Colombia (BN24) – At least 13 people, including police officers, were killed in Colombia on Thursday after a coordinated car bomb explosion and a helicopter attack that authorities say were carried out by armed groups linked to dissident factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
President Gustavo Petro confirmed that eight police officers were killed when their helicopter was struck while flying over coca-growing fields in the northern department of Antioquia. The aircraft had been transporting personnel for a coca eradication mission when it was hit by a drone strike, causing a fire and forcing it down, according to Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez. Eight others were injured in the attack.
In a separate incident in the city of Cali, a car bomb detonated near a military aviation school, killing five people and injuring more than 30 others. The Colombian Aerospace Force said the blast involved a vehicle packed with explosives, though further details were not immediately released.
Petro initially suggested the helicopter strike was the work of the Gulf Clan, Colombia’s most powerful drug cartel, claiming the attack was retaliation for a cocaine seizure that crippled the group’s operations. Later statements linked responsibility to FARC dissidents, who refused to disarm after the 2016 peace deal with the government. Both factions are known to be active in Antioquia, where coca cultivation is expanding.
Coca farming continues to drive Colombia’s drug conflict, with the United Nations reporting a record 253,000 hectares under cultivation in 2023. The surge has fueled violence between rival armed groups and security forces as the Petro administration struggles to contain the resurgence of narco-terrorism in rural regions.
WASHINGTON (BN24) — The Trump administration said Thursday it is reviewing more than 55 million people who have valid U.S. visas for any violations that could lead to deportation, part of a growing crackdown on foreigners who are permitted to be in the United States.
In a written answer to a question from The Associated Press, the State Department said all U.S. visa holders, which can include tourists from many countries, are subject to “continuous vetting,” with an eye toward any indication they could be ineligible for permission to enter or stay in the United States.
Should such information be found, the visa will be revoked, and if the visa holder is in the United States, he or she would be subject to deportation.
Since President Donald Trump took office, his administration has focused on deporting migrants illegally in the United States as well as holders of student and visitor exchange visas. The State Department’s new language suggests that the continual vetting process, which officials acknowledge is time-consuming, is far more widespread and could mean even those approved to be in the U.S. could abruptly see those permissions revoked.
The department said it was looking for indicators of ineligibility, including people staying past the authorized timeframe outlined in a visa, criminal activity, threats to public safety, engaging in any form of terrorist activity or providing support to a terrorist organization.
“We review all available information as part of our vetting, including law enforcement or immigration records or any other information that comes to light after visa issuance indicating a potential ineligibility,” the department said.
The U.S. also will stop issuing worker visas for commercial truck drivers, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday on X. He said the change was effective immediately.
“The increasing number of foreign drivers operating large tractor-trailer trucks on U.S. roads is endangering American lives and undercutting the livelihoods of American truckers,” Rubio posted. The department did not immediately respond to a question about the number of foreign truck drivers working in the U.S.
The Trump administration in past months has taken steps to enforce the requirement that truckers speak and read English proficiently. The Transportation Department said the aim is to improve road safety following incidents in which drivers’ ability to read signs or speak English may have contributed to traffic deaths.
The administration has steadily imposed more restrictions and requirements on visa applicants, including requiring them to submit to in-person interviews. The review of all visa holders appears to be a significant expansion of what had initially been a process focused mainly on students who have been involved in what the government perceives as pro-Palestinian or anti-Israel activity.
Officials say the reviews will include all visa holders’ social media accounts, law enforcement and immigration records in their home countries, along with any actionable violations of U.S. law committed while they were in the United States.
The reviews will include new tools for data collection on past, present and future visa applicants, including a complete examination of social media sites made possible by new requirements introduced earlier this year. Those make it mandatory for privacy switches on cellphones and other electronic devices or apps to be turned off when an applicant appears for a visa interview.
“As part of the Trump Administration’s commitment to protect U.S. national security and public safety, since Inauguration Day the State Department has revoked more than twice as many visas, including nearly four times as many student visas, as during the same time period last year,” the State Department said.
The vast majority of foreigners seeking to come to the U.S. require visas, especially those who want to study or work for extended periods. Among the exceptions for short-term tourist or business visits are citizens of the 40 mainly European and Asian countries belonging to the Visa Waiver Program, which grants those nationals a stay of up to three months without having to apply for a visa.
