NPR News: 09-06-2026 3AM EDT

0:00Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Wilman. U.S. envoy Steve Whitkoff and Jared Kushner met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin sativate. It was a new effort to try and find an end to Russia's war with Ukraine. As NPR's Charles Mainz tells us for Moscow. The re-engagement on Ukraine now comes as some things are changing with Russia's war. Keep in mind CIA director John Ratcliffe was recently in Moscow for a brief visit with his Russian counterparts in the intelligence community. Presumably Ukraine was part of those discussions. So it could be there's a new diplomatic window here, but the prevailing view is that the U.S. is concerned this conflict is about to escalate even further than it already has. The on-voys will be in Kiev on Sunday for meetings with that country's president, both sides, say they will halt airstrikes on each other while the on-voys travel in the region. The Trump administration has a new official to oversee U.S. foreign assistance. It's a department that's seen one of the biggest shifts in policy during President Trump's second term as NPR's Fapatana reports.

1:00The State Department has appointed Andrew Vaprek as its new undersecretary for foreign assistance, humanitarian affairs, and religious freedom. Vaprek is a career officer in the U.S. Foreign Service who had postings in Cameroon, Canada, Iraq, and Thailand. His most recent position was leading the State Department's population refugees in migration department. He's been critical of a more generous foreign aid approach, particularly to United Nations agencies and has pushed for more restrictions on immigration. In recent months, the administration has been spending more money to fund humanitarian response around the world, though not nearly as much as the U.S. did before Trump took office in 2025. Fatmah Tanis and PR News. The maker of the smart rings called Aura is preparing to go public in what could be a blockbuster IPO. The company's first financial disclosures show a massive trove of personal data and a very loyal base of subscribers who are willing to pay a monthly fee. And PR's Alina Seljuk has more on that story. The Aura ring has been writing the wellness trend to sell 3.6 billion rings in the past

2:04year. That's according to the company's new disclosures ahead of the public listing on the NASDAQ. Aura's pitch is that it tracks over 50 metrics like the heart rate, stress levels, sleep patterns. It also sells a subscription for about $6 a month to be able to see most of that data. The company's filing says Aura has, quote, a mast one of the largest and highest quality longitudinal biometric data sets in consumer health, representing nearly 42 billion hours of physiological data. Aura says it's revenue doubled from 2024 to 2025 and seems on track to do that again this year. Alina Seljuk and PR News. Anti-immigration protesters blocked the British port of Dover Saturday morning. Hundreds of mast people stalled traffic as they shouted, stop the boats. Officers and cargo vehicles heading to France were unable to reach the fairies, the protests, were cleared by midday. You're listening to NPR News. If you're headed for a final summer beach visit this Labor Day weekend, it'll be good

3:05if you know where it's okay to set up your beach chairs and umbrella. As NPR's Deborah Elliott reports, a battle is heating up along a popular Gulf of Mexico destination in the Florida Panhandle over who gets to use the beach and where. South Walton County, Florida's shoreline of White Sand and Emerald Greenwater is a flash point and a protracted legal battle over personal property lines and beachgoers' rights. Day Roush Kolbe is with Florida beaches for all, a group pushing a constitutional amendment to allow public beach access. Our beaches should be public. They should be shared as they have for eons. But homeowners say that encroaches on their property rights. Derek Wilhelm has a Gulf front house in Santa Rosa Beach. So to are you, you know, whether or not I consider your property is like saying I want to come to your backyard. Rapid development has created a land squeeze here and elsewhere in Florida. Debbie Elliott NPR News, Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. My cockabee says Israeli settler violence in the occupied West Bank is an active tear.

4:08The U.S. Ambassador to Israel met Saturday with Palestinian Americans who have been shaken by months of attacks. This week Israel's Prime Minister also condemned what he called the actions of a handful of rioters. Explosives were dropped from a drone into a military compound in Northeastern Columbia this week and officials say at least three soldiers were killed and four others were wounded in the attack. Local officials say the rebel group National Liberation Army is responsible for the attack. I'm Dale Wilman, NPR News. This message comes from Thumbtack. Using your unfinished home projects because you're not sure where to start, Thumbtack knows homes so you don't have to. Don't know the difference between Matt, Paint, Finish, and Satin or what that clunking sound from your dryer is. With Thumbtack, you don't have to be a home pro. You just have to hire one. You can hire top rated pros, see price estimates and read reviews all on the app. Download today.