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Trump says the US ‘hit’ a facility along shore where he says alleged drug boats ‘load up’

By
Michelle L. Price and Will Weissert
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President Donald Trump addresses the nation in an address from the Diplomatic Room of the White House on Dec. 17, 2025. (Photo by Doug Mills - Pool/Getty Images)

PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump has indicated that the U.S. has “hit” a dock facility along a shore as he wages a pressure campaign on Venezuela, but the U.S. offered few details.

Trump initially seemed to confirm a strike in what appeared to be an impromptu radio interview Friday, and when questioned Monday by reporters about “an explosion in Venezuela,” he said the U.S. struck a facility where boats accused of carrying drugs “load up.”

“There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs,” Trump said as he met in Florida with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “They load the boats up with drugs, so we hit all the boats and now we hit the area. It’s the implementation area. There’s where they implement. And that is no longer around.”

It is part of an escalating effort to target what the Trump administration says are boats smuggling drugs bound for the United States. It moves closer to shore strikes that so far have been carried out by the military in international waters in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean.

The U.S. military said it conducted another strike on Monday against a boat accused of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing two people. The attacks have killed at least 107 people in 30 strikes since early September, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration.

Trump declined to say if the U.S. military or the CIA carried out the strike on the dock or where it occurred. He did not confirm it happened in Venezuela.

“I know exactly who it was, but I don’t want to say who it was. But you know it was along the shore,” Trump said.

Trump first referenced the strike on Friday, when he called radio host John Catsimatidis during a program on WABC radio and discussed the U.S. strikes on alleged drug-carrying boats.

“I don’t know if you read or saw, they have a big plant or a big facility where they send the, you know, where the ships come from,” Trump said. “Two nights ago, we knocked that out. So, we hit them very hard.”

Trump did not offer any additional details in the interview.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth or one of the U.S. military’s social media accounts has in the past typically announced every boat strike in a post on X, but there has been no post of any strike on a facility.

The Pentagon on Monday referred questions to the White House, which did not immediately respond to a message seeking more details. The press office of Venezuela’s government did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump’s statement.

Trump for months has suggested he may conduct land strikes in South America, in Venezuela or possibly another country, and in recent weeks has been saying the U.S. would move beyond striking boats and would strike on land “soon.”

In October, Trump confirmed he had authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela. The agency did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Monday.

Along with the strikes, the U.S. has sent warships, built up military forces in the region, seized two oil tankers and pursued a third.

The Trump administration has said it is in “armed conflict” with drug cartels and seeking to stop the flow of narcotics into the United States.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has insisted the real purpose of the U.S. military operations is to force him from power.

White House chief of staff Susie Wiles said in an interview with Vanity Fair published this month that Trump “wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro ‘cries uncle.’”

Linda Alayne Gregory Bowman

By
Now Habersham
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Linda Alayne Gregory Bowman, age 89, of Clarkesville, formerly of Albany, passed away Friday, December 5, 2025, at her residence while she was surrounded by her loving family.

Linda was born in Hamburg, Arkansas and she was adopted by the late Theodore E. Gregory and Marie Nash Gregory. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas J. Bowman, and brother, Don E. Gregory.

Linda was an accomplished musician who began teaching piano at the age of ten. While living in El Dorado, Arkansas, she served as church pianist and musical secretary for more than twenty years at the El Dorado First Baptist Church. She later moved to South Georgia, where she devoted 23 years to Albany First Baptist Church, where she served as the church pianist and the musical secretary. While living in Albany, her summers were spent traveling with the church choir, where they performed throughout the world, including the Holy Land. While she wasn’t serving the church, Linda was the pianist for the Albany Symphony Orchestra. Following retirement, Linda moved to Clarkesville.

Linda’s talents did not stop with the piano. She was also a talented artist and poet, having written her own book of poetry.

Above all, Linda exuded the love of Christ. She lived a life of love and kindness that led her to never have an enemy and to be a shining light to those around her.

