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Lead On Sunday at Mar-a-Lago, President Trump and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky held a fresh round of negotiations over a possible peace settlement, agreeing to meet again next month while making only limited immediate progress. The session produced no firm deadlines and left core disputes — especially over Donetsk and control of a Russian-held nuclear … Read more

Lead On Monday, the United States pledged $2 billion to a UN-run mechanism intended to deliver life-saving assistance to tens of millions across more than a dozen countries in 2026. Announced in Geneva, the package comes after sharp cuts in US aid this year and amid a broader donor shortfall that has strained UN operations. … Read more

Lead: A newly publicized analysis of Leonardo da Vinci’s Codex Madrid II (dated 1503–1505) highlights a brief note advising that logs “stripped of bark and burned on the surface” last longer, a recommendation that mirrors the Japanese yakisugi technique. The observation appears in folio 87r and was called out in a 2025 paper published on … Read more

Lead Days before she leaves Congress, third‑term Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene told the New York Times she felt ‘so naive’ for believing Donald Trump was a man of the people. Greene said a series of breaches with Trump culminated after the September 2025 killing of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk and a subsequent moment at his … Read more

Lead Who: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced awards to all 50 states. When: First-year awards will be disbursed in 2026 as part of a five-year program running 2026–2030. Where: Nationwide, covering rural communities in every state. What and result: The Rural Health Transformation Program allocates $50 billion to expand access, modernize … Read more

Lead Timothée Chalamet’s offbeat publicity stunts and immersive promotions helped propel A24’s holiday release Marty Supreme to a stronger-than-expected opening, but experts say the bigger driver was an event-style marketing strategy that made the film feel like a cultural moment. The campaign included viral clips (an October handheld video of Chalamet with a large ping-pong … Read more

Lead: New York state reported a record 71,123 positive influenza cases for the seven days ending Dec. 20, the largest single-week total since flu reporting began in 2004. State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said officials are monitoring hospital capacity and trends as influenza hospitalizations rose sharply. The rise follows a 38% week-over-week increase in … Read more

Rosario Olmos spent the Christmas holiday separated from her 19-year-old daughter, Camila Mendoza Olmos, who vanished the morning of Dec. 24 near their San Antonio-area home. Authorities say surveillance footage captured Mendoza Olmos looking into her vehicle just before 7 a.m., then the video ends; her cellphone and car were left behind. The Bexar County … Read more

New research by Jason Iuliano of the University of Utah shows that borrowers who seek to discharge student loans in bankruptcy are now winning at much higher rates. Using a final dataset of 652 adversary proceedings between October 2022 and November 2023, the study reports an 87% success rate — up from 61% in 2017 … Read more

This past Sunday in Cleveland, the Pittsburgh Steelers delivered a disjointed performance that left fans and analysts asking who is accountable. The team played flat, missed several tactical opportunities and fell short on execution, even while averaging 5.5 yards per carry. Aaron Rodgers, the quarterback, threw 39 passes versus 24 rushing attempts in a game … Read more

On Sunday night at Levi’s Stadium, Brock Purdy turned a game-opening disaster into a performance that kept the San Francisco 49ers on the cusp of a Super Bowl run. Facing the Chicago Bears on Dec. 29, 2025, Purdy rallied the 49ers to a 42-38 victory, throwing five touchdowns for the second consecutive game while the … Read more

Two pilots were killed after two light helicopters collided in mid-air above Hammonton, New Jersey, on Sunday, officials said. The pilots were identified as Kenneth L Kirsch, 65, and Michael Greenberg, 71, both New Jersey residents. The National Transportation Safety Board said the aircraft involved were an Enstrom 280C and an Enstrom F-28A, and the … Read more

Lead By 2026 the Linux desktop and its surrounding open-source ecosystem look set to strengthen markedly: broader desktop adoption, deeper Rust integration, and enterprise moves toward immutable images are combining to improve security and manageability. At the same time, long-standing projects face stress; Firefox’s market share has fallen to critical levels and recent product choices … Read more

Lead: Bexar County officials say 19-year-old Camila Mendoza Olmos has been missing since Christmas Eve after leaving her northwest San Antonio home the morning of Dec. 24. Security footage captured a person believed to be Olmos about 7:00 a.m. searching a vehicle; the car itself remained at the residence. Investigators say she left on foot … Read more

Lead On Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, Russian officials said a Ukrainian drone strike targeted one of President Vladimir Putin’s residences in the Novgorod region; Kyiv denied the allegation. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the incident produced no casualties or damage and that Russia will reconsider its negotiating stance in ongoing peace talks. Lavrov also claimed … Read more