Ukraine halts pipeline carrying Russian natural gas to Europe, as deal expires
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(LONDON) — Ukraine stopped the flow of Russian natural gas through its territory to Europe at 7 a.m. on Wednesday, as a long-held deal expired, Kyiv officials said.
“We stopped the transit of Russian gas, this is a historic event,” Herman Galushchenko, Ukraine’s energy minister, said in a statement. “Russia is losing markets, it will suffer financial losses.”
The move had been expected, as Galushchenko and other officials signaled they were preparing to stop the transnational pipelines and discussing the move with neighboring nations.
“We have undergone a series of stress tests of our gas system in order to be sure that after the transit is closed, we will be able to function stably, ensuring gas supply to consumers,” Galushchenko said on Ukrainian TV last week, according to his office.
Natural gas exported by Russia through Ukraine has long been used by European countries, including Slovakia, which had pushed for Ukraine and Russia to reach a deal to continue the transit.
Russia’s gas giant Gazprom confirmed the stoppage, telling state-affiliated TASS news agency that Kyiv had refused to extend the transit deal.
“The supply of Russian gas for its transportation through Ukraine stopped at 8:00 a.m. Moscow time,” Gazprom said in a statement, according to TASS.
The deal had provided for about 40 billion cubic meters of Russian gas to transit through Ukrainian territory each year, according to TASS.
(LONDON) — Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov riffed on President Donald Trump’s suggestion that Ukrainians “may be Russians some day,” as both Moscow and Kyiv maneuver for leverage in revived peace talks the White House hopes will end nearly three years of full-scale war.
Peskov told reporters at a Tuesday briefing that the situation in Ukraine “largely corresponds to President Trump’s words.”
President Vladimir Putin’s spokesperson was referring to remarks made by Trump during an interview with Fox News which aired on Monday. The president told Bret Baier of his plans to secure U.S. access to $500 billion worth of rare earth metals located in Ukraine in exchange for continued American backing.
“They have tremendously valuable land in terms of rare earth, in terms of oil and gas and other things,” Trump said. “I want to have our money secured because we’re spending hundreds of billions of dollars and, you know, they may make a deal. They may not make a deal.”
“They may be Russians some day or may not be Russians some day,” Trump then added.
On Tuesday morning, Peskov said Trump’s remarks indicated the situation on the ground in Ukraine — often referred to by Putin and other Russian officials as the “new territorial realities” of Russian military occupation.
“The fact that a significant part of Ukraine wants to become Russia, and has already, is a fact,” Peskov told reporters, referring to Moscow’s claimed 2022 annexation of four Ukrainian regions, not all of which Russian forces actually control.
Asked if Trump’s peace proposals had a chance of success, Peskov replied, “Any phenomenon can happen with a 50% probability — either yes or no.”
Oleksandr Merezhko, a member of the Ukrainian parliament and the chair of the body’s foreign affairs committee, told ABC News of Trump’s comments, “It will never happen.”
“We saw what life under Russia might look like for Ukrainians in Bucha and Irpin,” Merezhko added, referring to the Kyiv suburbs briefly occupied by Russian forces in 2022 and where evidence of executions, torture and other abuses against civilians were uncovered after Moscow’s retreat.
“Trump’s statement means that he needs to communicate more with [President Volodymyr] Zelenskyy to understand the real picture,” Merezhko said.
Zelenskyy has expressed openness to Trump’s rare earth metals proposal. “The Americans helped the most, and therefore the Americans should earn the most,” Zelenskyy said in an interview with Reuters last week.
Zelenskyy this weekend told ITV News he “would be ready for any format for talks” if there was “an understanding that America and Europe will not abandon us and they will support us and provide security guarantees.”
Trump said Monday that his Ukraine-Russia envoy Keith Kellogg would visit Ukraine this week as the White House formulates a peace plan.
Zelenskyy is also expected to meet with Vice President JD Vance at next weekend’s landmark Munich Security Conference in southern Germany.
