Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin is reviewing a plan to transform warehouses across the U.S. into detention facilities for tens of thousands of immigrants.

So far immigration officials have spent a total of $1.074 billion for 11 warehouses. They've mostly faced fierce opposition. And days after Mullin was sworn in, the Department of Homeland Security paused the purchase of new warehouses intended to house immigrants. The department is scrutinizing all contracts signed under his predecessor, Kristi Noem.

A look at some of the locations:

Arizona

Local officials were told nothing before ICE purchased a 418,000-square-foot (38,833-square-meter) warehouse in the Phoenix suburb of Surprise for $70 million, the state’s top prosecutor, Kris Mayes, said in a letter to former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

Documents later provided by ICE said the Department of Homeland Security plans a processing site with an average daily capacity of 1,000 to 1,500, and a contract worth at least $313.4 million was awarded to transform it.

DHS is now planning something more modest, starting out with 250 people per week and capping occupied beds at 542, according to Surprise Mayor Kevin Sartor.

Florida

A TV reporter in Orlando spotted private contractors and federal officials in January touring a 439,945-square-foot (40,872-square-meter) industrial warehouse. ICE senior adviser David Venturella told a WFTV reporter the tour was “exploratory.”

As of April, the city still hadn't heard anything, a spokesperson said in an email.

Georgia

ICE bought a massive warehouse in Social Circle for $128.6 million. The city said the federal government informed it that the facility is expected to house from 7,500 to 10,000 detainees.

The city is so concerned about the strain on its water supply that it put a lock on the warehouse's water meter. DHS has suggested trucking in drinking water and trucking out waste, according to a letter from Georgia Democratic Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, who said the plan was unworkable.

DHS also bought a 540,408-square-foot (50,205-square-meter) warehouse in Oakwood for $68.2 million, a deed shows. City Manager B.R. White said his first inkling that a deal was imminent came when a warehouse supervisor told a city inspector he’d been instructed to clear the job site to make way for the new owners — the federal government.

Indiana

After the town of Merrillville raised concerns about ICE touring a new 275,000-square-foot (25,548-square-meter) warehouse, owner Opus Holding LLC sent a letter stating it isn't negotiating with federal officials for the property. The letter said Opus was limited in what it could share because of legal issues.

Maryland

ICE purchased a warehouse about 60 miles (96 kilometers) northwest of Baltimore in Washington County for $102.4 million and signed a contract worth at least $113 million to renovate it. But work is on hold after Maryland's attorney general sued.

The warehouse has divided the community. County commissioners passed a resolution in support of ICE during a contentious meeting.

Michigan

After DHS paid $34.7 million for a 250,000-square-foot (23,225-square-meter) warehouse in Romulus, the state and city sued. The suit said the warehouse is in a flood plain, and that the sewage system couldn't keep up if 500 people are detained inside. It also faults DHS for not considering any of the state's empty prison facilities and for not talking to state or city officials.

Minnesota

The owners of warehouses in the Minneapolis suburbs of Woodbury and Shakopee pulled out of possible ICE deals after public outcry, according to local officials.

Mississippi

Republican U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker posted that Noem agreed to look elsewhere after local elected and zoning officials opposed a possible detention center in the town of Byhalia.

Missouri

After weeks of public pressure, development company Platform Ventures announced it would not move forward with the sale of a massive warehouse in Kansas City.

New Hampshire

New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte said in March that DHS would not move forward with a proposed ICE facility in the town of Merrimack.

Ayotte, a Republican, had sparred with federal officials after ICE disclosed plans to spend $158 million to convert a warehouse in the town into a 500-bed processing center.

The issue came to a head after an ICE official testified that DHS “has worked with Gov. Ayotte” and provided her with an economic impact summary. Ayotte said the summary was not sent until hours after that testimony.

The document erroneously refers to the “ripple effects to the Oklahoma economy” and revenue generated by state sales and income taxes, neither of which exist in New Hampshire.

New Jersey

After DHS bought a 470,044-square-foot (43,669-square-meter) warehouse in Roxbury for $129.3 million, the township and state sued, alleging that federal officials kept them in the dark.

“State and local officials might not have a veto over DHS’s decisions, but this utter lack of communication and consultation flies in the face of federal law,” the suit said.

New York

ICE said it made a mistake when it announced the purchase of a vacant warehouse in Chester. New York state Assemblyman Brian Maher later said ICE was no longer considering the facility.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt announced in January that property owners had informed him they are no longer engaged with DHS about a potential acquisition or lease of a warehouse.

Pennsylvania

DHS purchased a warehouse in Tremont Township for $119.5 million and one in Upper Bern Township for $87.4 million. Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro has said his administration will fight DHS' plans. The state's Department of Environmental Protection has barred water and sewage from being supplied to them for now.

Tennessee

ICE mistakenly announced it had completed the purchase of a warehouse in Lebanon, Tennessee.

The sheriff, Robert Bryan, wrote that a facility of the size and scope being discussed — 14,000 to 16,000 detainees — would “significantly impact local law enforcement resources.” And the mayor, Rick Bell, wrote that as a conservative Republican, he supports a secure border but that his town “is not the place.”

Republican U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn later announced that the deal was dead.

Texas

In the El Paso suburb of Socorro, ICE paid $122.8 million for a trio of warehouses that span 826,780 square feet (76,810 square meters). ICE also paid $66.1 million for a 639,595-square-foot (59,420-square-meter) warehouse in San Antonio. The mayors of both cities are opposed. Socorro officials — like others — have questioned water supplies. As of April, San Antonio still had heard nothing from DHS.

However, another deal in the state was scuttled following community backlash. In the Dallas suburb of Hutchins, a real estate company confirmed that it was contacted about one of its properties but wouldn't sell or lease any buildings to DHS for use as a detention facility. California-based Majestic Realty Co. provided no explanation in its statement.

Utah

DHS bought an 833,280-square-foot (77,414-square-meter) warehouse in Salt Lake City for $145.4 million without notifying the city’s Democratic leaders or the state’s Republican governor or congressional delegation. Mayor Erin Mendenhall said in a statement released in March that ICE officials later told her that the facility will house 7,500 to 10,000 people.

The city has moved to cap water use at just a fraction of what would be needed to operate the warehouse as a detention site.

The sale of the warehouse came two months after the owner of another Salt Lake City warehouse announced plans not to sell or lease to the federal government amid protests.

Virginia

Following boycott threats, Jim Pattison Developments announced in January that it would not proceed with a planned sale of a warehouse in the suburbs of Richmond, Virginia. It said it was not aware of the intended use until after it agreed to the sale.

After giving Republicans control of the White House and Congress in the 2024 presidential election, voters have continued to swing their support toward the Democratic Party in races held since then.

In Tuesday's elections, that shift was on display for key races in Wisconsin and Georgia, where results saw a shift of nearly 20 percentage points away from GOP margins in 2024.

Liberals on Wisconsin's Supreme Court expanded their majority to 5-2 after Chris Taylor beat conservative Maria Lazar 60 percent to 40 percent. Trump carried the state by less than a point.

Taylor's win was even larger than liberal victories in 2023 and 2025 court races, which are officially nonpartisan, that attracted national attention from figures like billionaire Elon Musk and a surge in record-setting outside spending.

Georgia's 14th congressional district, one of the most conservative in the country, saw Republican Clay Fuller win a special election runoff with 56 percent of the vote. Democrat Shawn Harris earned 44 percent after getting less than 36 percent against former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in 2024.

Trump beat former Vice President Kamala Harris in the district by nearly 40 percentage points.

Shawn Harris will likely face off against Fuller again for a full term in November's general election that also features an open governor's race and Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff's reelection campaign.

According to the election analysis publication The Downballot, Democrats have improved upon their 2024 presidential election margins by an average of 11 percent in special elections so far in 2026 and roughly 13 percent since the start of 2025.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court race shows increased support for Democrats is not limited to special elections, either. Commanding Democratic victories in the New Jersey and Virginia governors' races and flipped municipal races across the country continue to highlight how unpopular Republican governance in Washington is with voters.

President Trump faces a record-low job approval rating average of 39 percent amidst an unpopular war in Iran, rising gas prices and generally sour views on the economy.

The party in power tends to lose ground in midterm elections, and 2026 is shaping up to likely be no different. Polls show more voters say they'd prefer Democrats to control Congress and Democratic voters have higher enthusiasm for voting in the election – even as the Democratic Party is also historically unpopular.

Some of that disconnect is driven by Democratic base voters who are dissatisfied with the way their current leadership is responding to Trump's policies coupled with a recent trend of Democrats being the party most likely to show up and vote in lower-turnout special elections, primaries and non-presidential races.

For statewide primaries that have occurred so far in 2026, that Democratic enthusiasm is on display: In Texas' primary last month, a record 2.3 million votes were cast in the Democratic contest. More people voted in the Democratic statewide primary in North Carolina than the Republican one. Mississippi saw a nearly 80 percent increase in Democratic primary turnout since the last Senate primary in 2018.

Copyright 2026, NPR

President Trump said late Wednesday that U.S. forces deployed in the Middle East will "remain in place" until an agreement is reached with Iran, and its implementation takes hold.

His comments followed a shaky start to a two-week ceasefire, with Israel continuing its strikes in Lebanon, killing hundreds on Wednesday, Gulf Arab countries also reporting some drone and missile attacks on oil refineries and power plants, and amid reports that Iran had shut down the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway, largely blocked during the war, is a key shipping route for about 20 % of the world's fuel and goods.

The uncertainty was also felt by the markets on Thursday, diminishing gains made a day earlier, with oil prices rising and stocks dipping. Brent crude, the international standard, was at $ 97 per barrel, or up by 2.4%.

Trump warned that strikes on Iran would resume if Iran did not comply with "the REAL AGREEMENT reached."

"If for any reason it is not, which is highly unlikely, then the "Shootin' Starts," bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has ever seen before," he said.

He also reiterated that the deal would not allow nuclear enrichment in Iran and would keep the Strait of Hormuz open.

"It was agreed, a long time ago, and despite all of the fake rhetoric to the contrary - NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS and, the Strait of Hormuz WILL BE OPEN & SAFE," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

The White House denied the reports on Wednesday that Iran closed the strait, saying they are false and that there was an uptick in traffic in the strait on Wednesday.

Here are more updates from the region:

Click the links below to jump down to a specific section.

Peace talks | Lebanon | Strait of Hormuz

Peace talks to resume, while confusion remains over the terms of the current ceasefire

High-level talks between the U.S. and Iran are slated to start on Saturday in Islamabad, with the mediation of the Pakistani prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif. His government acted as an intermediary between Washington and Tehran to secure the two-week ceasefire. The White House announced that Vice President JD Vance will lead the U.S. delegation.

But confusion remains over the basis of the plan for those talks, with Iran insisting on a 10-point plan that includes its full control over the Strait of Hormuz, removal of sanctions, and accepting Iran's right to enrichment. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday that Iran's 10-point proposal was "literally thrown in the garbage by President Trump." Trump initially called a plan from Iran "workable."

Meanwhile, Israeli attacks in Lebanon, which is observing a national day of mourning on Thursday, drew condemnation from Iran and criticism from Pakistan. The dispute over whether Lebanon is included in the ceasefire terms remains unresolved. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement Wednesday morning that his government supports Trump's decision to suspend strikes against Iran for two weeks, but that the ceasefire doesn't include Lebanon. Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif had announced the Iran-U.S. ceasefire, would also take effect in Lebanon.

Hezbollah said in a statement that it insists the U.S.-Iran ceasefire includes Lebanon. But the militant group said, "if the Israeli enemy does not adhere" to it, then "no party will commit to it, and there will be a response from the region, including Iran."

Iran condemned the continued assault on Lebanon and said it was the U.S. government's responsibility to put an end to it. In a post on social media, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said, "The ball is in the U.S. court, and the world is watching whether it will act on its commitments," above a screenshot of the Pakistani statement including Lebanon in the truce.

Trump, meanwhile, echoed Netanyahu's understanding of the deal. Asked by a PBS reporter why Lebanon was not included, he said, "Because of Hezbollah. They were not included in the deal. That'll get taken care of too."

Lebanon mourns over 250 killed from Israeli attacks

Church bells rang across Lebanon and warplanes tore the skies Thursday morning as the country observed a national day of mourning following the deadliest day of the current Israeli invasion. More than 250 people were killed Wednesday, according to Lebanon's civil defense, in Israeli attacks that hit densely-populated residential areas far from Hezbollah's strongholds, including along Beirut's seaside Corniche promenade.

The Israeli military said it conducted the largest attack so far, with 100 strikes in 10 minutes in Beirut on Wednesday. The military issued evacuation orders for the capital's suburbs, but then attacked central Beirut. That city has swelled in recent weeks with people fleeing the Israeli invasion in the country's south, which has displaced more than a million people. More than 1,160 were wounded in Wednesday's strikes, according to the country's civil defense department.

On Thursday, Israel struck a bridge in Lebanon. Hezbollah, which had held its fire on the first day of the ceasefire, fired rockets into northern Israel on Thursday.

The violence marred the start of a two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran in the wider Middle East war. But Israeli officials justified the assault by asserting that the new deal did not include a pause in its fight against Lebanon's Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.

The International Committee of the Red Cross says it's outraged by such attacks in densely populated urban areas. Israeli military spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani explained why Israel made a surprise attack on Beirut.

