NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (Dec. 29)

Welcome to NTD evening news. Our top story tonight, President Trump meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the Gaza ceasefire while issuing a strong warning for Iran. And the latest from the president on efforts to end the war in Ukraine. Marios at the White House. Residents in the Gaza Strip watch closely as the outcome of the Trump Netanyahu meeting will impact their lives. Meanwhile, Turkish police battle ISIS terrorists in Turkey, leaving nine people dead. Jason Perry with the Middle East update. Moscow says Ukraine tried to attack the home of Russian President Vladimir Putin, possibly trying to kill him. Meanwhile, Ukraine accuses Russia of trying to sabotage peace efforts. Arian Pazdar has the breakdown of the latest developments. The Chinese Communist Party has deployed military assets by land, sea, and air to conduct drills around Taiwan as the United States and Japan increase their support for the self-governing island. Luis Martinez with the latest. Prosecutors say the man accused of planting pipe bombs in Washington DC the night before January 6th, 2021 capital breach has confessed. Alen Richards brings us the update. [Music] This is NTD Evening News live from our global headquarters in New York City. Here's Tiffany Meyer. >> Good evening. Thank you for joining us tonight. I'm Paul Grainy in for Tiffany Meyer. President Trump sitting down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Mara Lago to advance the Gaza's ceasefire plan and what the president has to say about this morning's call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. We go now live to NTD's Washington correspondent Mari Otsu at the north lawn of the White House. Mari, good evening. >> Paul, good evening to you. That's right. Uh today, key topics in that discussion at Mara Lago included advancing that Gaza ceasefire plan. disarming Hamas, demilitarizing Gaza, and trying to resolve the status of the remaining hostage left in the Gaza Strip. Uh, this is now Prime Minister Netanyahu's sixth in-person meeting with the president since President Trump returned to office back in January. And it comes as the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has mostly held since October. And President Trump today says that the reconstruction of Gaza is going to begin quote pretty soon and repeatedly calls for Hamas to disarm. He threatens that if they don't, the countries that signed the peace deal back in October, will quote wipe them out. Uh President Trump also emphasizes the importance of Operation Midnight Hammer, that is the taking out of Iran's nuclear program back in June as a necessary factor in the Gaza peace deal. And he has this threat for Iran if they try to rebuild their nuclear facilities. Take a look. >> Don't forget, we made the plan possible by taking out Iran. And speaking of Iran, I hope they're not trying to build up again because if they are, we're going to have no choice but very quickly to eradicate that buildup. Iran may be behaving badly. It hasn't been confirmed, but if it's confirmed, look, they know the consequence. You know, consequences will be very powerful, maybe more powerful than the last time. President Trump also says that Saudi Arabia is getting along with Israel quote uh very well and that he expects that they will soon join the Abraham Accords. And meanwhile, uh, both leaders in their meeting today, uh, praised the US-Israel alliance with President Trump saying that a pardon for Prime Minister Netanyahu is on its way. And Netanyahu likewise, saying that over lunch, Israel's men, Israel's minister of education formally announced that President Trump will be receiving the Israel Prize, Israel's highest civilian honor. He also invites President Trump to visit Israel on their Independence Day to receive that honor. Take a look. So, we decided to break a convention to or create a new one, and that is to award uh the Israel Prize, which in almost our 80 years, we've never awarded it to a non-Israeli. And we're going to award it this year uh to President Trump. >> Well, I'm not concerned about anything that Israel is doing. I'm concerned about what other people are doing or maybe aren't doing. There might not be an Israel right now if you had a different prime minister. That's a big statement. And now on a different foreign war that President Trump is trying to help solve. President Trump today confirms that he had a quote positive call with Russia's president of Vladimir Putin about Ukraine this morning. Although he says that there are still a few thorny issues left to resolve. This is coming just a day after Ukrainian President Zalinski met with President Trump at Mara Lago. Both of them expressing optimism after that meeting. However, uh today President Trump says that in his call with Putin this morning, Putin alleged a Ukraine launched a drone attack uh on one of his residences, a claim that Zilinski and Ukrainian officials have since denied. Paul, back to you, Mario at the White House. Mari, thank you. And residents in the Gaza Strip are also paying attention to the meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Trump. The outcome will likely play a major role in the future of the territory. NTD's Jason Perry has the Middle East update. >> Residents in the Gaza Strip on Monday were seen filling jugs with water as much of the population has been living in tents since the Israel Hamas war began over two years