Zelenskyy has repeatedly rejected any suggestion of territorial concessions to Russia in exchange for peace, though has acknowledged it may not be possible to free the occupied territories via military means.
ABC News’ Cheyenne Haslett contributed to this report.
(LONDON) — The Israel Defense Forces continues its intense airstrike and ground campaigns in Gaza, particularly in the north of the strip. A latest round of peace talks to end the 15-month-old war has resumed in Qatar, with high-level delegations traveling to Doha.
Meanwhile, the November ceasefire in Lebanon is holding despite ongoing Israeli airstrikes on Hezbollah targets, which Israeli officials say are responses to ceasefire violations by the Iranian-backed militant group. Israeli forces also remain active inside the Syrian border region as victorious rebels there build a transitional government.
Tensions remain high between Israel and Iran after tit-for-tat long-range strikes in recent months and threats of further military action from both sides. The IDF and the Yemeni Houthis also continue to exchange attacks.
Israel waiting to hear back from Hamas on ceasefire agreement
Israel is currently waiting to hear back from Hamas on the most recent draft language of a ceasefire deal, sources told ABC News.
The two sides are reportedly closer to an agreement than ever before, according to a spokesperson for Qatar Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim bin Jabr Al Thani.
“The ongoing talks in Doha regarding Gaza are fruitful, positive and focus on the final details. Meetings are underway in Doha between the parties to the agreement and we are awaiting updates from them,” the spokesperson told ABC News.
Implementation of the agreement will begin shortly after it is announced, according to the spokesperson.
Qatar expecting ceasefire deal ‘soon’
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said at a Tuesday briefing that participants in the ongoing Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha are close to a ceasefire deal.
“We expect the agreement to be announced soon,” the spokesperson said during the press conference.
Qatar is a key mediator between Israel and Hamas and has hosted several rounds of ceasefire talks in the capital Doha.
-ABC News’ Nasser Atta
61 Palestinians killed in Gaza as ceasefire talks continue
The Gaza Ministry of Health said Tuesday that Israel Defense Forces strikes killed at least 61 Palestinians in the previous 24 hours and injured 281 more in the Hamas-run territory.
The total number of Palestinians killed since the war broke out on Oct. 7, 2023, is now 46,645 with 110,012 people injured, according to the ministry.
-ABC News’ Somayeh Malekian
Hamas says Gaza talks are in ‘final stages’
Hamas said in a statement Tuesday that ceasefire, prisoner and hostage release talks with Israel are in their “final stages,” adding it hopes “that this round of negotiations will end with a clear and comprehensive agreement.”
In a statement posted to the group’s website, Hamas said it held meetings and consultations with leaders of other Palestinian factions regarding the progress made in ongoing negotiations in Doha, Qatar.
“During these contacts, the leaders of the forces and factions expressed their satisfaction with the course of the negotiations, stressing the need for general national preparation for the next stage and its requirements,” Hamas said.
-ABC News’ Nasser Atta
Israel hoping for ceasefire announcement ‘soon,’ official says
An Israeli government official told ABC News on Tuesday morning they “hope we can announce something soon” regarding a potential ceasefire in Gaza.
The official said there had been “real progress” on every part of the negotiation in the last few days.
The official added that Hamas has changed and they are no longer “dictating” the terms, but are negotiating. “We are close, but not there yet,” they said.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
Sirens sound in central Israel after projectile launched from Yemen: IDF
A projectile was fired from Yemen towards Israel, the IDF said in a release early Tuesday morning local time.
Sirens were sounded in a number of areas in central Israel, the IDF said.
Latest on hostages in ceasefire deal
Thirty-three hostages, living and dead, are expected to be freed in the first phase of the ceasefire deal, according to a person with direct knowledge of the ongoing negotiations.