"Leading up to this operation, we've seen Hezbollah disperse over different areas, taking advantage of the warnings that we provide for civilians to also hide for themselves among the civilians, moving, trying to scatter their operations in different locations and to hide behind civilian locations," he said.

As Iran controls the Strait of Hormuz, confusion reigns and ships remain idle

Trump has repeatedly said that the deal is dependent on the free movement of ships in the Strait of Hormuz to ease the global energy crisis. The strait is a critical throughway that carries about a fifth of the world's oil and provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.

Before the war broke out, Iran allowed an average of 120 to 150 ships per day to sail through unimpeded. But in the last five weeks, that traffic has come to a grinding halt. And despite Tuesday's announcement of ceasefire terms that required Iran to reopen the strait for safe passage, more than a hundred ships remained effectively stalled.

Details about the strait's status remain unclear. While Iran announced it had ceased transit operations in response to Israel's continued attacks on Lebanon, the White House denounced the reports as false and said closing the waterway would be completely unacceptable.

If the strait was open, hundreds of other ships in and around the strait still chose to stay put out of an abundance of caution. Ship owners, insurance companies, and seafarers say they are seeking clarity as Iran threatens to attack any vessel transiting without permission.

Erik Broekhuizen, a U.S.-based ship broker and energy consultant with Poten & Partners, told NPR that another concern for the ships is Iran's decentralized military command.

"You don't really know who to talk to, who is in charge, and whether all the sort of regional commanders have gotten the memo that the strait is open and they should stop attacking vessels," Broekhuizen said.

More than 20 ships have been attacked by Iran since the war began.

Operators are also confused by Iran's new fee system and how payments will be collected as the government rolls out new toll procedures. According to analysts, several oil tanker operators said they have paid at least $1 million to transit the strait.

An English language VHF broadcast was blasted to the hundreds of ships in and around the strait on Wednesday. It warned those aboard idling ships that they need permission before they try to transit.

Lauren Frayer in Beirut, Lebanon and Jackie Northam in Washington, D.C. contributed to this report.

Copyright 2026, NPR

Democratic-backed candidate Chris Taylor won election to the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Tuesday, growing the liberal majority on the court as cases affecting congressional redistricting, union rights and other hot button issues await in the perennial battleground state.

Taylor, who focused her campaign on abortion rights, handily defeated Republican-backed Maria Lazar in the fourth straight victory for liberal court candidates dating back to 2020. Liberals are now guaranteed to hold a majority on the court until at least 2030.

“Once again, Wisconsin showed the entire nation that we believe that the people should be at the center of government and the priority of our judiciary, not the billionaires, not the most powerful and privileged, but the people,” Taylor said in her victory speech.

Wisconsin Republican Party Chair Brian Schimming, in the wake of Lazar's double-digit defeat, called for Republicans to “stay united and continue fighting for our conservative values.”

Democrats tightened their control of the court just months before a November election in which they seek to keep the governor’s office and flip the state Legislature, where Republicans have held the majority since 2011. Democrats aspire to undo a host of Republican-enacted laws that made Wisconsin a focal point for the nation’s conservative movement in the 2010s.

This year’s Supreme Court election stands in stark contrast to the swing state’s previous two, where national spending records were set in battles over majority control. Spending and national attention was down dramatically this year without control of the court at stake.

Liberals took control of the state’s top court in 2023, ending 15 years under a conservative majority. They held onto their majority with last year’s victory in a race that drew involvement from President Donald Trump and billionaires George Soros and Elon Musk, who personally handed out $1 million checks to voters in the state.

Liberals argued that democracy was at stake in the 2025 election, noting that when the court was controlled by conservative justices in 2020 it came just one vote shy of siding with Trump in his attempt to invalidate enough votes to overturn his loss in that year’s presidential election.

The court under liberal control has reversed several election-related rulings, including one that overturned a ban on absentee ballot drop boxes, and it is poised to once again be in the spotlight around the 2028 presidential election.

Races for the court are officially nonpartisan, but support for candidates breaks down mostly along partisan lines. The seat was open due to the retirement of a conservative justice.

Taylor, who is a state Appeals Court judge and previously worked for Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, focused much of her campaign on abortion rights. One of her TV ads argued that “abortion is on the ballot.” In another ad, she criticized Lazar for calling the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 “very wise.”

Lazar, who is also a state Appeals Court judge and was supported by anti-abortion groups in her run for that court, tried to brand Taylor as nothing more than a politician who will push a partisan agenda on the high court.

They sparred over each other’s partisanship during the campaign’s sole debate last week.

Lazar accused Taylor of being a “radical, extreme legislator” and a “judicial activist.” Taylor said that Lazar would bring “an extreme, right-wing political agenda to the bench.”

But she had a much harder time getting her message out. Taylor had a large fundraising advantage and spent about nine times as much as Lazar on television ads, based on a tally by the Brennan Center for Justice.

The liberal-controlled court has already struck down a state abortion ban law and ordered new legislative maps since taking control of the court, fueling Democrats’ hopes of capturing a majority this November.

Taylor has been a judge since 2020 and before that spent 10 years as a Democrat representing the liberal capital city of Madison in the state Assembly.

Lazar, a judge since 2015, previously worked four years under a Republican attorney general in the state Department of Justice. In that role, she defended a law enacted under former Republican Gov. Scott Walker that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers.

A circuit court judge ruled in December that the law is unconstitutional, a decision expected to ultimately land before the state Supreme Court.

Lazar also defended laws passed by Republicans and signed by Walker implementing a voter ID requirement and restricting abortion access.

Democrats had been optimistic given the past two Supreme Court elections, which saw candidates they backed winning by double digits.

Another conservative justice is retiring next year, giving liberals a chance to take 6-1 control of the court thanks to Taylor’s victory.

Republican Clay Fuller on Tuesday won Marjorie Taylor Greene’s former U.S. House seat in Georgia, turning back a Democratic challenge with the help of President Donald Trump’s endorsement despite uneasiness over the war in Iran.

In a deep red district that Greene won by 29 points and Trump carried by almost 37 points two years ago, Fuller was on track to prevail by about 12 points with almost all votes counted. The result added to a string of special elections where Democrats performed better than expected, a track record that the party hopes will create momentum toward November's midterm elections when control of Congress hangs in the balance.

In another election held Tuesday, a Democratic-backed candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court won by double-digit margins, growing the liberal majority there.

Fuller insisted that his victory over Democratic candidate Shawn Harris in Georgia was a testimony to Trump's staying power.

“They couldn’t beat Donald Trump and they never will,” he told supporters in Ringgold, near the border with Tennessee. “And I will be on Capitol Hill as a warrior to have his back each and every day.”

However, Trump’s escalating rhetoric had some Republicans concerned, even in this deep red district. The president had set a deadline for Tuesday at 8 p.m. — one hour after polls closed in Georgia — for Iran to reach a deal with the United States, saying that “a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.” However, he later announced a two-week ceasefire to allow negotiations to continue.

Acworth resident Jason McGinty said he was worried Trump was “about to go too far" and "may be committing a war crime” if he followed through on threats to bomb power plants and other infrastructure in Iran. He voted for Fuller to “make sure the America First party is still in place.”

Retiree Judy McDonald agreed with the president’s decision to go to war but was “very anxiety-ridden” over the conflict.

“Eventually we will have peace and the Iranians will kind of come to a conclusion that they won’t have a country if they don’t stop the terrorism,” she said.

Some Democrats hoped the election would send a message to Trump

Fuller will serve out the remaining months of Greene’s term, bolstering the party’s slim majority in the House, where Republicans control 217 seats to Democrats’ 214, with one independent.

He’ll have to face another Republican primary on May 19 to win a full two-year term, and could face a June 16 party runoff. Harris is already the Democratic nominee for November.

Retiree Melinda Dorl supported Harris “so it sends a message to Trump and his cronies that people aren’t happy," she said.

“This war was totally uncalled for. Trump is a liar. Everything he says is a lie,” Dorl said, adding that Trump was wrecking relationships with countries that have traditionally been American allies.

Harris, a cattle farmer and retired general who describes himself as a “dirt-road Democrat,” stirred enthusiasm even among supporters who expected him to lose.

“I voted for the Democrat even though this is a very red district and the Democrat has almost no chance of winning,” said Michael Robards, a software engineer from Kennesaw who calls himself a center-right independent. He said he wants to see Trump’s policies rolled back and the president again impeached.

Georgia's 14th District stretches across 10 counties from suburban Atlanta to Tennessee. After losing to Greene two years ago, Harris said his strong showing this time would be a stepping stone to November.

“We’re going to beat him next time,” Harris said on Tuesday in Rome, Georgia.

Fuller said he had withstood Democrats’ best punch.

“The left did their best. They poured in millions upon millions of dollars,” Fuller told reporters. “And what you’re seeing is the best that they can accomplish.”

Fuller had presidential support

Trump endorsed Fuller, a district attorney who prosecuted crimes in four counties, to succeed Greene in February, boosting him over other Republican candidates in a crowded field.

Greene, once among Trump’s most ardent supporters, had split with the president by criticizing his foreign policy and his reluctance to release documents involving the Jeffrey Epstein case. The president eventually had enough, saying he would support a primary challenge against her. Greene announced a week later that she would resign.

Outside of Congress, Greene has continued to assail Trump.

“Trump was elected to go to war against America’s deep state and to end America’s involvement in foreign wars,” she wrote on social media on Tuesday. “Not to kill an entire civilization while waging a foreign war on behalf of Israel, another foreign country.”

However, Fuller has backed Trump to the hilt — including the war — and has identified no issue on which he disagreed with the president.

Trump reiterated his support for Fuller on Monday night and then again on Tuesday.

“To the Great Patriots in Georgia’s 14th Congressional District: GET OUT AND VOTE TODAY for a fantastic Candidate, Clay Fuller, who has my Complete and Total Endorsement!” the president wrote on social media.

The U.S. and Iran reached a temporary ceasefire, with Israel saying it supports the agreement but is continuing its assault on Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon. Iran and several Gulf Arab countries also reported some attacks, in an early test of the fragile truce.

The Israeli attacks in Lebanon, including what Israel called its largest strikes in Beirut since the start of the war, drew condemnation from Iran and criticism from mediator Pakistan.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose government has acted as an intermediary between Washington and Tehran, called out violations of the agreement and urged "all parties to exercise restraint and respect the ceasefire for two weeks, as agreed upon, so that diplomacy can take a lead role towards peaceful settlement of the conflict."

The ceasefire announcement marked a breathtaking comedown from President Donald Trump's pledge that a "whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again" if Iran did not reach a deal to open the Strait of Hormuz Tuesday night. His threat had drawn rebukes from other countries and from Pope Leo XIV, who called it "truly unacceptable" and appealed for dialogue.

Trump hailed the ceasefire agreement early Wednesday as "a big day for World Peace!"

As Trump pledged the U.S. would help free up the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route for the world's fuel and goods that Iran has largely blocked during the war, global investors breathed a sigh of relief, markets surged and crude oil prices plunged.

In another morning social media post, Trump said the U.S. will work with Iran to "dig up and remove" Iranian nuclear material he said is buried after U.S. bombings.

The president also warned the U.S. would slap an immediate 50% tariff on imports from any country supplying weapons to Iran.

Here are more updates from the region:

Click the links below to jump down to a specific section.

Israel pounds Beirut | Attacks in the region | Iran hails ceasefire win | What are the "10 points"? | Israeli opposition fumes | Shelly Kittleson freed

Israel carries out its largest strikes in Beirut and south Lebanon

Israel carried out its largest attack in Lebanon since the start of the war last month, after asserting that the U.S.-Iran ceasefire deal did not include its fight against Lebanon's Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.

A series of Israeli airstrikes hit multiple neighborhoods in the heart of Beirut during morning rush hour, causing panic around the capital.

Lebanon's Health Ministry said 112 people were killed and more than 800 wounded in Israeli attacks in different parts of Lebanon on Wednesday.

Israeli military spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani explained why Israel made a surprise attack in Beirut. "Leading up to this operation, we've seen Hezbollah disperse over different areas, taking advantage of the warnings that we provide for civilians to also hide for themselves among the civilians, moving, trying to scatter their operations in different locations and to hide behind civilian locations," he said.

Since Hezbollah entered the fray last month in support of Iran, Shoshani said, the group was firing more than 100 rockets at Israel on most days.

After more than a month of Israel's assault, the death toll in Lebanon has surpassed 1,500, and more than 1 million people have been displaced by the fighting, according to Lebanese authorities.

Many displaced Lebanese, when they initially heard the ceasefire news, rejoiced, packed up and started driving home to areas they had evacuated.

But then Israeli attacks continued. Lebanese news reports showed a car in flames hit by an Israeli strike on the seafront in Sidon, a city in southern Lebanon that's not one of the areas the Israeli military had warned it would attack. Israeli artillery shelling also continued. Lebanon's state media said there were airstrikes in the southern port city of Tyre and on a unit of paramedics affiliated with Hezbollah.

Lebanon's government asked displaced people to stay put saying that it's still dangerous.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement Wednesday morning that it supports Trump's decision to suspend strikes against Iran for two weeks, but that the ceasefire doesn't include Lebanon.

That's despite the fact that when Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, acting as mediator, announced the Iran-U.S. ceasefire, he specifically mentioned it would take effect including in Lebanon.

Hezbollah said in a statement that it insists the U.S.-Iran ceasefire includes Lebanon. But it said "if the Israeli enemy does not adhere" to it, then "no party will commit to it, and there will be a response from the region, including Iran."

