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JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia has begun training a contingent of up to 8,000 soldiers it plans to send as part of an international peacekeeping force toGaza, the first firm commitment to a critical element of U.S. President Donald Trump's postwarreconstruction plan.

Indonesia Gaza Peacekeepers

Indonesia has experience in peacekeeping operations as one of the top 10 contributors to United Nations missions,including in Lebanon, and has been deeply involved in providing humanitarian aid to Gaza, including funding a hospital.

But many Indonesians are skeptical of PresidentPrabowo Subianto's plans to joinWashington's proposed Board of Peaceand participate in the International Security Force with only vague details so far on how they will operate, seeing it as simply kowtowing to Trump's agenda as the two countries negotiate a trade deal.

"We need to be careful to ensure that our military personnel are not supporting the Israeli military forces," said Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat, a Middle East expert with Jakarta's Center of Economic and Law Studies. "We need to be careful that our military forces are not fighting against wrong actors."

The ISF's mandate remains unclear

U.N. peacekeeping forces all have clear and strict mandates, but since the Board of Peace and ISF will operate outside the U.N., many wonder how the troops will be used, and who will pay for them. Last year's ceasefire agreement broadly says that the ISF will "provide support to vetted Palestinian police forces in Gaza" and will "work with Israel and Egypt to help secure border areas."

Indonesia currently is paid by the U.N. for the troops it sends to serve as peacekeepers, but people fear it will have to pick up the tab for the troops sent to Gaza, as well asa possible $1 billion payment for a permanent placeon the Board of Peace, as outlined in a draft charter.

Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim country and firmly supports a two-state solution in the Mideast, and officials have justified joining the Board of Peace by saying it was necessary to defendPalestinian interestsfrom within, since Israel is included on the board but there is no Palestinian representation.

"Indonesia sees the importance of the involvement of the parties to the conflict as part of the process towards peace," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Yvonne Mewengkang said this week.

She said Indonesia would use its membership to "ensure that the entire process remains oriented towards the interests of Palestine and respects the basic rights of the Palestinian people, as well as encouraging the realization of a two-state solution."

The Jakarta Post slammed that kind of reasoning in an editorial, however, saying that an "independent Palestinian state, if it emerges at all, is likely decades away."

"Indonesia will end up paying $1 billion long before any meaningful outcome is achieved," Abdul Khalik wrote. "And if Indonesia eventually withdraws in frustration, it will have already spent vast resources; financial, diplomatic and political, for nothing."

Trump seen as overstepping the UN

The Board of Peace was initially envisioned as a small group of world leaders overseeing Trump'splan for Gaza's future. But the U.S. president has since said he sees the board as a mediator of worldwide conflicts, sidestepping the mandate of the U.N.

Prabowo, a former army general who has been keen to raise Indonesia's profile on the world stage, quickly accepted Trump's offer for a place on the Board of Peace and made an initial pledge of 20,000 Indonesian troops as peacekeepers during his speech at theUnited Nations General Assembly.

An online petition started by a group of Muslim scholars and activists questions joining a body that ostensibly promotes peace, but whose proposed chairman for life will be Trump, citing his threats to take Greenland, the seizure ofthen-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and the American veto of a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for a Gaza ceasefire last year.

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"In our belief, peace will be difficult to achieve by a country or a leader of a country who repeatedly uses his veto power to prevent the occurrence of peace itself," reads the petition, which calls for Indonesia to withdraw from the Board of Peace and has gotten more than 9,000 signatures so far.

"The BoP faces serious legitimacy problems, both normatively, structurally and morally."

Indonesia's military readies troops despite lack of guidance

About 100 protesters against Indonesia's involvement gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta on Friday, holding signs with slogans like "Bored of peace?" and "Free Gaza."

Earlier this week, Indonesian Army Chief of Staff Gen. Maruli Simanjuntak said that training had begun for the peacekeepers, even though Indonesia has yet to receive any guidance on what types of personnel were needed.

He said Indonesia now envisions sending between 5,000 to 8,000 troops.

"We have started training personnel who might later serve as peacekeepers," he said. "So that means engineering, medical units - the types often deployed."

