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Today's top stories
London's High Court begins a two-day hearing to decide whether Wikileaks founder Julian Assange can appeal his extradition to the U.S. on spying charges. In America, Assange faces up to 175 years in prison if convicted on charges related to his website's publication of classified U.S. documents leaked by Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning. Assange's case today could mark his last chance in his decade-long legal battle against extradition.
Egypt is clearing land and building a walled-off security zone that could take in up to 150,000 Palestinians on its side of the border with Gaza, Egyptian security officials tell NPR. This comes ahead of a planned Israeli invasion into the border city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians were told to flee.
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear in April a case that could reshape how cities manage homelessness. The legal issue is whether cities can fine or arrest people for sleeping outside if they have nowhere else to go. A U.S. appeals court previously deemed this cruel and unusual punishment. States and cities — including California and Seattle — say the ruling has contributed to the growth of tent encampments that pose a threat to health and public safety.
Capital One announced yesterday it is acquiring Discover Financial in a $35.3 billion deal. Discover has the smallest reach out of the U.S.'s four major credit card networks, which include Visa, MasterCard and Express. Its credit cards are accepted by 70 million merchants across 200 countries.
Deep dive
![As part of his pediatric practice, Dr. Safdar Medina treats opioid use disorder. During a recent appointment at a clinic in Uxbridge, Mass., Medina switched a teenage patient's buprenorphine prescription to an injectable form and checked in about his school and social life.](https://assets.vpm.org/dims4/default/ec73d8d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/640x360+0+0/resize/880x495!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2024%2F02%2F20%2Fbebinger1_wide-8d2f1011fea098e0c7e0bd6aaea169fc247a2069.jpg)
Buprenorphine, which curbs opioid cravings, can be a powerful tool to treat teenagers addicted to opioids but isn't always prescribed. Dr. Safdar Medina at UMass Memorial Health has seen firsthand how much this drug has helped one of his patients. Here's what the latest surveys say about teen drug use and how pediatricians can better help their young patients:
This story comes from NPR's health reporting partnership with WBUR and KFF Health News.
Picture Show
![Bate-bola crew Bem Feito goes out during Carnival celebrations in Pedra de Guaratiba, a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro, on Feb. 11.](https://assets.vpm.org/dims4/default/4882b4d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/8180x4595+0+0/resize/880x494!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2024%2F02%2F20%2Fbatebolas_mma-70_wide-915cdb5465c6741f473d16aa8b34c7d6b70c153f.jpg)
On the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, residents celebrate Carnival with the tradition of bate-bola— translated as ball-beaters. Crews don colorful, clown-inspired costumes and race through the streets while bashing large balls on the ground to a frenetic mix of funk, fireworks and fun. In recent years, more women have joined in the historically male-dominated tradition.
See photos of the women in the Bem Feito crew and learn more about how they're breaking through bate-bola's masculine culture.
3 things to know before you go
![An Apple TV+ animated special shows how Franklin, the first Black <em>Peanuts</em> character, meets Charlie Brown and friends in <em>Snoopy Presents:</em> <em>Welcome Home, Franklin.</em>](https://assets.vpm.org/dims4/default/34377a6/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3325x1870+0+0/resize/880x495!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2024%2F02%2F20%2Fsnoopy_presents_welcome_home_franklin_photo_0107_wide-1270871c4b7bc3a004cadccb935fd0333b1c2f7a.jpg)
This newsletter was edited by Majd Al-Waheidi. Mansee Khurana contributed.
Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.