Iran condemned the continued assault on Lebanon and said it was the U.S. government's responsibility. "The world sees the massacres in Lebanon. The ball is in the U.S. court, and the world is watching whether it will act on its commitments," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on social media, with a screenshot of the Pakistani statement including Lebanon in the truce.

The English arm of Iran's state broadcaster quoted an Iranian security official warning that Israel would be punished.

President Trump echoed Netanyahu's understanding of the deal. Asked by a PBS reporter why Lebanon was not included, he said, "Because of Hezbollah. They were not included in the deal. That'll get taken care of too."

Iran says a refinery was hit and Gulf Arab countries report Iranian attacks

Iran said its Lavan oil refinery was attacked around 10 a.m. local time, after the ceasefire took effect, and several Gulf Arab countries reported interceptions of Iranian drones and missiles.

Israel's military said it was not behind the strike on the Iranian refinery.

Kuwait's army said drone attacks caused significant damage to oil facilities, power stations and water desalination plants.

People were wounded from fallen debris in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, where its main gas complex also caught fire.

According to the Financial Times and Reuters, Saudi Arabia's critical east-west oil pipeline was also attacked.

In Iraq, Iranian-backed militias continued drone attacks near the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center and Baghdad International Airport on Wednesday, according to the U.S. Embassy in Iraq.

Iranian leaders hail ceasefire as victory

Iranian leaders touted the ceasefire as a victory, noting they believed the "criminal U.S." agreed to "the general framework" of Iran's 10-point proposal.

"Good news to the dear nation of Iran! Nearly all the objectives of the war have been achieved," the Supreme National Security Council said in a statement.

But the statement warned any deviation from the agreement could lead to future violence. "Our hands are on the trigger, and the moment the enemy makes the slightest mistake, it will be met with full force," the Supreme National Security Council said.

Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, thanked Pakistan Prime Minister Sharif for his role in the negotiations.

"If attacks against Iran are halted our Powerful Armed Forces will cease their defensive operations," Araghchi said in a statement. "For a period of two weeks, safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible via coordination with Iran's Armed Forces and with due consideration of technical limitations."

Uncertainty around the terms of agreement

In his message announcing the ceasefire with Iran late Tuesday, President Trump said, "We received a 10 point proposal from Iran, and believe it is a workable basis on which to negotiate."

But it was not immediately clear what the points are. NPR has been trying to independently verify the terms.

A plan published by the Iranian Mehr news agency said the points include Iran's control over the Strait of Hormuz, acceptance of its nuclear enrichment, the withdrawal of all U.S. combat forces from the region, the lifting of all sanctions and U.N. resolutions against Iran, compensation for damage as well as cessation of war on all fronts, including in Lebanon.

But on Wednesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the 10-point plan distributed by Iran was not the basis for negotiations. She declined to detail the points the two countries are discussing.

And Trump said on social media that terms were being circulated by people who had nothing to do with the negotiations. "There is only one group of meaningful 'POINTS' that are acceptable to the United States, and we will be discussing them behind closed doors during these Negotiations," he wrote.

Iran's Parliament speaker later accused the U.S. of violating three of the points Iran claims the U.S. has agreed to. He said the violations were the noncompliance of the ceasefire in Lebanon, the entry of a drone into Iranian airspace and the denial of Iran's right to enrichment.

Israeli opposition slams Netanyahu

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid blasted the ceasefire on social media, saying, "there has never been such a political disaster in our entire history." He criticized Prime Minister Netanyahu for not being a party to the ceasefire agreement, adding that Netanyahu "failed to meet a single one of the goals he set for himself."

Netanyahu spoke on TV defending the ceasefire, saying Israel was stronger than ever and Iran had been rendered weaker than ever.

Netanyahu and Trump spoke on the phone before Trump announced the ceasefire with Iran, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

It's still unclear where negotiations stand regarding Iran's assertion that it can continue its enrichment of uranium. In a statement, Netanyahu said Israel "supports U.S. efforts to ensure Iran no longer poses a nuclear or missile threat."

Netanyahu also said on TV Iran's highly enriched uranium, which could be used to create a nuclear weapon, would be removed from Iran whether through negotiations or by force.

A senior Israeli official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told reporters that the U.S. has assured Israel that it will insist on the removal of enriched uranium from Iran, an end to further enrichment, and "the elimination of the ballistic missile threat" during future negotiations.

Trump also referred to this in his Truth Social post.

American journalist Kittleson is freed

Freelance journalist Shelly Kittleson has been released a week after she was kidnapped by Kataib Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Iraqi militant group.

"We are relieved that this American is now free and are working to support her safe departure from Iraq," Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in a statement on X on Tuesday evening.

Kittleson, 49, has spent over a decade covering the Middle East, according to Columbia Journalism Review. She was captured by the militia group on March 31, in broad daylight on a Baghdad street corner. Her release was a multi-agency effort, according to Rubio.

"The U.S. Department of State extends its appreciation to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of War, U.S. personnel across multiple agencies, and the Iraqi Supreme Judicial Council and our Iraqi partners, for their assistance in securing her release," Rubio said.

He added: "Under President Trump, the wrongful detention or kidnapping of U.S. nationals will not be tolerated. We will continue to use every tool to bring Americans home and to hold accountable those responsible."

Kataib Hezbollah, one of Iraq's most powerful Shia paramilitaries, announced earlier on Tuesday that it was releasing Kittleson in appreciation of "the patriotic positions" of Iraq's prime minister, who helped negotiate her release. It said she had to leave the country immediately.

The group in Iraq is not related to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. It's part of a coalition of Iran-backed militias that have been attacking U.S. military and government targets in Iraq. The U.S. and Israel have launched airstrikes in response.

When Kittleson was kidnapped last week, the U.S. State Department said it had warned her of threats against her beforehand, and that it was working with the FBI to secure her release. The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad has said all American citizens should leave Iraq because of attacks.

Lauren Frayer in Beirut, Daniel Estrin and Carrie Kahn in Tel Aviv, Israel, and Jane Arraf in Amman, Jordan contributed to this report.

Copyright 2026, NPR

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has authorized the Minnesota National Guard to help Winona County officials respond to a cyberattack.

Winona County Administrator Maureen Holte said the county detected and responded Tuesday to a ransomware attack on its computer network, according to a statement released Wednesday afternoon. The county has taken its systems offline, “out of an abundance of caution,” while it works to secure and restore services safely. The public should expect delays as a result.

There has been no interruption in emergency services. 911 fire and emergency resources continue to operate.

The governor’s office said the county requested and received support from the Guard “due to the scale and complexity of the incident.'“

“Cyberattacks are an evolving threat that can strike anywhere, at any time,” Walz said in the statement. “Swift coordination between state and local experts matters in these moments. That's why I am authorizing the National Guard to support Winona County as they work to protect critical systems and maintain essential services.”

Winona County also immediately began an investigation, notified the FBI and Minnesota cyber resources, and worked with third-party cybersecurity and data forensics consultants. It also declared a local state of emergency to it could access all necessary resources to respond effectively.

“The County is following industry best practices and developing a comprehensive strategy to address this incident,” the press release continued. “We are continuously working to identify and mitigate threats when they occur. Winona County is committed to evaluate IT security protocols to make sure that sensitive data is protected to the greatest extent possible, across all networks where data resides.”

This is the second time Winona County has experienced a cyberattack this year. The county identified and responded to a “ransomware incident affecting our computer network” in January, according a Jan. 23 statement. Based on a preliminary investigation, Holte said the cybercriminal responsible for that earlier attack is not the same one responsible for the current incident.

But she said what they learned from the first attack may have helped prepare them.

“[We have been] in the process of implementing critical improvements to our network. In fact, those improvements helped us to detect this incident, investigate and take steps to recover.

Cyberattacks on local government entities appear to be becoming more commonplace. The city of St. Paul and Rochester Public Schools, for example have experienced attacks in recent years.

Given the ongoing criminal investigation, the county said it is unable to provide additional details at this time. It is actively monitoring the situation and will provide updated information as it becomes available.

St. Cloud Mayor Jake Anderson reflected on a challenging first year in office during his State of the City address on Tuesday.

Anderson took the helm as mayor of St. Cloud in January 2025. He replaced longtime mayor Dave Kleis, who did not seek reelection after almost two decades in office.

“You left big shoes to fill, and they didn't fit quite right,” Anderson told Kleis, who was in the audience. “So I had a couple things I've had to pivot on.”

During his tenure so far, Anderson has had to navigate the challenges of a budget deficit and a federal immigration enforcement operation. In his speech at city hall, he acknowledged that it's been a year of transition, with a new mayor, several council members and staff.

And he said there have been some tough external pressures, including a $3.2 million budget shortfall due to inflation and the loss of grants.

The city raised property taxes for what Anderson calls "strategic investment." That includes catching up on deferred maintenance and replacing old equipment that had been delayed.

"So we had to make some tough decisions, and I got calls and emails from many of you about these tough decisions,” Anderson said. “But we had to, at the end, raise the tax rate for the sustainability of the organization."

But Anderson said the most difficult challenge he faced in the past year was the surge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in St. Cloud beginning in January, mainly targeting the city's sizable Somali American population.

Anderson said he couldn't imagine having to carry his passport to prove his U.S. citizenship, as some residents did. He said he thinks the immigration response and its impact on the community “was much more damaging than people will recognize.”

"We talk all the time about, how do we integrate? How do we be a stronger community?” Anderson said. “One of the ways you don't do that is by singling out groups of people and targeting folks and making it not about seeking the worst of the worst, but simply targeting for political points."

Anderson said his top priorities for the coming year are public safety, infrastructure and quality of life. He said he also wants to make the city more attractive and improve its downtown, connecting it better to the St. Cloud State University campus.

One of the next tasks for the mayor will be developing a 2027 budget. He said so far it's not a rosy picture, but city officials will be looking for ways to make the best use of taxpayers’ money and avoid another tax increase.

Anderson also noted that he changed the name of the annual speech to “State of Our City,” saying the city includes everyone. He urged people to find ways to get involved.

"I hear a lot of negativity about St Cloud, and I read about it when you go on social media, which is why I avoid it. So often it's blaming someone else,” he said. “I challenge all of you, what can you do to make a better community?"

As legislators return to duty this week, Republicans and Democrats in the knotted-up Minnesota House are engaging in back-and-forth ethics charges against members of the other party.

House DFL members filed an ethics complaint over a traffic stop that led to DWI charges against GOP Rep. Elliott Engen of Lino Lakes and scrutiny of his passenger, GOP Rep. Walter Hudson of Albertville, who had a handgun confiscated by White Bear Lake police who suspected alcohol use by him, too. Hudson was never tested, but gun permit holders face restrictions on drinking while carrying.

At the same time, Republicans intend to pursue an ethics complaint against DFL Rep. Alex Falconer over his past work with a Boundary Waters Canoe Area protection organization, and his advocacy for the BWCA as a member of the House.

Hudson and Engen have been removed by GOP House Speaker Lisa Demuth from their committee assignments. They’ll be replaced by other Republican members to maintain the party balances on the panels.

Democratic Reps. Jamie Long and Samantha Sencer-Mura, both of Minneapolis, submitted the ethics complaint against Engen and Hudson. Long accused them of shirking their public duties by consuming alcohol at a time Capitol business was being conducted in late March.

“It's a pretty outrageous thing to do to leave your committee that you've been appointed to, to go day drinking,” Long said. “So that, to our mind, violates the ethics of the House — certainly casts the House in a bad light. And that's something that our own process is designed to take care of.”

Long made it clear that the ethics complaint is not about the DWI, but rather about Engen and Hudson allegedly drinking before returning to their duties at the House. Other members of the House have also faced DWI charges in the past.

Engen and Hudson have issued statements, with Engen apologizing for his actions and Hudson saying he regretted making poor decisions. Engen told police during the March 27 stop that he had consumed alcohol late in the evening, according to a police report. A picture that circulated on social media showed the pair at a St. Paul bar and restaurant hours before a lengthy House floor session.

GOP House Leader Harry Niska said Demuth took appropriate action to strip the pair of committee assignments.

Demuth said that she based her decision to remove Hudson and Engen from committees based on the police report.

When asked about a photo from Facebook showing the two drinking at a bar before a House hearing, Demuth responded, “I received the police reports publicly available for anyone, and that's what I based my decisions off of. I'm not addressing a photo that was out there, not addressing that at this time.”

Demuth said she saw no indications that either were intoxicated during a floor debate on March 26.

“There was nothing to indicate any problem as far as the floor debate that we had a week ago or almost two weeks ago now, there was nothing to give me any pause,” she said.

Hudson posted on social media after the DFL said it would file an ethics complaint.

“Hearing the Democrats have filed an ethics compliant [sic] against me. Dumb move. You'd think they'd have learned by now. Never give me a platform,” Hudson wrote.

Niska called it “troubling” that Falconer was previously a lobbyist and continued on as a “senior advisor” to Northeastern Minnesotans for Wilderness, which is what the lawmaker lists on an economic disclosure form. Niska noted Falconer legislation that would benefit the northern Minnesota rustic area.

“The appearance of being paid by an interest group that's lobbying in favor of legislation that he's carrying. That's a pretty clear no no for legislative ethics,” Niska said.

Niska noted that while Falconer lobbied both at the state and federal level — and appears not to have stopped that work at the federal level.

“We have a very clear House rule that says you cannot be a lobbyist and be a member of the Minnesota House,” he said.