But large portions of the world, including highly populated countries like China, India, Indonesia, Russia and most of Africa, are not part of the program, meaning their citizens must apply for and receive visas to travel to the United States.
Earlier this week, the department said that since Trump returned to the White House, it has revoked more than 6,000 student visas for overstays and violations of local, state and federal law, the vast majority of which were assault, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and support for terrorism.
It said about 4,000 of those 6,000 were due to actual infractions of laws and that approximately 200 to 300 visas were revoked for terrorism-related issues, including providing support for designated terrorist organizations or state sponsors of terrorism.
BERN, Switzerland (BN24) — Kirk Hawkins, the founder and CEO of ICON Aircraft and a former U.S. Air Force fighter pilot, died Tuesday in a wingsuit accident in the Swiss Alps after colliding with trees during a high-altitude jump near the Eiger summit. He was 58.
Hawkins had jumped from a helicopter along with three other wingsuit flyers near the Eiger peak on August 19. According to Swiss police, the American entrepreneur crashed west of the Schüssellouwinegraben area and was pronounced dead at the scene. The other participants reportedly landed safely.
Authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the crash, which marks another fatal incident in the extreme sport of wingsuit flying, known for its high risks and breathtaking descents.
Hawkins, who co-founded ICON Aircraft in 2006 with his business partner Steen Strand, was widely known as a visionary in the aviation world. The California-based company gained attention for the development of the ICON A5, a sleek light sport aircraft designed to be user-friendly and amphibious. The aircraft, priced at around $389,000, drew praise for its innovative design and was aimed at making flying more accessible to adventure-seekers.
In an emotional tribute shared on LinkedIn, Strand mourned the loss of his longtime friend and collaborator. “I have devastating news to share. We lost Kirk, my close friend and partner at ICON Aircraft, to a wingsuit accident in Switzerland,” he wrote.
Strand described Hawkins as “the most extraordinary person I’ve ever known—or ever will know,” recalling his journey from modest beginnings to an accomplished career that included degrees from Clemson and Stanford, as well as a role flying F-16s in the U.S. Air Force.
“He devoured life experiences most of us would never touch,” Strand wrote. “He was damn good at assessing risks, probably because he took so many. He’d get you into tricky situations, but he’s also the one you wanted beside you when things got dicey.”
Hawkins’ daring approach to life was evident in both his professional and personal pursuits. His death in the Swiss Alps underscores the perils of extreme sports, particularly wingsuit flying, which involves soaring at high speeds in a special jumpsuit designed to mimic human flight.
Local authorities have not released further details regarding the cause of the accident but confirmed that a full investigation is underway.
The loss of Hawkins is being felt deeply across the aviation and adventure communities, where he was seen as both a pioneer and a risk-taker. His legacy at ICON Aircraft, particularly the development of the A5 light sport aircraft, remains a significant contribution to the future of personal aviation.
LOS ANGELES (BN24) — Rapper Lil Nas X was arrested and briefly taken to a hospital for a suspected overdose Thursday after Los Angeles police say he charged at officers responding to a report of a naked man walking on a busy boulevard.
Lil Nas X, whose legal name is Montero Lamar Hill, was booked on suspicion of misdemeanor obstructing an officer and was being held in jail.
Officers found him walking on the normally very busy Ventura Boulevard in the Studio City neighborhood shortly before 6 a.m., Los Angeles police spokesman Officer Charles Miller said.
After charging at arriving police, he was taken into custody, but the officers, suspecting a drug overdose, took him to a hospital first, Miller said. There was no further word on his condition, but he was released from the hospital and taken to jail after just a few hours.
Video obtained by TMZ appeared to show him on the street wearing only underwear and boots.
He was being held at Valley Jail in Van Nuys, near where the police found him.
Messages to Lil Nas X representatives seeking comment were not immediately answered.
The 26-year-old rapper and singer from Atlanta is best known for his breakthrough hit from 2019, “Old Town Road,” which merged country and hip-hop. The song spent a record 19 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Known for his genre-bending, innovative sounds and style, his first full studio album, 2021’s “Montero,” reached No. 2 on the Billboard album chart and was nominated for a Grammy for album of the year.
