The U.N. General Assembly is expected to vote Thursday on a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages held by Hamas, and the opening of all Israeli border crossings for deliveries of desperately needed food and other aid.

The resolution, drafted by Spain and obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, "strongly condemns any use of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government survived an attempt to dissolve parliament early Thursday morning, with most of his ultra-Orthodox coalition partners joining him in voting against a bill that would have forced them to register for military service while the country is at war.

The vote was the most serious challenge to Netanyahu's government since Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack, the biggest security failure in Israel's history and the trigger for the ongoing war in Gaza. The bill's failure means that no other bill to dissolve Knesset can be submitted for at least six months, shoring up Netanyahu's embattled coalition.

Beijing slammed on Thursday what it called "dangerous behavior" by a Japanese military plane over the Pacific, after Tokyo said Chinese fighter jets flew "unusually close" to its aircraft at the weekend.

"The root cause of the risk to maritime and air security was the close reconnaissance of China's normal military activities by a Japanese warplane," foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said.

The United States is drawing down the presence of staffers who are not deemed essential to operations in the Middle East and their loved ones due to the potential for regional unrest, the State Department and military said Wednesday.

The State Department said it has ordered the departure of all nonessential personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad based on its latest review and a commitment "to keeping Americans safe, both at home and abroad." The embassy already had been on limited staffing, and the order will not affect a large number of personnel.

A former Cabinet minister has been arrested and charged after an investigation into alleged financial crimes, judicial and security officials told The Associated Press.

Former Economy Minister Amin Salam was detained after a three-hour interrogation about illegal use of ministry funds and use of suspicious contracts. The three judicial officials and one security official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.

Google has offered buyouts to staff in several divisions in a fresh round of cost cutting, according to a company statement and reports from several news outlets.

It's not clear how many employees are affected, but the offers were made to staff in Google's search, advertising, research and engineering units, according to The Wall Street Journal.

At least seven people have died in flooding in South Africa after a weather front bringing heavy rain and snow hit eastern and southern provinces, officials said Tuesday.

A bus carrying high school students was swept away in the floods in the Eastern Cape province and an unknown number of children were missing, the provincial government said in a statement. Three children were rescued after they clung onto trees, according to the South African National Taxi Council, which said the bus was operated by one of its members.

The 2026 World Cup will have a record 48 teams in the tournament to be co-hosted the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Five-time champion Brazil qualified Tuesday with a 1-0 win over Paraguay. Carlo Ancelotti's team remains the only team to play in all editions of the tournament. Ecuador also qualifed from South America after its 0-0 draw with Peru.

It's one of the most impactful climate decisions we make, and we make it multiple times a day.

The U.N. estimates about a third of the world's greenhouse gas emissions, the main driver of climate change, come from food. That pollution can come from several links in the food supply chain: how farmland is treated, how crops are grown, how food is processed and how it's ultimately transported.

The famous wind-powered beach beasts have scuttled along the Dutch North Sea coast, into a swanky Miami art show and even onto "The Simpsons."

Now. they have a final resting place in a Dutch city most famous for "Girl with a Pearl Earring" painter Johannes Vermeer and blue-painted pottery.