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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Lakshmi Singh. Heavy thick smoke from wildfires north of the border is spreading across large parts of the Midwestern and northeastern US this week. Tens of millions of people are breathing in air that ranges from unhealthy to hazardous given high levels of fine particulate matter. Nearly 200 active wildfires are burning in Ontario as of this morning. From Premier Doug Ford says so far this year, Canada has experienced more than 3,500 wildfires.
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Last year, we had over 600,000 hectares on fire. This year, and it's changing on a daily, hourly basis. It's 650,000 acres already.
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Major wildfires are also burning in northern Minnesota. Hundreds of federal border security buoys are floating down the Rio Grande after being swept away by flood waters near Eagle Pass, Texas. The loose buoys have prompted officials to close some international bridges in South Texas. Texas Public Radio's David Martin Davies has the latest.
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The Department of Homeland Security's river buoys broke loose after massive rainfall and floated downstream. The city of Eagle Pass temporarily closed two international bridges to Mexico as the barriers passed through downstream In Laredo, officials have activated the city's operations center and crews are using drones to track the buoys. Officials say the drifting barriers could affect operations at the city's four international bridges. Laredo is one of the nation's busiest inland ports. DHS installed hundreds of miles of a floating border wall in the Rio Grande earlier this year to deter illegal immigration. For NPR News, I'm David Martin Davies.
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In San Antonio, President Trump's nominee for attorney general, Todd Blanche, met with victims of the late sex offender. Jeffrey Epstein came hours after a key Republican senator demanded Blanche do so as a condition for supporting his nomination. Here's NPR's Ryan Lucas.
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The ultimatum that Blanche meet with Epstein survivors came from North Carolina Republican Senator Thom Tillis, whose vote is critical for Blanche's nomination to advance. Hours later, Blanche found time to sit down with a group of Epstein's victims who had been trying for months to arrange just such a meeting. Afterwards, Tillis commended Blanche for sitting down with the women and his willingness to directly engage and listen to them, end quote. But Epstein survivors who were in the meeting say Blanche treated it as a check the box exercise. One survivor, Annie Farmer, said Blanche was abrasive, condescending and intentionally non committal in the meeting. And she, like other Epstein victims, urged senators to reject Blanche's nomination to lead the Justice Department. Ryan Lucas, NPR News, Washington.
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It's npr. The former mayor of Greater Manchester is a big step closer to becoming the prime minister of Britain today, Andy Burnham was formally declared head of the governing Labour Party following contests in which he was the only contender in replacing outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Burnham is positioned to become the fourth prime minister in as many years. Israeli lawmakers voted unanimously to end the current session of the Knesset and set new elections for the fall. The parliament, with its far right coalition majority, pushed through a slew of laws favoring the ultra religious as well as laws the current government has been advocating to overhaul Israel's judicial system. Here's NPR's Carrie the Vote to dissolve
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the government occurred early Friday. National elections are set for October 27th. It was the first time in nearly 440 years that an Israeli government completed its entire four year term. Critics say Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu achieved that longevity by placating far right and ultra orthodox coalition partners, a move they say he repeated this week by rushing through laws they say are anti democratic, including one that will weaken the power of the attorney general and another giving the government more control over the media. Israel's far right finance minister also pushed through hundreds of millions of dollars for new settlements and accompanying roads in the occupied West Bank. Carrie Khan, NPR News, tel Aviv.
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The U.S. geological Survey confirms a magnitude 7.3 earthquakes centered near the Mexico Guatemala border today. There were no immediate reports of severe damage or injuries. This is NPR News.
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