Falconer released a statement Tuesday morning, calling the complaint against him “desperate.”

“It’s no surprise to my constituents that I care about the Boundary Waters; I literally campaigned with a canoe on top of my car,” he said. “I’ve spent more than a decade working to protect Minnesota’s crown jewel for all generations to come and am proud of my work. My legislative work on this issue was vetted with nonpartisan House experts. It’s all above board.”

Long said the Falconer situation seemed like a House GOP effort to “change the subject” from the police stop involving two members.

“They've had a series of news stories about the actions from Representative Engen and Representative Hudson, and once we noticed that we were bringing our ethics complaint, they decided to file one of their own,” Long said.

“He is not lobbying on the issues of the Boundary Waters. He has cut ties with that. And I don't think there's any violation for caring about an issue that you work on in your day job,” Long said. “We have teachers up here who carry bills that impact teachers. We have Boundary Waters advocates who carry bills that impact Boundary Waters.”

Long said Falconer does work on federal issues for the Boundary Waters, but not state issues.

Asked if this was a tit for tat situation, Niska answered that it is a response to “concerning public information about Alex Falconer, and then there was a public news story about it that kind of tied all the pieces together. So of course, it was important to bring that forward.”

American journalist Shelly Kittleson, who was kidnapped from a Baghdad streetcorner last week, has been released, an Iraqi official with direct knowledge of the situation said on Tuesday.

Kittleson was freed in the afternoon, said the official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly. He did not share her current whereabouts but said that prior to her release, she had been held in Baghdad.

Kittleson was born and raised in Wisconsin.

The powerful Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah said in a statement earlier in the day it had decided to free Kittleson, who was abducted on March 31.

The group said its decision came “in appreciation of the patriotic stances of the outgoing prime minister," Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, without giving more details. It added that “this initiative will not be repeated in the future.”

The statement added a condition — that Kittleson must “leave the country immediately” upon her release.

The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Kataib Hezbollah had not previously acknowledged that it was the one responsible for Kittleson’s abduction, although both U.S. and Iraqi officials had pointed fingers at the group.

Two officials within the militia, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly, told the AP that in exchange for freeing Kittleson, several members of the group who had previously been detained by Iraqi authorities would be released.

Kittleson, 49, a freelance journalist, had lived abroad for years before the kidnapping, using Rome as her base for a time and building a respected journalism career across the Middle East, particularly in Iraq and Syria. Like many freelancers, she often worked on a shoestring budget and without the protections afforded by large news organizations to staff.

She had entered Iraq again shortly before her abduction. U.S. officials have said that they warned her multiple times of threats against her, but that she did not want to leave.

Iraqi officials have said that two cars were involved in the kidnapping, one of which crashed while being pursued near the town of al-Haswa in Babil province, southwest of Baghdad. The journalist was then transferred to a second car that fled the scene.

Three Iraqi officials said earlier Tuesday that attempts to negotiate her release had run into obstacles.

The two Iraqi security officials and one official from the pro-Iran Coordination Framework political bloc spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the sensitive case publicly.

One of the security officials said that an official with the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of Iran-backed militias that is nominally under the control of the Iraqi military, had been tasked with communicating with the abductors to secure Kittleson’s release but had run into difficulties in communicating with the Kataib Hezbollah leadership.

“The primary challenge is that the leaders of the Kataib militia — specifically, the commanders of the battalions — are nowhere to be found. No one knows their whereabouts, and the process of establishing contact with them is extremely complex,” they said. “These leaders have gone underground, maintaining no active lines of communication, out of fear of being targeted.”

The political official said a message had been sent to the Kataib leadership to determine their demands in exchange for releasing the kidnapped journalist. Iraqi authorities were willing to release six Kataib Hezbollah members who are currently detained, most of them in connection with attacks on a U.S. base in Syria, they said.

Kataib Hezbollah has previously been accused of kidnapping foreigners.

Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Princeton graduate student with Israeli and Russian citizenship, disappeared in Baghdad in 2023. After she was freed and handed over to U.S. authorities in September 2025, she said that she had been held by Kataib Hezbollah.

The group never officially claimed responsibility for kidnapping her.

Iran-backed militias in Iraq have also launched regular attacks on U.S. facilities in the country since the beginning of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

A federal judge has declined to block the federal government from halting more than $240 million in Medicaid payments to Minnesota.

Federal officials in February announced they would freeze $259 million in Medicaid funding to the state. In the announcement, Vice President JD Vance cited concerns over fraud.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison sued the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to stop them from halting $243 million of that funding. Attorneys for the state had asked Judge Eric Tostrud to issue a temporary injunction reinstating the payments.

In an order issued Monday, Tostrud said the courts need to wait for federal agencies to finish their own investigations and make a final decision on the funding freeze.

“Minnesota’s request for a preliminary injunction depends on assuming that predicted future events come to pass. As a rule, the law does not allow a preliminary injunction to be issued based on assumptions like these,” the judge wrote.

Tostrud also wrote that Minnesota “credibly complains that the federal government’s deferral is historically unprecedented in its size and timing.” But he said the freeze likely complies with federal regulations.

While he denied the injunction in his ruling Monday, Tostrud said attorneys for the state raised “reasonable legal concerns.”

“It is possible the record may support these concerns in the future. Today it does not,” Tostrud wrote.

Attorneys for the state of Minnesota have said the $243 million they’re contesting is already subject to another federal attempt to block funding. Attorneys argued the federal government can’t attempt to block that funding through two channels at once.

During a court hearing in March, Minnesota Assistant Attorney General Nate Brennaman accused the federal government of freezing payments for political reasons. He quoted a January social media post by President Donald Trump promising a “reckoning and retribution” against Minnesota.

“Everything screams that this is politically driven,” Brennaman said.

Attorneys for the federal government pointed back to fraud concerns in Minnesota, and said the freeze was necessary to ensure the state is administering the funding correctly.

A spokesperson with the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday said Tostrud’s ruling was disappointing.

“The office is reviewing the decision and working with the Department of Human Services to determine our next steps,” the spokesperson said.

The lawsuit is ongoing.

The Brainerd City Council will allow a homeless shelter to stay open year around, a year after denying a similar request.

For more than four years, the Bridge on 7th shelter has provided a warm place for adults experiencing homelessness to spend the night. The overnight shelter is open from September through April.

Last year, Brainerd City Council rejected a request to allow it to operate through the summer, sparking a community debate. City council members and the police chief voiced concerns that the shelter is a draw for people from outside of the community.

Without a shelter, some community members worried that people wouldn’t have a safe place to stay. The city adopted a ban on camping on public property in 2024.

Bridges of Hope, the nonprofit that operates the shelter, re-applied for a year-round permit this year after working to address city officials’ concerns. The city council unanimously approved the interim use permit Monday night.

Council members praised the collaborative effort to add safeguards and address concerns.

“We’re miles beyond where we were a year ago,” said Mike O’Day, council president. “We’re trying to take care of our community and the most vulnerable, but not every other community besides our own.”

Jana Shogren, executive director of Bridges of Hope, said the nonprofit has improved its collaboration with other community organizations that serve people in need.

That includes creating a program called Pathways, which connects shelter guests to community services. People who stay at the shelter will be required to agree to participate in a personalized plan within three to five days to address housing, employment, mental health, chemical dependency or other issues that might be barriers, Shogren said.

Bridges also worked with Brainerd Police Chief John Davis to develop a safety plan to guide how the shelter responds to behavior problems or potentially dangerous situations and set clear expectations for staffing, supervision and training.

“All of this reflects a more coordinated and accountable approach to operating the shelter safely, and it builds on everything we've learned over the past four and a half years,” Shogren said.

The permit allows the shelter to operate year round for one year, until April 30, 2027. The council can revoke the permit if the police department decides the shelter has been used in a “disorderly manner.”

Three assailants opened fire at police outside a building housing the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul on Tuesday, sparking a gunfight that left one attacker dead, Turkish officials said. The two other assailants were wounded and captured.

Two police officers sustained slight injuries in the clash, Istanbul Gov. Davut Gul told reporters. The assailants were carrying long-barreled weapons.

Interior Minister Mustafa Cifti wrote on X that the attackers had traveled from the city of Izmit, some 100 kilometers (60 miles) east of Istanbul, in a rented car. One of the assailants was linked to a group he described as “exploiting religion,” without naming the organization.

The Islamic State group has carried out deadly attacks in Turkey in the past.

The two wounded assailants are brothers, identified as Onur C. and Enes C. The first has a criminal record related to drugs. Both are being interrogated, according to the Interior Ministry.

Video from the attack showed one assailant carrying what appeared to be an assault rifle, wearing a brown backpack and hiding behind a bus when exchanging fire with police. A police officer falls to the ground, apparently having been shot, and then rolls away to get behind a tree for cover.

One of the police officers was wounded in the leg and the other in the ear, the Interior Ministry said.

The consulate is located in a high-rise building in Levent, one of the city's main business districts. Officials said there are no Israeli diplomats present in Israeli missions in Turkey. Israel withdrew its diplomats amid security concerns and deteriorating relations with Turkey during the war in Gaza.

Turkish Justice Minister Akin Gurlek said three prosecutors, including a deputy chief prosecutor, have been assigned to lead an investigation.

Police sealed off the building and blocked several roads, while forensic experts in white protective suits combed the area for evidence.

The U.S. ambassador to Turkey, Tom Barrack, condemned the attack and praised Turkish authorities for “their swift and decisive response.”

“Attacks on diplomatic missions are attacks on the international order — and an assault on the principles that bind nations together,” he wrote on X.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry also denounced the attack and praised the Turkish security forces’ “swift action in thwarting this attack.”

U.S. President Donald Trump pulled back on his threats to launch devastating strikes on Iran late Tuesday, swerving to deescalate the war less than two hours before the deadline he set for Tehran to capitulate or else a “whole civilization will die.”

Trump said he was holding off on his threatened attacks on Iranian bridges, power plants and other civilian targets, subject to Tehran agreeing to a two-week ceasefire and reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil is shipped during peacetime. He also said Iran has proposed a “workable” 10-point peace plan that could help end the war launched by the U.S. and Israel in February.

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said it has accepted a two-week ceasefire and that it would negotiate with the United States in Islamabad beginning Friday.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said passage through the strait would be allowed for the next two weeks under Iranian military management. It wasn’t immediately clear whether that meant Iran would loosen its chokehold on the waterway.

In a post on his social media site, Trump said that he would suspend attacks on Iran for two weeks provided Tehran agreed “to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING" of the strait.

Even as the ceasefire was announced, missile alerts continued in the United Arab Emirates and Israel early Wednesday, hinting at the chaos surrounding the diplomatic moves.

Since the war began, Trump has repeatedly backed off deadlines just before they expire.

In doing so again Tuesday, Trump said he had come to the decision “based on conversations” with Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Gen. Asim Munir, Pakistan’s powerful army chief. Sharif, in a post on X hours earlier, urged Trump to extend his deadline by two weeks to allow diplomacy to advance. He used the same post to ask Iran to open the strait for two weeks.

The president said in his social media post that Iran has presented “a workable basis on which to negotiate.”

“Almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, but a two week period will allow the Agreement to be finalized and consummated,” Trump said.

Earlier Trump threats raised alarms

Trump’s expansive threat Tuesday did not seem to account for potential harm to civilians, prompting Democrats in Congress, some United Nations officials and scholars in military law to say such strikes would violate international law.

Tehran’s representative at the U.N., Amir-Saeid Iravani, said the threats “constitute incitement to war crimes and potentially genocide” and that Iran would "take immediate and proportionate reciprocal measures” if Trump launches devastating strikes.

The U.S. and Israel have battered Iran with attacks targeting its military capabilities, leadership and nuclear program. Iran has responded with a stream of strikes on Israel and Gulf Arab neighbors, causing regional chaos and outsized economic and political shock.

Late Tuesday, Pakistan's prime minister urged Trump to extend his deadline by two weeks to allow diplomacy to advance. In a post on X, Shehbaz Sharif, whose country has been leading negotiations, also asked Iran to open up for two weeks the Strait of Hormuz.

Before the deadline, airstrikes hit two bridges and a train station, and the U.S. hit military infrastructure on Kharg Island, a key hub for Iranian oil production.

Trump has extended deadlines before

Since the war began, Trump has repeatedly imposed deadlines linked to threats, only to extend them. But the president insisted this one is final and will expire at 8 p.m. in Washington unless there is a major diplomatic breakthrough. Tehran previously rejected a 45-day ceasefire proposal by Egyptian, Pakistani and Turkish mediators, saying it wants a permanent end to the war.

Iran’s president said 14 million people, including himself, have volunteered to fight. That's despite Trump saying that U.S. forces could wipe out all bridges in Iran in a matter of hours and reduce all power plants to smoking rubble in roughly the same time frame.

It was not clear if airstrikes against Iran on Tuesday were linked to Trump’s threats to widen the civilian target list. At least two of the targets were connected to Iran’s rail network, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli warplanes struck bridges and railways in Iran.

Tehran fired on Israel and Saudi Arabia, prompting the temporary closure of a major bridge.

While Iran cannot match the sophistication of U.S. and Israeli weaponry or their dominance in the air, its chokehold on the strait since the war began in late February is roiling the world economy and raising the pressure on Trump both at home and abroad to find a way out of the standoff.

Trump keeps an off-ramp open

“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again,” if a deal isn’t reached, Trump said in an online post Tuesday morning. But he also seemed to keep open the possibility of an off-ramp, saying that “maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen.”