ago. Some displaced residents have placed their hopes on Monday's meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Trump. As for Trump and Netanyahu, we are optimistic, but please put an end to this situation. Our situation is tragic. The cost of living is high. Life is difficult, and we have children and elders. >> Another resident said Trump was a direct mediator in the ceasefire deal. >> We urge him to complete this deal and move to the second stage so we can go back to our houses, families, and properties because we are exhausted. This displacement is rough. It is cold and freezing. The ceasefire appears to have stalled in the first phase because the body of one hostage remains in the Gaza Strip. >> Iran, which is a major financial supporter of the Hamas terrorist group, accuses the US and Israel of making the region unstable. >> It is up to American officials to fix this image and show that they are sincere in the claims they make about caring for regional and global peace. However, Iran is facing problems of its own. Protesters hit the streets of Tehran on Monday as the country's currency fell to an all-time low against the US dollar. Meanwhile, officials in Italy are attempting to cut off funding to Hamas. The Italian police have accused some pro Palestinian charities of sending millions of dollars to the terrorist group. Over the weekend, Italian police said they arrested nine people and also seized over $1.2 million in cash during searches linked to alleged financing of Hamas through charities based in Italy. And in another development, Turkey reported a gunfight between ISIS terrorist and Turkish police on Monday. Turkish officials said at least three Turkish police officers were killed and eight were wounded. or not. >> The operation was conducted with the highest precision due to the presence of children and women in the house. Five women and six children were evacuated safely from the house and six terrorists were killed after the clashes. >> The gunfight came after Turkish officials arrested. Over 100 suspected ISIS terrorists who were allegedly planning attacks on Christmas and New Year celebrations. Jason Perry, NTD News. And as we just heard, the Kremlin says Ukraine attacked the home of Russian President Vladimir Putin overnight, trying to kill him using over 90 drones. Moscow now warning that his position in peace talks could change just one day after Ukraine announced that both sides had agreed on most parts of a possible deal. Entities international correspondent Arian Pasdar has more. >> We've done very well. We've had discussions on just about every subject. President Trump meeting with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zilinski in Florida on Sunday. The two praised the progress made in the peace talks with Sanski saying most parts of a possible peace deal are almost completely agreed on. >> We have a great achievements 20 point peace plan 90% agreed and US Ukraine security guarantees 100% agreed. US Europe Ukraine security guarantees almost agreed. Military dimension 100% agreed. But now on Monday, this peace progress might take a strong hit. Russia says its position in the negotiations will be reviewed because Ukraine tried to attack President Putin's residence in Russia overnight. Given the complete degeneration of the criminal Kiev regime, which has shifted to a policy of state terrorism, Russia's negotiating position will be reconsidered. >> According to the Kremlin, Ukraine aimed at Putin's residence near St. Petersburg using 91 longrange drones. It's not clear yet if Putin was in the residence at the time of the attack. Zalinski denies the claims of an attack on Putin's residence, calling it yet another lie from Russia. Yesterday, we had a meeting with Trump and it's clear that for the Russians, it's a failure if we don't have a scandal with America. If we have progress, it's a failure for them. He added that Russia lies about an alleged Ukrainian attack to undermine the peace talks. The Kremlin now warning it will retaliate, saying targets have already been chosen. And before Moscow reported the attack on Putin's residence, the Russian leader had already told his military to take full control over Ukraine's Dombas region. That's despite the fact that Silinski recently signaled he's willing to let go of the Dombas if it becomes a demilitarized zone. The liberation of Donbas and Keren regions is being carried out in stages. Troops from the various groups are confidently advancing. >> After announcing plans to continue fighting in the Dombas, the Kremlin was asked what would happen to the idea of a demilitarized zone in the region. >> At this time, we believe it is inappropriate to comment on individual points of discussion. The spokesman added that Ukraine's forces should fully withdraw from the Dombas. The Kremlin also said further talks between Trump and Putin are scheduled to take place soon. Arian Pastor, NTD News. >> And another military strike against Venezuelan drug traffickers. President Trump says the US took out a major facility in the South American country. Here he is speaking to WABC radio on Friday. We just knocked out, I don't know if you read or you saw, they have a big plant or a big facility where they send the, you know, where the ships come from. Uh, two nights ago, we knocked that out. So, we we hit them very hard, but drugs are down over 97%. Can you believe it? >> The president didn't provide details about the strike. The Trump administration has