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Korva Coleman
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Korva Coleman. President Trump has welcomed dozens of representatives to his Board of Peace meeting in Washington. He says he formed the international group to rebuild Gaza after the war. The and the White House says Trump is expected to announce he's gotten more than $5 billion in pledges. Trump convened the meeting a short time
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Donald Trump
ago, so today is a tremendous honor to welcome you all to the United States Institute of Peace for the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace. Very important. I believe it's the most consequential board, certainly in terms of power and in terms of prestige. There's never been anything close.
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Korva Coleman
After the group's meeting this morning, Trump is flying to Georgia. He's going to visit a congressional district that was formally represented by Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. She broke with Trump last year over the slow release of the Epstein files. The United Kingdom's former Prince Andrew has been arrested in an investigation into the Epstein files. His brother, King Charles, has issued a statement. It says the law must take its course. NPR's Lauren Frayer reports from London. Andrew is the first senior royal to be arrested in centuries.
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Lauren Frayer
King Charles says what follows now is a, quote, full, fair and proper process, but expressed deepest concern over his brother's arrest. Police are searching properties adjacent to Windsor Castle and the Royal Sandringham Estate, where Andrew was arrested on suspicion, police say, of misconduct in public office, which carries up to a life sentence in prison. Andrew admits friendship with Jeffrey Epstein and settled a lawsuit with one of of the late sex offender's underage victims. But Andrew has said he, quote, strenuously denies any wrongdoing after the latest file release by the US Justice Department. UK Police have been investigating whether Andrew passed confidential government information to Epstein when Andrew was a UK Trade envoy. Lauren Fryer, NPR News, London.
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Korva Coleman
Stocks opened lower this morning as the Commerce Department reported a big jump in the U.S. trade deficit in December. NPR's Scott Horsley reports. The Dow Jones industrial average slipped more than 180 points in early trading.
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Scott Horsley
The U.S. trade gap widened sharply in December, topping $70 billion. Exports were down during the month, while imports were up for all of 2025. The trade deficit was just over $900 billion. That's down from the previous year, but only by about 2/10 of 1%. New applications for Unemployment benefits dipped last week as 206,000 people applied for aid. The modest numbers suggest that while US Employ adding a lot of jobs, they're not laying a lot of people off either. Walmart reported another strong quarter of sales and profits as even upscale shoppers go looking for discounts. The retail giant issued a cautious forecast, though, about what's ahead. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.
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Korva Coleman
On Wall street, the Dow is now down 170 points. You're listening to NPR. A federal judge will hold a hearing today in Minneapolis on the Trump administration's handling of refugees in Minnesota. Last month, U.S. district Judge John Tunheim temporarily blocked the U.S. government from detaining refugees who are lawfully in Minnesota. That order expires on Wednesday unless it is extended. The Trump administration has claimed it's targeting criminals. Critics say refugees with no criminal history are being detained. A court in South Korea has sentenced the country's former president to life in prison for the crime of insurrection. NPR's Anthony Kuhn reports. The charges are related to ex President Yoon Song Yeol's brief declaration of martial law in late 2024.
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Anthony Kuhn
The Seoul Central District Court said that Yoon sending troops to seize parliament was aimed at subverting South Korea's constitution. The court added that many officials were implicated in the crime. It imposed huge costs on society, and Yoon showed no remorse. Outside the courthouse, protesters demonstrated for and against Yoon. Yoon's lawyers said the ruling ignored the evidence. President Lee Jae Myung, meanwhile, praised citizens for foiling Yoon's power grab. Prosecutors had called for the death penalty for Yoon, but South Korea hasn't executed anyone in nearly four decades. Yoon Song Yeol now has one week to appeal his sentence. Anthony Kuhn, NPR News, Tokyo.
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Korva Coleman
Later today at the Winter Olympic Games in Italy, it's the gold medal game in women's ice hockey. Team USA is going to face Canada. When the two teams met last week, the U.S. defeated Canada five to nothing. I'm Korva Coleman, NPR News from Washington.
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