Earlier, Iranian official Alireza Rahimi issued a video message calling on “all young people, athletes, artists, students and university students and their professors” to form human chains around power plants.

Iranians have formed human chains in the past around nuclear sites at times of heightened tensions with the West. State media posted videos online that showed hundreds of flag-waving people massed at two bridges and at a power plant hundreds of kilometers (miles) from Tehran, though it was not clear how widespread the practice was.

“They’re not allowed to do that,” Trump said in a phone call with NBC News.

A general in Iran's Revolutionary Guard general warned that Iran would “deprive the U.S. and its allies of the region’s oil and gas for years” and expand its attacks across the Gulf region if Trump carries out his threat.

In Tehran, the mood was bleak. A young teacher said that many opponents of Iran's Islamic system had hoped Trump's attacks would quickly topple it. As the war drags on, she fears U.S. and Israeli strikes will spread chaos.

“If we don’t have the internet, and if we don’t have electricity, water, and gas, we’re really going back to the Stone Age, as Trump said,” she told The Associated Press, speaking on the condition of anonymity for her safety.

Growing criticism of threats

In Rome, Pope Leo XIV said Tuesday that the threats were “truly unacceptable” and that such attacks would violate international law.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said that attacks targeting civilian and energy infrastructure could constitute a war crime. Such cases are notoriously difficult to prosecute. Trump has said he’s “not at all” concerned about committing war crimes.

A spokesman for U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply troubled” by the threats, saying no military objective justified targeting civilian infrastructure.

Airstrikes hit Iran, which fires on Saudi Arabia and Israel

Intense airstrikes pounded Tehran, including in residential neighborhoods. In the past, such strikes have targeted Iranian government and security officials.

The Israeli military said it attacked an Iranian petrochemical site in Shiraz, the second day in a row it hit such a facility. The military later said it also struck bridges in several cities that were being used by Iranian forces to transport weapons and military equipment.

A U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations, described the strikes on Kharg Island as hitting targets previously struck and not directed at oil infrastructure.

Saudi Arabia said it intercepted seven ballistic missiles and four drones launched by Iran. Iran also fired on Israel.

More than 1,900 people have been killed in Iran since the war began, but the government has not updated the toll for days.

In Lebanon, where Israel is fighting Iran-backed Hezbollah militants, more than 1,500 people have been killed. and more than 1 million people have been displaced. Eleven Israeli soldiers have died there.

In Gulf Arab states and the occupied West Bank, more than two dozen people have died, while 23 have been reported dead in Israel, and 13 U.S. service members have been killed.

President Donald Trump threatened to annihilate the Iranian nation if a deal is not reached to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by 7 p.m.

"A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don't want that to happen, but it probably will," Trump wrote on his social media platform.

The president has been escalating his threats over the past weeks to obliterate Iranian bridges, power plants and water treatment facilities. Wide-scale destruction of infrastructure, without distinction between civilian and military objects, would be considered a war crime under international and U.S. law, legal experts tell NPR.

The U.S. struck military targets early Tuesday on Kharg Island, a U.S. official told NPR. The island is Iran's oil export hub on the Persian Gulf, but the official said the targets were not oil infrastructure — they were "restrikes" on sites the U.S. hit previously. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak about it publicly.

In Iraq, an Iranian-backed militia announced it has released American journalist Shelly Kittleson a week after kidnapping her in Baghdad. NPR is working to confirm she is freed.

Earlier, Iranian officials rejected U.S. demands and presented a plan of their own, and Iran's president said that he was willing to die along with millions of Iranians to defend his country.

Iran's 10-point proposal included a guarantee that Iran would not be attacked again, an end to Israeli strikes against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon and removal of sanctions in exchange for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, with Iran imposing a $2 million fee for every ship moving through the key waterway, according to The New York Times.

With the clock ticking, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on social media: "More than 14 million proud Iranians have so far registered to sacrifice their lives to defend Iran. I too have been, am, and will remain devoted to giving my life for Iran."

Pezeshkian's message appeared to be in response to a call by Iran's deputy minister of sports and youth, Alireza Rahimi, late Monday for "young people, cultural and artistic figures, athletes" to form human chains next to the power plants across Iran. Rahimi wrote: "Attacking public infrastructure is a war crime."

Here are more updates on the war in Iran today:

Iranian envoy on negotiations | Strikes in the region

Iran's envoy says efforts to stop the war are "approaching a critical" period

Iran's ambassador in Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, said on Tuesday that Pakistan's efforts to stop the war are "approaching a critical, sensitive" period.

But Moghadam sounded less enthusiastic in an interview with state-run media, where he set out the country's position: "A complete cessation of the war is Tehran's maximum demand in the process of peace diplomacy," adding, "with a guarantee of nonrepetition of aggression."

Moghadam also warned Gulf countries, which he did not name, to "pay attention to their conditions and relations with Iran." He warned: "Know that sooner or later America will leave this region by accepting defeat and you will stay."

Israel attacks Iran's petrochemical facilities, Iran hits energy facility in Saudi Arabia

Israel's military said it attacked one of the "few remaining" petrochemical facilities producing ballistic missile and explosive material in Shiraz, in southern Iran.

It also said its forces struck a ballistic missile site in northwestern Iran and infrastructure across the country.

Israel also issued a warning to Iranians on Tuesday, over X, to avoid traveling by train and stay away from railway tracks.

Iran retaliated by firing missiles in central Israel, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, forcing the closure of the key King Fahd bridge between the two Gulf countries. Saudi Arabia's ministry of defense said it was assessing damage on its energy facility caused by falling debris from dozens of ballistic missiles and drones intercepted by its air defense systems on Tuesday.

Air defense systems in the United Arab Emirates also engaged with incoming missiles and drones on Tuesday, authorities said.

Daniel Estrin in Tel Aviv, Israel, Diaa Hadid in Mumbai, India, Tina Kraja and Alex Leff in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.

Copyright 2026, NPR

Elk River, about 30 miles northwest of Minneapolis, is the latest Minnesota city to decide to continue flying the former state flag.

The Elk River City Council voted unanimously Monday night to draft a resolution to display the retired Minnesota state flag on all city properties. A final vote is expected on April 20.

The issue has fired up the community. More than a dozen people spoke at the Elk River City Council meeting Monday night before the vote, with opinions mixed on whether the city should keep flying the former flag or the official design adopted in 2024.

More than 1,000 people submitted their opinion online after the city council asked for input. Nearly 75 percent of respondents voiced support for the old flag.

“I don’t believe we’ve ever gotten 1,100 emails on any topic in the whole time I’ve been here for 32 years,” Mayor John Dietz said. “I think the citizens of Elk River have spoken.”

The new flag’s dark blue is meant to represent the sky with an eight-pointed star of the north evoking Minnesota’s motto. The light blue represents Minnesota’s abundant waters.

It replaces a flag that had drawn criticism for its complexity and depiction of Indigenous peoples.

A number of people spoke about disliking the flag’s redesign and feeling that it should have been put to a statewide vote. Others said they wanted to keep the old flag because it reflects the state’s history and heritage.

“The new flag has nothing to do with Minnesota and does not represent any of our values. I’m actually appalled at this flag,” said resident Linda Schultz. “It is time to stand up and get back what is rightfully ours.”

Others spoke in favor of the city flying the official state flag, noting it was designed through a lengthy process that included public input. They chided the city council for creating divisiveness.

Resident Andy Price said flying the old flag sends a message – intended or not – that Elk River is “resistant to positive change.”

“I don’t believe that reflects who we are,” Price said. “Elk River's own vision statement calls us a welcoming community. A welcoming community welcomes all of its residents. Flying the officially adopted state flag is one simple, visible way for us to live that value.”

Other Minnesota cities that have opted to keep flying the old Minnesota state flag include Champlin, Zumbrota, North Branch, Detroit Lakes, Pine Island, Wadena, Crosslake and Babbit.

To audible moans, DFL Rep. Erin Koegel called out colleagues for “harassing” comments and “jeers” toward her colleagues while urging them to be nicer to one another. Throughout a tense floor session featuring several hot-button topics that same day, Republican Rep. Pam Altendorf accused Democrats of “deceptive” moves and of stoking “political theater.”

On it went for several hours — hostility rising as Minnesota House members lurched toward a week apart from each other.

But it’s also been a scene that’s played out again and again this session. State lawmakers field emotional testimony on issues they say are critical in this moment: Preventing gun violence, helping people caught up in a federal immigration enforcement, fighting fraud or balancing the state’s budget.

They spar about the best way to solve the problem, or whether it’s a problem at all.

One side casts blame and says the other doesn’t care. Committee chairs gavel members down for questioning the motives of their colleagues. And, often, bills then stall on a tied vote.

It’s become a rhythm — a tense one — during the first part of the legislative session.

After months of traumatic events in Minnesota, lawmakers returned for the session without one of the leaders of the tied House of Representatives. Some came in with emotional scars. Many also returned with feelings of resentment.

“I think that we have been through way more than we are able to manage in the last nine or 10 months, and it is spilling in in many ways to our work,” said Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy, DFL-St. Paul.

The fatal shooting of DFL House Leader Melissa Hortman, a school shooting in Minneapolis and an immigration enforcement surge have been central subjects as lawmakers try to fashion responses they hope can prevent repeat occurrences.

“People are reacting with short tempers in places where we wouldn’t necessarily do that, and it isn't a function of each person, but I think a function of the collective experience that we've had with a lot of violence and not much time together to deal with that,” Murphy said.

Talking to lawmakers, lobbyists and people called to testify at the Capitol, there’s an agreement that this session feels different.

“The tension you usually feel those last couple weeks has been evident since the first week, and I think it's because of everything that our state has been through,” said House Speaker Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring.

While lawmakers agree on some top issues facing Minnesota — school safety, fraud, affordability — solutions have so far been hard to come by.

“I think people don’t feel heard. And louder with the same message doesn’t mean you’re going to be heard,” Demuth said. “Agree that we’re not agreeing, or agree that maybe we can’t find a solution and then move on. I think we’re getting stuck in kind of a spin or a crazy cycle.”

For her, it’s a quandary. And the person she’d previously turned to for advice — former House Speaker Hortman — isn’t there to advise on how to lead through the second year of a tie.

“There are many times when with everything that we’ve faced, that I’ve wished I could just call her and say, ‘because of Team House, now what? How should we do this?’” Demuth said. “I don’t have anyone else that I can ask those questions of. And that goes way beyond just leading a caucus. It goes to the point of, how can we get the work done for Minnesota?”

To heighten the tension even more, dueling ethics complaints greet lawmakers upon their return. DFLers plan to file complaints over an incident in which GOP Rep. Elliott Engen was arrested on DWI charges and GOP Rep. Walter Hudson had his gun confiscated during the same stop as he rode in Engen’s car. Republicans plan their own inquiry over an alleged conflict of interest in bills introduced by DFL Rep. Alex Falconer of Eden Prairie.

Sen. Bill Weber, a Luverne Republican, said GOP lawmakers felt shut out during the DFL trifecta in the last Legislature.

“What we’re starting to see happen with the tone of the legislative session is that it's hard for some people to find respect for others because of how things have went,” Weber said.

Now they feel like they aren’t being taken seriously as they raise concerns about state spending and what Republicans call “serious problems” that have arisen.

“Whether we’re talking about paid family leave, we're talking about our school systems, we have financially broken our public schools with the mandates that the Legislature put on them these last three years, and unfortunately, nobody seems to want to step up and admit what they've done,” Weber said.

Democrats voiced frustrations, too. They worry about federal actions hitting home. They want Republican peers to vote with them to restrict guns and offer financial help to those impacted by “Operation Metro Surge.”

“Something really extraordinary happened in my community, something that I hope no community has to go through,” said Rep. Aisha Gomez. She has told her colleagues about how ICE operations affected her Minneapolis district. “For my community, for Alex (Pretti) and Renee (Good), after what we had been through over the last few months, it was like I couldn't just not share that with them.”

Gomez said she doesn’t expect her Republican colleagues will back restrictions to federal immigration efforts. But she is hopeful that there are other areas where Democrats and Republicans can come together.

“We probably aren't going to be able to come to an accord on agreeing about issues that are sort of tearing the country apart nationally,” Gomez said. “But amidst all of those things we disagree on, there's work to be done that's good work, and you can see it moving in little ways here and there around the Capitol.”

The clock’s ticking to finish that good work. Lawmakers are back after a holiday break. And the pressure will be on with six weeks left until their required May 18 adjournment.

Minnesota's top judge is retiring in September, giving Gov. Tim Walz another opportunity to shape the state Supreme Court prior to his own departure next year.

Chief Justice Natalie Hudson will step down as she approaches the mandatory retirement age for judges; she turns 70 in January. Her term was otherwise due to run until 2031.

“When Governor Walz appointed me to this position, I knew my time as chief justice would be relatively short, given Minnesota’s mandatory retirement age for judges,” Hudson said in a news release. She called it a “profound honor” to hold the position.

Hudson made history as the first person of color to lead the state judicial branch and is the third woman to be in that position. The chief justice is also one of three members of the Board of Pardons, along with the governor and attorney general.

Four of the seven justices on the Supreme Court were put there by Walz, with Hudson being elevated from associate justice to chief by him as well. All seven were appointed by Democratic governors.

Walz called Hudson one of the “giants of Minnesota history.”