been targeting drug boats in international waters in recent months, but this would be the first time the US military has struck a land target in Venezuela. Trump added during the interview that the Venezuelan regime took US oil and sent millions of people from their jails to America. The president recently announced a blockade of sanctioned oil tankers to and from Venezuela and also did not rule out a war with the country. And the Chinese Communist Party has launched a two-day largecale military drill surrounding the island of Taiwan. Our Washington correspondent Luis Eduardo Martinez has the details of the ongoing military tensions. Taiwan has placed its forces on alert and deployed fighters in response to the CCP's military encirclement of the island. At least 14 PLA warships have been detected around Taiwan. >> Because we must take appropriate measures under the premise of ensuring our national security and sovereignty. As this confrontation continues to escalate, the risk of conflict between the two sides will only continue to accumulate. >> The Chinese Communist Party called the military exercises a stern warning to separatist and external interference forces. Any attempt to resolve differences or disputes through coercion is unacceptable. Recent experiences have shown that the CCP is continuously increasing the pressure it exerts on us. >> NTD spoke with retired US Marine Colonel Grant Nome, a senior fellow at the Center for Security Policy with decades of experience in the Indoacific. >> So what they're going to say and what they are saying as well because Prime Minister Takayichi of Japan said Japan might actually care about Taiwan. we're so angry, we have to do these things. And then they will say, well, the Americans um you know, they're gonna sell the Taiwanese more weapons, so therefore we're going to do this. But the Americans have been selling Taiwan and giving Taiwan weapons for a long time. So, this is all just an excuse uh to allow them to hold an exercise uh that pushes them towards their goal. According to Colonel Newsome, these military drills are meant to keep Taiwanese allies from coming to the defense of the island in the case of a potential invasion. >> Chinese are putting a lot of effort this time to operations east of the the island of Formosa, east of Taiwan, and that's where the help is going to come from. Additionally, they have really tightened up the the coverage of the west side and particularly main civilian ports. And the idea is to really tighten this noose around Taiwan and not just practice but rehearse uh for the day that comes where they're going to say this is it. >> For Colonel Newsome, one of the key indicators that Beijing will be looking at in order to decide whether or not to invade Taiwan will be the political climate in Washington DC. >> I think one thing that the Chinese watch very closely is the state of affairs in Washington DC. Uh, is there a lot of fighting going on within Washington and in America in the political class? Is the society unified or is it being torn apart? Do you have half of the the country or at least half of the political class that thinks the current administration is Lucifer incarnate? >> The CCP's military drills will last for 2 days and it is expected that on Tuesday we will see live fire drills around Taiwan. Reporting from Washington DC, Luis Eduardo Martinez, NTD News. Still to come, prosecutors say the man accused of planting pipe bombs in Washington DC the night before the January 6th, 2021 capital breach has confessed. Arlene Richards brings us the update. Federal authorities are probing allegations of widespread fraud in Minnesota daycare and health care centers. The investigations are raising questions about where millions in taxpayer dollars went. Jack Bradley reports when we return. Welcome back. Prosecutors say the man charged with planting two pipe bombs in Washington DC the night before the January 6th capital breach has confessed. Entity legal correspondent Arlene Richards has more. >> Court papers released on Sunday alleged that a man named Brian J. Cole Jr. confessed to building and placing pipe bombs outside the Democratic and Republican National Committee headquarters the day before the January 6th capital breach. US Attorney for the District of Columbia, Janine Pyro, says in the filing that Cole, 30, made the admission during a post-arrest interview. According to the filing, he told investigators that something just snapped inside him after quote watching everything, just everything getting worse, referring to mounting political anger after the 2020 election. He allegedly told agents he believed grievances on all sides were being dismissed and that leaders in both major parties bore responsibility. Cole was arrested on December 4th. Meanwhile, Cole's attorney is challenging the government's account of the confession and the evidence identifying him as the suspect. The government's court submission lays out what prosecutors describe as a detailed confession, including how he constructed, transported, and placed the pipe bombs. According to prosecutors, Cole said he learned to manufacture black powder from watching YouTube videos, and that he wired the devices using kitchen timers instead of alarm clocks. The government's filing states Cole initially denied that he was the individual in a surveillance image close in time to the planting of the bombs and on the same route as the bomber took. But then investigators reminded him that