There are 94 abductees remaining in Gaza, including 34 who have been confirmed dead, according to Israeli officials.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
‘Real chance’ of ceasefire success, source says
A source close to the ongoing Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar told ABC News that Israel is waiting for Hamas to approve moving into a final “closing round of negotiations,” adding there is a “real chance” for a “breakthrough” after a diplomatic blitz in Doha this weekend.
“We still have ahead of us a closing round of negotiations,” the source added
Reuters reported Monday that mediators in Qatar handed both Israel and Hamas a final draft of the ceasefire proposal, citing an official briefed on the negotiations.
Reuters reported that the official said a breakthrough was reached after talks between Steve Witkoff — President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy — the Qatari prime minister and Israeli spy chiefs.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, meanwhile, said Monday “there is progress,” and that the situation “looks much better than previously.”
“I don’t want to say more than that because I realize there are families and they are sensitive to every word, and every sentence,” Saar added. “I hope that within a short time we will see things happening, but it is still to be proved.”
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller and Guy Davies
Far-right minister says potential Gaza ceasefire deal represents ‘catastrophe’
Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said he will not support the potential Gaza ceasefire deal currently being negotiated in Qatar, describing it as “a catastrophe for the national security of Israel.”
“We will not be part of a surrender deal that would include releasing arch terrorists, stopping the war and destroying its achievements that were bought with much blood and abandoning many hostages,” Smotrich wrote in a post to X on Monday.
“Now is the time to continue with all our might, to occupy and cleanse the entire strip, to finally take control of humanitarian aid from Hamas and to open the gates of hell on Gaza until Hamas surrenders completely and all the hostages are returned.”
-ABC News’ Dana Savir
Netanyahu spoke with Biden on ceasefire and hostage deal
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he spoke with President Joe Biden on Sunday about progress in negotiating a ceasefire and hostage deal.
A senior White House administration official confirmed the call to ABC News.
“The Prime Minister discussed with the US President the progress in negotiations for the release of our hostages, and updated him on the mandate he gave to the negotiating delegation to Doha, in order to promote the release of our hostages,” Netanyahu’s office wrote in a release about the call.
According to the White House, Biden and Netanyahu “discussed the fundamentally changed regional circumstances following the ceasefire deal in Lebanon, the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, and the weakening of Iran’s power in the region.”
The call comes as Brett McGurk, the White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa, is in the Middle East for negotiations. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday that McGurk is there to hammer out the “final details” of an agreement.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller and Michelle Stoddart
100 days of Israel’s north Gaza assault
Sunday marked 100 days since the Israel Defense Forces launched its military operation in northern Gaza, with the toll of dead and missing Palestinians now at 5,000 people, according to a report published by the Gaza media office in the Hamas-run territory.
Some 9,500 more people have been injured and 2,600 have been detained including women and children, the report said.
Israel continues striking targets across the strip. Over the last 24 hours, IDF attacks killed 24 Palestinians, according to data published by the Palestinian Health Ministry.
The report added that 46,565 Palestinians have been killed by Israel throughout Gaza since the war began in October 2023, with another 109,660 people injured.
Israeli attacks in the north of Gaza have targeted civilian infrastructures and hospitals, which combined with a siege of the area have worsened a humanitarian crisis there.
Calling for an end to the war, the Gaza media office report urged the international community — including the UN — to take immediate action to stop the assault and address the humanitarian crisis in the strip.
Israeli strikes on Gaza continued as Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dispatched senior negotiators to Qatar for ceasefire, prisoner and hostage release talks attended by President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming Middle East adviser, Steven Witkoff, and President Joe Biden’s outgoing adviser, Brett McGurk.
-ABC News’ Samy Zyara and Jordana Miller
High-level delegations gather in Doha for Gaza talks
For the first time in months, Israeli sources are expressing cautious optimism that a Gaza ceasefire may be within reach before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
Officials close to the matter told ABC News on Sunday that a high-level Israeli delegation led by the head of the Mossad — David Barnea — arrived in Doha, Qatar, for a critical round of talks.