“She will be remembered not only for the glass ceilings she shattered but for a lifetime of service to those seeking fairness and justice in our courts,” he said.

Peter Knapp, who closely watches the courts as a law professor at Mitchell Hamline School of Law, said while Hudson will have had only three years in the role she will leave an imprint.

“There is a warmth in her and humanity to her jurisprudence that I know I will miss, and I think the people of Minnesota will miss,” Knapp said.

He said Hudson worked to build consensus within the court and make the judicial branch more approachable.

“She was unfailingly polite, she was a very kind person to appear in front of, but also unfailingly tough,“ Knapp said. “She asked questions that got to the heart of the matter, and she asked them in a respectful but forceful way. And that is an art.”

While governors appoint judges, they must periodically stand for election to new terms. Minnesota judicial elections aren’t as competitive as they have become in other states.

The two-term DFL governor said he would announce further details of the selection process later. Walz has used a judicial selection panel’s recommendations for most of the dozens of judges he’s appointed, but like other governors has treated the Supreme Court picks differently.

It’s possible that Walz will choose from within the court for a new chief, which would also give him another associate justice position to backfill. That’s what happened when he tapped Hudson for the job in 2023 after she had been on the court since 2015. Walz then filled her empty post with his general counsel, Karl Procaccini.

During her time as leader of the judicial branch, Hudson has overseen implementation of a hearings process that enables more district court work to be done remotely, which built off changes first made during COVID-19. The court system also launched a mental health justice initiative to improve the way the judiciary responds to and serves people with mental illness. The branch also began to advance projects related to artificial intelligence in the court system as the technology expands in society.

Prior to her time on the bench, Hudson was an attorney specializing in housing, employment and other civil litigation cases. She also held roles in law schools, the St. Paul city attorney's office and at the state attorney general’s office.

President Trump repeated threats to Iran during his Monday press conference, which he opened by describing the successful rescue mission for the downed airman over the weekend.

"The entire country can be taken out in one night and that night might be tomorrow night," Trump told reporters.

Trump spent several minutes describing the rescue mission, calling his decision to authorize the rescue as "risky" and "hard."

"But in the U.S. military. We leave no American behind," he said. The president claimed Iran "got lucky" when they took out the U.S. fighter jet.

CIA Director John Radcliffe, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine all recounted the rescue operation at the press conference — Trump's first since the U.S. and Israel launched a war with Iran more than a month ago.

The news conference comes days after Trump formally addressed the nation from the White House last week and said the conflict would end "shortly." At that address, he criticized other countries, though didn't name any specifically, and said it was up to others to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the route through which 20 percent of the world's oil is transported.

Iran's closure of the strait during the war has led to a jump in gas prices globally, hitting around $4 per gallon last week in the U.S.

The president has also been threatening a surge in strikes on Iran Tuesday, unless the strait is reopened by tomorrow evening.

"Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran," Trump said on social media over the weekend, "Open the F***in' Strait, you crazy bastards, or you'll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH!"

The post comes as negotiations between the U.S. and Iran have made some progress. A 45-day ceasefire proposal was submitted to the U.S. and Iran on Sunday. On Monday, Trump called the proposal "a significant step."

The president has repeatedly said the war would last roughly six weeks. But now, in its sixth week, the timeline on when the war would end and how achievable Trump's objectives are remain unclear.

For weeks, Trump has been moving the goal posts on the administration's goals with Iran, including whether the U.S. will remove Iran's uranium stockpiles. Trump has also suggested that the U.S. could end the war but strike Iran again later if they aim to build up nuclear defenses.

Polling shows that Americans oppose the war in Iran. Even among Republican supporters of the president, his approval rating has dipped. A CNN poll released last week showed that Republicans who strongly approve of Trump's job performance dropped to 43%, compared to 52% in January.

High costs, including gas prices, remain a top of mind concern for voters heading into the midterm elections in roughly six months. On Monday, Trump said the high prices might last into the summer.

"We're never going to let them have a nuclear weapon," Trump said of Iran. "And if we have to pay a little extra for fuel for a couple of months, and we'll do that, but we're never going to allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon."

This story will be updated.

Copyright 2026, NPR

The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for the Trump administration to dismiss the criminal case against Steve Bannon, the Trump ally, over his failure to testify before Congress about the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Bannon was a prominent figure in President Trump's first administration. known for a variety of legally questionable activities, including his guilty plea to fraud charges arising from his "We Build The Wall" nonprofit.

He spent four months in prison after defying a subpoena from the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack. Before serving prison time, Bannon asked the Supreme Court to intervene, but the high court ignored his appeal back then.

On Monday, the court sent the case back to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, vacating the lower court ruling.

Bannon had asked the Supreme Court to vacate his prior conviction because he did not "willfully" defy the subpoena, a necessary requirement to be found guilty of contempt of Congress. He maintains that he relied on the advice of his lawyer that his testimony was protected by President Trump's executive privilege.

Copyright 2026, NPR

Iran's top officials pushed back Monday against President Trump's deadline to open the Strait of Hormuz, striking a defiant tone as the warring sides traded missile attacks. The U.S. and Israel targeted oil facilities inside Iran, while Iran hit several towns in Israel and oil refineries across the Gulf countries.

In a social media post Sunday, Trump issued a profane warning for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. "Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran," and adding, "Open the F***in' Strait, you crazy bastards, or you'll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH!" He later specified the deadline: Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET.

Attacking civilian infrastructure that doesn't contribute to military action is considered a war crime under the Geneva Conventions.

Iranian officials reacted to Trump's threats.

A spokesman for Iran's president, Seyyed Mehdi Tabatabai, called Trump's statement a reaction of "sheer desperation and anger."

"The Strait of Hormuz will open when all the damage caused by the imposed war is compensated through a new legal regime, using a portion of the revenue from transit fees," Tabatabai said in a social media post on Sunday.

Iran's Foreign Ministry echoed the statement: "We are determined to defend our national security and sovereignty with all might," the ministry's spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, told Iran's Wana news agency.

Iran's Mission to the U.N. said on Sunday "Trump seeks to drag the region into an endless war."

"This is direct and public incitement to terrorise civilians and clear evidence of intent to commit war crimes," it said in a post on X. "The international community and all States have legal obligations to prevent such atrocious acts of war crimes."

Here are more updates on the war in Iran today:

Diplomatic initiatives | Israel kills intel chief | Strikes in Iran, Israel and Gulf | Bab al-Mandeb Strait

Diplomatic initiatives under way

Egyptian, Pakistani and Turkish envoys are said to have submitted to the U.S. and Iran a proposal for a 45-day ceasefire and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Associated Press.

The proposal was submitted on Sunday to Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, AP reports.

Qatar's Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani called on Monday for a return to negotiations and Oman said it engaged with Iranian diplomats over the weekend to discuss the proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as the U.S. and Iran traded threats and strikes on day 38 of the war.

A statement from Qatar's foreign ministry said Al-Thani "emphasized the need to strengthen coordination, intensify joint efforts, return to the negotiating table, and prioritize reason and wisdom to contain the crisis, thereby ensuring global energy security, freedom of navigation, environmental safety, and preserving regional stability" during a call with India's foreign minister.

The foreign ministry of Oman said its representatives engaged with Iranian diplomats in a meeting "where possible options were discussed regarding ensuring the smooth flow of passage through the Strait of Hormuz during these circumstances witnessed in the region."

In a post on X on Sunday, the ministry said that "experts from both sides presented a number of visions and proposals that will be studied."

Israel says it has killed the intelligence chief of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps

Iran has confirmed the killing of Majid Khadami, intelligence chief of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Israel's defense minister, Israel Katz, said Israel would continue to "hunt down" Iran's leaders one by one and threatened to destroy Iran's national infrastructure if Iran continues firing at civilians in Israel.

As Israel burns through its stockpile of interceptors that shoot down missiles, it has announced a plan to speed up production.

U.S. and Israel strike Iran oil and steel plants as Iran targets oil refineries, telecom in the region

Israeli officials said on Monday that U.S. and Israeli jets struck Iran's petrochemical industry, steel plans and other infrastructure and disabled their operations. Defense Minister Katz said the targeted sites supported Iran's missile production industry.

Iran launched missiles and drones in Israel and across the Persian Gulf oil refineries overnight, which it says produce fuel and products used by the U.S. military.

Iranian missiles hit Tel Aviv, other towns in central Israel and the northern port city of Haifa on Monday. Iran said it targeted the oil refinery, which it said supplies fuel to Israeli jets. The Magen David Adom rescue teams in Haifa said their paramedics were treating four people for mild injuries and the organization's footage from the scene showed smoke and fire in a residential area.

Four people were killed in Haifa on Sunday after an Iranian missile struck a six-floor residential building, which was engulfed in flames.

Iranian drones also struck the oil sector complex in Shuwaikh on Sunday, where Kuwait Petroleum Corporation headquarters and the country's ministry of oil are located. A statement by KPC said the strikes caused fire at the complex, causing "substantial material damage."

It also said that "a number" of operational facilities managed by Kuwait's National Petroleum Company and the Petrochemical Industries were hit by drones, with fire erupting in several facilities.

Authorities said emergency teams were on site to contain the fires. Over the weekend, Iran also hit two power and water desalination plants in Kuwait, knocking out power generation units.

Meanwhile, a telecom building and a port were targeted in the UAE on Monday. That port is vital for food imports as its main port in Dubai remains inaccessible. Officials in the United Arab Emirates reported to have intercepted nine ballistic missiles, 50 drones and a cruise missile fired by Iran on Sunday. UAE's ministry of defense said the country's air defenses were engaged through Monday to intercept Iranian missiles and drones.

Bab al-Mandeb Strait as a target

Aliakbar Velayati, an adviser to the newly appointed supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, warned that Iran may target another key location in the Middle East for the passage of vessels, Bab al-Mandeb Strait. Tucked between Yemen and the Horn of Africa, connecting the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea to the Suez Canal, Bab al-Mandeb Strait could become a target of the Iran-backed Houthi militants, who entered the Iran war last week by attacking Israel, and operate out of Yemen.

An estimated 10 percent of the global trade moves through the Red Sea, a key route for transporting oil from the Arabian Gulf to Mediterranean and connecting Europe to Asia.

Velayati said Iran's regime "views Bab al-Mandab with the same intensity as Hormuz."

"And if the White House contemplates repeating its foolish mistakes, it will quickly realize that the flow of energy and global trade can be disrupted with a single signal," Velayati wrote on X. America, he added, "has yet to learn the geography of power."

Carrie Kahn and Daniel Estrin contributed to this report from Tel Aviv, Aya Batrawy from Dubai and Tina Kraja from Washington, DC

Copyright 2026, NPR

Every Friday night at Hi-Stakes Café in Spring Lake Park, the paddle wheel starts spinning at 4 o’clock. Regulars line up, tickets in hand, hoping to win big at the meat raffle. It is, by any measure, a fun evening out.

Laurie Billman has been coming for years. She likes that the game starts early. It means she still gets some errands done. She’s already won a pork tenderloin.

“I love to cook on the grill,” Billman said. “My guy is in line right now. He won once and I won once.”

It’s a scene that plays out in neighborhood bars from Moorhead to Mankato and beyond. Meat raffles are a tradition in Minnesota and Wisconsin — part neighborhood social, part grocery store run, part fundraiser.

The money raised at Hi-Stakes goes to the Spring Lake Park Lions Club, one of more than 1,100 charitable gambling organizations licensed to operate across Minnesota’s 87 counties.

State lawmakers are working now on a bill that would raise the ceiling on meat raffle prize amounts from $70 to $200. In the closely divided Legislature, supporters say it is one of the few things legislators seem to agree on, a rare moment of bipartisanship.

Backers point out that the law governing prize amounts has not changed in nearly 40 years and is in dire need of an update. They say that without changes to the law, charitable gambling organizations like the Spring Lake Park Lions Club will struggle to keep revenue flowing.

The steaks — and the stakes — have never been higher.

“Last year we gave almost a half-million dollars to the community that we do business in — to the schools, youth sports, to food shelves, Alexandra House, Rise Industries. All the great programs we run in Anoka County,” said Amanda Jackson, who’s managed charitable gambling for the Spring Lake Park Lions Club for more than two decades.

She told a state Senate committee recently that the meat raffle is what brings people through the door.

“Players come early, enjoy food and drinks, play a few pull tabs and join in on several rounds of the raffle and with any luck at all they head home to grill up some fabulous meat,” Jackson said.

‘Big, beautiful meat raffle bill’

The prizes, however, have been quietly shrinking. Jackson submitted photos to lawmakers showing meat prizes growing smaller compared to 2016, 2020 and 2023.

“It’s becoming very difficult to get two steaks in a single pack," Jackson told lawmakers.

The current prize limits are badly out of step with rising prices, said Rachel Jenner, executive director of Allied Charities of Minnesota.

“So now organizations are struggling to assemble prize packages that feel exciting and worthwhile to their players, while staying within the legal prize limit,“ Jenner said. “What we can purchase now is significantly less.”

Beyond raising the prize values, the bill authored by state Sen. Zach Duckworth, R-Lakeville, would also let organizations raise the cost of a raffle ticket from $1 or $2 to as much as $5.

“I have the big, beautiful meat raffle bill,” he told fellow legislators. He described the three-line bill as “short and sweet.”

Supporters say the ripple effect reaches far beyond the charity. Bars like Hi-Stakes depend on the Friday and Saturday night crowds that the meat raffle reliably delivers. It’s also good for local businesses.

