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Today’s top stories

This weekend, tensions flared between the U.S. and Iran as the two countries exchanged fire while under a ceasefire agreement. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claimed responsibility for launching drone and missile strikes on Bahrain and Kuwait yesterday, according to state-run Iranian media. These attempted strikes followed new U.S. military action against Iranian targets. This latest exchange jeopardizes ongoing negotiations for a lasting ceasefire and marks the most significant escalation since the U.S. and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding earlier this month. During a tour of the Gulf Arab states last week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that the U.S. and Iran were planning to meet on Monday or Tuesday for technical talks.

• 🎧 A senior U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive negotiations, told NPR last night that “nothing has been canceled, and talks are on track for the coming days.” Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi, however, was quoted by Iranian media on Monday saying that while consultations continue with mediator Qatar, technical talks with the U.S. are not yet planned for this week and will be held only “when the conditions are met”. He did not elaborate. The conflict remains between the U.S. and Iran over who controls the Strait of Hormuz, NPR’s Carrie Kahn tells Up First. During Rubio’s recent visit to the region, he told Gulf allies that the major waterway will remain open. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that the responsibility for these arrangements lies with Iran and no other country or entity.

The search for survivors continues nearly five days after two powerful earthquakes hit Venezuela. The official death toll is nearing 1,500, and thousands of people are still unaccounted for. Families and volunteers are tirelessly digging through collapsed buildings throughout the northern coast and in neighborhoods of Caracas, the country’s capital, in hopes of finding people alive.

• 🎧 Yesterday, NPR’s Eyder Peralta, who is in Caracas, visited the site of what used to be a 16-story building, which now lies in ruins. A rescue crew arrived but deemed it too dangerous to search through. Peralta witnessed a couple of dozen family members climbing through the rubble and picking random areas to dig. At times, the smell of death became stronger, causing them to dig even faster. This smell is one of the hardest parts of the rescue and recovery efforts, Peralta says. The rescuers say that the real opportunity to save people happens within the first three days, but everyone with a missing loved one is waiting for a miracle at this point. Help is incredibly limited here. As big trucks move through the streets, some people stand in front of them, saying, “No, you need to go to my building to find my loved ones.” Peralta says there is a lot of anger and resignation among the people in the region. It can be seen as people walk through damaged buildings, trying to salvage their belongings, fully aware that the structures could collapse at any moment, he adds. They believe that they won’t receive any assistance, so they are trying to get what they can.