NPR News: 03-21-2026 1PM EDT

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Iran State Agency says air strikes by Israel and the US began hitting a uranium enrichment facility in Central Iran today.

The Israeli military says it's not aware of this, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday,

Iran no longer has the capacity to enrich uranium or make ballistic missiles.

Some Iranians are fleeing the war into neighboring Turkey. NPR's Emily Fang spoke with some of them.

We met dozens of people yesterday, like this man who we talked to just minutes after he crossed, he's planning to go back to Iran where he's afraid of being arrested for speaking with foreign media.

He told us he stands shoulder to shoulder with Israel and the US in attacking Iran's government, but he feels really torn.

There are people who are against the bombing and we met some of these Iranians yesterday.

But many Iranians tell us that while it is anguishing for them to see innocent civilians killed, it is even more anguishing for them to live under the current regime.

NPR's Emily Fang. Yesterday was the spring equinox, the first day of spring.

In Iraq and Iran, it's an important cultural celebration. NPR's Jane Araf was in the Kurdistan region of Iraq in the ancient town of Akray, where the annual fireworks dancing and fire marked Kurdish resilience and renewal.

It's pouring rain here, but there are hundreds and hundreds of people carrying lit torches and making their way up the mountain.

This celebration marks the first day of spring, but it also references mythology in which China was defeated and the flames are a symbol of victory of light over darkness.

It's a tradition that's much, much older than the countries in which it's celebrated.

And more than anything, as war rages around the region, it's a symbol of the endurance here of Kurdish identity.

Jane Araf and NPR news at Kray in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.

The Republican election bill now being considered by Congress doesn't look likely to pass, but Republican controlled states are passing similar legislation at the state level.

NPR's Miles Parks reports.

Republican lawmakers have worried about non-citizen voting for years, but the issue is taken on new urgency with President Trump's claims ahead of the 2024 election that non-citizens would vote in mass to influence that race.

There's no evidence that happened or has ever happened in American elections for that matter, but states are still passing new restrictions to protect against the possibility.

Bills with new voting requirements have now passed or are about to pass in Florida, South Dakota, and Utah, and similar laws passed in recent years in Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Wyoming, according to the Voting Rights Lab, which tracks election policy.

Miles Parks, NPR News, Washington.

This is NPR News in Washington.

President Trump said today that if Democrats don't immediately sign a budget for the Department of Homeland Security, he'll send ICE officers to airports to take the place of TSA agents.

They've been working without pay for weeks, and it is viewed over how ICE enforces immigration laws.

Heavy rain is expected across Hawaii this weekend. The state is already seeing severe flooding. Hawaii Public Radio's Bill Dorman reports.

Evacuation sirens pierced the usual quiet of the North Shore of the island of Oahu Friday.

Communities known for surfing spots and tourist stops have been inundated with fast-moving flash floods. The water has lingered.

Houses have been knocked off their foundations. Cars swept away because of earlier storms some have been without electricity for days.

One local concern, an earthen dam dating back to the days of sugar plantations in the early 1900s.

The Wahewa dam has been teetering on the brink of overflow, threatening some 2,500 residents enforcing the evacuation of the towns of Haleva and Wailua.

For NPR News, I'm Bill Dorman in Honolulu.

The NCAA is suing the sports betting company Draft Kings for trademark infringement.

It is seeking an emergency restraining order to stop the use of registered trademarks, trademarks associated with its basketball tournaments, such as March Madness Final Four and Sweet 16.

It wants to avoid any appearance of being part of gambling. Draft Kings says that its use is not a trademark violation, but protected speech under the First Amendment.

I'm Nora Ram, NPR News in Washington.

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