NPR News: 07-12-2026 5PM EDT

This message comes from Data IQ. AI is everywhere, but companies struggle to prove results. For that, they need people, orchestration, and governance working as one. Data IQ is the platform for AI success, built to bring it all together. Visit D-A-T-A-I-U.com slash NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janine Hurst. Iran says it's closing off the Strait of Hormuz completely, not allowing any vessel to transit after a third round of U.S. strikes overnight. Pakistani and Omani officials have urged diplomacy, but as NPR's Emily Fang reports, both the U.S. and Iran say a temporary ceasefire is over. Pakistan has been an important intermediary in the Iran war, and its deputy foreign minister told Iran's foreign minister to consider, quote, diplomacy remains the only viable path to resolving disputes. On Saturday, Iran also wrapped up talks with Oman and how to manage the straight of Hormuz. But later, U.S. sent comm said it struck more than 100 targets across Iran, and the Sultanate's news agency reported Iranian drones had struck some sites in Oman. Iran's top negotiator, Mohamed Bogger Galibov, wrote on X, quote, The era of one-sided deals is over. And Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had fired on a ship trying to get through the straight. Emily Fang and Pier News. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham died overnight after what his office says was a brief and sudden illness. He was 71 years old. The South Carolina Republican was a defense hawk and also had a close relationship with President Trump. Empire Sam Greenglass has more. The arc of that relationship feels very much of this political era. You know, earlier in his career, Graham was known for his bipartisan bent, notably on issues like immigration reform. And... Then as he made his own bid for the Republican nomination for president in 2016, you know, he called Trump a bigot, said he would destroy the GOP. But over the last decade, Graham's posture toward Trump changed dramatically. He became a close confidant to the president, to the point that when Graham beat back a primary challenge earlier this year with help from Trump's endorsement, he said, Mr. President, you are not far behind God. And Pierre Sam Greenglass reporting funeral arrangements are pending. The Memphis Safe Task Force, designed to make the city safer, is under scrutiny after two deadly officer-involved shootings in a week. President Trump formed the task force last fall, and it includes a mix of National Guard, local police, and federal agents. Mariana Bacayahu of Member Station, WPLN reports. A DEA agent with the task force fatally shot a 47-year-old man last week, just days after a Tennessee guardsman fatally shot a 20-year-old. These shootings, along with three others, are still... under investigation by the state. Memphis District Attorney Stephen Mulroy points to the way officers are trained for the task force. In trainings he observed, Mulroy says instructors mocked the concept of de-escalation and referenced the prosecution of the officers accused of killing George Floyd and Eric Gardner as witch hunts. Other Tennessee DAs have rejected Mulroy's statement saying it undermines prosecutors in law enforcement to promote a political ideology. You're listening to NPR News.