Despite the skepticism at home, the idea of Indonesians serving as peacekeepers in Gaza is seen in the region as a good one, said Hassan Jouni, a Qatar-based analyst who was formerly a Lebanese army general. Indonesia, he said, is viewed as an "honest and acceptable broker" by both sides in the conflicts in Lebanon and Gaza.

"Indonesia is a Muslim country... and its religious identity gives it a large distinction in its security participation as part of the peacekeeping forces in the Arab region," he said. "At the same time, it does not pose a strategic threat to Israel."

While Indonesia and Israel do not have formal diplomatic ties and Indonesia has been supportive of the rights of the Palestinians, it has not taken a directly confrontational stance toward Israel similar to some other Muslim-majority powers such as Turkey and Iran.

"From this point of view, the participation of Indonesian forces in southern Lebanon comes in a balanced and effective manner," he said, and it may be expected to do the same in Gaza.

Many are looking for clarity toward the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace next week in Washington, where other countries are expected to announce troop commitments of their own.

Prabowo plans to attend in person and is expected to also sign the new trade deal while there, and the Center of Economic and Law Studies' Rakhmat said he didn't think he would be swayed by public sentiment.

"I don't think the domestic opposition would significantly change the decision of Indonesia in joining the BoP," he said.

Rising reported from Bangkok. Abby Sewell in Beirut contributed to this story.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelmingly Thursday to approve a 40-member global scientific panel on theimpacts and risks of artificial intelligence, with the United States strongly objecting.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who established the panel, called the adoption "a foundational step towardglobal scientific understanding of AI."

"In a world where AI is racing ahead," he said, "this panel will provide what's been missing — rigorous, independent scientific insight that enables all member states, regardless of their technological capacity, to engage on an equal footing."

He has described it as the first fully independent global scientific body dedicated to bridging the knowledge gap in AI and assessing its real-world economic and social impacts.

The vote in the 193-member assembly was 117-2, with the United States and Paraguay voting "no" and Tunisia and Ukraine abstaining. America's allies in Europe, Asia and elsewhere voted in favor along with Russia, China and many developing countries.

U.S. Mission counselor Lauren Lovelace called the panel "a significant overreach of the U.N.'s mandate and competence" and said "AI governance is not a matter for the U.N. to dictate."

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As the world leader in AI, the United States is resolved to do all it can to accelerate AI innovation and build up its infrastructure, she said, andthe Trump administrationwill support "like-minded nations working together to encourage the development of AI in line with our shared values."

"We will not cede authority over AI to international bodies that may be influenced by authoritarian regimes seeking to impose their vision of controlled surveillance societies," Lovelace said, adding that the Trump administration is concerned about "the non-transparent way" the panel was chosen.

Guterres said the 40 members were selected from more than 2,600 candidates after an independent review by the International Telecommunications Union, the U.N. Office for Digital and Emerging Technologies and UNESCO, the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. They will serve for three-year terms.

Members are predominantly AI experts but also come from other disciplines and include Maria Ressa, a Filipino journalist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 2021.

There are two Americans on the panel: Vipin Kumar, a University of Minnesota professor focusing on AI, data mining and high-performance computing research, and Martha Palmer, a retired University of Colorado professor and linguistics expert whose research includes capturing the meaning of words for complex sentences in AI.

There are two Chinese experts on the panel: Song Haitao, dean of Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the Shanghai Artificial Intelligence Research Institute, and Wang Jian, an expert in cloud-computing technology at the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

Ukraine said it abstained because it objected to Russia's Andrei Neznamov, an expert in AI regulation, ethics, and governance, being on the panel.

RYE, N.Y. (AP) —Jeanine Pirro,the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, has filed a $250,000 negligence lawsuit against her suburban hometown north of New York City and a power utility after claiming she tripped and fell while out walking.

Pirro said she tripped over a large wooden block protruding from a steel plate in a roadway on Aug. 28 in the Westchester County city of Rye, just weeks after she wasconfirmed as the Trump administration's top prosecutorfor the District of Columbia.

The plate was covering excavation related to gas-main work for Consolidated Edison, according to an amended complaint filed Wednesday in state court.

"As a result of defendants' negligence, Ms. Pirro sustained serious personal injuries, including but not limited to bruises and contusions to the head, eye, face, and shoulder areas, together with pain, discomfort, and limitation of movement," according to the complaint, initially filed last month.