NEW YORK (BN24) — A New York appeals court on Thursday threw out President Donald Trump’s massive financial penalty while narrowly upholding a judge’s finding that he engaged in fraud by exaggerating his wealth for decades. The ruling spares Trump from a potential half-billion-dollar fine but bans him and his two eldest sons from serving in corporate leadership for a few years.
Trump claimed “TOTAL VICTORY” in the case, which stemmed from a civil lawsuit brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
“They stole $550 million from me with a fake case and it was overturned,” Trump said, echoing his earlier social media post as he addressed police in Washington, D.C. “They said this was a fake case. It was a terrible thing.”
James, a Democrat, focused on the parts of the decision that went her way, saying in a statement that it “affirmed the well-supported finding of the trial court: Donald Trump, his company, and two of his children are liable for fraud.”
The ruling came seven months after Trump returned to the White House, his political fortunes unimpeded by the civil fraud judgment, a criminal conviction and other legal challenges. A sharply divided panel of five judges in the state’s mid-level Appellate Division could not agree on many issues raised in Trump’s appeal, but a majority said the monetary penalty was “excessive.”
“While harm certainly occurred, it was not the cataclysmic harm that can justify a nearly half billion-dollar award” to the state, Judges Dianne Renwick and Peter Moulton wrote in one of three opinions shaping the appeals court’s ruling. They called the penalty “an excessive fine that violates the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution.” Both were appointed by Democratic governors.
The other punishments from the original ruling, upheld by the appeals court, have been on pause during Trump’s appeal, and the president was able to hold off collection of the money by posting a $175 million bond.
Donald Trump Jr. celebrated the decision by mocking James, who had periodically posted a running tally of the fraud penalty, with interest. Over a post from James in February 2024, when the tally was nearly $465 million, Trump Jr. wrote: “I believe you mean $0.00. Thank you for your attention to this matter.”
The five-judge panel, which split on the merits of the lawsuit and the original fraud finding, dismissed the monetary penalty in its entirety while also leaving a pathway for an appeal to the state’s highest court, the Court of Appeals. In the meantime, Trump and his co-defendants, the judges wrote, can seek to extend the pause to prevent any punishments from taking effect.
While the Appellate Division typically dispatches most appeals in a few pages within weeks, the judges weighing Trump’s case took nearly 11 months to rule after oral arguments last fall and issued 323 pages of concurring and dissenting opinions with no majority. Rather, some judges endorsed parts of their colleagues’ findings while rejecting others, enabling the court to reach its decision.
Two judges wrote that they felt James’ lawsuit was justifiable and that she had proven her case but the penalty was too severe. One wrote that James exceeded her legal authority in bringing the suit, saying that if any lenders felt cheated, they could have sued Trump themselves, and none did. Another wrote that the original trial judge erred by ruling before the trial that James had proven Trump engaged in fraud.
In his portion of the ruling, Judge David Friedman, appointed by a Republican governor, was scathing in his criticism of James for bringing the lawsuit.
“Plainly, her ultimate goal was not ‘market hygiene’ but political hygiene, ending with the derailment of President Trump’s political career and the destruction of his real estate business,” Friedman wrote. “The voters have obviously rendered a verdict on his political career. This bench today unanimously derails the effort to destroy his business.”
Trump and his co-defendants denied wrongdoing throughout the legal proceedings. At the conclusion of the civil trial in January 2024, Trump said he was “an innocent man” and the case was a “fraud on me.” The Republican has repeatedly maintained the case and the verdict were political moves by James and the original trial judge, both Democrats.
Trump’s Justice Department has subpoenaed James for records related to the lawsuit, among other documents, as part of an investigation into whether she violated the president’s civil rights. James’ personal attorney Abbe D. Lowell has said investigating the fraud case is “the most blatant and desperate example of this administration carrying out the president’s political retribution campaign.”
Trump and his lawyers argued his financial statements were not deceptive, since they came with disclaimers noting they were not audited. The defense also noted bankers and insurers independently evaluated the numbers, and the loans were repaid in full.
Despite discrepancies such as tripling the size of his Trump Tower penthouse in financial documents, he said the financial statements were, if anything, conservative estimates of his fortune.
During an appellate court hearing last September, Trump’s lawyers argued that many of the case’s allegations were too old under statute of limitations and that James had misused a consumer protection law to sue Trump over private business transactions that were satisfactory to those involved.