lying was an additional criminal offense. This time prosecutors say the defendant paused for approximately 15 seconds, placed his head down on the table, and answered yes. The government's filing supports their request to keep the defendant jailed pending trial. Cole's attorney has not commented on the filing and says he's seeking extensive information to prove his client's innocence. Arlene Richards, NTD News. >> And allegations of massive fraud targeting federal programs in Minnesota continue to mount. Federal investigators now going doortodoor at suspected fraud sites like daycare centers. NTD's Washington correspondent Jack Bradley has the details. >> Homeland Security investigators are on the ground in Minneapolis going doortodoor at suspected fraud sites. The department says it's looking into fraud allegedly happening at child care and healthc care facilities and other suspected sites. Adding that it's working to root out what it calls rampant fraud plaguing Minnesota. And this is a multi- agency operation. On Sunday, FBI Director Cash Patel says he's surging resources to Minnesota to investigate fraud in federal programs. And he says that his department has been working to crack down on this kind of fraud for years. But Patel says that this is just the tip of a very large iceberg. He says that many of the accused are also being referred to immigration officials for possible deportation and dennaturalization. And this comes after a recent viral video put Minnesota's fraud schemes in the spotlight. Independent journalist Nick Shirley published a recent 40inute video of him visiting multiple daycare centers with no children in sight and some even having blacked out windows and these centers allegedly receiving millions of dollars in federal funding. Hello. We'd like to ask where the money's going. >> What do you guys think about the fraud that's taking place here in Minnesota? >> I don't think anybody is enabling fraud to happen. >> Hold Governor Walls accountable for this. >> What was this money spent on? 1.26 million. What was that? >> There aren't any kids. >> Answer the question. Are there children? >> Attorney General Pam Bondi took to X on Monday, saying Nick Shirley's work has helped show Americans the scale of fraud in Tim Waltz's Minnesota. The Justice Department has been investigating this for months. So far, we have charged 98 individuals, 85 of Somali descent, and more than 60 have been found guilty in court. A spokesperson for Minnesota Governor Tim Walls says that the governor has strengthened oversight and launched investigations into these facilities, one of which has been closed. But for now, federal authorities say stay tuned as there's more to come out soon from these investigations. Reporting by Jack Bradley, NTD News. And meteorologists say a cold front that's sweeping east across the country is clashing with unseasonably warm air. The result is a string of brutal winter storms pummeling much of the northeast northeastern quadrant of the US. Here's a closer look at how the weather is impacting travel. This is kind of the last harrah for folks that haven't left already to return home. >> Many postol travelers face weather delays and dangers today. Storms spawning along a cold front are affecting tens of millions of people. Much of the Northeast is dealing with severe snow and ice storms. The ice is our main concern. I know temps are supposed to warm up. Ground temps are still cold. >> In the Midwest today, forecasters warned blizzards are the concern. They say snow could meet winds up to 60 m hour in some areas. The FAA says Chicago O'Hare Airport had a ground stop yesterday. >> Oh, shoot. >> Utilities report more than 100,000 recent power outages in the region. in Iowa. >> 14 vehicle crash just ahead of my vehicle that's being cleaned up now. Zero visibility. Some communities like this one in Illinois are recovering from tornado damage. Meanwhile, FlightAware reports about 10,000 US flight delays and 800 cancellations yesterday. That follows another rough day for some passengers Saturday. I just want to make it home to my own bed tonight. >> Going with the flow wherever the wind takes me. >> In places across the country, the upside of the winter weather is the joy it's bringing children on holiday breaks. >> We're trying to find a good area to do a snowball fight. And still to come, as President Trump wraps up separate meetings with the Ukrainian president and the Israeli prime minister, we take a look back at the foreign policy milestones of the president's second term so far. US Navy Seal veteran Mike Cerelli joins us to discuss when we come back. [Music] Welcome back. With 2025 drawing to a close, we look back at how President Trump has redefined America's position on the world stage. When he first unveiled his sweeping tariff agenda, many called the president protectionist and isolationist. But Trump has been as active overseas as he's been at home and wielding both carrot and stick. He's used deal making to take his America first vision global. With us now is US Navy Seal veteran Mike Cerelli. He's the chief talent officer at Overwatch Mission Critical. Mike, great to see you as always. Happy holidays. I want to start with the president's move to expand here in the Western Hemisphere. He said over the weekend that the US hit a big drug boat loading facility in Venezuela. I believe it's it's the first US strike on Venezuelan land. And as you know, it's just one example of this foreign policy