Linda is survived by her two daughters, Dana Adkinson Godrey of Cleveland and Wendy Bowman of San Clemente, California; granddaughter and son-in-law, Denne and Kevin Williams of Clarkesville; and great-grandchildren, Layne Adkinson Godfrey and Devyn Williams.

She will be laid to rest beside her husband at Bethlehem Baptist Church Cemetery in a private service. At a later time, the family will hold a public celebration of life service during Linda’s favorite time of year, the spring.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to Best Friends Animal Society at www.bestfriends.org.

Arrangements by Hillside Memorial Chapel & Gardens, Clarkesville.

Alto council to vote on final 2024 budget amendment at called meeting

By
Patrick Fargason
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The Alto Town Council will meet Monday to discuss an amendment to its 2024 budget. (Carly McCurry/NowHabersham.com)

ALTO, Ga. — The Alto Town Council will hold a called meeting Monday night to consider a final amendment to the town’s 2024 budget, following weeks of scrutiny over city finances and recent emergency meetings aimed at stabilizing operations.

The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight at Alto Town Hall.

Council members are expected to vote on a 2024 final budget amendment listed under new business. The vote comes after council members and staff have worked to reconcile financial records and address concerns raised earlier this month about the town’s budget status, overtime costs and the need for clearer financial reporting.

The agenda also includes approval of minutes from the council’s regular meeting on Dec. 9 and an emergency called meeting held Dec. 12. No other new or old business items are listed, and no reports from officers, departments or attorneys are scheduled.

Public comments will be allowed before adjournment.

Recent meetings have focused heavily on getting accurate financial numbers in place so the council can move forward with budget decisions and operational planning heading into the new year. Monday’s vote is expected to formally close out the town’s 2024 budget.

Troup County man missing since Christmas day

By
Robbie Watson
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Troup County man found dead/Troup County Sheriff's Department

A 34-year-old Troup County man has been reported missing since Christmas Day according to the Sheriff’s Department.

The Troup County Sheriff’s Department reported Fernando Ortiz missing December 26, 2025. According to a social media post Ortiz is 34 years of age, appx. 5’7 and weighs 240 pounds. He was last seen on Liberty Hill Road on the 25th around 2 p.m., possibly wearing a light green shirt, jeans and work boots. If you see or have seen him, please call 911.

Winter storm brings blizzard conditions and dangerous wind chills to parts of US

By
Associated Press
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A potent winter storm threatened blizzard-like conditions, treacherous travel and power outages in parts of the Upper Midwest as other areas of the country braced Monday for plunging temperatures, strong winds and a mix of snow, ice, and rain.

The snow and strengthening winds began spreading Sunday across the northern Plains, where the National Weather Service warned of whiteout conditions and possible blizzard conditions that could make travel impossible in some areas. Snowfall totals were expected to exceed a foot (30 centimeters) across parts of the upper Great Lakes and as much as double that along the south shore of Lake Superior.

“Part of the storm system is getting heavy snow, other parts of the storm along the cold front are getting higher winds and much colder temperatures as the front passes,” said Bob Oravec, a lead forecaster at the National Weather Service office in College Park, Maryland. “They’re all related to each other — different parts of the country will be receiving different effects from this storm.”

The weather service warned of “dangerous wind chills” as low as minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit in North Dakota and into Minnesota from Sunday night into Monday.

In the South, meteorologists warned severe thunderstorms are likely to signal the arrival of a sharp cold front — bringing a sudden drop in temperatures and strong north winds that will abruptly end days of record warmth throughout that region.

The high temperature in Atlanta was around 72 F (22 C) on Sunday, continuing a warming trend after climbing to 78 F (about 26 C) to shatter the city’s record high temperature for Christmas Eve, the National Weather Service said. Numerous other record high temperatures were seen across the South and Midwest on the days after Christmas.

