Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Wednesday expressed hopes of deepening her relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump and strengthen cooperation between the two countries in rare earths development and other areas of economic security when she visits Washington next month.

Takaichi, at a news conference late Wednesday, expressed hopes to strengthen cooperation with the U.S., especially in economic security, as tensions between Tokyo and Beijing have risen over the last few months.

Mark Zuckerberg and opposing lawyers dueled in a Los Angeles courtroom on Wednesday, where the Meta CEO answered questions about young people's use of Instagram, his congressional testimony and internal advice he's received about being "authentic" and not "robotic."

Zuckerberg's testimony is part of an unprecedented social media trial that questions whether Meta's platforms deliberately addict and harm children. During questioning by the plaintiff's lawyer, Zuckerberg said he still agrees with a previous statement he made that the existing body of scientific work has not proved that social media causes mental health harms.

The U.S. trade deficit slipped modestly in 2025, a year in which President Donald Trump upended global commerce by slapping double digit tariffs on imports from most countries.

The gap the between the goods and services the U.S. sells other countries and what it buys from them narrowed to just over $901 billion from $904 billion in 2024, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday pitched his country as a central player in the global artificial intelligence ecosystem, saying it aims to build technology at home while deploying it worldwide.

"Design and develop in India. Deliver to the world. Deliver to humanity," Modi told a gathering of some world leaders, technology executives and policymakers at the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi.

Clashes in the Israeli-occupied West Bank killed a 19-year-old Palestinian-American man late Wednesday night, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.

The ministry said Nasrallah Muhammad Jamal Abu Siyam was shot by settlers in the village of Mukhmas, north of Jerusalem.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former British prince who was stripped of his royal titles because of his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

While Andrew has consistently denied any wrongdoing in connection with his friendship with Epstein, concerns about Mountbatten-Windsor's links to the late financier have dogged the royal family for more than a decade.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans to travel to Israel next week to update Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the U.S.-Iran nuclear talks, two Trump administration officials said.

Rubio is expected to meet with Netanyahu on Feb. 28, according to the officials, who spoke Wednesday on condition of anonymity to detail travel plans that have not yet been announced.

President Donald Trump will gather Thursday with representatives from more than two dozen countries that have joined his Board of Peace — and several that have opted not to — for an inaugural meeting that will focus on reconstruction and building an international stabilization force for a war-battered Gaza, where a shaky ceasefire deal persists.

Trump announced ahead of the meeting that board members have pledged $5 billion for reconstruction, a fraction of the estimated $70 billion needed to rebuild the Palestinian territory decimated after two years of war. Members are expected to unveil commitments of thousands of personnel to international stabilization and police forces for the territory.

Iran and the United States leaned into gunboat diplomacy Thursday as nuclear talks between the nations hung in the balance, with Tehran holding drills with Russia and the Americans bringing another aircraft carrier closer to the Mideast.

The Iranian drill and the arrival of the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier near the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea underscore the tensions between the nations. Iran earlier this week also launched a drill that involved live-fire in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow opening of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of the world's traded oil passes.

Palestinians in Gaza are preparing to welcome the Muslim holy month of Ramadan under a fragile ceasefire deal, but many say the challenges of their daily lives and the losses of the Israel-Hamas war are dampening the typically festive spirit.

"There is no joy after we lost our family and loved ones," said Gaza City resident Fedaa Ayyad. "Even if we try to cope with the situation, we can't truly feel it in our hearts. … I am one of those who cannot feel the atmosphere of Ramadan."