Up First from NPR Negotiations With Iran, Trump On Deal With Iran, ICE Impact On Airport Lines
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Mar 24, 2026 
Aya Batrawy, NPR’s Dubai-based Middle East reporter, tracks secret diplomacy with Iran and the fragile push to cool tensions. Franco Ordoñez, an NPR White House correspondent, follows Trump’s deal talk, political timing, and gas price pressure. Sophie Gratas, a Georgia Public Broadcasting reporter, heads to Atlanta’s airport, where ICE is visible but long security lines still snarl travel.
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Regional Back Channels Are Driving Iran De Escalation
- Back-channel diplomacy is active even as Iran publicly denies direct U.S. talks and fighting continues.
- Aya Batrawy says Egypt, Turkey, and Pakistan are relaying messages while oil prices rise, Gulf energy sites burn, and mistrust deepens after Iran lost top leaders and negotiators.
Trump Sees An Iran Deal As A Political Off Ramp
- Trump's push for a fast Iran deal reflects political pressure as much as diplomacy.
- Franco Ordoñez says Republicans may tolerate a short war, but prolonged fighting, higher gas prices, inflation, or U.S. troops on the ground could hurt turnout in the midterms.
ICE Presence Did Little To Shorten Airport Lines
- ICE agents showed up at airports during shutdown staffing shortages, but travelers still faced extreme delays.
- Sophie Gratas saw agents mostly observing or handling crowd control in Atlanta while passengers in Atlanta and Houston reported three to five hour lines and missed flights.