But the incoming cold front was expected to drop rain on much of the South late Sunday night into Monday, and a big drop in temperatures Tuesday. Forecasters said the low temperature in Atlanta to 25 F (minus 3.9 C) by early Tuesday morning. The colder temperatures in the South are expected to persist through New Year’s Day.

In Dallas, Sunday temperatures in the lower 80s (upper 20s C) could drop down to the mid 40s (single digits Celsius). In Little Rock, high temperatures of around 70 (21 C) on Sunday could drop down to highs in the mid-30s on Monday.

“We’re definitely going back towards a more winter pattern,” Oravec said.

The storm is expected to intensify as it moves east, drawing energy from a sharp clash between frigid air plunging south from Canada and unusually warm air that has lingered across the southern United States, according to the National Weather Service.

By AP’s Leah Willingham and Jeff Martin

US offers Ukraine 15-year security guarantee as part of peace plan, Zelenskyy says

By
Associated Press
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Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a joint news conference with President Donald Trump following a meeting at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The United States is offering Ukraine security guarantees for a period of 15 years as part of a proposed peace plan, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday, though he said he would prefer an American commitment of up to 50 years to deter Russia from further attempts to seize its neighbor’s land by force.

U.S. President Donald Trump hosted Zelenskyy at his Florida resort on Sunday and insisted that Ukraine and Russia are “closer than ever before” to a peace settlement.

Negotiators are still searching for a breakthrough on key issues, however, including whose forces withdraw from where and the fate of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, one of the 10 biggest in the world. Trump noted that the monthslong U.S.-led negotiations could still collapse.

“Without security guarantees, realistically, this war will not end,” Zelenskyy told reporters in voice messages responding to questions sent via a Whatsapp chat.

Ukraine has been fighting Russia since 2014, when it illegally annexed Crimea and Moscow-backed separatists took up arms in the Donbas, a vital industrial region in eastern Ukraine.

Details of the security guarantees have not become public but Zelenskyy said Monday that they include how a peace deal would be monitored as well as the “presence” of partners. He didn’t elaborate, but Russia has said it won’t accept the deployment in Ukraine of troops from NATO countries.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump were expected to speak in the near future but there was no indication the Russian leader would speak to Zelenskyy.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Kyiv’s allies will meet in Paris in early January to “finalize each country’s concrete contributions” to the security guarantees.

Trump said he would consider extending U.S. security guarantees for Ukraine beyond 15 years, according to Zelenskyy. The guarantees would be approved by the U.S. Congress as well as by parliaments in other countries involved in overseeing any settlement, he said.

Zelenskyy said he wants the 20-point peace plan under discussion to be approved by Ukrainians in a national referendum.

However, holding a ballot requires a ceasefire of at least 60 days, and Moscow has shown no willingness for a truce without a full settlement.

By AP’s Illia Novikov 

SEE ALSO

Trump says Ukraine and Russia are ‘closer than ever’ to peace after talks with Zelenskyy

Tiger Woods turns 50. It’s the one time golf’s greats can relate to him

By
Doug Ferguson, AP Golf Writer
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FILE - Tiger Woods reacts as he wins the Masters golf tournament, Sunday, April 14, 2019, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

Talk to any golfer who played against Tiger Woods and there is sure to be at least one story about one shot so sublime they were certain it could not be hit by them or anyone else.

He was just different. Better.

The 2-iron Woods hit into the par-5 10th hole at the TPC Sugarloaf led Stewart Cink to say, “This is a skill set I don’t have.” Padraig Harrington once saw Woods hit an 8-iron so majestic at Firestone that it got in his head and led to the Irishman making triple bogey.

Nick Price played the opening two rounds with Woods at St. Andrews in the 2000 British Open and felt the tournament already was over. Mark O’Meara played a practice round with him at Pebble Beach before the 2000 U.S. Open and told his wife before the championship started, “Tiger is going to win. And not only is he going to win, he’s going to blow away the field.” Woods won by 15.

For all those years, so many greats in the game could never relate to Woods. And now, finally, they can.