Others participating are Egyptian and U.S. officials including President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming Middle East adviser, Steven Witkoff, and President Joe Biden’s outgoing adviser, Brett McGurk.
Witkoff made a surprise visit to Israel Saturday and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
According to Israel’s Channel 12, progress on some issues has been made — including the ratio of Palestinian prisoners to be released and the details of the Israel Defense Forces’ redeployment.
But some outstanding issues remain, including whether Hamas can provide Israel with a list of hostages who are alive. A Hamas official told Saudi media on Saturday that the group is ready to show flexibility.
The first phase of the deal is expected to last six to eight weeks, as the report suggests. A leaked hostage list by Hamas shows the names of two Americans to be released in the first phase. Seven Americans are among the 94 hostages, three of whom are presumed to still be alive.
All 181 passengers and crew aboard a passenger jet that crashed upon landing in South Korea on Sunday morning are presumed dead except for two people rescued from the wreckage, authorities said.
Jeju Air Flight 2216 was landing at Muan International Airport around 9 a.m. local time when the plane went off the runway and crashed into a wall.
There were a total of 175 passengers and six crew members aboard the Boeing 737 aircraft, which had taken off from Bangkok, according to the Korean Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport. The official death toll, which has been provided by the National Fire Agency, has climbed steadily in the hours since the crash.
The transport ministry was on the scene investigating the cause of the crash, and details of what happened were beginning to come into focus. Prior to the plane’s crash landing, the control tower issued a warning of a possible bird strike, the ministry said. About a minute after that warning, a pilot sent a mayday distress signal, after which the tower issued permission for the aircraft to land, the ministry said.
According to the Air and Railway Investigation Committee, the aircraft’s “black boxes” were recovered from the wreckage. The plane’s flight data recorder (FDR) was found partially damaged and its cockpit voice recorder (CVR) was collected intact, officials said.
Decrypting the FDR data could take about a month, according to officials. However, if the damage to the FDR is severe, it may have to be sent to the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) for decoding, which could take more than six months, officials said.
Video from the scene at the time of the crash appears to show the landing gear was up when the plane touched down, possibly indicating some sort of malfunction, and it also appears the plane landed at a high speed. Videos taken at the scene showed flames and a thick column of dark smoke at the crash site.
As of 1 p.m. local time, authorities said the plane had completely burned. A temporary morgue was being set up at the airport.
By about 8 p.m., the official death toll had climbed to 176 people, the National Fire Agency said. Eighty-three of the dead were women and 82 were men, the agency said, adding that another 11 bodies remained unidentified. According to the flight manifest, there were five children under 10 years old on the flight, the youngest of them 3 years old.
A man and a woman were rescued from the wreckage and were taken to the hospital, according to the transport ministry. Both were crew members, the fire agency said. Their conditions were not released.
Initially, there were conflicting reports on the number of people rescued.
Jeju Air is a South Korean low-cost carrier that operates an all Boeing fleet, with 42 planes and nearly 3,000 staff.
“We deeply apologize to all those affected by the incident at Muan Airport,” Jeju Air said in a notice posted in English on its website. “We will make every effort to resolve the situation. We sincerely regret the distress caused.”
The website’s landing page replaced Jeju Air’s logotype, which is usually orange, with an all-black version.
The NTSB posted on X Sunday that it is “leading a team of U.S. investigators (NTSB, Boeing and FAA) to assist the Republic of Korea’s Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board (ARAIB)” with their investigation of the crash, adding that the ARAIB would release any information about the investigation “per international protocols.”
Boeing was in contact with Jeju Air regarding the crash and was “standing ready to support them,” a Boeing spokesperson told ABC News earlier.
“We extend our deepest condolences to the families who lost loved ones, and our thoughts remain with the passengers and crew,” the spokesperson said.
Muan, a city of roughly 90,000 people, is located in southwest South Korea.
ABC News’ Jessica Gorman, Victoria Beaule and Rashid Haddou contributed to this report.