“We love having our product in front of more people,” said Josh Von Bank, co-manager of Von Hanson’s Meats in nearby Blaine, the shop that supplies the weekly Lions Club order.

“Everybody gets something out of the meat raffle,” he said. “If you don’t have community, why are you in the spots that you are?”

For Laurie Billman, the meat raffle is also about her family and community.

“It raises money for charity, yes. And it’s fun to do with family. And then I like to cook — I have a bunch of children, so I’ll cook them up a nice meal and bring a cooked meal to them.”

Correction (April 8, 2026): An earlier version of this story misspelled Laurie Billman’s name. The story has been updated.

Editor’s note: This story comes from the Upper Midwest Newsroom, a public media collaboration between Wisconsin Public Radio, South Dakota Public Broadcasting, Prairie Public in North Dakota, and Minnesota Public Radio News made possible by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

A U.S. Air Force officer whose plane was shot down in Iran was rescued by U.S. forces early Sunday after evading capture for more than a day in enemy territory, President Trump announced on social media.

"The U.S. Military sent dozens of aircraft, armed with the most lethal weapons in the World, to retrieve him. He sustained injuries, but he will be just fine," Trump said on Truth Social.

The officer's F-15 fighter jet was shot down on Friday over western Iran, and Trump said "one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History" was undertaken to rescue him.

An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Israel helped the U.S. with the rescue of the airman by sharing intelligence and by halting Israeli strikes in the search area.

Elsewhere in the region, there was no let up in fighting, even as many Middle Eastern Christians celebrated Easter Sunday.

Here are more updates on the war in Iran today:

Trump praises US rescue operation

Trump said the airman was a colonel and "was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran."

He was one of two crew members who ejected when their jet was hit. The pilot was rescued shortly after the shoot down, but the colonel, a weapons officer, could not immediately be reached.

The U.S. military scrambled to launch a massive rescue operation. President Trump said in his Truth Social post that it involved dozens of aircraft.

Three of those rescue aircraft, which were flying at low altitudes, were also hit by Iranian fire, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly.

One was an A-10 Warthog. The pilot managed to keep flying until he reached nearby Kuwaiti airspace, where he ejected and was rescued. Two helicopters were hit by Iranian fire, but were able to make it safely back to their base, the U.S. official said.

Numerous videos over the weekend showed planes and helicopters that closely resemble American search and rescue (SAR) aircraft flying in southwestern Iran. NPR was able to geolocate one of the videos to a bridge in the province of Khuzestan. The bridge is located in a mountainous area approximately 100 miles inland.

Trump lauded the rescues as proof "that we have achieved overwhelming Air Dominance and Superiority over the Iranian skies," but the fact that the pilots were shot down in the first place has caused some analysts to question this assessment, which Trump has made repeatedly.

The two fighter jets were the first shot down in more than twenty years, the last being in 2003 during the war in Iraq.

In mid-March, a U.S. F-35 aircraft was hit by a missile, causing significant damage to the plane and injuring the pilot. NPR was told at the time that the F-35 aircraft was able to return to its base, but the plane made a hard landing.

Since the war with Iran started six weeks ago, 13 U.S. service members have died in airstrikes and also an aircraft refueling crash in Iraq. An attack on a Saudi airbase left more than a dozen U.S. troops wounded, several of them serious.

Israel helped with rescue

An Israeli military official, who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, told NPR that Israel shared intelligence with the U.S. and halted Israeli strikes in the search area as U.S. troops rescued the air force officer whose plane was shot down over Iran.

Israel is now focusing on targeting Iran's steel and petrochemical industries which are important for Iran's economy and military.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video statement that Israel's military strikes in Iran have destroyed the majority of Iran's capabilities to manufacture steel. And also on Saturday Israel said it bombed a petrochemical complex needed for manufacturing missiles.

Easter airstrikes in Lebanon

In Lebanon, Easter services were mixed with funerals, after Israel launched a wave of strikes in its northern neighbor. The strikes were targeted across Lebanon's south, in the Bekaa Valley, and in the capital Beirut's southern suburbs.

Israel says it's targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah militants who've fired rockets across the border.

United Nations peacekeepers said they've lodged a formal protest after Israeli soldiers destroyed security cameras outside a U.N. base in southern Lebanon. Three UN peacekeepers were killed last month, and several have been wounded.

Hezbollah said Sunday it used a missile against an Israeli warship off Lebanon's coast, but the Israeli military said it's not aware of that incident.

In addition to ordering people out of the country's southern region, Israel's military is also ordering the evacuation of Lebanon's main crossing with neighboring Syria – warning it may strike that area too.

Israelis hold anti-war protests

As the Middle East war enters its sixth week, anti-war protests are growing in Israel.

Demonstrations took place in several cities across Israel over the weekend, with police breaking up a large gathering in Tel Aviv.

Hundreds of protesters held signs with the faces of Lebanese children killed by the Israeli military. One protestor, Shiri Katz, told NPR: "I think this war is going nowhere."

"As much as I'd like to see peace in the Middle East and freedom and democracy for Iran, let's face it, we won't get it from this war," Katz said.

Police broke up the protest and made arrests. There is a wartime ban on large gatherings for security reasons. But Israel's High Court of Justice says hundreds may protest.

Russia evacuates Iran power plant staff

Russia says it is continuing to evacuate its staff from Iran's lone operational nuclear power plant amid ongoing U.S.-Israeli attacks. The latest exit comes as Tehran said its nuclear facility had come under attack — killing an Iranian security guard.

The head of Russia's nuclear energy agency, Rosatom's Alexey Likhachev said nearly 200 Russian workers departed the Bushehr nuclear facility by bus minutes before the plant was hit, and were now en route out of Iran.

Likhachev, who's been slowly pulling his staff of 700 Russian workers from the nuclear plant since the U.S.-Israeli attacks began over a month ago, suggested a full withdrawal was now imminent.

Iran has accused the U.S. and Israel of repeatedly targeting Bushehr.

And though there have been no registered spikes in radiation levels, the United Nation's International Atomic Energy Agency has said it is "deeply concerned" over continued fighting near the facility.

Trump starts countdown to Strait of Hormuz deadline

Trump wrote on social media on Saturday that Iran was running out of time to open up the Strait of Hormuz — a critical water passageway for much of the world's gas and oil supply.

"Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT," Trump wrote.

"Time is running out - 48 hours before all Hell will reign [sic] down on them."

The deadline expires on Monday. Trump has given Iran several deadlines since the war began, but then revised them.

Greg Myre in Washington, Daniel Estrin and Itay Stern in Tel Aviv, Lauren Frayer in Beirut, Charles Maynes in Moscow, and Kate Bartlett in Johannesburg contributed to reporting.

Copyright 2026, NPR

Developers of data centers and other industries often seek to tap into city water supplies to get the water they need for cooling equipment and other processes.

But some lawmakers say the practice of companies piggybacking on a city’s water permit allows them to avoid public scrutiny, and puts the state’s groundwater at risk.

They have proposed requiring hyperscale data centers and other large water users to apply for their own permit to use water.

“What some of these large users are attempting to do is just use that city's water permit instead of getting their own,” said state Sen. Ann Johnson Stewart, the sponsor of a Senate bill, during a March 26 committee hearing. “That's what this bill hopes to prevent.”

Johnson Stewart, DFL-Minnetonka, said requiring a separate permit for large water users who use more than 100 million gallons a year, or more than 50 percent of a city’s authorized water use, would increase transparency and give the public a chance to weigh in before it’s approved.

Minnesota is often thought of as a water-rich state. But some environmental groups warn that water-guzzling industries, including hyperscale data centers, bottled water manufacturers and ethanol plants, are increasingly straining the state’s groundwater resources.

“Pumping too much water can cause residential wells to run dry, draw contaminants like manganese and arsenic into well water … and long term, can threaten sustainable water supplies across the state,” said Andrew Hillman, water resources specialist with the nonprofit Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, during the Senate committee hearing.

Groundwater is the source of drinking water for about three-fourths of Minnesotans and almost all of the water used to irrigate crops.

Proponents of the bills say they also would allow the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to enforce state rules that give the highest priority to household drinking water and a lower priority to industrial and commercial use.

They say when industries and businesses get their water through a city permit, residents’ water supply can be at risk during a drought or water shortage.

“The intent is simple – people's drinking water should come before industrial use,” said Janelle Kuznia, a New Market Township resident, during the Senate committee hearing.

Kuznia fought against a Niagara Bottling bottled water plant in Elko New Market, south of the Twin Cities metro, which began operating last year.

The DNR permitted the city of Elko New Market to pump more groundwater to provide to the plant in June 2024. The approval came despite complaints from some area residents with private wells that their water became discolored and cloudy while the city conducted an aquifer test in late 2023.

Kuznia said some well owners have spent thousands of dollars on repairs and filtration systems, and some are buying bottled water.

“We can no longer allow large industrial users to hide behind municipal permits,” she said.

Lawmakers, environmental groups and residents cited data centers as a growing concern due to the large volume of water they can consume for cooling.

Some proponents of the bill have cited a hyperscale data center in Farmington proposed by Tract, a Colorado-based developer. In an environmental review, Tract said the facility could use more than 2.35 million gallons of water per day from the city’s water supply.

A spokesperson for Tract said the company has refined its water use projections since the environmental review was completed, and the actual amount is not expected to exceed 137,000 gallons per day or 50 million per year. He said Tract plans to incorporate more modern cooling technologies, and the peak water use would only be expected on the hottest day of the year.

Mixed reaction

The bill’s proponents say requiring a separate permit would put the liability and cost for any cases of wells running dry onto the company, rather than the city. They say it also would increase transparency by requiring industries to report their water use on a monthly basis, rather than annually.

Rep. Kristi Pursell, DFL-Northfield, is sponsoring a similar bill in the Minnesota House. The bills’ future is uncertain, but they could be included in larger omnibus bills.

The proposals have generated some pushback, including from the state agency tasked with overseeing water-use permits.

Jason Moeckel, assistant director of ecological and water resources for the DNR, said the agency isn’t currently set up to issue a separate permit for large water users, and would have to make changes to its permit program.

Minnesota Chamber of Commerce’s Andrew Morley noted that Minnesota lawmakers passed some additional regulations on data centers last year, including giving the DNR the authority to request more information about their water use early in the development process.

Clarification (April 6, 2026): The story has been updated to reflect that Tract says its proposed data center in Farmington would use less water than originally estimated in an environmental review of the project.

The Trump Administration announced a massive reorganization of the U.S. Forest Service this week that will result in the closure of two research facilities in northeast Minnesota, including an office in Grand Rapids that leads internationally recognized projects on the impact of climate change on peatlands and northern forests.

The Grand Rapids office is one of 57 research facilities that will be shuttered across the country, more than 20 of which are part of the Northern Research Station, which spans from upper Midwest states, including Minnesota and Wisconsin into New England.

The agency’s five regional research stations will now be consolidated under a single Forest Service research organization based in Fort Collins, Colo. But other details on the closures and how it will affect ongoing research projects are scarce.

“These changes are designed to unify research priorities, accelerate the application of science to management decisions, and reduce administrative duplication,” the Forest Service said in a statement announcing the moves this week.

The restructuring is expected to take place over the next one to two years. No staff in Grand Rapids will be fired. But it’s not known how many staffers will be relocated, and where they will be reassigned.

In response to several questions requesting more details on the announced closures in Minnesota, a USDA spokesperson said “The transition will occur in phases. Employees will receive clear information about relocation timelines, available options, and resources to support their decisions.”

The announcement did not come as a big surprise to Brian Palik, a research forest ecologist who worked at the Northern Research Station in Grand Rapids for 30 years before retiring about a year ago. He said staff was told last year the agency would be reorganized to make it more streamlined.

“Having said that, it still comes as a shock, because that facility has been there for 65 years. It’s kind of a fixture in the community,” said Palik.

Palik estimates eight to 10 Forest Service scientists work there. The office also houses researchers from the University of Minnesota and the U.S. Geological Survey.

For decades researchers there have conducted long-term and large-scale experiments on wetlands and forests. Much of the research has been conducted at experimental forests within the nearby Chippewa National Forest, including the Marcell Experimental Forest, a 2,800-acre site established in 1960 to study peatland hydrology and ecology.

Having scientists physically close to the experimental forest to conduct research has been key to the facility’s success, Palik said. “It's just something that's hard to do in the same way when you're three hours away at the University of Minnesota in St. Paul,” Palik said.

One of the best-known projects is called SPRUCE, short for Spruce and Peatland Responses Under Changing Environment.

Scientists have built 10 huge chambers in the woods near Grand Rapids where they artificially vary the climatic conditions to simulate possible future temperatures due to global warming.

Then, every day, they measure how the ecosystem is responding to warmer conditions. It’s one of the largest ecosystem-level experiments in the world.

“That project is globally recognized for the work that it's doing about how climate change may affect our forested peatland and lowland conifer ecosystems in the state,” said Eric Schenck, executive director of the Minnesota Forest Resources Council, a state organization that represents a variety of interests, from the forest products industry to environmental groups, and provides policy recommendations to state officials.

“I don't see how we can afford to lose this ongoing research,” Schenck added. “And in the absence of having Forest Service leadership, I think we're going to be hard pressed to figure out how to maintain it through our existing means and institutions.”

Palik led projects that studied what species of trees could replace Minnesota’s one billion black ash trees, which are expected to soon be wiped out by the invasive emerald ash borer.

