Threatened by Trump tariffs, Japan walks a delicate tightrope between US and China
WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� Just as Japan's top trade negotiator traveled to Washington for another round of tariff talks last week, a bipartisan delegation bearing the name of 鈥淛apan-China Friendship鈥� wrapped up a visit to Beijing.
A week earlier, the head of the junior party in Japan's ruling coalition was in Beijing delivering a letter from Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba addressed to Chinese President Xi Jinping. Details of the letter are unknown, but the two sides discussed U.S. tariffs in addition to bilateral issues.
Among all U.S. allies being wooed by Beijing in its tariff stare-down with Washington, Japan stands out.
It is a peculiar case not only for its staunch commitment to its alliance with the United States but also for its complicated and uneasy history with the neighboring Asian giant 鈥� particularly the war history from the 20th century that still casts a shadow over the politics of today.
鈥淥n one hand, they are neighbors and they are important economic partners. There鈥檚 a lot that connects Japan and China,鈥� said Matthew Goodman, director of the Greenberg Center for Geoeconomics at the Council on Foreign Relations. 鈥淏ut on the other hand, I think there are limits to how far they鈥檙e going to lean into China.鈥�
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Israel plans to seize Gaza under a new plan, officials say
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) 鈥� Israel approved plans Monday to seize the Gaza Strip and to stay in the Palestinian territory for an unspecified amount of time, two Israeli officials said, a move that, if implemented, would vastly expand Israel鈥檚 operations there and likely draw fierce international opposition.
The new plan, which was approved in an early morning vote by Israeli Cabinet ministers, also calls for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to move to Gaza鈥檚 south. That would likely amount to their forcible displacement and exacerbate an already dire humanitarian crisis.
Details of the plan were not formally announced, and its exact timing and implementation were not clear. Its approval came hours after the Israeli military chief said the army was calling up tens of thousands of reserve soldiers. The plan may be another measure by Israel to try to pressure Hamas into making concessions in ceasefire negotiations.
A third person, a defense official, said the new plan would not begin until after U.S. President Donald Trump wraps up his expected visit to the Middle East this month, allowing for the possibility that Israel might agree to a ceasefire in the meantime. All three officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were discussing military plans.
Later Monday, the Israeli military targeted Houthi rebels in Yemen鈥檚 Red Sea city of Hodeida with a punishing round of airstrikes. The strikes came a day after the Iranian-backed rebels launched a missile that hit Israel鈥檚 main airport. The rebels鈥� media office said at least six strikes hit the Hodeida port. Other strikes hit a cement factory, the rebels said.
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Israel launches airstrikes on Yemen a day after Houthi rebels strike Israeli airport
JERUSALEM (AP) 鈥� Israel鈥檚 military targeted Houthi rebels in Yemen鈥檚 Red Sea province of Hodeida on Monday with a punishing round of airstrikes, killing at least one person and wounding 35. The strikes came a day after the Iranian-backed rebels launched a missile that hit Israel鈥檚 main airport.
The rebels鈥� media office said at least six strikes hit the crucial Hodeida port Monday afternoon. Other strikes hit a cement factory in the Bajil district, located 55 kilometers (34 miles) northeast of Hodeida city, the rebels said. The extent of damage at the two facilities wasn鈥檛 immediately clear.
The Israeli military said more than 20 Israeli fighter planes took part in the operation, dropping more than 50 munitions on dozens of targets.
Hodeida residents said they heard explosions at the port, with flames and smoke seen rising over the area. Ambulance sirens were also heard across the city, they said.
鈥淚t was very strong,鈥� Ahmed Saleh, who lives close to the port, said of the explosions.
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The Latest: Trump administration offers to pay immigrants in the US illegally for 'self-deportation'
The Trump administration says it will pay immigrants in the United States illegally $1,000 plus travel costs if they leave voluntarily as it accelerates its mass deportation agenda. The Department of Homeland Security said Monday that people who use the CBP Home app to announce their 鈥渟elf-deportations鈥� would get the money and be 鈥渄eprioritized鈥� for detention and removal.
Trump made announcements in social media posts late Sunday 鈥� he said he鈥檚 ordered federal agencies to reopen and expand Alcatraz, the notorious and crumbling former island prison in San Francisco Bay. And he threatened a 100% tariff on foreign-made films, leaving unclear how that could possibly be implemented.
Earlier on Air Force One, he accused Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum of being too fearful of drug cartels after she rejected his proposal to send U.S. troops to Mexico. And in an interview with N小蓝视频鈥檚 鈥淢eet the Press鈥� that aired Sunday, Trump said he doesn鈥檛 know whether U.S. citizens and noncitizens alike deserve constitutionally guaranteed due process rights.
The Latest:
Trump asserted an unproven theory that the COVID-19 pandemic was caused by a lab leak moments before he signed the executive order. He said the order aims to stop 鈥渄angerous gain-of-function research,鈥� defined as scientific research on an infectious agent or toxin by enhancing its ability to cause disease or making it more transmissible.
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New York Times wins 4 Pulitzers, New Yorker 3; Washington Post wins for coverage of Trump shooting
NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� The New York Times won four Pulitzer Prizes and the New Yorker three on Monday for journalism in 2024 that touched on topics like the fentanyl crisis, the U.S. military and last summer鈥檚 assassination attempt on President Donald Trump.
The Pulitzers鈥� prestigious public service medal went to ProPublica for the second straight year. Kavitha Surana, Lizzie Presser, Cassandra Jaramillo and Stacy Kranitz were honored for reporting on pregnant women who died after doctors delayed urgent care in states with strict abortion laws.
