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The U.S. carried out its first known strike inside Venezuela. There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs.

Michelle Martin (1:46)

President Trump says it sends a message to Nicolas Maduro, but critics warn it could escalate the conflict.

Amy Martinez (1:51)

I'm Emmy Martinez. That's Michelle Martin. And this is up first from NPR News. In Iran, protests over the economy are spreading. Security forces are cracking down as anger over inflation and sanctions boil over. So is this a short lived protest or the start of something bigger?

Michelle Martin (2:08)

And flu cases are surging across the US with millions already sick and hospitals bracing for more, a new strain is spreading fast and fewer people are getting vaccinated, which makes this flu season different? How can you prepare? Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day.

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Michelle Martin (3:29)

President Trump's critics say the American strike on a facility in Venezuela is drawing the US Even closer into a more dangerous conflict.

Amy Martinez (3:37)

Trump gave a few new details this week. The attack against a dock in Venezuela where drugs are allegedly being loaded on boats.

Franco Ordonez (3:44)

There was a major explosion in the.

Amy Martinez (3:46)

Dock area where they load the boats up with drugs.

Franco Ordonez (3:49)

They load the boats up with drugs. So we hit all the boats and now we hit the area. It's the implementation area. That's where they implement.

Amy Martinez (3:58)

It's the first known operation inside Venezuela, an escalation of his campaign against the government of Nicolas Maduro.

Michelle Martin (4:04)

NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordonez is with us now from Palm beach, where President Trump is spending the winter holidays. Good morning, Franco.

Franco Ordonez (4:11)

Good morning, Michelle.

Michelle Martin (4:12)

So just give us the big picture here. What is the significance of these latest attacks?

Franco Ordonez (4:17)

Yeah, I mean, the president has been warning for weeks that he was prepared to launch land strikes, and he first mentioned this port strike a week ago on a radio show. While he hasn't been clear about how the strikes were conducted, a U.S. official confirmed to NPR's Tom Bowman that the CIA struck the dock. Now, until now, the US has focused on strikes on boats it claims are trafficking drugs and some oil tankers. But both of those operations have been taking place in international waters. So this is a really big deal to strike on land. It's an escalation, but also creates more risks of killing innocent Venezuelans who have nothing to do with any of that stuff.

Michelle Martin (4:56)

Also, the lack of congressional input, let alone oversight, as this campaign has escalated is something that has drawn attention Especially some members of Congress, as one might imagine. Wouldn't it be considered sort of customary and appropriate to at least brief Congress ahead of a strike like this?

Franco Ordonez (5:12)

Right. I mean, typically when presidents have done this in the past, the so called Gang of Eight would be briefed either before or very soon after. Those are the top senators and House leaders for both parties. You know, it's just another example, though, of how Trump has sought to build his own power while diminishing Congress's power. I was speaking with John Feeley, who formerly served as ambassador of Panama, and he says Congress seems to be very slowly inching towards more oversight. One of the things that really surprises me is how the Congress has sort of had two attempts to get a war powers resolution. They've narrowly failed, but they keep coming back to it, and it's almost sort of like a chicken and an egg. Now he sees growing frustration among members of Congress and he points to the congressional hearings about the recent double tap boat strikes in international waters off the coast of Venezuela that killed survivors of one initial strike.

Michelle Martin (6:06)

You know, one of the things that stands out for me is that if the president did not mention the strike last week, we might not have heard of this. And the reason I point that out is that it's so much different than these public displays of the boat strikes where the administration issued, you know, video. Not as much as some members of Congress and certainly members of the public want, but they did make a point of issuing video about it. So what do you make of that?

Franco Ordonez (6:29)

Yeah, I mean, the MO really has been to seek as much credit on the strikes. Ambassador Feely also told me that Trump is trying to send a message to Maduro that the US can get to him anywhere and anytime. They want to get as much public credit for them. They want to build momentum to provoke regime collapse. They want Nicolas Maduro to sleep poorly at night.

Michelle Martin (6:51)

So what are you watching for next, Franco?

Franco Ordonez (6:53)

You know, that's hard to say. Trump said he spoke to Maduro fairly recently, but that he didn't seem to think it had much of an impact. You know, surely I'll be watching for further escalation, perhaps another land strike. But also Congress is coming back soon, so we'll see if they have any questions or concerns about these latest moves and the latest escalation.