Not even Woods can beat time. He turns 50 on Tuesday.

It’s a milestone for anyone, but it’s different in golf because the sport can be played well after the age when athletes have long retired in other sports. Phil Mickelson won a major at 50. Jack Nicklaus made an early Sunday charge at the Masters when he was 58.

With Woods, it’s complicated.

He now is eligible for the 50-and-older PGA Tour Champions. He also has had more surgeries than the 15 majors he won. This is the first year he didn’t play a single tournament, the result of a ruptured Achilles tendon in March and a seventh back surgery in September.

“I’m probably going to play 25 events on both tours and I think that should cover most of the year, right?” Woods quipped in the Bahamas when asked about turning 50.

He won the U.S. Open just eight days before reconstructive surgery on his left knee. He won the Masters two years after surgery to fuse his lower back. But he hasn’t been the same since that 2021 car crash in Los Angeles. Woods has played 11 times the last five seasons, finished only four of those tournaments and hasn’t been closer than 16 shots to the winner.

“Come back to what point?” Woods said. “I’d like to come back to just playing golf again.”

And so this celebration is more about looking back than forward.

Ernie Els was most prescient in 2000 at Kapalua when he was on the losing end again — no one finished second to Woods more than the Big Easy. They matched eagles on the 18th in regulation, birdies on the 18th in a playoff and Woods got him with a 40-foot birdie putt on the second extra hole. Vintage Tiger.

“I think he’s a legend in the making,” Els said that day. “He’s 24. He’s probably going to be bigger than Elvis when he gets into his 40s.”

That’s up for debate, of course. Undeniable is the impact Woods has left on golf.

Popularity soared and prize money skyrocketed. Woods made golf look different and he made it cool. And perhaps his greatest legacy is he unwittingly trained a generation of players who wanted to be like him. Scottie Scheffler said nothing inspired him more than watching the intensity of Woods when he was out of contention at the 2020 Masters. Woods made a 10 on the 12th hole and followed with five birdies over his last six holes. He tied for 38th.

“Tiger was just different in the way he approached each shot. It was like the last shot he was ever going to hit,” Scheffler said. It was the only time they played together. Scheffler now is coming up on three years at No. 1 in the world, the longest stretch since Woods.

But it started with that skill set unlike any other.

“He’s the only guy I’ve ever known who continually exceeded expectations,” Tom Lehman said. “No matter how much you heaped on him, he found a way to exceed them.”

Lehman recalls one moment at the Memorial on the 17th hole, a green so rock-hard it felt impossible to get it close. Lehman hit 5-iron as high and far as he could and was pleased to see it roll out 25 feet from the cup.

“He hits this shot way up in the air and it was coming down like a parachute,” Lehman said. “Lands by the cup and bounces 2 feet and stops. I figure he must have hit a 7-iron. I said, ‘Tiger, what club was that?’ He said, ‘That was a little, three-finger 5-iron.’ He just filleted it in there.

“When I think of him, that’s what I think of. Only one guy could hit that shot. And he did it often.”

Woods had the career Grand Slam at age 24, the youngest of anyone. He had 50 wins worldwide and 10 majors before he turned 30.

It wasn’t as easy as he could make it look. The late Dan Jenkins once said when Woods was in peak form, “Only two things can stop Tiger — injury or a bad marriage.” Turns out it was both. His path was derailed at the end of 2009 by revelations of multiple extramarital affairs, and the injuries kept piling up. He still made it back to No. 1 in the world in 2013 and he ran his PGA Tour victory count to 82, tied with Sam Snead.

“If he never got injured, he’d have 25 majors and 125 wins,” Fred Couples said.

Matt Kuchar saw it differently. He felt the injuries contributed to the legend of Woods, particularly that 2008 U.S. Open win at Torrey Pines.

Woods was playing that week on shredded ligaments in his left knee and two stress fractures in his left leg. Often overlooked is that Woods had not walked 18 holes since the Masters until the opening round at Torrey Pines.

