving rubble. They knocked down utility poles and leveled buildings. At least 10 people were injured, but no one was killed. The most extensive destruction in Inid, Oklahoma. This is NPR News.