Israel Strikes Gaza, Trump And The Courts, Takeover At US Institute Of Peace

0:01Hundreds of Palestinians were killed or injured in surprise overnight attacks by Israel. The punishing strikes on Gaza come in the midst of fraught ceasefire negotiations. Does this mean the war is back on? I'm Ame Martinez. That's Leila Faddle. And this is Up First from NPR News.

0:20A judge is asking the Justice Department to explain why it ignored orders to stop the deportation of hundreds of Venezuelans. So what I see them doing so far is playing footsie with the notion of defying a court order rather than actually defying a court order. How far will the White House try to stretch its powers? And the Department of Government Efficiency broke into the U.S. Institute of Peace offices with the help of police. D.C. police showed up at my office and said, it's time for you to go. Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day.

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1:40Get market insights, education, and human help when you need it. This message comes from Rince, who knows that mastering the perfect house party table spread takes time. But so does laundry. So Rince takes your laundry and hand delivers it to your door, expertly cleaned. And you can take the time once spent sorting and waiting, folding and queuing, to finally pursue your real passion. rolling delicate roses of capicola alongside meandering ribbons of Amon Serrano, transforming a humble plank of weathered barnwood into a show-stopping charcuterie spread. Rinse. It's time to be great. In Gaza overnight, a series of punishing and deadly Israeli airstrikes took Palestinians by surprise.

2:31A Palestinian woman in Gaza City there screaming for her children. That was a scene in a hospital in the north. More than 300 Palestinians have been killed and hundreds more injured, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The strikes are the most intensive violence since a tenuous ceasefire began in January between Israel and Hamas as they negotiated an end of the war. NPR's Hadil El-Sheld, she joins us now from Tel Aviv with the latest. Good morning, Hadil. Good morning. So why is Israel launching this attack now? Well, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been threatening this whole time to go back to war if Hamas did not release more hostages.

3:09This time, Israel says it is targeting Hamas militant commanders, wants to degrade Hamas' ability to rearm. That's according to an Israeli official who wasn't authorized to speak publicly. Just a reminder, the first phase of the ceasefire ended on March 1st. Over six weeks, Hamas released 33 hostages. Israel freed almost 2 ,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails. The second phase was supposed to see a total withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and a permanent end to the war. But instead of starting those second phase talks, Israel came back and said it wanted an extension of the first phase, where Hamas would return half the living hostages still held in Gaza.

3:46So what did Hamas say? Well, Hamas said that it had held up its end of the first phase of the deal and wanted to start second phase deal talks. It refused the extension, which has led to these attacks. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that, quote, the gates of hell will open in Gaza if all the hostages are not returned. And then we also know that the White House spokesperson Caroline Levitt confirmed that Israel consulted the Trump administration before the strikes. And what are we hearing from inside Gaza? I mean, explosions could be heard across the strip. The Gaza Health Ministry says hundreds of Palestinians have been killed, including children.

4:24NPR's Gaza producer Enes Baba was at Al Ahli Hospital this morning. Dozens of bodies lay in every corner here in front of me, wrapped in winter blankets brought by relatives or maybe some ambulances. Women and children, entire families lay dead in front of me here. The relatives are wailing. The smell of blood mixed with gunpowder and burning flesh is returned once more in Gaza. Also, an Israeli military spokesman warned residents in several Gaza neighborhoods to start evacuating immediately. So we heard there Enes describe really what sounds like war again. Do these strikes mean the ceasefire is done and the war is back on?

5:04So it might be a little too early to tell if the war is fully back on or what these strikes mean exactly for the ceasefire. You know, in recent weeks, Israel has been steadily increasing strikes in Gaza. Hamas hasn't yet responded with its own strikes. But today's assault is, of course, a pressure tactic by Israel to get Hamas to accept that extension. And they're a huge step back. Israel has blocked all aid, including food and medical supplies, three weeks ago. So aid groups are rationing quickly dwindling supplies. And of course, you know, what does this mean for the fate of the hostages still inside Gaza?

5:38Israel says 59 remain held by Hamas, 24 of whom are still believed to be alive. NPR's Hadil El-Shalchi in Tel Aviv, thank you for your reporting, Hadil. You're welcome.

5:55A federal judge wants the Justice Department to explain its actions in deportations that took place over the weekend. A judge asked for a sworn declaration from the DOJ by noon today detailing how planes carrying alleged Venezuelan gang members were flown from the U.S. to El Salvador despite a judge's orders to turn the planes around. A hearing yesterday saw a heated debate unfold about when exactly the orders were issued and whether they had to be in writing to restrain government action. The incident is bringing the administration closer to a constitutional faceoff. And PR's Franco Ordonez is here with more about how President Trump is testing his executive powers.

6:36Good morning, Franco. Good morning, Lila. So this story really blew up over the weekend. What's the controversy here? Well, I mean, the controversy is whether the U.S. government defied a legal court order, which would be a potential breakdown between the executive branch and the judicial branch. And many legal experts say this would create a major constitutional crisis. Now, the White House says they did not ignore the court, and they're painting this as a counterterrorism operation. They say most of the migrants on the plane were members of a Venezuelan gang known as Tren de la Agua. Others were from the Salvadoran gang, MS-13.

7:12But really, as you noted, part of this debate is over the timing of the order. The White House says the written order was issued after the flights had taken off, but the earlier the judge did give a verbal order. Okay, so before we talk about the legal issues, how does the White House view the politics of this issue? I mean, politically, they see this as a winning issue. I mean, it's one Trump campaigned on, and they're claiming this operation is him carrying out that promise. I mean, they feel that most Americans care more that violent gang members are being removed from the country. I mean, they even made light of the controversy yesterday and over the weekend, reposting a note by the Salvadoran president who wrote online, quote, oopsie, too late after the judge called back the plane.

