January 2, 2026

UKRAINE | Today is day 1,406 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• In his New Year's address yesterday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised progress in ongoing talks to end the Russia-Ukraine war but said remaining issues – believed to include points such as territory and security guarantees – will "determine the fate of peace" and the "fate of Ukraine and Europe." [more]
• Russian officials say that 24 people were killed, and at least 50 others were wounded, yesterday in a Ukrainian drone strike on the Russian-occupied village of Khorly in Ukraine's Kherson region. Russia said the strike targeted a hotel at which a civilian New Year's celebration was being held, while reports today cite Ukrainian officials as saying the attack targeted a military gathering that was closed to civilians. [more]

U.S. MILITARIZATION | President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he is dropping his push, for now, to deploy federalized National Guard troops to Chicago, Los Angeles, and Portland, but suggested he could seek to renew deployments to the cities "when crime begins to soar again." The announcement followed a December Supreme Court ruling that blocked the planned deployment of troops to Chicago. [more]

TRUMP INVESTIGATIONS | Newly released transcripts and video of former special counsel Jack Smith's testimony before the House Judiciary Committee show that Smith told lawmakers last month that "President Trump was by a large measure the most culpable and most responsible person" in attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and that the January 6, 2021, attacks on the U.S. Capitol would not have happened were it not for Trump's actions. Smith also defended decisions to indict Trump on charges related to the election and to the storage of classified documents at his Florida estate, saying that evidence supported the charges "beyond a reasonable doubt."  [full transcript] [full video] [more]

U.S. HEALTH INSURANCE | Enhanced tax credits that reduced the costs of health insurance under the Affordable Care Act expired yesterday. Health care research nonprofit KFF says its analysis indicates that some 20 million subsidized enrollees in ACA programs will see their premium costs increase by an average of 114% in 2026, while a September analysis from the Urban Institute and Commonwealth Fund suggested that subsidy expirations will prompt some 4.8 million Americans to drop coverage this year. [more]

U.S. SUPREME COURT | In his "2025 Year End Report on the Federal Judiciary," Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts said this week that the United States' founding documents remain “firm and unshaken" and called on judges to “continue to decide the cases before us according to our oath, doing equal right to the poor and to the rich, and performing all of our duties faithfully and impartially under the Constitution and laws of the United States.” [full report] [more]

NEW YORK CITY | After being sworn into office yesterday, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani revoked almost all executive orders issued by his predecessor, Eric Adams, since September 26, 2024 – the date that federal authorities announced that Adams had been indicted on now-dismissed corruption charges. [more]

U.S. HEALTHCARE POLICY | A complaint was filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission yesterday on behalf of federal employees and U.S. Postal Service workers seeking to overturn a newly implemented Office of Personnel Management policy that eliminates coverage for gender-affirming care in federal health insurance programs. The complaint argues that the OPM policy, which states that “chemical and surgical modification of an individual’s sex traits through medical interventions” would no longer be covered under federal health insurance, amounts to sex-based discrimination. [more]

COLORADO | In an emergency order issued this week, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the owners of the Craig Station power plant in northwestern Colorado must continue to operate a coal-fired power facility at the plant that was scheduled for retirement yesterday. Analysts say the order is seen as part of President Donald Trump’s push to revive the U.S. coal industry at a time when many utilities are shifting to less-polluting energy sources. [more]

U.S. AND VENEZUELA | In an interview released yesterday, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said his country is open to negotiating an agreement with the United States to combat drug trafficking. Maduro's statement came amidst ongoing U.S. military operations targeting alleged drug-carrying boats in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean and following a CIA-led drone strike last week on a Venezuelan docking area that U.S. officials say was used by cartels to load drug boats. [more]

SWITZERLAND | Investigations continue today into the cause of a New Year's Eve fire at the Swiss Alpine bar in the resort town of Crans-Montana, Switzerland, in which at least 40 people were killed and 115 others were injured. [more]

IRAN | At least seven people have been killed in several days of spreading protests in Iran sparked by economic turmoil and currency devaluation, according to regional media reports. After U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. could act if Iran "violently kills peaceful protesters," the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council suggested on social media today that the U.S. and Israel were stoking the demonstrations. [more]

AFGHANISTAN | Afghanistan’s National Disaster Management Authority says at least 17 people were killed, and 11 others were injured, over the past week in flooding brought on by the country's first heavy rains and snowfall of the season following a prolonged dry spell. [more]

TAIWAN | Following recent Chinese military live-fire exercises near the island territory, Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said in his New Year's address yesterday that he would continue to safeguard Taiwan's national sovereignty and strengthen its national defense. [more]

INDONESIA | Replacing a Dutch colonial-era legal framework, Indonesia's newly ratified penal code went into full effect today, making the country's criminal code, according to supporters, better aligned with Indonesia's modern social values. Reports note that the new penal code includes provisions that criminalize sex outside marriage, reintroduce penalties for insulting the president, state institutions, and recognized religions, and preserve penalties for associating with Marxist-Leninist organizations. [more]

SYRIA | State media outlet SANA reports that one Syrian police officer was killed, and several others were wounded, Wednesday in the northern city of Aleppo during the attempted detention of a suicide bomber who detonated his explosive belt. [more]

INDIA | Local authorities in the central Indian city of Indore say at least nine people have died, and more than 200 have been hospitalized, over the past week following an outbreak of diarrhea linked to contaminated drinking water. Reports cite city officials as saying a sewage leak believed to have caused the contamination has been fixed. [more]

FINLAND | Police in Helsinki, Finland, said yesterday that two people were arrested this week in connection with damage to an undersea telecommunications cable by a ship traveling in the Gulf of Finland. Authorities said they would not speculate on whether a state-level actor was behind the damage, but reports note Western nations have linked earlier similar damage in the region to Russia. [more]

PAKISTAN | A Pakistani court sentenced eight journalists and social media commentators today to life imprisonment in absentia after convicting them of terrorism-related offenses linked to online activity in support of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, saying actions by those convicted promoted "fear and unrest" in society. [more]

COLLEGE FOOTBALL | Following this week's quarter-final games, matchups for the College Football Playoff's semi-final round are set, with Ole Miss scheduled to play Miami on January 8, and Oregon scheduled to play top-seeded Indiana on January 9. [more]

OLYMPICS | In an interview published today, International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry said that Russian athletes at the upcoming Milano Cortina Winter Olympics will not be able to represent their country even if a peace deal is reached with Ukraine. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1492, Granada, home of the Alhambra palace and the seat and final stronghold of the Moorish kingdom in Spain, was surrendered to the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand II and Isabella I, ending the Reconquest. [more history]