The 74-year-old former Fox News host was confined to bed, required medical attention and "continues to experience pain and suffering," according to the filing.

Representatives for Pirro, Con Ed and Rye declined to comment on the pending litigation Thursday.

In a motion to dismiss the claim, an attorney for Rye wrote that it "can hardly be said that the City was negligent in a duty to pedestrians at a location that was not a pedestrian walkway." An attorney for Con Ed wrote in a separate court filing seeking dismissal that all the dangers and risks related to the incident "were open, obvious and apparent."

Pirro has served as both a judge and the district attorney for Westchester County.

Fresh off a pair of resounding victories, No. 21 Arkansas looks to avenge its most decisive loss of the season against slumping Auburn in Fayetteville, Ark., on Saturday.

The Razorbacks went "back to the basics" defensively in a 91-62 victory at LSU on Tuesday, according to coach John Calipari, in their second straight win by at least 20 points.

Arkansas (18-6, 8-3 SEC) could benefit from a similar effort in the rematch against Auburn, which shot 56.7% from the field in a 95-73 home victory Jan. 10.

"We were so bad defensively two-three weeks ago that some of this stuff is going back to the basics," Calipari said. "How do I get us to take unbelievable pride defensively. We've just got to get there.

"We go from here. We've got seven (SEC) games (remaining). We could lose all seven. We'll see if we are getting better."

The Razorbacks are one game behind SEC-leading Florida and tied with Kentucky for second, one game ahead of five 7-4 teams that are fighting for the four double-byes in the league tournament.

Auburn (14-10, 5-6) has lost three in a row after a four-game winning streak that included victories over then-No. 16 Florida and Texas. The Tigers fell to Vanderbilt 84-76 at home Tuesday.

"People are going to be panicking right now," first-year Auburn coach Steven Pearl said. "While the results haven't been there, this team has continued to get better."

NCAA Freshman of the Year candidate Darius Acuff Jr. scored 28 points and five assists in the win at LSU, four days after contributing 24 points and eight assists in an 88-68 victory at Mississippi State.

Acuff tied a season high with 13 field goals against LSU, and his 22 attempts were a season high. He was 1 of 4 from distance.

"Which meant either a mid-level shot, which I like him to shoot because he can make them, or he shot layups," Calipari said. "You don't have to live and die with the threes."

Forward Trevon Brazile had 14 points and 12 rebounds against LSU, his fifth double-double of the season. He has averaged 16.3 points and 9.3 rebounds in the last three, his best stretch in SEC games.

"It makes us different," Calipari said of Brazile's impact. "For him, it's a mindset."

DJ Wagner (ankle) and Karter Knox (knee) have missed the last two Arkansas games, tightening Calipari's rotation and providing more minutes for Billy Richmond III, who has scored in double figures in four of his last five games.

Reserve center Malique Ewin took four stitches in his forehead after being struck by an elbow late in the LSU game but is expected to play.

Auburn established control early in the first meeting, opening a 14-point lead with nine minutes left in the first half. The Razorbacks were never closer than 13 in the second half.

Tigers' leading scorer Keyshawn Hall (20.7 points) scored 32 points in the first meeting, tying a season high. He was 11 of 14 from the field and 4 of 5 from deep.

Hall was not a factor against Vanderbilt, going 3 of 13 from the field and playing only 26 minutes. He sat the final 12:38 as Auburn cut the Commodores' lead to 70-66 on Tahad Pettiford's layup with 2:42 left.

"I just went with the guys that I thought put us in the best position to get back in the game," Pearl said. "Our offense wasn't really in sync when he was on the floor, so wanted to give us a different look."

Pettiford, who averages 14.1 ppg, has scored 46 points the last two games, 21 against Vanderbilt and 25 in a 96-92 loss to Alabama last Saturday.

--Field Level Media

Surging, third-ranked Houston will look to build on its 17-game home winning streak and continue its recent stretch of dominating play when it hosts reeling Kansas State on Saturday afternoon in a Big 12 Conference game.

The Cougars (22-2, 10-1 Big 12) moved up five spots in the most recent AP poll and justified that jump with a 66-52 win at Utah on Tuesday. Emanuel Sharp led the charge for Houston with 27 points and a career-high eight 3-pointers that gave him 277 and propelled him past Marcus Sasser (276) as the school's career leader in made 3-point field goals.

