Inequality and unease are rising as elite Davos event opens with pro-business Trump set to attend

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — Corporate chiefs and government leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump swarm into Davos, Switzerland, this week, joining an elite annual meeting that promotes dialogue and economic progress — even as a domineering tone from Washington has upended the global order and billionaires have reaped trillions in new wealth as the poor lag behind.

The World Economic Forum, the think tank whose four-day annual meeting opens Tuesday, has a stated motto of “improving the state of the world," and this year's theme is “A spirit of dialogue.” One question is whether Trump will speak with attendees — or at them.

Nearly 3,000 attendees from the interlinked worlds of business, advocacy and policy will tackle issues including the growing gap between rich and poor; AI's impact on jobs; concerns about geo-economic conflict; tariffs that have rocked longstanding trade relationships; and an erosion of trust between communities and countries.

“It’s really going to be a discussion at a very important moment ... geopolitics is changing," said Mirek Dušek, a forum managing director in charge of programming. "Some people think we’re in a transition. Some people think we’ve already entered a new era. But I think it’s undeniable that you are seeing a more competitive, more contested landscape.”

Trump’s third visit to Davos as president comes as U.S. allies worry about his ambition to take over Greenland, Latin America is grappling with his efforts to reap Venezuela’s oil, and his hardball tactics toward Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell have stirred concern among business leaders and lawmakers alike.

Trump’s peace-making credentials also will be on the table: An announcement looms about his “ Board of Peace ” for Gaza, and he and his administration are expected to have bilateral meetings in the warren of side rooms at the Congress Center.

The U.S. leader seems to revel in strolling through the Davos Congress Center and among executives who back his business-minded, money-making approach to politics.

Critics will also be nearby. Trump has blown hot and cold recently with Colombian President Gustavo Petro, an invitee. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi of Iran was set to speak, but his appearance was cancelled. Iran's leaders face U.S. sanctions over their handling of recent protests, and organizers said Monday that "the tragic loss of civilian lives" means “it is not right” for the government to be represented.

The two likeliest counterweights to Trump’s administration on the international scene — China and the European Union — get top billing on the first day: EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will speak Tuesday morning, right before Vice Premier He Lifeng, China’s “economic czar” — as Dušek put it.

The forum will be without its founder, Klaus Schwab, who hosted the first event in Davos 55 years ago focusing on business, only to see it since balloon into a catchall extravaganza. He stepped down in April. New co-chairs Larry Fink, the head of investment firm BlackRock, and Andre Hoffman, vice chair of pharmaceuticals firm Roche, are in charge.

This year will also mark the debut appearance of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, arguably the world’s most important tech leader today, among some 850 CEOs and chairs of global companies — along with celebrities like Hollywood actor and safe-water advocate Matt Damon.

The future of AI, its impact on business and work, and the prospects for artificial general intelligence will be key themes.

The presidents of Argentina, France, Indonesia, Syria and Ukraine will be among the dozens of national leaders on hand.

Leading public-relations firm Edelman reports in its annual trust barometer – launched a quarter-century ago and this year surveying nearly 34,000 people in 28 countries – that trade and recession fears have climbed to an all-time high, optimism is falling especially in developed countries, and “grievance” last year has morphed into broader “insularity.”

“People are retreating from dialogue and compromise, choosing the safety of the familiar over the perceived risk of change,” said CEO Richard Edelman. “We favor nationalism over global connection and individual gain over joint progress. Our mentality has shifted from ‘we’ to ‘me’.”

The survey found that about two-thirds of respondents said their trust was concentrated toward CEOs of the companies that they work for, fellow citizens or neighbors, while nearly 70% believed institutional leaders — such as from business or government — deliberately mislead the public.

Oxfam, the world-renowned advocacy group, issued a report which showed that billionaire wealth rose by more than 16% last year, three times faster than the past five-year average, to more than $18 trillion. It drew on Forbes magazine data on the world’s richest people.

