transcript
Speaker 1:
[00:03] Israel and Lebanon extended their ceasefire, but the violence has continued. That's where we're starting The seven from The Washington Post. I'm Hannah Jewell. It's Friday, April 24th. Let's get you caught up with today's seven stories. President Donald Trump yesterday announced that a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon would be extended for three weeks. It had been set to expire on Sunday. Trump made the announcement during a second round of peace talks between the two nations at the White House. But there's one big problem. Lebanon's military is not one of the adversaries in this conflict. That would be Hezbollah, an armed political party which has rejected the negotiations. Hezbollah continued to strike Israel while talks were underway, and Israel struck what it said were Hezbollah targets today. The success of this ceasefire is linked to the fate of another truce between Iran and the US. Here's Trump talking about both ceasefires in the Oval Office yesterday.
Speaker 2:
[01:08] We had a great conversation, and I think it's the beginning of something very important to be a wonderful thing to get this worked out simultaneously with what we're doing in Iran.
Speaker 1:
[01:18] Meanwhile, a third US aircraft carrier arrived near Iran yesterday, and the US said it had intercepted another tanker in the Indian Ocean, accusing it of transporting oil from Iran. President Trump intends to invite Vladimir Putin to a G20 summit in Miami. That's number two. The Russian president hasn't attended a G20 summit since 2019. Initially, he didn't travel due to the coronavirus pandemic. Then Russia invaded Ukraine, and the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for him. Putin has been accused of war crimes. However, he could show up at the gathering of global leaders scheduled to take place in December at Trump's Doral Golf Resort in Miami. Yesterday, the State Department said in a statement that Trump has been clear that Russia is welcome to attend all G20 meetings. Trump spoke about Putin's possible attendance yesterday.
Speaker 2:
[02:21] I don't know of the invitation, but if he were invited, I don't know. Would you like to come here? I'm of the opinion that you talk to everybody. I'm not one of these guys who say, oh, let's not talk to him. You know, there's a war going on, let's not talk to him. I like talking to everybody. If you're a smart person, if you have control over your emotions and all the other things you need control of, I'm somebody that believes in talking.
Speaker 1:
[02:44] Russian officials had said earlier in the day that Putin was invited to the summit in Miami, but that it was not clear if he would attend. Number three, a US soldier allegedly won $400,000 betting on the capture of Nicolas Maduro. On January 3rd, US forces descended on a compound in Caracas to capture the Venezuelan leader and his wife. Gannon Ken Van Dyke, an active duty special forces soldier, was involved in the planning and execution of the operation. Yesterday, federal authorities charged him with using his insider knowledge to place bets about the operation on an online prediction market. Prosecutors said he used Polymarket to place a series of wagers on Maduro's future, and whether US forces would enter Venezuela. The case is believed to be the first time the Justice Department has prosecuted an insider trading case based on prediction market betting. The industry has faced calls in recent months for stiffer regulations that would bar users, especially those working in government roles, from trading on sensitive or confidential non-public information. Elon Musk's online posts show he is increasingly focused on race and whiteness. That's our fourth story. Musk is the world's richest person. He is also on the brink of a record-setting IPO for his company SpaceX that could make him a trillionaire. But recently, he has been more and more vocal about something else, rallying white people to stand up for their race. The billionaire has significantly increased his rate of online posts about perceived threats to whiteness and what he views as calls for a genocide against white people. Over the past seven months, 6% of Musk's posts on X, about 850 in total, have been about race. That's nearly triple the rate of the previous two years, according to a post analysis. Ashley Jardina is an associate professor at the University of Virginia and is the author of the book White Identity Politics. She told the post that Musk's positions constitute standard white supremacy. Some investors have decided that Musk's statements about race have crossed a line. But others don't seem so concerned about Musk's rhetoric and are more interested in the value he brings to the businesses he leads. Number five, the first round of the NFL draft was last night in Pittsburgh. Things started out as expected at the annual event in which college players find out which team they will be starting their pro career with. quarterback Fernando Mendoza wasn't at the top of anyone's draft board this time last year, but a sensational season with the Indiana Hoosiers changed all that. He was the first pick last night and is headed to join the Las Vegas Raiders. Mendoza spoke very earnestly in a press conference after the pick.
Speaker 3:
[06:10] Well, first off, I'm a man of God, and I believe that God has a plan. He's blessed my family, blessed me. I just can't thank him enough. And second of all, I also think that fortune favors the bold. And that sometimes when you're bold and you bet on yourself, it'll work out most of the times. And if it doesn't work out, at least you'd be able to at least sleep easy at night, 20 years down the road knowing everything possible to accomplish your goals.
Speaker 1:
[06:35] Meanwhile, edge rusher David Bailey and running back Jeremiah Love were two and three going to the New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals. If you're a commanders fan, Washington selected linebacker Sunny Styles at seven. On the red carpet, draftees showed off their personality and style. You can find a link to all the best looks in our newsletter. Teachers are trying new tricks to fix students' shortening attention spans. That's number six. In recent years, educators say it has grown more challenging to get students to pay attention. In a study published last year about kindergarten through second grade classrooms in the US, 75% of teachers said attention spans had dropped since the coronavirus pandemic. That's when the use of laptops and other technology for schooling spread rapidly. A growing body of research says that excessive screen time and short form content such as TikTok videos are part of the problem. Teachers though are trying to fight back. Some are building in brain breaks to their schedules. That's usually a short burst of activity like jumping jacks. They're also limiting screens, having shorter lessons and showing students how to practice meditation. Some teachers say the efforts are helping. So, if you find yourself drifting off at work today, maybe ten jumping jacks could reset your focus. And at number seven, scientists discovered a 60-foot long Kraken-like octopus. It's not easy to study an octopus that lived tens of millions of years ago. Animals with soft bodies rarely fossilize. So scientists from Japan and Germany decided to take a close look at a body part that does, the jaw. Using new techniques, they analyzed patterns of wear on the fossilized jaws of ancient octopus relatives, the result of biting into hard skeletal prey. The scientists identified two species from the late Cretaceous period and discovered that some of the earliest octopuses were much larger than previously thought. They were fearsome creatures, growing to 60 feet long, prowling the oceans, seizing prey with long agile arms, and crushing their catches in their massive jaws. For a little bit of nightmare fuel, you can see a sketch of what one of these creatures would have looked like in our newsletter today. Find a link to that in our show notes. That's the show for this week. The staff writers of The seven are Jamie Ross, Izan Ekebao and me. Special thanks to Charlotte Freeland, Lucas Trevor and Rina Flores for producing. John Taylor is our editor. Copy editing by Brian Molaseks, Rebecca Branford and Kendra Nichols. Mixing and sound design is by Jim Briggs and Justin Garish. Our theme music is by Edith Mudge. I'm Hannah Jewell. Thanks for listening and have a great weekend. I'll meet you back here on Monday.