Michelle Martin (7:12)

That is NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordonez. Franco, thank you.

Franco Ordonez (7:15)

Thank you, Michelle.

Michelle Martin (7:24)

Iran is seeing its biggest protest in years. Thousands of people have taken to the streets in several cities across the country to protest the economy.

Amy Martinez (7:32)

Inflation in Iran has skyrocketed and the country's currency has plummeted to a record low. Anger is growing over sanctions on the country's ruling government, and businesses have closed as many students have joined the demonstrations.

Michelle Martin (7:43)

NPR's international affairs correspondent Jackie Northam has been following these developments, and she's with us now to tell us more about it. Good morning, Jackie.

Jackie Northam (7:49)

Good morning, Michelle.

Michelle Martin (7:50)

So first, could you just describe these protests and what prompted them?

Jackie Northam (7:54)

Well, what started this round of protest was, as you say, the economy, which is in very bad shape. You know, Iran has struggled under sanctions for more than a decade, and because of that, its oil exports, which are the lifeblood of the country's economy, are sharply curtailed. And so too is investment. The local currency, the real has plummeted. Inflation is running over 40%. And the government recently published a draft of the budget which predicted that the real incomes of the salaried middle class will fall by about half. So on top of everything else that seemed to ignite these protests, how is.

Michelle Martin (8:28)

The regime reacting to these protests? So far?

Jackie Northam (8:32)

We're starting to see the security forces crack down. You know, there are videos on social media showing them firing tear gas into the crowds. Also, the authorities today announced a shutdown of government offices, banks, schools, universities across more than 20 provinces. And they said it was due to cold weather. They didn't mention the protests. The country's moderate president, Masoud Pizeschkian, is urging the regime to listen to what he called the legitimate demands of the protesters as far as the economy. The head of the central bank resigned and the bank started throwing US Dollars into the market to help prop up the rial, which helped a bit, but, you know, it doesn't have unlimited resources to do that. I spoke with Javad Salehi Isfahani, and he's an economics professor at Virginia Tech specializing in the Iranian economy. And he said another thing is that the Twelf, the 12 day war with Israel this past summer was expensive. And there is a widespread belief now that Israel will start another war which is smothering investment.

Franco Ordonez (9:33)

That introduces a kind of uncertainty into.

Michelle Martin (9:37)

An economy that's already very uncertain because.

Franco Ordonez (9:39)

Of sanctions, because of government policies.

Michelle Martin (9:42)

So you have a kind of a perfect storm now reaching over Iran's economy.

Jackie Northam (9:46)

And Michelle, the threat of another war grew larger when President Trump said on Monday that the U.S. would back an Israeli attack in if Iran appeared to be building up its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.

Michelle Martin (9:59)

And Jackie, given what's going on in Iran right now, is there a sense that this could threaten the regime?

Jackie Northam (10:05)

The protests haven't reached that point yet, Michelle. You know, there was a serious challenge to the regime in 2022 during an uprising after an Iranian woman died in police custody after being arrested for not wearing a headscarf. And, you know, those protests lasted for over a month and more than 500 people were killed, 20,000 people were arrested. You know, we are a long way from that. But there's been anger and frustration for months in Iran over severe water and energy shortages, civil rights abuses and widespread corruption. You add all this onto the protests about the economy, and, you know, there are serious concerns that this could spiral into something much larger.

Michelle Martin (10:45)

And before we let you go, President Trump said on Monday that the U.S. would back an Israeli attack if Iran appeared to be building up its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs. How has Iran reacted to that?

Jackie Northam (10:56)

Well, they said they would come down hard. They said that they would retaliate in kind to anything that the US can throw at Iran. You know, at the end of the day, the hope is that there can be some negotiations, but neither side are in the position to start those.

Michelle Martin (11:10)

That is NPR international affairs correspondent Jackie Northam. Jackie, thank you.

Jackie Northam (11:14)

Thank you.

Michelle Martin (11:22)

This year's flu season is shaping up to be a particularly bad one.

Gabriela Emanuel (11:26)

Yeah.