pivot. How significant has this move been by the president? Well, think with the Western Hemisphere, which has been long overdue, he's resetting or reestablishing our Western doctrine, that foreign adversaries will not have a doorstep through any anyone that exists, any sovereign nation within, uh, you know, South America, Latin America, uh, or Mexico. Uh, additionally, moving the strikes from sea to land is an escalation. But we've we've been so bogged down and busy with the global war on terrorism that China, Russia, and even Iran were making moves in our own backyards. So, you've got to applaud President Trump for for really laying down uh the law here. And again, saying to our foreign adversaries, you are not welcome here. >> National security aside, Mike, we talk about fundamental American values, freedom of speech, freedom of belief. We know that over the Christmas period, the president and his administration took decisive action to strike ISIS terrorists specifically for their targeting of Christians, people of faith. What does that tell you about the president's global agenda? >> Yeah. And he's utilizing something I call over the horizon uh anti- counterterrorism campaign and that we're not creating a US footprint uh in Nigeria with those those strikes. He's using the available arsenal that we have from the air and the sea to strike ISIS. Ultimately, what you have to be concerned about is one, they were uh massacring Christians. Uh and there is the genocide piece of that. But if we allow these terrorist organizations wherever they may exist, to reconstitute, it eventually leads to attack planning against our homeland. So, we've got to see and I think we will see more of this over the horizon strategy and strikes on terrorist groups in order to keep them off balance. But at the end of the day, you know, if you're going to characterize everything that President Trump has done in 2025, I mean, count the the wars or the ceasefires or the peace accords that he's put in place, you got Armenia and Azer Azera, you've got uh you know, Rwanda, you've got uh Thailand and Cambodia. It's been a a absolute masterclass in trying to bring peace to to to the world. And we all know he got snubbed by not winning the the Nobel Peace Prize. We know uh that he was more than deserving of it. But from a foreign policy standpoint, especially national security, uh he's been the first aggressive pre president in quite a few administrations. >> It's been incredible to watch and and even the developments in in Ukraine recently. Uh Mike has has been encouraging. Let's see where that goes as well. I want to stick on this point as well. The president, he said he wants to have a good relationship with all world leaders. He implies this is the best for both America and the world. But at the same time, he and his vice president have been quite critical of close allies like Europe and the UK's in their alleged infringements on free speech. On Christmas Eve, Trump's State Department, they imposed sanctions on a former top European Union official over alleged censorship. Has has the president's approach to the EU and the UK this year surprised you? >> No. But let's get a little more granular with that. It's the the the restriction on free speech, but as it pertains to the massive immigration problem that Europe has. Europe is arguably 5 years ahead of us with the mass migration, a lot of of of Muslims, and social unrest. and uh he's not playing into that this woke liberal policy anymore, which Europe has embraced. Uh you know, we've seen him nationally end the DEI uh campaigns. A lot of corporations have have uh have pulled those back. So, it's been a breath of fresh air for Americans, but what he's seen in Europe is is basically the unraveling of Europe, which puts the NATO alliance at risk. And ultimately with regards to NATO and and you know, President uh Trump and and Vice President JD Vance uh you know with with their let's say conflicting or conflictive uh views with European leaders is they're finally getting NATO to pony up as into and to pay up uh especially with their GDP uh expenditures on defense because Europe and the Ukraine Russia conflict affects Europe more than it does us. uh they've basically been dependent on the United States for decades and it's about time our allies carry their their distributed or weighted value in defense of this world >> in the space of just uh 11 months give or take. Uh Mike, you brought up DEI and Trump's influence culturally, not just here in America but around the world. I think in Japan we see that with the with the new prime minister and how the relationship with the United States is is probably as strong as it's ever been. Over and over in that side of the world you also see record arm sales with Taiwan. Both of these have upset the Chinese Communist Party. What's interesting though is that all the while Trump is trying to make deals with China. How do you compare Trump 2.0's approach to Trump 1.0 in his first term? you know, his first term he was stepping into an office for which he he has never held a political position. He learned a lot. He he he failed and both succeeded uh quite a bit and he learned from it. That four years that four-year break was probably a blessing to Americans that he knew exactly what he needed to do when he stepped in office. And and you just said it, you know, we are seeing and he's brought into I want to say uh right around $450 billion in foreign investment back into