State attorneys countered that while Trump insists no one was harmed by the financial statements, his exaggerations led lenders to make riskier loans and that honest borrowers lose out when others manipulate their net worth numbers.
The civil fraud case was just one of several legal challenges for Trump as he campaigned, won and transitioned to a second term as president.
On Jan. 10, he was sentenced in his criminal hush money case to what is known as an unconditional discharge, leaving his conviction on the books but sparing him jail, probation, a fine or other punishment. He is appealing the conviction.
In December, a federal appeals court upheld a jury’s finding that Trump sexually abused writer E. Jean Carroll in the mid-1990s and later defamed her, affirming a $5 million judgment against him. The appeals court declined in June to reconsider the decision. Trump can still attempt to get the Supreme Court to hear his appeal.
Trump also is appealing a subsequent verdict that requires him to pay Carroll $83.3 million for additional defamation claims.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (BN24) — California voters will decide in November whether to approve a redrawn congressional map designed to help Democrats win five more U.S. House seats next year, after Texas Republicans advanced their own redrawn map to pad their House majority by the same number of seats at President Donald Trump’s urging.
California lawmakers voted mostly along party lines Thursday to approve legislation calling for the special election. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has led the campaign in favor of the map, then quickly signed it in the latest step in a tit-for-tat gerrymandering battle.
“We don’t want this fight and we didn’t choose this fight, but with our democracy on the line, we will not run away from this fight,” Democratic Assemblyman Marc Berman said during the legislative session.
Republicans, who have filed a lawsuit and called for a federal investigation into the plan, promised to keep fighting the redistricting effort. California Assemblyman James Gallagher, the Republican minority leader, said Trump was “wrong” to push for new Republican seats elsewhere, contending the president was responding to Democratic gerrymandering in other states. But he warned that Newsom’s approach, which the governor has dubbed “fight fire with fire,” was dangerous.
“You move forward fighting fire with fire and what happens?” Gallagher asked during floor debate. “You burn it all down.”
In Texas, the Republican-controlled state Senate was scheduled to vote on a map Thursday night. After that vote, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s signature will be all that is needed to make the map official. The redistricting effort is part of Trump’s strategy to stave off an expected loss of the GOP’s majority in the U.S. House in the 2026 midterm elections.
On a national level, the partisan makeup of existing districts puts Democrats within three seats of a majority. The incumbent president’s party usually loses congressional seats in the midterms, making control of the House a critical battleground for both parties.
The president has pushed other Republican-controlled states including Indiana and Missouri to also revise their maps to add more winnable GOP seats. Ohio Republicans were also already scheduled to revise their maps to make them more partisan.
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the Constitution does not outlaw partisan gerrymandering, only using race to redraw district lines. Texas Republicans embraced that legal precedent when their House of Representatives passed its revision Wednesday.
“The underlying goal of this plan is straight forward: improve Republican political performance,” state Rep. Todd Hunter, the Republican who wrote the bill revising Texas’ maps, said during legislative proceedings.
On Thursday, California Democrats noted Hunter’s comments and said they had to take extreme steps to counter the Republican move. “What do we do, just sit back and do nothing? Or do we fight back?” Democratic state Sen. Lena Gonzalez said. “This is how we fight back and protect our democracy.”
Republicans and some Democrats championed the 2008 ballot measure that established California’s nonpartisan redistricting commission, along with the 2010 measure that extended its role to drawing congressional maps. Democrats have sought a national commission that would draw lines for all states but have been unable to pass legislation creating that system.
Trump’s midterm redistricting strategy has shifted Democrats away from their traditional support for nonpartisan redistricting. That shift was clear in California, where Newsom was one of the members of his party who backed the initial redistricting commission ballot measures, and where Assemblyman Joshua Lowenthal, whose father, Rep. Alan Lowenthal, was another Democratic champion of a nonpartisan commission, presided over the state Assembly’s passage of the redistricting package.
Former President Barack Obama, who has also backed a nationwide nonpartisan approach, endorsed Newsom’s bid to redraw the California map, saying it was a necessary step to counter the GOP’s Texas move.
“I think that approach is a smart, measured approach,” Obama said Tuesday during a fundraiser for the Democratic Party’s main redistricting arm, noting that California voters will still have the final say on the map.