"I was just shooting," Sharp said. "It was really no complicated science behind it. I've been blessed with having two great point guards on this team with Kingston (Flemings) and Milos (Uzan). They are so unselfish. They always find me in great spots."

No other Houston player scored in double figures on Tuesday, but that didn't stop the Cougars from building a 22-point lead in the second half and waltzing to their fifth straight victory and their 16th in the past 17 outings. Houston's defense held Utah to just 2-of-17 shooting (11.8%) from beyond the arc and its lowest point total of the season.

After the win, Houston coach Kelvin Sampson lauded Sharp and his continued contribution to the program's success.

"Every team Emanuel has played on has won a conference championship, whether it's the American or Big 12," Sampson said. "He's played in Final Fours, Elite Eights, Sweet 16s. All he's done is win. He's made this program better. Emanuel has been around. He's seen a lot of winning. He's been a huge part why this program has been successful."

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Sharp is averaging 16.3 points per game, second on the team to mercurial freshman Flemings (16.6 ppg).

It's into this gauntlet that the struggling Wildcats step. Kansas State (10-14, 1-10) heads to the Bayou City carrying a five-game losing streak after a 91-62 defeat at home against Cincinnati on Wednesday. The Wildcats shot 40.3% from the floor and made only 6 of 25 shots (24%) from 3-point range vs. the Bearcats.

P.J. Haggerty, the nation's second-leading scorer at 23.3 points per game, amassed 24 points for the Wildcats in the setback but got little help. Kansas State trailed by 22 points at halftime and by 32 in the second half.

Kansas State has dropped 10 of its past 11 games, and coach Jerome Tang took his team to task for a lack of effort and hustle on both ends of the floor in the latest loss.

"They got to have some pride," Tang said. "It means something to wear a K-State uniform. It means something to put on this purple. These dudes do not deserve to wear this uniform. There will be very few of them in it next year. I'm embarrassed for the university, I'm embarrassed for our fans, our student section. It is just ridiculous."

The 1-10 record through 11 conference games equals the Wildcats' worst start in the Big 12 era, a mark also posted by 1999-2000 and 2020-21 teams.

--Field Level Media

Santa Clara is enjoying a memorable season, but it can boost its success to another level when it hosts No. 12 Gonzaga on Saturday night in a battle for first place in the West Coast Conference.

The Broncos have won nine straight games since losing 89-77 to the Bulldogs on Jan. 8 in Spokane, Wash. This contest also marks the last regular-season battle between programs that have been in the same conference for the past 46 seasons and first met in 1959.

"We'll keep it straightforward," Santa Clara guard Sash Gavalyugov said. "It's our last game against Gonzaga in the WCC, so we look to beat them for a goodbye. We look to be undefeated for the rest of the season."

The Broncos (22-5, 13-1 WCC) stand a half-game ahead of the Bulldogs (24-2, 12-1) with Saint Mary's (22-4, 11-2) looming close behind in third place.

Gonzaga coach Mark Few feels Santa Clara shouldn't have any trouble being part of March Madness despite the school last qualifying in 1996.

"They're an NCAA Tournament team," Few said. "They pass the eye test."

The Steve Nash-era Broncos went to the tournament three times in the 1990s and went 2-3, including the still-talked about upset of No. 2 seed Arizona in 1993.

Santa Clara is 13-0 at home entering the clash with Gonzaga, and coach Herb Sendek is doing his best to downplay the hype.

"It's the next game on our schedule," Sendek said after the Broncos' 84-72 home win over Seattle University on Wednesday. "We don't look at the name on the jersey or the tip time or the weather or whether it's a holiday or any other thing that can enter someone's mind.

"When it's time to play, our conference schedule demands the best of us."

Gavalyugov, a freshman, made five 3-pointers and scored 21 points against Seattle. He had scored in single digits seven straight times since his explosive 37-point outing against Loyola Marymount on Jan. 10.

One game ahead of his career-best outing, he had eight points on 2-of-7 shooting against Gonzaga. Bulldogs star Graham Ike scored 34 points on 13-of-17 shooting and collected 11 rebounds in the Gonzaga win.