America. that's between Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and some of that is arms deals, some of it is technology, semiconductors, but you know, he is he is he's he's going to hold the line. The red line, the sand is Taiwan. We see China right now conducting naval exercises in and in and around Taiwan. Uh this is what we call saber saber rattling. But uh you know he's especially with the tariffs has let's say set the the the battlefield uh level because we were getting killed by tariffs through other nations and it was about time that there was some reciprocity on the tariffs between ourselves and other nations. So we we have not seen the benefit or I should say Americans have not seen the benefit of that with their wallet. And that's ultimately what Americans think about as their wallet when they go to vote in the upcoming midterms. >> Before the president was was sworn in, he said his favorite word in the dictionary was tariff. And it's been incredible to watch how he's wielded that as both a carrot and a stick over the past number of months. Mike, before I let you go, before Trump came in, the military was really struggling to recruit people. But this year, 2025, was the best in 15 years. Why is that? We're calling that the Trump and the Hague Seth uh effect. One, it's the national pride. Uh the military had all these social experiments placed on them by the previous administration. And the military has a very unique culture. Ultimately, the hallmark of the military is lethality. Full stop. Not up for debate. And so, we've returned the military to a warrior culture both by Trump and in Pete Hakes at the Secretary of War. And you've seen young Americans actually feel that sense of pride again. they want to serve. Uh and in talking to guys that are still that I served alongside that are still in active duty. Uh it's a it's a great place to be right now. I would encourage every young American to go serve in this military under this leadership and ultimately leadership matters and that's what we've seen both Trump and Pete Hakes do. They've restored pride in our US military and America as a whole. >> Interesting. Mike Cerelli, great to speak to you as we round out the year. Happy New Year, sir. Take care. >> Happy New Year's. It has been nearly 40 years since the world watched in fear as disasters struck at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. But with the Russia Ukraine war raging on, the protection of the infamous nuclear facility remains as vital as ever. Entities Daniel Monahan reports. >> Reactor number four of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in present day Ukraine exploded on April 26th, 1986. The blast caused a radioactive fallout which spewed into the atmosphere. Dozens of people were killed in the immediate aftermath of the disaster, while the long-term death toll from radiation poisoning is believed to number in the thousands. Following the incident, so-called liquidators traveled to Chernobyl from all over the Soviet Union to try to eliminate the consequences and get the plant up and running again. A few months after the accident, the other reactors were started up again once they'd been cleaned up and um and and checked for safety and and additional uh safety measures were put in place to prevent hopefully another Chernobyl. >> Those reactors were gradually shut down over the next 14 years after the accident. The final one to shut down was unit 3 in the year 2000, which is the one next door to the one that exploded. To keep the plant operational, the damaged reactor was sealed off and a huge steel and concrete enclosure, which became known as the sarcophagus, was constructed between June to late November 1986. The plant remained operational during the fall of the Soviet Union and Ukraine gaining independence in 1991. >> So, of course, this was at times where, you know, it coincided the Chernobyl incident roughly with the with the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine as a new country. um people needed electricity to maintain the grid to maintain um stability effectively. So it was all important to keep the lights on at this sort of time of political turbulence and change. >> However, in October 1991, reactor number two became damaged beyond repair after a fire and was taken out of operation. Reactor number one was decommissioned in November 1996, but it wasn't until April 25th, 2000 that then Ukrainian Prime Minister Victor Yoshenko confirmed the site would shut. On December 15th, 2000, the final reactor number three was turned off, shutting down the whole site. >> Ukraine was very strongly encouraged by the US and and Western Europe to uh to shut the remaining reactors at Chernobyl down. uh and they were given uh aid in the form of um help to rebuild the or or make the structure over the damaged reactor stronger. >> Between 2010 and 2016, the new safe confinement, a nearly 350 ft high and 850 ft wide metal structure, was built to cover and protect the concrete sarcophagus. However, since the start of the Russian Ukraine conflict, fighting around nuclear power plants has repeatedly raised fears of a nuclear catastrophe during the three years of war. The site was occupied by Russian forces for 35 days. And on February 14th this year, a drone armed with a warhead hit the protective outer shell of the plant, which punctured a hole in it and started a small fire in the in the new safe confinement building, but fortunately didn't um and probably