The Washington Post won for 鈥渦rgent and illuminating鈥� breaking news coverage of the Trump assassination attempt. The Pulitzers honored Ann Telnaes, who quit the Post in January after the news outlet refused to run her editorial cartoon lampooning tech chiefs 鈥� including Post owner Jeff Bezos 鈥� cozying up to Trump. The Pulitzers praised her 鈥渇earlessness.鈥�
The Pulitzers honored the best in journalism from 2024 in 15 categories, along with eight arts categories including books, music and theater. The public service winner receives a gold medal. All other winners receive $15,000.
The New York Times showed its breadth with awards honoring reporting from Afghanistan, Sudan, Baltimore and Butler, Pennsylvania. Doug Mills won in breaking news photography for his pictures of the Trump assassination attempt, including one that captured a bullet in the air near the GOP candidate.
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Army pausing helicopter flights near Washington airport after close calls
WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� The Army is pausing helicopter flights near a Washington airport after two commercial planes had to abort landings last week because of an Army Black Hawk helicopter that was flying to the Pentagon.
The commander of the 12th Aviation Battalion directed the unit to pause helicopter flight operations around Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport following Thursday鈥檚 close calls, two Army officials confirmed to The Associated Press on Monday. One official said the flights have been paused since Friday.
The pause comes after 67 people died in January when a passenger jet collided in midair with a Black Hawk helicopter at Reagan airport.
The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide details that were not publicly announced. The unit is continuing to fly in the greater Washington, D.C., region.
The unit had begun a return to flight within the last week, with plans to gradually increase the number of flights over the next four weeks, according to an Army document viewed by the AP.
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Ahead of the conclave, Vatican staff vow secrecy under threat of excommunication
VATICAN CITY (AP) 鈥� Cleaners and cooks. Doctors and nurses. Even drivers and elevator operators.
The support staff for the cardinals who will elect the successor to Pope Francis took an oath of secrecy Monday ahead of the conclave that's starting on Wednesday.
The punishment for breaking the oath? Automatic excommunication.
The oaths of about 100 people were taken in the Pauline Chapel at the Vatican for all those assigned to the conclave, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said. They include clerics in support roles, among them confessors speaking various languages.
The cardinals will take their oaths in the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday, before they cast their first ballots.
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Boat believed to be carrying migrants capsizes off California coast, leaving 3 dead and 7 missing
SAN DIEGO (AP) 鈥� A small boat believed to be carrying migrants capsized early Monday off San Diego's coast and left three people dead and four injured, while U.S. Coast Guard crews were searching for seven others, officials said.
Initially nine people were reported missing but later two were found and detained, U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Hunter Schnabel said. He did not know which agency detained the individuals or why. The U.S. Border Patrol did not immediately respond to an email asking if they were involved.
U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Chris Sappey said it was unclear where the boat was coming from before it flipped shortly after sunrise about 35 miles (56 kilometers) north of the Mexico border. He described the vessel as a panga, single or twin-engine open fishing boats commonly used by smugglers.
鈥淭hey were not tourists,鈥� Sappey said. 鈥淭hey are believed to be migrants.鈥�
Migrants are increasingly turning to the risky alternative offered by smugglers to travel by sea to avoid heavily guarded land borders, including off California's coast. Pangas leave the Mexican coast in the dead of night, sometimes charting hundreds of miles north.
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Hegseth directs 20% cut to top military leadership positions
WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday directed the active duty military to shed 20% of its four-star general officers as the Trump administration moves forward with deep cuts that it says will promote efficiency but that critics worry could result in a more politicized force.
Hegseth also told the National Guard to shed 20% of its top positions and directed the military to cut an additional 10% of its general and flag officers across the force, which could include any one-star or above or officer of equivalent Navy rank.
The cuts are on top of more than a half-dozen top general officers that President Donald Trump or Hegseth have fired since January, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. CQ Brown Jr. They also have fired the only two women serving as four-star officers, as well as a disproportionate number of other senior female officers.
In the earlier rounds of firing, Hegseth said the eliminations were 鈥渁 reflection of the president wanting the right people around him to execute the national security approach we want to take.鈥�
As Pentagon chief, Hegseth has touted his efforts to root out any programming or leadership that endorses diversity in the ranks, tried to terminate transgender service members and begun sweeping changes to enforce a uniform fitness standard for combat positions.
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Met Gala pays tribute to Black fashion and designers and includes Rihanna pregnancy surprise
NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� Rihanna shut down a rainy Met Gala on Monday in a pinstripe look and a huge hat, her newly announced baby bump on display after announcing her pregnancy with baby No. 3 earlier in the day.
Her Marc Jacobs look included tied sleeves of a men's suit that served as a bustle behind her as she posed for the cameras, the last to walk the carpet as usual. Her hair hung long in a mermaid twist behind her.
Men's suiting and tailoring was the evening's theme. It came complete with a tuxedoed choir and lots of women rocking pinstripes and other men's detailing. Emma Chamberlain, Zendaya, Teyana Taylor and many other women went with traditional men's detailing.
Chamberlain and Zuri Hall were among those who wore sleek, sexy gowns that play on men鈥檚 suiting in pinstripes as they walked up the grand steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Zendaya, a co-host last year, wore a perfectly tailored white trouser suit with a matching wide-brim hat from Louis Vuitton.
Janelle Mon谩e epitomized the night's theme, the Black dandy, in exaggerated pinstripes by Thom Browne. Lauryn Hill honored menswear in a butter yellow suit with exaggerated tailoring that screamed Black power.
The Associated Press