“The legacy is bigger because of the injuries,” Kuchar said. “What he did at Torrey Pines, what he did at the (2019) Masters is sort of Hoganesque. At some point I, like most everybody, counted him out. And then he wins again.”

Woods is keeping plenty busy outside the ropes. He was appointed to the PGA Tour policy board without a term limit in 2023 as the tour was in the midst of its battle with Saudi-funded LIV Golf. He now heads up the Future Competition Committee charged with reshaping the tour model.

The next question is when — and where — he plays. Woods is the only player to have won the U.S. Junior Amateur, U.S. Amateur and U.S. Open. The U.S. Senior Open is at Scioto, the Ohio course where Jack Nicklaus learned to play.

April at Augusta isn’t the same without Woods. He set the Masters record in 2024 by making the cut for the 24th consecutive time. How much more? How much longer?

“People want to see him,” Kuchar said. “And if he shoots 76, people still want to see him. He’s unique in our sport.”

River Dragons sweep Thunderbirds in 2025 home finale

By
Robbie Watson
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River Dragons sweep Thunderbirds/NowGeorgia.com

The Columbus River Dragons completed a sweep of the Twin-City Thunderbirds on Saturday night at the Columbus Civic Center. Boris Babik once again got the start for Twin-City, while Trevor Babin started in goal for Columbus.

The first goal of the game came at 11:16 of the first period, when Chiwetin Blacksmith found the back of the net with a beautiful shot. Moments after exiting the penalty box, Ryan Hunter extended the Columbus lead by sneaking a puck past Boris Babik. At 14:48, Jan Salak tipped a puck into the net, putting the visitors on the board for the first time in the game.

In the third period, the River Dragons delivered an insurance marker, as Ryan Galvin beat Boris Babik upstairs following a feed from Ryan Hunter. Zach White brought the Thunderbirds within one goal near the midway point of the period, firing a shot high on Trevor Babin.

Kyle Moore sealed the win for the River Dragons with an empty-net goal, making the final score 4–2. Trevor Babin made 29 saves on 31 shots in the win for the River Dragons, while Boris Babik took the loss for the second straight night for Twin-City.

“We’re still learning how to win,” Head Coach Jerome Bechard said. “In one goal games, its about structure and hockey sense, especially on broken plays. It’s still a work in progress, but we’re getting there. Trevor Babin was outstanding, and Chiwetin’s first goal came off of a great change.”

Columbus will return to the Columbus Civic Center on Friday, January 9, when the club hosts the Blue Ridge Bobcats.

Firefighters rescue person from burning home in Athens Christmas Eve

By
Joy Purcell
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Fire engulfs a home on North Avenue in Athens on Christmas Eve. Firefighters rescued one person from the burning home. (Athens-Clarke County Fire Department)

ATHENS, Ga. — Firefighters with the Athens-Clarke County Fire Department rushed into a burning home on Christmas Eve and rescued a person trapped inside as flames consumed most of the house.

According to Assistant Fire Marshal Capt. Kevin Kearney, crews were dispatched around 10:40 p.m. on Dec. 24 to the 600 block of North Avenue after reports of a residential structure fire. When firefighters arrived, about 80% of the one-story home was already engulfed in flames, with heavy smoke pouring through the structure.

Despite the intense conditions, Kearney said firefighters immediately split into rescue and fire attack teams.

Firefighters forced entry through a side door and used a thermal imaging camera to see through the smoke. Inside the home, they located a person still trapped. Firefighters moved quickly, pulling the victim from the burning house and turning them over to EMTs for emergency care.

National EMS transported the patient to Piedmont Athens Regional. The patient was later transferred to the Augusta Burn Center for specialized treatment.

Firefighters from multiple stations continued battling the blaze and carefully searched the remaining areas of the home. Firefighters confirmed no additional occupants were inside.

