After three weeks of congressional paralysis, House Republicans have elected a new Speaker of the House: Mike Johnson of Louisiana.

There's a pretty good chance you've never heard of him. He's kept a low profile since he was first elected in 2016.

Here's what you should know: He's a conservative lawyer who opposes abortion and same sex marriage — and played a major role in attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

Johnson is one of Trump's biggest supporters in Congress. Now he's House speaker. What does that tell us about how he'll lead the house — and work with the current president, whose election he tried to overturn?

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During the brutal Hamas-led attack on Israel earlier this month, more than 1,400 Israelis were killed and more than 200 Israeli and foreign hostages were kidnapped.

So far, Hamas has released just four hostages.

The families of the remaining hostages fear that time may be running out to save their loved ones. Israeli airstrikes continue and a ground invasion into Gaza seems imminent.

Experts say that would put the hostages in danger.

NPR's Michele Kelemen speaks to host Juana Summers about the diplomatic efforts to free the remaining hostages.

And host Mary Louise Kelly talks to Bader Al-Saif, a professor of history at Kuwait University, on the Gulf nation of Qatar's role in negotiating for the hostages' release.

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The violence between Israel and Gaza is entering its third week.

As the number of dead and wounded continues to rise, survivors of the October 7th attack by Hamas are still reeling from shock.

And thousands of friends and family are left mourning loved ones and wondering how they'll pick up the pieces of their lives.

The Natal helpline has existed for 25 years to help people experiencing PTSD from war. But for the last two weeks they have been in "emergency mode" and calls are surging.

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Emi Palmor, chair of Natal, the Israeli helpline.


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Hockey season is underway and NPR followed one hopeful rookie dreaming of taking the ice for the Washington Capitals.

NPR's Scott Detrow spends time at hockey training camp with goalie Mitchell Gibson.

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Ever since Kevin McCarthy was ousted as Speaker of the House by only eight members of Congress, things have been pretty messy in the chamber.

Ohio Republican Jim Jordan tried and failed to rally support for his nomination. After losing three ballots on the House floor and a secret Republican-only vote, he's out.

Not having a speaker has essentially shut down the business of governing, and House Republicans have no consensus on a candidate.

Host Scott Detrow speaks with NPR's Congressional Correspondent Deirdre Walsh and Political Correspondent Susan Davis about the ongoing speaker battle and what comes next.

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During his visit to Tel Aviv this week, President Biden reiterated a desire for peace between Israelis and Palestinians through the implementation of a two-state solution.

For years, the idea of establishing a state for the Palestinian people and a state for the Israeli people has been a strategy that presidents - on both sides of the political aisle - have evoked as a framework for peace in the Middle East.

With the unprecedented violence playing out between Israel and Hamas for many political analysts, a peaceful, two-state agreement seems impossible.

But a little over two decades ago there was hope that it could be achieved.

NPR's Scott Detrow talks with ambassador Dennis Ross about how 23 years ago Palestinian leaders and Israel's prime minister came close to an agreement.

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More than 60 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli-occupied West Bank in the days after Hamas' attack on southern Israel. Some of those deaths appear to be reprisal killings.

NPR's Leila Fadel visited the village of Qusra in the West Bank where some of these killings have taken place.

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At a military base south of Tel Aviv, Israeli soldiers and medical examiners are working around the clock to identify remains of hundreds of people killed in the Hamas attacks earlier this month.

NPR's Ari Shapiro visited the base and spoke with those conducting the work about the challenges of identifying so many bodies.

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Israel's military has ordered all residents of Gaza City and northern Gaza to evacuate to the southern end of the territory ahead of an expected ground invasion.

Tens of thousands of Palestinians are struggling to evacuate - as closed borders hamper those efforts. Others refuse to leave the areas Israeli military forces say they will target.

For Jordanian Palestinians who have family in the Gaza Strip their loved ones are just 90 miles away. But that distance can feel painfully close AND impossibly far.

NPR's Ari Shapiro traveled to Amman, Jordan. He spoke with two Jordanian Palestinians who have family in the Gaza Strip about their hopes and fears.

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It's been more than a week of war in Israel and Gaza, following Hamas attacks in southern Israel that left more than 1,300 Israelis dead. In response, Israeli air strikes in Gaza have killed more than 2,500 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials. The intense violence — and the prospect of more to come — is having a deep emotional impact on people who care about both Israelis and Palestinians.

NPR's Scott Detrow speaks with Aziza Hasan, executive director of NewGround: A Muslim Jewish Partnership for Change, and Alyson Freedman, a member of Sisterhood Salaam Shalom.

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