The world is increasingly turning to Brazil to explore for rare earth minerals that are crucial for technology and renewable energy. The country's large reserves are second only to China and have attracted investors, many of them with foreign support.

An analysis by The Associated Press and Reporter Brasil of all National Mining Agency records through June shows that rare earth exploration applications have surged, with more than 86% filed in the past three years, including 268 in the first half of 2026.

Nearing the six-month mark of the Iran war and facing diminishing stockpiles of key weapons, the Trump administration is touting a crushing financial campaign against Tehran, promising an "economic D-Day" against a country that has so far withstood nearly five decades of punishing American sanctions.

With sparse details, President Donald Trump announced this week that the U.S. would be imposing an "unprecedented" level of economic warfare and isolation on Iran, aiming to force its leadership to cave to demands to end its nuclear program and fully reopen the crucial Strait of Hormuz to oil and natural gas tankers.

The U.S. and South Korean militaries were wrapping up their annual drills six days earlier than initially scheduled on Friday in a conciliatory gesture toward North Korea, though the North said the step isn't enough to convince it to return to talks.

U.S. President Donald Trump had earlier abruptly ordered the Pentagon to "substantially reduce" the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises just before they began Monday. Trump cited what he described as a good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korea's refusal to support him over the war in Iran.

A collection of football fan groups from around the world launched a petition Thursday calling for Gianni Infantino to resign as FIFA president after he tried to sell future World Cup profits to private investors.

The petition with the hashtag InfantinOut also calls for FIFA "to be rebuilt so that the current debacle can never happen again."

The intensifying use of drones against civilians and humanitarian workers is a dangerous obstacle for aid operations in Ukraine, the U.N.'s humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, said on Wednesday.

Fletcher spoke to The Associated Press in an interview after a visit to the southern city of Kherson, where he witnessed how communities there are coping while living under the constant threat of Russian drones. Fletcher described the visit to Kherson, split by the Dnipro River, which acts as an active front line, as "quite chilling."

A Syrian police investigator who slapped a man during interrogation despite having been warned that he had hemophilia will face prosecution, officials said Thursday.

Syria's interior ministry earlier this week launched an investigation into the death of Mohammad Ghamira and on Thursday announced initial results of the probe.

A woman died and at least two other people were injured as severe storms caused extensive damage overnight across parts of Germany. Further southeast, in the Balkans, firefighters continued to battle wildfires that have been raging across Europe all summer.

In Waldorf, in the southwestern state of Rhineland-Palatinate, a woman was struck by a falling tree and fatally injured, the German news agency dpa reported Thursday. Another woman suffered serious injuries in the accident, police said.

The American University of Beirut (AUB) hosted the first Lebanese Mathematics Day, bringing together 341 participants from more than ten universities, high schools, industry, and the international mathematical community for a full day of talks, workshops, poster sessions, and discussion on the AUB campus.

AUB’s Center for Advanced Mathematical Sciences (CAMS), directed by Professor of Physics Jihad Touma, organized the event in collaboration with the university’s Department of Mathematics and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS).

President Donald Trump played White House tour guide on Wednesday, showing off the helipad he is building on the lawn before leaning over to autograph a piece of it and bragging about the ballroom he's rushing to complete despite legal challenges.

Trump gushed for several uninterrupted minutes about granite being laid and said the chopper landing area would leave visiting foreign leaders "very impressed" — including Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is coming next month.

Millions more people may be able to get smaller, lightweight Amazon packages delivered by drones by the end of the year under a plan the company announced Wednesday to expand the airborne shipping to suburban areas in nearly 500 U.S. cities.

Customers could receive the drone deliveries in as fast as 30 minutes, Amazon said in a news release. The drones can carry packages up to 5 pounds.