Oxfam said the $2.5 trillion rise in the wealth of billionaires last year would be enough to eradicate extreme poverty 26 times over. Their wealth has risen by more than four-fifths since 2020, while nearly half the world’s population lives in poverty, the group said.

The Trump administration has led a “pro-billionaire agenda,” the group said, through actions such as slashing taxes for the wealthiest, fostering the growth of AI-related stocks that help rich investors get richer, and thwarting efforts to tax giant companies.

The advocacy group wants more national efforts to reduce inequality, higher taxes on the ultra-rich to reduce their power, and greater limits on their ability to shape policy through lobbying.

With such concerns filtering through to policymakers, Trump, who is leading the biggest-ever U.S. delegation and will have about a half-dozen Cabinet secretaries in tow, is expected to discuss housing and affordability in his Davos speech on Wednesday.

As usual, protesters rallied over the weekend in and near Davos ahead of the event. Hundreds of marchers scaled an Alpine road up to the town on Saturday behind a banner in German that read “No Profit from War” and alongside a truck that bore a sign: World Economic Failure.

Companies like Microsoft, India's Tata Consultancy, social media titan TikTok and cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike joined governments from countries such as Nigeria, Qatar, Ukraine and the United States — a USA House is making a debut this year — to set up shop on the Davos Promenade to promote their services, products and national economies.

Davos storekeepers rent out their premises so that forum participants can have the prime real estate for the week.

Critics have long accused the annual meeting of generating more rhetoric than results, and they see Trump's return as sign of the disconnect between haves and have-nots. Some say Swiss leaders who support the event and flock to Davos too are adding to the problem.

“It is worrying how Swiss politicians are courting warmongers and their profiteers in Davos,” said Mirjam Hostetmann, president of Switzerland's Young Socialists, who have led protests against the event. “The WEF will never bring peace, but will only fuel escalation.”

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AP World Economic Forum: https://apnews.com/hub/world-economic-forum

A man installs a microphone for the opening concert of the Annnual Meeting of the World Economy Forum at the Congress Center in Davos, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Posters cover the church hosting the United States House on the eve of the start of the Annual Meeting of the World Economy Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

The windows of the Congress Center, center top, where the Annual Meeting of the World Economy Forum take place are illuminated in Davos, Switzerland, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

FILE - Attendees listen to a virtual speech delivered by U.S. president Donald Trump, at the Annual Meeting of World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, file)

The logo of the World Economy Forum is displayed on a window of the Congress Center where the Annual Meeting Forum take place in Davos, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. (AP) — The armed man who rammed his vehicle into one of the nation’s largest Reform synagogues has been identified as 41-year-old Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, a naturalized citizen born in Lebanon, according to federal officials.

Ghazali came to the U.S. in 2011 on an IR1 immigrant visa as the spouse of a U.S. citizen and was granted U.S. citizenship in 2016, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Federal investigators have called the crime an act of violence targeting the Jewish community.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. (AP) — An attacker armed with a rifle was fatally shot after ramming his vehicle into one of the nation’s largest Reform synagogues Thursday in what federal investigators said was an act of violence targeting the Jewish community.

Jennifer Runyan, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Detroit field office, called the incident “deeply disturbing and tragic” and said the FBI is leading the investigation.

The agency considers the crime a “targeted act of violence against the Jewish community,” she said at a news conference Thursday. Investigators have not determined a motive yet.

“What drove this person into action has to be determined by the investigation,” said Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard.

The vehicle caught fire after crashing into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township, just outside Detroit, and driving through a hallway as security opened fire, authorities said.

None of the synagogue’s staff, teachers or the 140 children at its early childhood center were injured, Bouchard said.

In the minutes after the attack, smoke billowed from the synagogue. One security officer was hit by the vehicle and knocked unconscious but did not suffer life-threatening injuries, the sheriff said. And 30 law enforcement officers were treated for smoke inhalation.

West Bloomfield Police Chief Dale Young said Temple security officers “engaged the individual and neutralized the threat.”

The suspect was found dead inside his vehicle, Bouchard said.