7:56And they're also posting on social media video of tattooed migrants with their hands chained boarding planes to different kinds of music. So making light of this really important question of whether or not the Trump administration defied the court order. What did the Trump administration say about that? Well, they say they did not. And I did speak with Justin Levitt, a law professor at Loyola Marymount University who served in the Biden White House. He said it's clear the Trump administration is attacking the judicial branch in alarming ways, but he said it was not clear whether the administration was actually violating those orders yet.

8:32So what I see them doing so far is playing footsie with the notion of defying a court order rather than actually defying a court order. They're getting cute. They're getting up to the line. You know, he adds that they talk tough on TV and press briefings. Vice President Vance has attacked judges saying they're not allowed to control executive branch. Just yesterday, the border czar, Tom Homan said on Fox he didn't care what judges think. But so far, Levitt says a Trump administration has complied with the orders. albeit reluctantly. And how does this test of Trump's power fit with other moves the administration's making?

9:08I mean, this is a case that should not be looked at in a vacuum. The question at hand is not whether or not these people are dangerous and should be in the country, but the process of their removal. Is it legal? And specifically, did the administration knowingly ignore this order? This is just another example, though, of how the White House is working to stretch its powers. And we have seen this with the legislative branch, and we're now seeing it in the judicial branch. Thanks, Franco. Thank you. That's White House correspondent Franco Ordonez.

9:46The U.S. Institute of Peace was the scene of a hostile takeover by the Department of Government Efficiency. They were helped by D.C. police. D.C. police showed up at my office and said, It's time for you to go. That's George Moose, who had been running the Institute, which is a think tank funded by Congress. NPR's Michelle Kellerman spoke to him on the steps of the Institute just across from the State Department, and she joins us now. Good morning, Michelle. Good morning, Layla. So, Michelle, you were right there once Doge forced their way into the building. What did you see? Yeah, I mean, they tried several times to get in to install a new president, and they finally made it in at the end of the day.

10:23The White House says Moose was fired last week along with most of the board members. Moose is challenging that, and he was holed up in his office for a while yesterday after he says Doge broke in, but police caught up with him and escorted him out. He called it a sad day, and he talked about the work that he and his colleagues do there. This building really was built not just as a platform for the work that we do. It was built as a symbol of the aspiration of the American people to be peace builders in the world. That's why it is as beautiful as it is. And I have to believe that in the long term, that purpose, that mission will be reaffirmed and that we will, one way or another, be allowed to continue it.

11:11He says it's a mission that should be in line with the Trump administration. You know, they try to come up with ideas to resolve conflicts and promote peace. Moose, like many of the employees at USIP, is a retired diplomat. He seems really shocked by the way that the Trump administration has been dismantling parts of America's soft power, starting with the lead U.S. aid agency and now coming to the U.S. Institute of Peace. Michelle, the question I have, and I think so many people have, is, is this legal? Can the Trump administration do this? Because this isn't a government agency, right? It's a nonprofit funded by Congress.

11:47Yeah. I mean, Doge says that D.C. police escorted in his replacement after Moose refused to let in the replacement. A White House official called Moose a, quote, career bureaucrat who wants to be unaccountable to the American people. But a lawyer for USIP says that all of this is being done illegally, that President Trump, you know, he can fire board members, but only for cause. And the lawyer, George Foote, also explains that USIP is not a government agency. It has a bit of a different legal status, and it also owns the building. He spoke to me outside the building yesterday. So the building has been seized by force by police officers with guns, acting under the authority of a resolution that we're going to have a court declare to be invalid.

12:35So this seems to be a pattern with Doge, right? An attempt to cut funds without consulting Congress, only for it to all land in court. Yeah, I mean, Foote told me that Doge is using their usual playbook here, but he's convinced that the law is on USIP's side. We'll have to see, though, what the courts decide and see if USIP employees can get back to their building and regain access to their computers. It'll also be interesting, Leila, to see if anyone in Congress steps in. After all, Congress created the U.S. Institute of Peace and funds it. That's NPR's Michelle Kellerman. Thank you, Michelle.

13:12Thank you.

13:21Today, President Trump will speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone. The U.S. is pursuing a ceasefire deal in Russia's war on Ukraine, the largest armed conflict in Europe since the Second World War. Ukraine has already agreed to a 30-day ceasefire. Kiev says it wants an exchange of prisoners and a return of the thousands of children. It says Russia has illegally taken, but Russia has its own conditions before it agrees. Among Putin's demands, an end to international sanctions on Russia and no NATO membership for Ukraine. If a ceasefire is reached, The two sides say a more sustainable peace can be discussed.

13:56And AAT Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this week that Ukraine wants peace more than anyone, but he said we cannot accept peace at any price.

14:08And that's up first for Tuesday, March 18th. I'm Leila Faldin. And I'm Amei Martinez. There is an easy way to stay connected to news and podcasts from the NPR network, the NPR app. You can hear community coverage from your local stations, stories from around the world, and podcast suggestions based on what you like. So download the NPR app in that app store. Today's episode of Up First was edited by Jerry Holmes, Roberta Rampton, Russell Lewis, Alice Wolfley, and Janine Williams. It was produced by Ziad Butch, Destiny Adams, and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Arthur Laurent, and our technical director is Carly Strange.

14:42Join us again tomorrow.

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