“This incident highlights the importance of coordinated fire attack, rapid decision-making, and selfless teamwork,” Fire Chief Nate Moss said. “Because of the quick actions of our firefighters, a person was located and life-saving efforts were made under extremely challenging conditions. We are extremely proud of their actions.”

The Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating the cause of the fire. Anyone with information is asked to contact Kearney at 706-613-3365.

Go West, Young Man: 12,000ft and beyond…

By
Tyler Penland
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Editor’s note: In July 2025, Now Habersham weathercaster Tyler Penland headed west to hike and camp in Yellowstone National Park. His latest “Go west, young man” series features the stunning images he captured and the stories he brought back.

I can’t say I slept great at 10,100ft elevation near Shelf Lake, but I didn’t sleep terribly. At any rate, when I woke up well before the sun on the morning of July 28 I knew I had the hardest hike of my life ahead of me.

While I spend as much time as possible at higher elevations here on the west coast, the highest that can still possibly put me is 6,000ft. I was about to double that. All week we had slowly been making our way higher and higher through Yellowstone and eventually the Beartooths, but our true goal lay ahead. Neither my buddy nor myself had ever summited a 12,000ft peak on foot. I have been to the top of Pike’s Peak at 14,000ft but only by car. The highest I had personally ever hiked was a touch over 10,000 and certainly nothing as difficult as what lie in store. We packed up and headed backwards and downwards along the trail just as the sun began to hit the ridge to our west.

Sun breaking on the ridge (Photo: Tyler Penland)

You never know quite what you are going to get with weather at these elevations, but luckily for us it was a bluebird day after the brief early morning low clouds and a very brief bout of mist. Temperatures were around freezing at daybreak but would quickly climb into the 40s and eventually 50s along our route. We made our way downhill about a 1-1.5 miles where we stashed our overnight packs and unclipped our day packs that would take us to the summit of Mt. Rearguard. We left the trail, and that was the last we would see of any organized route for the rest of the trip.

To put it very lightly, there are no easy ways to reach Mt. Rearguard. We had opted for the shortest way, but shorter usually means steeper. Having now “been there, done that” I can confirm it is a very steep approach. We were very rarely able to go straight up the hill, but instead had to zig zag our way up the steep, rock-laden slopes. Our climb took us up very quickly accomplishing our first 1,000ft gain in a little over a mile. I didn’t take a ton of photos on the way up as I was mostly concerned with not dying, but the views were certainly breathtaking.

Looking back towards our camp from the night before on the lower slopes of Mt. Rearguard (Photo: Tyler Penland)

When we finally reached the top of the first rise it put us out about 11,400ft above sea level and I was really starting to feel the elevation. From here, we could see the rest of our root. You may be thinking to yourself ‘that doesn’t look too bad’. This thought briefly went through my mind, but now it was back to a slog back downhill to the saddle below.

Looking towards Mt. Rearguard from one ridgeline over (Photo: Tyler Penland)

You may notice the ridiculous number of rocks in our way. This landscape was carved out exclusively by glaciers and as they melted they left behind a seemingly infinite number of boulders. Our path zig zagged between these boulders ranging from the size of your fist to the size of a VW bug as we approached the final summit bid. From here, you have about 1,000 vertical feet to climb in right around 1 mile or a bit less depending how you choose to go. We were lazy, stupid, or a mix of both and after studying our topographic maps decided it would be just as easy to go straight up. The beautiful Moon Lake that we had failed to reach the day prior lay out beneath us reflecting the snow and small glaciers below.

Moon Lake from the upper slopes of Mt. Rearguard (Photo Tyler Penland)

From up here, the views of the Hellroaring Plateau are astonishing. The beautiful weather and low humidity allowed us to see for no doubt hundreds of miles. If you look closely in the image of Mt. Rearguard above you’ll notice a very dark notch directly below the summit. Well, the view from there was like something from another world. A small glacier is located at the bottom of that notch, but the views back towards Sliderock Lake really steals the show.

