A new study claimed that Gaza's death toll is significantly higher than reported,an Israeli commander allegedly killed a Palestinian who was used as a "human shield,"and Israel launched raids across the West Bank.This comes as the UN special envoy to Yemen visited the Houthi-held capital of Sanaa,a report revealed details of alleged war crimes committed by UK Special Forces in Afghanistan,and North Korea claimed that a new intermediate-range hypersonic missile would deter its rivals.Meanwhile, a Russian attack on Ukraine killed at least 19,a French army official confirmed reports that dozens of Ukrainian soldiers have deserted,and several allies pledged to send more aid to Ukraine.

US Pres. Joe Biden hosted Venezuela's Edmundo González at the White House,as the opposition leader presented what he says are the original vote counts from last year's election,and as Nicolás Maduro was sworn in as president,Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado was allegedly detained for a brief period,and Army Chief Joseph Aoun was elected Lebanon's president.This comes as Canada's Liberal Party announced plans to pick a successor to Justin Trudeau on March 9after he announced his resignation as prime minister,Austria's Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg was named interim chancellor,South Korea sought to extend the arrest warrant for impeached Pres. Yoon Suk Yeol,and Former French Pres. Nicolas Sarkozy went on trial facing charges of illegal campaign financing.In other news, US Pres.-elect Donald Trump made plans to meet with Russia's Vladimir Putin,France's Emmanuel Macron and the UK's Keir Starmer met at the latter's country estate,French politician Jean-Marie Le Pen passed away at 96,and Macron sparked controversy among African leaders during a speech at the French ambassadors' annual conference on foreign policy.Elsewhere, Trump declined to rule out using the military to take Greenland and the Panama Canal,as he reportedly considered using an economic emergency declaration to justify implementing universal tariffs,the UK's Labour Party apologized for posting a TikTok video featuring explicit song lyrics,and UK Treasury Minister Tulip Siddiq referred herself to an ethics probe.Meanwhile, the UN accused Australia of violating dozens of asylum seekers' rights,Italy made moves to establish migrant centers in Albania,and New Zealand relaxed its work visa rules.

Congress certified Trump’s presidential victory,as Biden said he could have defeated the president-elect in November's election,a phone call between Justice Samuel Alito and Trump sparked controversy,and a new poll found that 73% of Americans believe democracy is under threat.This comes as a New York judge declined to postpone Trump’s sentencing in his state business fraud case,which saw him receive an unconditional discharge,Special Counsel Jack Smith's final report on Trump was temporarily blocked,Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was accused of voter fraud,and Rudy Giuliani was held in contempt for failing to comply with orders related to his $148M defamation judgment.In other news, Biden named two new national monuments in California,as he banned offshore drilling on 625M acres of US waters,illegal border crossings at the US-Mexico border hit a five-year low,and former Pres. Jimmy Carter's state funeral was held at the Washington National Cathedral.

Idaho's GOP legislators asked the Supreme Court to revisit its same-sex marriage decision,the UN reported that Iran executed 901 people in 2024,and Italian journalist Cecilia Sala was released from an Iranian prison.

UK Conservative MP David Davis called for a retrial for convicted baby killer Lucy Letby,Spain jailed four men for murdering a gay man in 2021,and OpenAI Chief Sam Altman denied accusations that he abused his sister.Meanwhile, France commemorated the 10th anniversary of the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack,and Japanese crime syndicate boss Takeshi Ebisawa pleaded guilty to trafficking nuclear material.

A US judge approved a $919M settlement related to the Tesla directors' excess pay case,Tesla's remote Smart Summon feature faced scrutiny,Amazon landed a $40M deal to film a Melania Trump documentary,and Meta ended its third-party fact-checking.This comes as the US Supreme Court heard arguments about a potential TikTok ban,Nippon Steel and US Steel challenged a restriction preventing their merger,and Piers Morgan exited Rupert Murdoch's News UK media group.

The global workforce was predicted to expand over the next five years,the US exceeded expectations with the addition of 256K jobs in December,and the UK’s pound fell to its lowest in over a year.

The UK’s first liver transplant cured a woman’s advanced bowel cancer,Germany reported its first case of foot-and-mouth disease in 35 years,researchers developed a new mosquito control method to curb the spread of disease,sugary drinks were linked to over 3M diabetes and heart disease cases in 2020,and a study linked exposure to aircraft noise to an increased risk of cardiac events.

Los Angeles grappled with the worst wildfires in its history,a 6.8 magnitude earthquake killed over 100 in China,a report found that 2024 was the hottest year on record,with the Earth reportedly breaching the 1.5°C warming mark for the first time,and a study warned that 24% of the world's freshwater species are at risk of extinction.

Apple prepared to update its new AI "Apple Intelligence" tool,and Nvidia unveiled new AI-powered gaming chips.

A tram collision in France injured dozens,and the black box on the Jeju Air flight that crashed in South Korea last month was found to have stopped working.

Tennis star Novak Djokovic claimed he was poisoned before the 2022 Australia Open.

Pope Francis named the first woman to lead a Vatican dicastery,and a teenage schoolboy's death sparked mass protests in China's Shaanxi province.