Cassi Cohen, director of strategic development at Temple Israel, was standing at the hallway where the crash happened. She said she heard a loud bang, grabbed a few staff members, ran into her office and locked the door.

“When I heard the crash, I knew it was bad,” Cohen said.

She said a classroom was near where the car rammed the synagogue and, in addition to the children, there were also more than 30 staff members in the synagogue.

“Thankfully, we have had many active shooter drills and our staff is prepared for these situations,” she said. “We do go into lockdown.”

Rabbi Arianna Gordon, from Temple Israel, thanked the security team, law enforcement and early childhood teachers for getting the children out safely and reunited with their parents, calling them the “true rock stars of the day.”

About a dozen parents sprinted to get their children soon after authorities cleared the building. Other families were reunited at a nearby Jewish Community Center.

Allison Jacobs, whose 18-month-old daughter is enrolled in Temple Israel’s day care, said she got a message from a teacher saying the children were OK even before she knew what happened.

“There are no words. I was in complete and utter shock,” she told the AP. “I was hoping that it was a false report.”

Jacobs, whose family is Jewish, said she tries not to think about all that’s going on in the world.

“You never think that this is actually going to happen to you,” she said. “But I know that it’s — it’s just terrible. This morning I was mourning the loss of the school that got hit in Iran.”

Synagogues around the world have been on edge and have been ramping up security since the U.S. and Israel launched a war with Iran with missile strikes on Feb. 28.

The FBI has warned that Iranian operatives may be planning drone attacks on targets in California. Two men brought explosives to a far-right protest outside the New York mayoral mansion on Saturday. Investigators allege they were inspired by the Islamic State extremist group.

And an assailant drove a car into people outside an Orthodox synagogue in Manchester, England, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. He stabbed two people to death before officers shot and killed him.

President Donald Trump said he had been fully briefed on the attack, calling it a “terrible thing.”

Steven Ingber, the CEO of the Jewish Federation of Detroit, lamented the fact that his organization had to train and prepare for an attack.

“I’d love to say that I’m shocked, that I’m surprised, but I’m not,” he said during a news conference Thursday.

He added: “This will not change us. This will not deter us and we will continue.”

Oakland County is Michigan’s second-largest county with roughly 1.3 million people. The majority of Detroit-area Jewish residents live there.

“This is heartbreaking,” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement. “Michigan’s Jewish community should be able to live and practice their faith in peace.”

It was the second attack at a house of worship in Michigan within the past year. Last September, a former Marine fatally shot four people at a church north of Detroit and set it ablaze. The FBI later said he was motivated by “anti-religious beliefs” against The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Temple Israel has 12,000 members, according to its website, which says the synagogue is “passionate about helping Jewish communities across the globe” and that its mission is to “create a community building through the lens of Reform Judaism.”

The Jewish Federation of Detroit briefly advised all Jewish organizations in the area to lock down.

Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, a survivor of the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue massacre, said in a statement that the Michigan attack demonstrates yet again the consequences of hatred.

“We lose our humanity when we seek violent means as a solution,” said Myers, rabbi of the Tree of Life Congregation, where 11 worshippers died in the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. “No one should dwell in fear because of who they are.”

This story has been corrected to show that the shooting at a church north of Detroit happened in September, not October.

Durkin Richer reported from Washington, D.C. Associated Press reporters Ed White in Detroit; Todd Richmond in Madison, Wisconsin; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; Eric Tucker in Washington, D.C., and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed.

Law enforcement escort families away from the Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Law enforcement escort families with children away from the Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard speaks to media as police respond to scene of a shooting at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich., on Thursday, March 12 2026. (Jacob Hamilton /Ann Arbor News via AP)

Law enforcement escort families with children away from the Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Police respond to scene of a shooting at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich., on Thursday, March 12 2026. (Jacob Hamilton/Ann Arbor News via AP)

Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

A woman gathers children as law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue on Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)

Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue on Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)

Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue, Thursday, March 12, 2026 in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)

Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)

People gather near Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)