He’s also launched a project examining how the state’s red pine forests can survive climate change, and what other species may be able to best survive in northern Minnesota in warmer conditions. It’s one of the largest studies of its kind in the world.

“And it's run out of the Grand Rapids lab,” Palik said. “It’s hard to imagine. The impact is international of the research that has and does come out of there.”

The U.S. Forest Service did not specify which research facility in Ely would be closed. The Kawishiwi Research Station there has not housed Forest Service employees for several years.

It’s currently being leased by the Northern Bedrock Historic Preservation Corps, which uses the site for hands-on training in historic preservation trades. The group says it has not been told about any potential changes at the site.

Other possibilities include a water lab that collects baseline water data on area lakes and rivers and has studied the impacts of copper-nickel mining, and a site that monitors air quality, including mercury pollution.

“The research is long-term, ongoing research on things that are important to us in northern Minnesota,” said Aaron Kania, retired former district ranger for the Kawishiwi Ranger District in Ely who’s now running for a seat in the state legislature.

“So if we were to lose that research, that baseline monitoring, it would have some pretty major implications for all the work that's happening in northern Minnesota,” Kania said.

On a national level, the U.S. Forest Service restructuring will move the agency’s headquarters from Washington, D.C. to Salt Lake City, Utah. Regional offices will also be replaced by a state-based organizational model, with the closest center to Minnesota in Madison, Wis.

The announcement indicates a research facility in St. Paul will be retained. There aren’t any expected changes for district offices or their staffing at the Superior or Chippewa National Forests in northern Minnesota.

“The Superior and Chippewa National Forests are committed to ensuring that all operations — including wildfire readiness and response — continue without interruption,” a USDA spokesperson said.

Two female ICE agents posed as motorists with car troubles outside the home of mechanic Jesus Flores Aguilar on Feb. 12, according to the man’s attorney. When Flores Aguilar went outside to help, he was arrested by immigration agents.

Four days later, he walked across the border to his native Mexico, what federal authorities refer to as “self-deporting.”

“His six kids are now without their father,” Attorney John Hayden earlier told MPR News.

Flores Aguilar is one of nearly 1,700 people arrested in Minnesota by federal agents this winter who have already been deported.

That total accounts for almost half the people who were arrested during the federal operations in the state, according to recent data released through a federal lawsuit. The data shows that the Trump Administration has been shuttling many of the people it arrests out of the country at a rapid clip — leaving them little time to challenge their detentions or make a case for why they should be allowed to stay.

ICE did not immediately respond to questions for this story.

The numbers come from data secured by a federal Freedom of Information Act lawsuit by the Deportation Data Project and includes documentation of more than 3,700 arrests in the state between Dec. 1 and March 10. The previously unreleased data details for the first time the number of people the federal government arrested, detained and deported in recent months.

Minnesota’s numbers seem in line with what’s happening in the rest of the country, said Raha Wala, vice president at the National Immigration Law Center, which advocates for low-income immigrants. He said his organization has struggled to get factual information from the Department of Homeland Security.

“The bottom line is this administration is pushing for a maximum amount of deportations with a minimum amount of due process,” Wala said.

Arrests peaked in the state after Renee Good’s killing in the first week of January. Deportations of those arrested rose to their highest levels in mid-February. By early March, deportations of people arrested in Minnesota appear to have returned to about the same levels they were at in December, when the immigration enforcement surge began.

Many deportees sent to Latin American countries

Most of those deported from the United States were returned to Latin American countries, including almost 600 people returned to Mexico and about 520 deported to Ecuador. At least 17 minors were also deported, almost half of whom were from Ecuador.

A typical person from Mexico spent just nine days in detention before their deportation, while people from Colombia typically spent 45 days in detention.

The Trump administration’s rhetoric used to justify the federal surge centered on claims that Somali-Americans committed fraud. However, just over 100 Somalis were arrested during the operation. The data shows only four were deported to Somalia during this time, where the U.S. Department of State has issued a travel advisory citing terrorism and civil unrest.

Groups such as the American Immigration Council have expressed concerns that immigrants have been deported to places other than their countries of origin, which sometimes happened when immigrants had proven they faced persecution if returned to their home countries. But only eight people arrested in Minnesota were deported to third countries, including Cubans, Spaniards and Venezuelans who were deported to Mexico.

Wala said the speed with which deportations take place varies from country to country. Mexico, for instance, is willing to accept deported immigrants while countries with more strained relationships to the U.S. may simply refuse.

Of those who were deported, about 45 percent were collateral arrests, meaning federal agents encountered them in a public place or during an operation targeting another person, rather than targeting them explicitly.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials have said in public statements that “Operation Metro Surge” targeted the “worst of the worst,” citing immigrants who were convicted of crimes. But the data shows that just 1 in 3 of those deported from Minnesota had either criminal convictions or pending criminal charges.

Jesus Flores Aguilar’s habeas corpus petition, which challenged the legality of his detention, said he had been a law-abiding resident while in Minnesota. However, his attorney John Hayden said Flores Aguilar had returned to the U.S. after previously being removed, which is a felony. Hayden told MPR News he withdrew that challenge, knowing that efforts to keep his client in the country would not be successful.

Many immigrants chose to leave rather than face ‘prolonged detention’

About 43 percent of the people deported from Minnesota “self-deported,” which is a term that federal officials have used to describe immigrants who chose to leave voluntarily rather than wait in detention centers while challenging their arrests in court. People who were deported were typically detained for about 17 days, while people who were later released by the government were detained for nearly 60 days.

Wala of the National Immigration Law Center said there appear to be more people voluntarily deporting themselves across the country, but that it’s partly due to pressure the administration is putting on detainees.

“They want to make life as miserable as possible for immigrants or migrants, more generally, with the hope that they will choose at times even the risk of persecution,” Wala said, “rather than facing prolonged detention in the United States or persistent harassment by ICE and other law enforcement officials here within the United States.”

More than half of people detained by federal authorities after Dec. 1 still had active cases that were working through the immigration court system as of March 10, the most recent data available. That’s because they likely haven’t been in custody long enough for their cases to resolve.

Wala said he hopes increased transparency about the federal government’s immigration practices will allow more immigrants access to due process and ensure the public knows what’s happening to them.

The Deportation Data Project said the arrest data is incomplete and includes a number of duplicates, which MPR News and APM Reports accounted for in its analysis. Still, the data provides the clearest picture yet of the federal government’s actions this winter.

Correction (April 3, 2026): This story has been updated with the correct name of the Deportation Data Project.

Minnesota’s eight U.S. House seats don’t change hands all that often, but after November’s midterm election one seat certainly will.

The state’s 2nd Congressional District will have a new representative come January 2027. Democratic incumbent, Rep. Angie Craig, is running for the open U.S. Senate and will leave the House after four terms.

MPR News politics editor Brian Bakst speaks with candidates about why they’re the best Democrat to serve the district that runs from the suburbs down into southern Minnesota farm towns.

Guests:

• Matt Klein is a DFL state senator of Mendota Heights, a physician and a candidate for 2nd Congressional District.

• Kaela Berg is a DFL state representative of Burnsville, a flight attendant and a candidate for 2nd Congressional District.

• Matt Little is a former DFL state senator, a past mayor of Lakeville and a candidate for 2nd Congressional District.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation or subscribe to the Politics Friday podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or RSS.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has asked the Army’s top uniformed officer, Gen. Randy George, to step down, the Pentagon said Thursday, as the United States wages a war against Iran.

A Pentagon official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter, confirmed that George has been asked to take early retirement from the post of Army chief of staff, which he has held since August 2023.

The ouster of George is just the latest of more than a dozen firings of top generals and admirals by Hegseth since he first took office last year.

CBS News was first to report the ouster.

George is a graduate of West Point Military Academy and an infantry officer who served in the first Gulf War as well as Iraq and Afghanistan. He also served as Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s top military aide from 2021 to 2022, during the Biden administration, before taking on top leadership roles in the Army.

George survived the initial round of firings last February, which saw the removal of top military leaders, including Adm. Lisa Franchetti, the Navy’s top uniformed officer, and Gen. Jim Silfe, the No. 2 leader at the Air Force, by Hegseth. President Donald Trump also fired Gen. Charles “C.Q.” Brown, then the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, at the same time.

Since then, more than a dozen other top military generals and admirals have either retired early or been removed from their posts.

Among these departures was George’s deputy, the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, Gen. James Mingus, who was in the post for less than two years when Trump suddenly nominated Lt. Gen. Christopher LaNeve for the position. LaNeve was then serving as Hegseth’s top military aide, having been plucked for that post from commanding the Eighth Army in South Korea after less than a year in the job.

For many people, mobile home parks are an affordable place to raise a family or retire. But manufactured housing is also big business in Minnesota for out-of-state buyers.

Cait Kelley shared her reporting on a bill before the Minnesota Legislature that aims to keep parks budget-friendly.

Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.

President Donald Trump says Pam Bondi is out as his attorney general, ending the contentious tenure of a loyalist who upended the Justice Department’s culture of independence from the White House, oversaw large-scale firings of career employees and moved aggressively to investigate the Republican president’s perceived enemies.

The announcement follows months of scrutiny over the Justice Department’s handling of files related to Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking investigation that made Bondi the target of angry conservatives even with her close relationship with Trump. She also struggled to satisfy Trump’s demands to prosecute his political rivals, with multiple investigations rejected by judges or grand juries.

The former Florida attorney general came into office last year pledging that she would not play politics with the Justice Department, but she quickly started investigations of Trump foes, sparking an outcry that the law enforcement agency was being wielded as a tool of revenge to advance the president’s political and personal agenda.

Bondi ushered in a period of intense turmoil at the department that included the firings of career prosecutors deemed insufficiently loyal to Trump and the resignations of hundreds of other employees. Her departure continues a trend of Justice Department upheaval that has defined Trump’s presidency as multiple attorneys general across his two terms have either been pushed out or resigned after proving unwilling or unable to meet his demands for the position.

Bondi rejected accusations that she politicized the Justice Department and said her mission was to restore the institution’s credibility after overreach by President Joe Biden’s Democratic administration with two federal criminal cases against Trump. Bondi’s defenders have said she worked to refocus the department to better tackle illegal immigration and violent crime and brought much-needed change to an agency they believe unfairly targeted conservatives.

Embracing, supporting and protecting the president

Bondi’s public embrace of the president, however, marked a sharp departure from her predecessors, who generally took pains to maintain an arm’s-length distance from the White House to protect the impartiality of investigations and prosecutions. Bondi postured herself as Trump’s chief supporter and protector, praising and defending him in congressional hearings and placing a banner with his face on the exterior of Justice Department headquarters.

She called for an end to the “weaponization” of law enforcement she said occurred under the Biden administration, even though Biden’s attorney general, Merrick Garland, and Jack Smith, the special counsel who produced two cases against Trump, have said they followed the facts, the evidence and the law in their decision-making. Bondi’s critics, meanwhile, said she was the one who had politicized the agency to do the president’s bidding.

“You’ve turned the People’s Department of Justice into Trump’s instrument of revenge,” Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary committee, said at a February hearing.

Bondi delivered a combative performance but few substantive answers at that hearing as she angrily insulted her Democratic questioners with name-calling, praised Trump over the performance of the stock market — “The Dow is up over 50,000 right now” —- and openly aligned herself as in sync with a president whom she painted as a victim of past impeachments and investigations.

Even Republicans began to challenge her, with the Republican-led House Oversight Committee last month issuing a subpoena to her to appear for a closed-door interview about the Epstein files.

Under Bondi’s leadership, the department opened investigations into a string of Trump foes, including Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, New York Attorney General Letitia James, former FBI Director James Comey and former CIA Director John Brennan. The high-profile prosecutions of Comey and James were short-lived as they were quickly thrown out by a judge who ruled that the prosecutor who brought the cases was illegally appointed.

Trump repeatedly publicly praised and defended Bondi but also showed flashes of impatience with his attorney general’s efforts to meet his demands to prosecute his rivals. In one extraordinary social media post last year, Trump called on Bondi to move quickly to prosecute his foes, including James and Comey, telling her: “We can’t delay any longer, it’s killing our reputation and credibility.”

Bondi oversaw the exodus of thousands of career employees — both through firings and voluntary departures — including lawyers who prosecuted violent attacks on police at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021; environmental, civil rights and ethics enforcers; counterterrorism prosecutors; and others.

Fumbling the Epstein files

She struggled to overcome early stumbles over the Epstein files that angered conservatives eager for government bombshells about the case, which has long fascinated conspiracy theorists. She herself had fed the conspiracy theory machine with a suggestion in a 2025 Fox News Channel interview that Epstein’s “client list” was sitting on her desk for review. The department later acknowledged that no such document exists.

Bondi was ridiculed over a move to hand out binders of Epstein files to conservative influencers at the White House only for it to be later revealed that the documents included no new revelations. And despite promises that more files were going to become public, the Justice Department in July said no more would be released, prompting Congress to pass a bill to force the agency to do so.

The Epstein files fumbles led to a stunning public criticism from White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, a close friend of Bondi’s, who told Vanity Fair that the attorney general “completely whiffed.” The Justice Department’s release of millions of pages of Epstein files did little to tamp down criticism, prompting a House committee with the support of five Republicans to subpoena Bondi to answer questions under oath.

Bondi, who defended Trump during his first impeachment trial, was his second choice to lead the Justice Department, picked for the role after former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida withdrew his name from consideration amid scrutiny over sex trafficking allegations.