Sliderock Lake from Mt. Rearguard (Photo: Tyler Penland)

Now came the final summit bid. The elevation was really starting to beat me up by this juncture, and I was only able to go 20-25 yards at a time as we neared the peak. Up here, the air is thin and the terrain is difficult. There’s nothing even resembling a “trail”, and the boulders have gone from VW-bus-sized to small-house-sized requiring very careful route finding to not get yourself stuck in a corner.

Finally, around 4.5 hours after we set off we made the top of Mt. Rearguard at 12,209ft elevation. I really can’t describe how I felt at the top of this mountain, partially because I was out of breath, but mostly because just an hour earlier I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it. I’ve read stories of people climbing high mountains, and while this one isn’t exactly a walk in the park it is certainly one of the “easier” options. Easy still whooped my butt.

The view from the top of Mt. Rearguard

The view looking back towards our route from the summit reveals the expanse of boulders we just came through, though it lacks the scale of just how big they are. The lyrics from one of my favorite Jimmy Buffett songs came through perfectly clear in my worn out brain:

“Take it all in, it’s as big as it seems”.

Me on top of Mt. Rearguard (Photo by William McMahan)

I made it to the top, but the hard part wasn’t over.

Check out Tyler’s other articles in this series

Trump says Ukraine and Russia are ‘closer than ever’ to peace after talks with Zelenskyy

By
Will Weissert
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President Donald Trump and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shake hands at the start of a joint news conference following a meeting at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump on Sunday insisted Ukraine and Russia are “closer than ever before” to a peace deal as he hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at his Florida resort, but he acknowledged the negotiations are complex and could still break down, leaving the war dragging on for years.

The president’s statements came after the leaders met for talks following what Trump said was an “excellent,” two-and-a-half-hour phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose invasion of Ukraine launched the war nearly four years ago. Trump insisted he believed Putin still wants peace, even as Russia launched another round of attacks on Ukraine while Zelenskyy flew to the United States for the latest round of negotiations.

“Russia wants to see Ukraine succeed,” Trump said during a late afternoon news conference as he stood with Zelenskyy after their meeting. He repeatedly praised his counterpart as “brave.”

Trump and Zelenskyy both acknowledged thorny issues remain, including whether Russia can keep Ukrainian territory it controls, as well as security guarantees for Ukraine to ensure it’s not invaded again in the future. After their discussion, they called a wide group of European leaders, including Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, and the leaders of Finland, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Poland.

Zelenskyy said Trump had agreed to host European leaders again, possibly at the White House, sometime in January. Trump said the meeting could be in Washington or “someplace.”

Zelenskyy thanked Trump for his work. “Ukraine is ready for peace,” he said.

Trump and Putin will speak again

Trump said he’d follow the meeting with another call to Putin. Earlier Sunday, Putin’s foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said the Trump-Putin call was initiated by the U.S. side and was “friendly, benevolent and businesslike.” Ushakov said Trump and Putin agreed to speak again “promptly” after Trump’s meeting with Zelenskyy.

But Ushakov added that a “bold, responsible, political decision is needed from Kyiv” on the fiercely contested Donbas region in eastern Ukraine and other matters in dispute for there to be a “complete cessation” of hostilities.

Both leaders identified deciding the future of the Donbas region as a major sticking point.

Trump said the parties were inching closer to agreement. “That’s a very tough issue but one that I think will get resolved,” he said.

Zelenskyy said: “Our attitude is very clear. That’s why President Trump said this is a very tough question and, of course, we have with Russia different positions on it.”

Trump said, however, that he still believes Putin is “very serious” about ending the war, even as Russia continued striking targets in Ukraine as Zelenskyy traveled to the U.S. Trump said, “I believe Ukraine has made some very strong attacks also.”

He held out the possibility that negotiations could still fall apart.

“In a few weeks, we will know one way or the other, I think,” Trump said. “We could have something where one item that you’re not thinking about is a big item, breaks it up. Look, it’s been a very difficult negotiation. Very detailed.”