The California map would last only through 2030, when the state’s commission would draw up a new map for the normal, once-a-decade redistricting to adjust district lines after the decennial U.S. Census. Democrats are also considering reopening Maryland’s and New York’s maps for mid-decade redraws.
However, more Democratic-run states have commission systems like California’s or other redistricting limits than Republican ones do, leaving the GOP with greater flexibility to swiftly redraw maps. New York, for example, cannot draw new maps until 2028, and even then, only with voter approval.
In Texas, outnumbered Democrats turned to unusual steps to try to delay passage, leaving the state to force a delay of the vote by 15 days. Upon their return to the legislature, the Democratic lawmakers were assigned round-the-clock police monitoring.
California Republicans did not take such dramatic steps but complained bitterly about Democrats pushing the package through the Statehouse and harming what GOP State Sen. Tony Strickland called the state’s “gold-standard” nonpartisan approach to redistricting.
“What you’re striving for is predetermined elections,” Strickland said during the legislative debate. “You’re taking the voice away from Californians.”
COUNTY DURHAM, England (BN24) — A British skydiver who leapt 15,500 feet from a plane without deploying her parachute died by suicide just hours after ending her relationship with her boyfriend, an inquest has ruled.
Jade Damarell, 32, was killed instantly when she struck the ground at Wrefords’ Farm in Peterlee, according to evidence presented before coroner Dr. Leslie Hamilton, who confirmed the cause of death as suicide.
Damarell, an experienced jumper with more than 500 skydives, had broken up with her boyfriend of eight months, Ben Goodfellow, the night before her death. Handwritten notes addressed to her family were found at around 2:30 a.m. on April 27, the inquest heard.
On the morning of her final jump, she was seen eating breakfast by Bryn Chaffe, co-owner of Sky-High Skydiving. Chaffe told the hearing she appeared quiet but added that her demeanor was not unusual.
Damarell completed six routine jumps the previous day without any problems, but on her last descent she made no attempt to deploy her parachute or emergency backup. Investigators revealed that she had disabled her automatic activation device, which is designed to release a parachute at a set altitude. A report by British Skydiving later confirmed her equipment was fully functional.
Her cause of death was recorded as blunt trauma from multiple severe injuries, including a fractured skull. Durham Constabulary said her death was not being treated as suspicious, while Sky-High Skydiving described the tragedy as “a deliberate act” and ruled out negligence by the club.
In a statement following the inquest, her family paid tribute to Damarell, describing her as a “brilliant, beautiful, brave and truly extraordinary person” who lived with passion, adventure and kindness.
“Jade loved the sport with a passion, and it brought her so much joy,” the family said. “Sky-High handled the tragedy and investigation into Jade’s death professionally and with compassion that allowed us to all share in our grief.”
Her mother, Liz, honored her memory with a final tandem skydive organized by the club.
The family added that by speaking openly about her death, they hope to encourage more compassion around mental health struggles.
“We miss Jade beyond words, but Jade’s love, brilliance, courage and light will live on in our family and among all those who knew and loved her,” they said.
TEHRAN, Iran (BN24) — In a stark demonstration of Iran’s use of public executions under Islamic law, a man convicted of murdering a woman and her three children was publicly hanged from a crane as a crowd gathered to watch, cheer, and applaud in a southern city on August 19.
Graphic footage widely circulated online shows the condemned man, identified as Sajad Molayi Hakani, blindfolded with a noose around his neck, standing on a raised platform moments before the crane lifts him into the air. Spectators, including young children, are visible in the crowd, some clapping as the execution is carried out in broad daylight.
Hakani had been sentenced under qisas, the Islamic principle of “retaliation in kind,” for the killings committed during a robbery in October. Iranian judicial officials said he was found guilty of murdering a mother and her three children in a brutal attack that shocked the Fars province.
Authorities confirmed the execution was conducted in public with full state sanction. The man operating the crane appeared to be part of the official execution team, emphasizing the procedural and punitive nature of the sentence.
Sadrallah Rajaei, head of the judiciary in Fars province, stated that Hakani’s wife, Masha Akbari, who was also implicated in the crime, is scheduled for execution in prison. “The qisas sentence of the second defendant in this case, who is the wife of the first defendant, will be carried out in prison in the presence of the victims’ next of kin,” Rajaei said.
