PBS News Hour

News and Public Affairs Series / 9 Seasons

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Watch: S2025 E113

57m 46s

Father of Israeli American hostage on efforts to free him

6m 19s

Among the estimated 239 hostages believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza is 35-year-old Israeli American Sagui Dekel-Chen. He lives in kibbutz Nir Oz near the Gaza border, which came under brutal attack by Hamas terrorists on October 7. His father, Jonathan Dekel-Chen, is in Washington meeting with U.S. officials to help free his son and sat down with Amna Nawaz to speak about his efforts.

GOP Rep. Gallagher on government funding, working with China

7m 28s

As President Biden prepared for his meeting with Chinese President Xi in San Francisco, lawmakers in Washington were sorting out a plan to prevent a government shutdown. The House passed a temporary funding patch Tuesday with Republicans divided and Democrats mostly in favor. Geoff Bennett discussed both issues with GOP Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, the chair of the Select Committee on China.

Biden pushes for stable relationship in meeting with Xi

8m 23s

Wednesday in San Francisco, President Biden met face-to-face with Chinese leader Xi Jinping for the first time in a year. The two leaders are announcing agreements on military communication and a crackdown on the Chinese chemicals used to make fentanyl. But as Nick Schifrin reports, the goal was less about breakthroughs and more about stabilizing a troubled relationship.

A look inside the Gaza hospital raided by Israeli forces

5m 29s

The United Nations Security Council approved a resolution calling for "urgent and extended humanitarian pauses" in the fighting between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. It comes as Israeli forces have entered the Al Shifa hospital in Gaza and the compound that surrounds it. Israel and the U.S. say the hospital is used by Hamas as a command center, a charge the staff and Hamas deny. John Yang reports.

Museum honors stories of enslaved Africans through genealogy

6m 58s

Digging deeply into family lineage has taken off with visits to genealogy websites estimated at over 100 million a year. The newly-opened International African American Museum in Charleston, South Carolina, aims to honor untold stories at one of America’s most sacred sites. That effort involves excavating the past through genealogy. Geoff Bennett reports for our arts and culture series, CANVAS.

Latest assessment reveals cost of climate change for U.S.

5m 12s

The National Climate Assessment shows America is warming faster than the global average with climate change impacting nearly every facet of life. It found extreme weather events now cost the U.S. roughly $150 billion per year. Amna Nawaz discussed the report with Katharine Hayhoe, chief scientist of the Nature Conservancy and distinguished professor at Texas Tech University.

Abbas Ibrahim discusses Israel-Hamas war, Hezbollah's threat

7m 26s

Much of the focus of this latest Israel-Hamas war is focused on Gaza and the brutal fighting there. But a larger, more threatening force in Hezbollah sits across Israel's northern border. Special correspondent Simona Foltyn recently sat down with a former top Lebanese intelligence official who knows the region well and is deeply involved in the negotiations over hostages taken by Hamas.

Jewish Americans share views as Israel-Hamas war continues

9m 3s

Tuesday in Washington, tens of thousands of people marched near the Capitol in support of Israel as its war with Hamas enters a second month. But some Jewish Americans are torn over how the Israeli government is conducting the war and the thousands of Palestinians killed in the last five weeks. William Brangham got a sampling of the different perspectives.

Yellen on competition and cooperation between U.S. and China

6m 29s

This week is an important moment in the strained and often tense relationship between the U.S. and China. President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet face to face in San Francisco on Wednesday as part of the Asia Pacific Economic Conference summit. Geoff Bennett discussed the economic competition and cooperation between the U.S. and China with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.

Johnson faces major challenge as shutdown deadline looms

7m 14s

On Capitol Hill, tensions boiled over just days ahead of a potential government shutdown. But there is hope of avoiding that, as the House passed its budget bandaid to keep funding flowing a few more months. Congressional Correspondent Lisa Desjardins reports.

Fighting rages around Gaza hospitals, endangering civilians

6m 3s

It's a race against time in northern Gaza as just one hospital remains operational. Vulnerable and critical patients are still under treatment at several hospitals that the U.S. says Hamas is using for military purposes. U.S. officials said civilians must be protected as intelligence shows Hamas is using the patients as human shields. Leila Molana-Allen reports.

Tamara Keith and Amy Walter on government funding showdown

8m 21s

NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter join Geoff Bennett to discuss the latest political news, including another government funding showdown on Capitol Hill, the shrinking GOP presidential field and President Biden's critical meeting with Chinese President Xi.

Gaza civilians in crossfire as IDF, Hamas battle at hospital

5m 48s

Israel claims a Hamas military command center is located beneath Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital. Monday, President Biden warned Israel to be "less intrusive" in its operations there as hundreds of patients and medical staff remain inside, facing dire conditions. Nick Schifrin reports on the legal arguments over whether the hospital and what's underneath it are legitimate targets.

Trump's ramped-up rhetoric raises new concerns over violence

5m 36s

Former President Donald Trump attacked his political opponents in a speech over the weekend that historians say echoed authoritarian leaders. Amna Nawaz discussed concerns about the rhetoric and the future of democracy with New York University historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat.

New ethics code won't hold justices accountable, expert says

6m 25s

The nine Supreme Court justices handed down a surprise unanimous decision binding themselves to a new code of ethics. It comes after criticism over undisclosed perks for some of the justices. Amna Nawaz unpacked the court’s new rules with Kathleen Clark, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis specializing in legal and government ethics.

A look at the destruction in Gaza after 5 weeks of war

6m 1s

Gaza's healthcare system and central hospital are in collapse five weeks since the Hamas terror attacks launched the war with Israel. Leila Molana-Allen went to Gaza with the Israel Defense Forces on Monday and reports on the fighting there.

How a hospital reversed trend of nurses leaving profession

8m 35s

There are more than five million nurses in the U.S. and a survey shows nearly a third of them are thinking of quitting. That would be a devastating blow for patients and hospitals. William Brangham reports on efforts to turn the tide for our series, Critical Care: The Future of Nursing, in collaboration with the Global Health Reporting Center and with support from the Pulitzer Center.

Tensions rise in U.K. amid protests over Israel-Hamas war

6m 58s

In a day of political upheaval, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak fired Home Secretary Suella Braverman after critics claimed her remarks contributed to violence during pro-Palestinian marches this weekend. The British government is also pledging to crack down on antisemitism, which has surged across Europe since the Hamas attacks in Israel. Special correspondent Malcolm Brabant reports.

Israel continues offensive in Gaza as hostage talks stall

3m 8s

With conditions in Gaza getting worse, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said any cease-fire agreement must include the release of all Israeli hostages Hamas is holding. Hospitals across Gaza are on the brink of collapse, while Israel’s military pressed its ground operations in the north and continued deadly bombardment in the south. Leila Molana-Allen reports.

News Wrap: Speaker Johnson’s funding plan faces hurdles

2m 5s

In our news wrap Sunday, House Speaker Johnson is facing opposition from hard-line Republicans after announcing his plan to avert a government shutdown, the Pentagon says five Army Special Operations forces died in a helicopter crash over the Mediterranean, Russia is ramping up attacks in two eastern Ukrainian cities, and Megan Rapinoe’s final soccer game had a bittersweet end.

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