Trump and Zelenskyy’s sit-down underscored the apparent progress made by Trump’s top negotiators in recent weeks as the sides traded draft peace plans to end the fighting. Zelenskyy told reporters Friday that the 20-point draft proposal negotiators have discussed is “about 90% ready” — echoing a figure, and the optimism, that U.S. officials conveyed when Trump’s chief negotiators met with Zelenskyy in Berlin this month.

During the recent talks, the U.S. agreed to offer certain security guarantees to Ukraine similar to those offered to other members of NATO. The proposal came as Zelenskyy said he was prepared to drop his country’s bid to join the security alliance if Ukraine received NATO-like protection that would be designed to safeguard it against future Russian attacks.

‘Intensive’ weeks ahead

Zelenskyy also spoke on Christmas Day with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law. The Ukrainian leader said they discussed “certain substantive details” and cautioned “there is still work to be done on sensitive issues” and “the weeks ahead may also be intensive.”

The U.S. president has been working to end the war in Ukraine for much of his first year back in office, showing irritation with both Zelenskyy and Putin while publicly acknowledging the difficulty of ending the conflict. Gone are the days when, as a candidate in 2024, he boasted that he could resolve the fighting in a day. Indeed, on Sunday, Trump referred multiple times to the complexity of the negotiations.

After hosting Zelenskyy at the White House in October, Trump demanded that both Russia and Ukraine halt fighting and “stop at the battle line,” implying that Moscow should be able to keep the territory it has seized from Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said last week that he would be willing to withdraw troops from Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland as part of a plan to end the war, if Russia also pulls back and the area becomes a demilitarized zone monitored by international forces.

Putin wants Russian gains kept, and more

Putin has publicly said he wants all the areas in four key regions that have been captured by his forces, as well as the Crimean Peninsula, illegally annexed in 2014, to be recognized as Russian territory. He also has insisted that Ukraine withdraw from some areas in eastern Ukraine that Moscow’s forces haven’t captured. Kyiv has publicly rejected all those demands.

The Kremlin also wants Ukraine to abandon its bid to join NATO. It warned that it wouldn’t accept the deployment of any troops from members of the military alliance and would view them as a “legitimate target.”

Putin also has said Ukraine must limit the size of its army and give official status to the Russian language, demands he has made from the outset of the conflict.

Ushakov told the business daily Kommersant this month that Russian police and national guard would stay in parts of Donetsk -– one of the two major areas, along with Luhansk, that make up the Donbas region — even if they become a demilitarized zone under a prospective peace plan.

Ushakov cautioned that trying to reach a compromise could take a long time. He said U.S. proposals that took into account Russian demands had been “worsened” by alterations proposed by Ukraine and its European allies.

Trump has been somewhat receptive to Putin’s demands, arguing that the Russian president can be persuaded to end the war if Kyiv agrees to cede Ukrainian land in the Donbas region and if Western powers offer economic incentives to bring Russia back into the global economy.

AP’s Seung Min Kim and Elise Morton contributed to this report

Authorities renew call for information in search for missing Buford woman

By
Joy Purcell
-

The Hall County Sheriff’s Office is again asking for the public’s help as the search continues for Amber-Rae Leigh Harris, 36, of Buford, who has been missing for several months.

Investigators said Harris was last seen on June 24 in the Calvary Church Road area and is known to frequent both Gainesville and Buford. While Harris is not in regular contact with her family, officials said she typically responds to messages from some relatives. Concern grew when she stopped responding, and she was reported missing Sept. 2.

The sheriff’s office said it is aware of recent social media posts calling for additional investigative action in the case. “Because the investigation remains active, investigators will not publicly discuss the leads they have followed thus far in the case,” the sheriff’s office said.

Officials said they are resharing their original missing person post, including Harris’ description and photographs, in hopes that someone may have seen her or has information about where she is.

Anyone with information on Harris’ whereabouts is asked to contact Investigator Dunn at 770-531-6953 or Hall County Dispatch at 770-536-8812, extension 8.

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