wasn't designed to um get through the original giant concrete structure over the reactor. though it didn't cause a release of radiation or radioactivity. >> Kev blamed Russia while the Kremlin denied it was responsible. After the strike, repair work quickly began. >> So, they've put some um specialist workers uh who have sort of repelled down the side of the new safe confinement structure to try and put a membrane over the hole. Now, that physically helps to cover up the hole. uh it doesn't help to form a hermetic seal, but at least it stops the weather coming in through the hole. >> Scott says ideally the Ukrainians need to accelerate the speed at which they're doing the decommissioning, >> but of course that's made very very challenging by the fact that they're still, you know, uh being invaded by by a foreign aggressor. >> With the sarcophagus still intact, the radiation risk is low. However, Scott feels it's only a matter of time before a new solution for the sarcophagus is needed. >> The radioactivity will cause the sarcophagus to continue to degrade. And it is a structure that is is really very old now. And just like any old building, it will continue to to fall apart until either someone takes it down or it falls down. On December 5th, the International Atomic Energy Agency released a statement saying that the new safe confinement has lost its primary safety functions, including the confinement capability as a result of the drone strike. Daniel Monahan, NTD News. And as the year comes to a close, how dramatically has America's immigration landscape changed from record low border crossings to the largest deportation effort in US history? Tonight, hear from former acting ICE director John Torres on Capitol Report at 700 PM Eastern. And still to come, preparations underway for the 2026 Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, nearly a year after the state's devastating wildfires. One parade float is turning loss into a message of strength and remembrance. Entities Christina Corona brings us a closer look. And in boxing news, former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua injured in a fatal car accident today. Dave Martin joins us with the report when we return. Welcome back. Some breaking news coming in today. US Southern Command said that the joint task force Southern Spear carried out a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by designated terrorist organizations in international waters. Two male narot terrorists were killed. No US military forces were harmed. It said that intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along a known narot trafficking route in the eastern Pacific was engaged in narot trafficking operations. And with the new year just days away, preparations are underway for the Tournament of Roses parade in Pasadena, California. This year, one float honors several survivors of the state's devastating wildfires. NTD's Christina Corona brings us a closer look. We're here in the city of Pasadena at the Rosemont Pavilion. And behind me is the Rising Together 2026 Rose Parade float honoring victims who lost their homes in the Eaton and Palisades fires earlier this year. Decorated with nearly 12,000 flowers, the float would carry six survivors from impacted communities. The theme for this year's parade is the magic in teamwork. Sponsored by the California Community Foundation and the Black Freedom Fund, this float pays tribute to survivors from Aladena, Pasadena, Malibu, and Pacific Palisades. More than 13,000 families lost their homes and 31 people were killed. Those lives are honored with 31 sunflowers built into the design. At the center, a phoenix rising from the ashes symbolizes recovery, while a monarch butterfly represents healing and hope. >> Our story has been one of difficulty, but also hope. I think we've been really fortunate to have a community that's come together, that we've really stood up for each other to try to navigate this recovery. >> The 55 foot long float features forest elements representing Aladena and Pasadena and ocean waves symbolizing Malibu and the Palisades. One year later, recovery remains ongoing. Of more than 2,000 survivors, 70% are still displaced. One survivor shared that watching the Rose Parade is a yearly tradition for her. >> Uh, but this year I'm going to be on the on this float and I'm so excited to represent Aladena. Uh, I did lose my home, uh, my 1904 historic home, which I will never be able to replace. One Malibu survivor recalled leaving the area just before the wildfire hit. >> Next morning, drove to Arizona, stayed in the desert that night, and I didn't know if I had a house or not. I really had no idea. And when I found out, I just thought, "Okay, time to start building." Now, I'm cheating. I'm an architect, and I count myself extraordinarily lucky. >> And what it means to them to be part of the float. >> It's It should be lovely. and and I'm going to be proud to be standing amongst the flowers and to be a survivor and 31 of the flowers that are on the float represent people who've lost their lives and that that starts the waterworks with me. But it's a it's a wonderful diverse community and we're happy to be a part of it and we're ready to come back and rebuild and um make Aladena strong again. The Rising Together float will roll down Colorado Boulevard on New Year's Day, honoring the survivors and the communities still rebuilding. Reporting from the city of Pasadena, Christina Corona, NTD