War in Ukraine: Russian forces attack Odessa twice in one day
Russian forces attacked the port of Odessa twice in one day, damaging infrastructure, a ship, and the energy sector, causing power outages for tens of thousands of residents.
Meanwhile, in Moscow, a senior Russian general was killed by an explosion under his car, in an event that Russia describes as a possible assassination attempt by Ukrainian services.
On the diplomatic front, Donald Trump said peace talks are going "well," while Ukraine and Russia remain skeptical that an agreement can fully satisfy both sides.
Trump complains that Epstein files are harming people who met him "innocently"
Donald Trump reacted for the first time to the release of the Epstein files, saying they are damaging the reputations of people who, according to him, had met him "without bad intentions."
He expressed sympathy for well-known figures like Bill Clinton and others who are being put under scrutiny again because of photos or old connections with Epstein.
Trump called the issue a distraction from Republican achievements, as public and political pressure for the full release of the documents continues.
Zelenskyy optimistic about progress in US-led peace talks
Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed cautious optimism about the US-led peace talks, saying that about 90% of Ukraine's demands have been included in the draft agreement.
He stressed that the agreement is "quite solid" at this stage, but that compromises will be necessary on both sides.
Meanwhile, despite the negotiations, Russia continued its drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure.
Cyberattack knocks out France's postal service and its bank branch
A suspected cyberattack knocked out the online services of La Poste and its bank, La Banque Postale, causing delays in deliveries and problems with payments during the Christmas season.
French authorities said customer data was not affected, while banks used SMS as a temporary solution for authorizing payments.
The incident comes amid a wider wave of cyberattacks in France, following recent incidents that also affected the Interior Ministry and other state institutions.
