Hello and welcome to Background Briefing, available 247 at Background Briefing.

I'm Ian Masters, and today we'll look into a number of stories and issues in the news.

We'll begin with information emerging that Israel has weaponized artificial intelligence

and AI tools are being used in Gaza for targeted assassination with the gospel system

used to target buildings used by militants, lavender used to compile kill lists, and Where's Daddy

to track combatants to their homes before killing them there? Joining us is Dr. Nancy O'Kale,

President and CEO of the Center for International Policy, a scholar and advocate of human

rights, justice, peace and equity. She has over 20 years of experience

working on these issues across the Middle East and North Africa region as well as globally.

And she provides policy recommendations to senior government officials in the United States

and Europe. Then we'll examine yesterday's White House meeting between Biden and Japan's

Prime Minister, followed by a state dinner. Then today's meeting of the two leaders with

President Marcos of the Philippines, where greater defense cooperation and interoperability

between the Allied militaries was discussed, along with 70 other agreements.

Joining us is Ellis Krauss, Professor Emeritus of Japanese politics and policymaking at the University of California, San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy.

He is a leading expert on Japanese politics and U.S.-Japan relations, and his books include

The Rise and fall of Japan's

LDP, political party organizations as institutions, beyond bilateralism, U.S.-Japan relations

in the New Asia Pacific, and Reluctant Warriors, Germany, Japan, and their U.S. alliance dilemma.

Then finally, we'll assess the political damage to the Republicans in Arizona

over the enactment of an 1864 abortion ban

and wins for Democrats on the abortion issue,

...