The case is one of several recent examples of Iran’s strict application of capital punishment. On the same day, another public execution reportedly took place in the northern city of Kordkuy, Golestan province. Provincial judiciary chief Heidar Asiabi confirmed the hanging of a man convicted of fatally stabbing a couple and a young woman with a hunting knife late last year. That execution was also conducted publicly, at the alleged crime scene, just before dawn.
Human rights groups have long criticized Iran for its frequent and public use of capital punishment, particularly executions carried out by hanging in front of large crowds. Iran remains among the top countries in the world for recorded executions annually, with authorities often invoking Islamic law and public deterrence as justification.
The public hanging in Fars — captured and shared widely on social media — has once again reignited international concerns about the spectacle of death and the role of public executions in Iran’s justice system.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (BN24) — Russian President Vladimir Putin is demanding that Ukraine surrender all remaining territory in the eastern Donbas region, renounce ambitions to join NATO and maintain permanent neutrality while keeping Western troops out of the country, according to three sources familiar with high-level Kremlin thinking.
Putin outlined these terms during his first meeting with President Donald Trump in more than four years, a three-hour closed-door summit in Alaska on Friday that focused almost entirely on potential compromise solutions for ending the war in Ukraine, the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the discussions.
Speaking alongside Trump after the meeting, Putin said the summit would hopefully open pathways to peace in Ukraine, though neither leader provided specific details about their discussions or any agreements reached.
The Russian proposal represents Putin’s most detailed peace offer since the war began, according to sources who described the Kremlin’s position. The terms would require Ukraine to completely withdraw from parts of the Donbas region it still controls, while Moscow would halt advances along current front lines in the southern Zaporizhzhia and Kherson provinces.
Russia currently controls approximately 88 percent of the Donbas and 73 percent of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, according to U.S. intelligence estimates and open-source data analysis.
Putin’s latest proposal marks a modification from his June 2024 territorial demands, which required Ukraine to cede the entirety of four provinces Moscow claims as part of Russia. Kyiv rejected those earlier terms as tantamount to unconditional surrender.
Under the new framework, Moscow would be willing to return small portions of the Kharkiv, Sumy and Dnipropetrovsk regions currently under Russian control, the sources said.
Putin maintains his previous demands that Ukraine formally abandon NATO membership aspirations and provide legally binding pledges that the U.S.-led military alliance will not expand further eastward. The proposal also calls for limitations on Ukrainian military forces and guarantees that no Western peacekeeping troops would be deployed on Ukrainian soil.
The two sides remain fundamentally divided more than three years after Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, following Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and prolonged fighting between Russian-backed separatists and Ukrainian forces in eastern regions.
Ukraine’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the reported proposals.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly rejected the concept of withdrawing from internationally recognized Ukrainian territory as part of any peace agreement. The Ukrainian leader has described the industrial Donbas region as a critical fortress preventing Russian advances deeper into Ukrainian territory.
“If we’re talking about simply withdrawing from the east, we cannot do that,” Zelenskyy told reporters in comments released Thursday by Kyiv. “It is a matter of our country’s survival, involving the strongest defensive lines.”
NATO membership remains a strategic objective enshrined in Ukraine’s constitution and represents what Kyiv considers its most reliable long-term security guarantee. Zelenskyy has maintained that Russia has no authority to determine alliance membership decisions.
The White House and NATO headquarters did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the reported Russian proposals.
Samuel Charap, chair in Russia and Eurasia Policy at RAND Corporation, a U.S.-based policy research organization, said any requirement for Ukraine to withdraw from the Donbas remained politically and strategically unacceptable to Kyiv.
“Openness to ‘peace’ on terms categorically unacceptable to the other side could be more of a performance for Trump than a sign of true willingness to compromise,” Charap said. “The only way to test that proposition is to begin a serious process at the working level to hash out those details.”
Russian forces currently occupy approximately one-fifth of Ukraine, an area roughly equivalent to the size of Ohio, according to U.S. assessments and open-source mapping data.
The three Kremlin sources described the Anchorage summit as creating the best opportunity for peace since the war’s inception because it featured specific discussions about Russian terms and demonstrated Putin’s willingness to make territorial concessions.
“Putin is ready for peace, for compromise. That is the message that was conveyed to Trump,” one source said.