Amy Martinez (11:26)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have released the latest numbers on how influenza is spreading across the country, and, well, it's not a pretty picture.

Michelle Martin (11:34)

NPR's Gabriela Emanuel is with us now to tell us more about this. Gabriela, thank you so much for joining us.

Gabriela Emanuel (11:40)

Hi.

Michelle Martin (11:41)

How bad is it?

Gabriela Emanuel (11:42)

Well, if you look at the CDC map, a lot of the country is showing up the highest level of flu activity, particularly the Eastern seaboard, the Midwest, the South. The CDC estimates There have been 7.5 million cases so far this season, up from some 4 million just the week before. And remember, the flu can be deadly. There have already been more than 3,000 deaths this season. Lisa Grosskopf is a medical officer at the cdc.

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We anticipate that we are not at the peak and that we're probably going to see increases in the coming weeks.

Gabriela Emanuel (12:17)

Experts say the virus is moving and they expect the entire country to see high case counts soon.

Michelle Martin (12:23)

So what's driving this surge?

Gabriela Emanuel (12:26)

Well, one big factor is a new strain called subclade K. It's caused huge number of cases from Australia to Japan to the UK Here is Florian Kramer of the Eiken School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York.

Michelle Martin (12:41)

Because it changed, there's less immunity to it, and that's allowing the virus to spread very quickly and extensively.

Gabriela Emanuel (12:48)

The Good news is it doesn't seem to be more severe or dangerous, and our treatments still work against it. But the genetic changes in the virus mean the flu vaccine this year is a bit of a mismatch. That's because the vaccine had already been formulated before this strain emerged. However, early data from the UK suggests that the vaccine is still quite effective at keeping people from getting so sick they end up in the hospital.

Michelle Martin (13:14)

Okay, so it doesn't keep you from getting the flu, but it does keep you from getting so sick.

Gabriela Emanuel (13:18)

Right.

Michelle Martin (13:18)

Okay. So this year there's been a lot of upheaval at the cdc. I think a lot of people may remember that. Is their flu data still considered accurate?

Gabriela Emanuel (13:28)

Yes. Both people outside and inside the agency have told me that the quality of the data looks good. But some have raised concerns about the lack of a strong flu vaccination campaign from the federal government. Here's Andrew Pecos of Johns Hopkins University.

Franco Ordonez (13:45)

So I think a lack of a.

Amy Martinez (13:47)

Real push for influenza vaccines through agencies.

Franco Ordonez (13:50)

Like the CDC could be contributing to some of the reduced vaccination rates that we're seeing.

Gabriela Emanuel (13:55)

Adult flu vaccination rates are just above 40%. That number's been trending down for several years. The CDC's Grosskopf told me getting vaccinated was one of the most important things you can do. But I should add, I got a follow up email from a different CDC spokesperson saying vaccines are a personal choice and that people should speak to their healthcare providers about the risks and benefits.

Michelle Martin (14:17)

So in addition to vaccines, what else can people do?

Gabriela Emanuel (14:20)

All the basic precautions like hand washing and masking do work. And it's good to remember there are antiviral treatments and they work best if you get them early, within the first two days of symptoms. So getting one of those at home rapid tests for flu can be a good idea. And knowing how to contact a provider just in case you need a prescription is also a good idea.

Michelle Martin (14:42)

That is NPR's Gabriela Emmanuel. Gabriela, thank you so much.

Gabriela Emanuel (14:46)

Thank you.

Michelle Martin (14:51)

And that's up first for Wednesday, December 31st. Happy New Year's Eve. I'm Michelle Martin.

Amy Martinez (14:56)

And I'm Amy Martinez. Thank you for starting your mornings with us this year and also for trusting us to give you the news you need to start your day now. If you're looking for more reporting and more conversations, you can always find our radio show Morning Edition and a lot more NPR content on the NPR app. Listener support is what makes all of this possible. So please consider joining the community of public radio supporters today by signing up.

Michelle Martin (15:16)

For MP NPR Today's episode of up first was edited by Rebecca Metzler, James Heider, Rebecca Davis, Mohamed El Bardisi and Alice Wolfley. It was produced by Ziad Butch, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott, and our technical director is Carly Strange. Our supervising producer is Michael Lipkin. Join us again next year, which is tomorrow.

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