"We guarded them really, really good and rebounded the ball well," Few said of the contest that was tied at halftime and saw the Bulldogs lead by as many as 23 in the second half.

Ike has scored 30 or more in three of his past six appearances and has made 21 of 28 field-goal attempts over the past two games. He matched his career best of 35 points while making 13 of 18 shots in an 81-61 rout of Oregon State on Feb. 7, and he followed up with 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting in an 83-53 home shellacking of Washington State on Tuesday.

Freshman Davis Fogle added 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting off the bench vs. the Cougars and was lauded by Few for his defense. Fogle had a season-high three blocked shots and matched his high of three steals in 23 minutes.

"I think on the defensive end, the game's slowed down a lot," Fogle said. "... Still working on it every day in practice and taking all the advice I can from coaches."

Despite the Broncos splitting the regular-season series with the Bulldogs the past two campaigns, this is another one of those WCC rivalries long owned by Gonzaga.

The Bulldogs had won 26 straight matchups and 35 of 36 prior to the recent splits.

Gonzaga has won 22 of the past 24 meetings at Santa Clara. The Broncos won in 2011 and 2024.

Gonzaga will move into the rebuilt Pac-12 next season.

--Field Level Media

Rick Kern/Getty; Alana Springsteen/Instagram

NEED TO KNOW

• James Van Der Beek's wife Kimberly reposted a cover of the Dawson's Creek theme song "I Don't Want To Wait" performed by country singer Alana Springsteen

• Springsteen shared the cover in support of the Van Der Beek family's GoFundMe amid James Van Der Beek's death

• Van Der Beek died at 48 from colorectal cancer on Wednesday, Feb. 11

James Van Der Beek's wife Kimberly reposted a cover of theDawson's Creektheme song "I Don't Want To Wait," originally by Paula Cole, in the wake of her husband's death.

Singer-songwriter Alana Springsteen shared an acoustic cover of the song alongside Sara Bares and Lauren LaRue in anInstagrampost on Thursday, Feb. 12.

"rip james van der beek 🙏🏻💔 this loss hit me hard today," Springsteen, 25, began in the caption. "So much girlhood was lived to the backdrop of his work. praying for his beautiful family. link to the gofundme that his friends started to help with their expenses is in my bio if you feel led to support."

Cole, 57, responded to the cover, writing in the comment section of Springsteen's post, "So beautiful. Tears and more tears. Thank you for honoring James and his family. ❤️."

Kimberly Van Der Beek, 44, reposted the cover to herInstagram Stories.

Friends of Kimberly created aGoFundMeto support the Van Der Beek family amid the loss of James. The fundraiser claims the family is out of money and struggling to stay in their home after James' death on Wednesday, Feb. 11.

"In the wake of this loss, Kimberly and the children are facing an uncertain future. The costs of James's medical care and the extended fight against cancer have left the family out of funds," a description on the fundraiser read.

"They are working hard to stay in their home and to ensure the children can continue their education and maintain some stability during this incredibly difficult time," it continued. "The support of friends, family, and the wider community will make a world of difference as they navigate the road ahead."

The post went on to say that funds will cover essential living expenses, bills and support the children's education.

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"Every donation, no matter the size, will help Kimberly and her family find hope and security as they rebuild their lives," read the post. "Thank you for considering a gift to support them."

The GoFundMe has raised over $2 million, including a $25,000 donation from Steven Spielberg, who was the favorite director of James'Dawson's Creekcharacter.

James shares six kids with his wife, Kimberly — daughters Olivia, 15, Annabel, 12, Emilia, 9½, and Gwendolyn, 7, and sons Joshua, 13, and Jeremiah, 4.

Alana Springsteen/Instagram

James died at 48 due to complications of stage 3 colorectal cancer on Wednesday, Feb. 11. His wifeannounced the news on Instagram.

"Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning," Kimberly wrote. "He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace. There is much to share regarding his wishes, love for humanity and the sacredness of time. Those days will come. For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother, and friend."

The actor was first diagnosed in August 2023 and announced his diagnosis exclusively to PEOPLE in November 2024.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE's free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

"I have colorectal cancer," he revealed at the time. "I've been privately dealing with this diagnosis and have been taking steps to resolve it, with the support of my incredible family."

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