Saudi Oil Tankers Attacked, Trump's New Tariffs, Wisconsin Police Shooting

What It Covers

NPR's Up First covers three breaking stories: Houthi attacks on Saudi oil tankers pushing Brent crude to $100 per barrel, Trump's new forced-labor tariffs replacing expired global tariffs, and a fatal police shooting in Madison, Wisconsin.

Key Questions Answered

• •Oil market vulnerability: Houthi rebels attacked two Saudi tankers in the Red Sea, spiking Brent crude over 6% to $100 per barrel before settling below $90. The threatened blockade of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a critical oil shipping choke point, signals continued energy market instability.
• •Tariff legal maneuvering: Trump's administration replaced an expired 10% global tariff with new 10–12.5% tariffs on 59 countries plus the EU, justified under forced-labor law rather than prior legal authority. The timing was deliberate, designed to maintain business continuity while pursuing a legally distinct justification.
• •Nuclear deal complication: Hours after the US-Saudi agreement allowing American companies to build nuclear plants on Saudi soil was signed, Trump publicly demanded Saudi Arabia join the Abraham Accords first — a condition absent from the signed document and previously rejected by Riyadh.
• •Police accountability gap: Madison Police lack department-wide body cameras, leaving the Corey Ruiz shooting — where four officers are on leave after a fatal encounter during a minor call — documented only through dashboard cameras and bystander footage, fueling community demands for reform.