The sources cautioned that Moscow remains uncertain whether Ukraine would accept surrendering remaining Donbas territory, warning that the war would continue if no agreement is reached. They also expressed uncertainty about whether the United States would provide any recognition of Russian-controlled Ukrainian territories.
A fourth source indicated that while economic considerations are secondary for Putin, the Russian leader understands his country’s economic vulnerabilities and the massive resources required for further territorial expansion into Ukraine.
Trump has stated his intention to end what he calls the “bloodbath” of the war and establish his legacy as a “peacemaker president.” On Monday, Trump announced he had begun arranging a meeting between Russian and Ukrainian leaders, to be followed by a trilateral summit including the U.S. president.
“I believe Vladimir Putin wants to see it ended,” Trump said during an Oval Office meeting with Zelenskyy. “I feel confident we are going to get it solved.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Thursday that Putin was prepared to meet with Zelenskyy but insisted all issues must be resolved in advance, while questioning Zelenskyy’s authority to sign any peace agreement.
Putin has repeatedly challenged Zelenskyy’s legitimacy, noting that the Ukrainian president’s term was scheduled to expire in May 2024 but no new presidential election has been conducted due to wartime conditions. Kyiv maintains that Zelenskyy remains the legitimate president under Ukrainian law.
Leaders of Britain, France and Germany have expressed skepticism about Putin’s genuine desire to end the conflict through negotiated settlement.
Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff played an instrumental role in facilitating the summit and current peace initiative, according to two Russian sources. Witkoff met with Putin and Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov on August 6, during which Putin clearly conveyed his readiness to compromise and outlined acceptable peace terms.
If Russia and Ukraine reach an agreement, several formal frameworks could structure a final deal, including a possible three-way Russia-Ukraine-U.S. accord recognized by the U.N. Security Council, one source said.
Another option involves reviving the failed 2022 Istanbul agreements, where Russia and Ukraine discussed Ukrainian permanent neutrality in exchange for security guarantees from the five permanent U.N. Security Council members: Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.
“There are two choices: war or peace, and if there is no peace, then there is more war,” one source said.
Austin, Texas (BN24) – Texas Republicans approved a sweeping redistricting plan Wednesday that aims to flip five Democratic-held U.S. House seats and strengthen President Donald Trump’s push to maintain his party’s narrow majority in Congress ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
The Texas House passed the map on a party-line vote of 88-52 after Democrats ended a two-week walkout that had stalled legislative action. The measure now moves to the state Senate, with Republican Gov. Greg Abbott expected to sign it into law.
The unusual mid-decade redistricting was carried out at Trump’s urging as Republicans seek to insulate their slim control of the U.S. House. Democrats denounced the move as a partisan power grab and accused Republicans of deliberately weakening the voting strength of minority communities in violation of federal law.
“This is Donald Trump’s map,” Democratic state Rep. John Bucy said during debate on the House floor. “It clearly manufactures five more Republican seats in Congress because Trump knows voters are rejecting his agenda. This is not democracy — this is authoritarianism in real time.”
Republicans argued the map reflects political realities and will actually increase the number of majority-Hispanic districts. The GOP currently controls 25 of Texas’ 38 congressional seats under a Republican-drawn map passed four years ago.
8636UO-USA-ELECTION_TEXAS_REDISTRICTING_O_
The Texas showdown coincides with Democrats in California advancing their own redistricting package, backed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, to flip five Republican seats. California’s Supreme Court rejected an emergency challenge from GOP lawmakers this week, clearing the way for a quick legislative vote.
The clash between the two most populous states underscores how both parties are using redistricting as a weapon in an increasingly bitter fight for control of Congress. Other battleground states, including Ohio, Florida, Indiana, Missouri, Maryland, and Illinois, are also considering new maps to bolster partisan advantages.
Redistricting typically occurs every 10 years after the U.S. Census, but Texas’ mid-decade effort highlights the stakes of narrow margins in Washington. Trump and his Republican allies have openly acknowledged their intent to leverage the new map to lock in power, even as Democrats and civil rights groups prepare legal challenges that could drag the dispute into federal courts.
Nationally, Republicans reclaimed the U.S. House in 2024 by only three seats, and history suggests the party in the White House often loses ground in midterm elections. With Trump’s approval ratings slipping since his return to office in January, the new Texas map represents one of his most aggressive plays to secure political survival.