News. [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] And now for your sports news, we're joined by NTD's Dave Martin. Dave, as always, great to see you. >> Hey, great to see you, Paul. >> Dave, we got some NFL a little bit of tennis in there. But first of all, Anthony Joshua, former world heavyweight champion, was in Nigeria, injured in a fatal car accident. What happened? >> Yeah, Joshua was in the back seat. This is about Lexus SUV in Nigeria like you said Paul with today when the vehicle was struck a stationary truck parked on the side of the road. Now two passengers died at the scene. It still hasn't been confirmed whether they were in the vehicle with Joshua or not. Now Joshua meanwhile was hospitalized with minor injuries. He was listed in stable condition. Now, according to what police told ESPN, the accident happened because the vehicle Joshua was in suffered a burst tire, which caused the driver to lose control and crash into the truck. Police say the accident is still though under investigation. Now, meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Federal Road Safety Corps said the vehicle was quote traveling beyond the legally prescribed speed limit on the corridor, lost control during an overtaking maneuver, and crashed into a stationary truck. So, not exactly sure how this happened. The 36-year-old though Joshua, he's British, but his parents are Nigerian. He actually went to boarding school there in Nigeria when he was just 11 years old. He's a former twotime heavyweight champion. Was just in the US a week and a half ago where he beat Jake Paul in that memorable match on >> did. We wish him all the best. >> Yeah, for sure. >> Dave, interesting Battle of the Sexes tennis match. We had Nick Cerios and Arena Seabilanka. How'd it go? >> Yeah. Well, Curios 63 63 there. Now, they were both asked after the match, you know, or actually Sabalinka, I should say, was asked, you know, would you like a rematch? She said she would quote like to extract some revenge afterwards. Though, I should point out this is really a friendly exhibition. No word actually from Curios whether he'd like to do this again. Now, just for clarity's sake, Curios 6363, but he was actually hitting into a court that was 10% smaller than the than the court that Sabalinka was hitting in. So, they tried to handicap a little bit for her. Now before though the match was played, there was some negativity surrounding this event, mainly from the media. Some critics thought it might be bad for women's tennis if the number one player lost to the a player ranked 671st on the men's side. Both players addressed that though after the match. Let's actually listen into them. >> I honestly I don't I don't understand how people were able to find something negative in this event. I think for WCA I think I just showed that um I mean I was playing a great tennis. It was it was entertaining match and yeah he won the he won this match but uh I showed a great tennis. It wasn't like six love six love. It was a great fight. It was uh interesting to watch. He brought more eyes on tennis uh legend were watching this match. uh um pretty big people were messaging me wishing all the best and and telling that they're going to be watching from all different areas of uh of life. So I feel like we just uh brought more attention to our sport and I don't see how it can be bad. >> I would love to do these events more. I I think more events should be mixed. I love mixed doubles. I play all the mixed doubles events. I love when it's women and men at events. So actually the media I think needs to do a better job and stopping all this brainwashing of of this division when there's none at all. We're great friends off the court. We have great a great relationship. We're in the same agency. So um yeah, I think that I mean yeah, you guys have the utmost control of of what you feed people. So I think you guys need to do a better job of that. >> I will point out that Curios ranked right now 671st. He was ranked as high as 13th in the world. He has wins over Nadal, Feder, Jookovic, the big three. So, he is he is a good player. He just he's only played six tour matches over the last three years because of injuries. So, >> interesting. Dave, we've got maybe like a minute. Uh NFL coming into the weekend, three playoff spots still up for grabs. How's it looking now? >> Well, we got one of them decided. The Houston Texans clinched the final wildcard spot with their win Saturday over the Chargers. That marked their eighth straight win, third straight playoff appearance. Now elsewhere though, the Pittsburgh Steelers could have clinched the playoff birth and a division title with a win over Cleveland Sunday, but they lost 13-6. Meanwhile, second place Baltimore won at Green Bay Saturday night. So now these two rivals, Steelers and Ravens, will play next week for the division title. Now each division winner gets a spot in the playoffs. Now in the NFC, there's also still one spot left for whichever team wins the South Division. That's between Carolina and Tampa Bay. Both teams though lost yesterday. So that takes it a winner take all game on Saturday for the division and the final playoff spot. >> There you go. You'll be watching. >> Oh, for sure. >> Dave Martin, appreciate it. Thank you. >> Thank you, Paul. >> Take care. >> And that's all for today's news. For around the clock original news coverage, visit us at ntd.com/live or download our NTD app. Thanks for tuning in. I'm Paul Grainy. Good night.