NPR News: 03-12-2026 7PM EDT

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton.

The FBI says it is investigating an attack at a synagogue in suburban Detroit as a targeted

act of violence against the Jewish community.

A man armed with a rifle rammed a truck into the temple, Israel.

He was fired on by security guards and later found dead in the vehicle.

Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard says a security officer was injured, but no one

else in the school was hurt.

Now there were some injuries and things that had to be taken care of one of the head

of security was taken to the hospital.

He got knocked down by the car when it breached the building and we've had 30 law enforcement

officers taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.

Investigators are still working to identify the man in a possible motive for the attack.

Iran's new Supreme Leader has issued his first public statement since succeeding his father,

who was killed in an air strike at the start of the war.

NPR's Jackie Northam reports it was issued on state TV, but read by someone else.

The statement attributed to Supreme Leader Mojtoba Hamini says Iran will continue to block

the street of Hormuz, calling it a successful strategy that gives Iran leverage in the war.

Hundreds of tankers are idled in the strategic waterway, causing oil prices to skyrocket.

It says Iran will carry on fighting and urges the Gulf States to close their U.S. military

bases. Otherwise, Iran will continue to attack those countries.

Hamini's written statement was read with an English voiceover in a photo of the Supreme

Leader on the TV screen.

Hamini has not made a public appearance since he was named Supreme Leader, leading to speculation

that he's wounded, dead or in hiding.

And Jackie Northam in NPR News.

President Trump is promising to, quote, finish the job in Iran even as he says the country

is virtually destroyed.

They really are a nation of terror and hate, and they're paying a big price right now.

The first week of war costs the U.S. $11.3 billion, according to the Pentagon, and is driven

up oil and gas prices across the world.

The UN Refugee Agency says up to 3.2 million people in Iran have been displaced.

An internal government watchdog, and members of Congress, are separately investigating allegations

that Department of Government Efficiency Staffers misused sensitive Social Security data,

NPR's Stephen Fowler reports.

In a letter obtained by NPR, the Social Security Administration's Inspector General told

members of Congress last week it received an anonymous complaint about, quote, potential

misuse of SSA data.

This week, Congressional Democrats investigating doses access to Social Security data also

said they received new whistleblower information.

That information, which was reported by the Washington Post, and has not been independently

reviewed by NPR, alleges a former Doge staffer retained copies of two Social Security databases

and wanted to use them in a private sector job.

The Social Security Administration disputes the claims.

Stephen Fowler, NPR News

This is NPR News from Washington.

NASA has cleared its moon rocket for a launch with four astronauts as early as April

1st after completing the latest round of repairs.

The Artemis II crew should have blasted off on a lunar fly around earlier this year,

but fuel leaks and other rocket problems interfered.

It'll mark humanity's first trip to the moon in more than 50 years.

Popstar Bruno Mars has the number one album and the number one song in the country, NPR's

Stephen Thompson has more.

Until two weeks ago, Bruno Mars hadn't released a new solo album in almost a decade.

But he's been all over the pop charts, both as a member of Silk Sonic and as a guest

on songs by artists like Sexy Red, Rose, and Lady Gaga.

Now he's back with The Romantic and his return is warmly welcomed on this week's pop

charts.

It's the first album of Bruno Mars' career to debut at number one.

At the same time, its lead single, I Just Might, returns to the top of the singles chart

after debuting at number one two months ago.

Stephen Thompson, NPR News.

The spectacular abacquit falls and Oregon was recently put up for sale.

It's known for a 92-foot vertical drop over a basalt stone cliff, a nonprofit that supports

a community of Benedictine monks owns it and put it on the market earlier this year.

The listing worried fans of the natural wonder, but during the Oregon State legislative

session, a bipartisan group of lawmakers stepped in and approved spending $2.1 million

to buy the falls and its surrounding land.

You're listening to NPR News.

This week on Consider this, Warren Ron and a new front in Lebanon.

What is the cost in lives and to Americans at home?

And in Ukraine, after four years, the war there grinds on.

Is that what Russians want?

Our reporters are on the ground with firsthand reporting from Beirut, Moscow.

Listen for their stories on Consider this on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.