International
Bolivia files ‘genocide’ charges against ex-president Anez
AFP
The Bolivian prosecutor’s office said on Friday it had filed charges of “genocide” and other crimes against former acting president Jeanine Anez, over the death of 20 opposition protesters in 2019.
Attorney General Juan Lanchipa said he had presented documents “against citizen Jeanine Anez” before the country’s Supreme Court of Justice, including charges for “genocide,” which carries a sentence of 10 to 20 years in prison, according to the Bolivian penal code.
The conservative Anez came to power in November 2019 after her predecessor and rival, former president Evo Morales, resigned following weeks of protest over his controversial reelection to an unconstitutional fourth term.
He fled the country after an election audit by the Organization of American States (OAS) found evidence of fraud.
After the election, at least 37 people died in violence that flared between supporters and opponents of Morales, as well as between protesters and the security forces.
Most of the deaths came in clashes between Morales supporters and security forces after the socialist leader’s flight.
The specific accusation against Anez relates to two incidents in November 2019 in which a total 22 people died. A report released by the OAS on Tuesday described those incidents as “massacres.”
Lanchipa said they had been “provisionally classified as genocide, serious and minor injury, and injury followed by death.”
After Morales resigned, Anez was the most senior parliamentarian left and was sworn in by congress as interim president despite the lack of a quorum, with legislators from Morales’ Movement for Socialism (MAS) boycotting the session.
MAS cried foul and accused the interim government of having pulled off a coup.
Under Anez’s administration, Bolivia held peaceful, transparent elections in October 2020 in which Morales’s protege Luis Arce stormed to a landslide victory.
He subsequently vowed to go after those he accused of staging a coup.
Anez was arrested in March 2021 on accusations of leading a coup against Morales, including charges of terrorism, sedition and conspiracy. She has remained in pre-trial detention since then.
Her detention elicited widespread international condemnation.
International
Erin brings strong winds and storm surge despite weakening offshore
Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 2 storm on Tuesday but continues to pose a threat to parts of the U.S. East Coast with potentially dangerous flooding, according to meteorologists.
Although the hurricane’s eye is expected to remain offshore, experts are concerned about Erin’s size, as strong winds extend hundreds of kilometers beyond the storm’s center.
In its 18:00 GMT bulletin, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) lifted tropical storm warnings for the Bahamasand Turks and Caicos Islands, but kept them in effect for parts of North Carolina.
Erin was located several hundred kilometers southeast of North Carolina and was moving northwestward.
“This means there is a risk of potentially life-threatening flooding of 60 to 120 centimeters above ground level,” said NHC Director Michael Brennan.
He also warned of the possibility of destructive waves, combined with storm surge, that could cause severe damage to beaches and coastal areas, making roads impassable.
International
Three U.S. Warships deploy near Venezuela to combat drug trafficking
Three U.S. naval vessels are moving toward the coasts of Venezuela, according to international media reports on Tuesday, after White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt confirmed that President Donald Trump is ready to combat and curb international drug trafficking.
Reports indicate that the ships will reach Venezuelan waters within the next 36 hours as part of a recent U.S. deployment aimed at countering international narcotics operations.
The announcement coincides with Leavitt’s statement that Trump is prepared to “use the full extent of his power” to halt drug flows into the United States. The naval deployment involves approximately 4,000 military personnel.
“The President has been clear and consistent. He is ready to use every element of U.S. power to prevent drugs from flooding our country and to bring those responsible to justice. The Maduro regime is not the legitimate government of Venezuela—it is a narco-terror cartel,” the spokesperson said during a press conference.
International
Cuban authorities free salvadoran convicted in 1997 hotel bombing
Salvadoran national Otto René Rodríguez Llerena was released after serving a 30-year prison sentence for his involvement in a terrorist attack at a hotel in Cuba in 1997, the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported.
During his trial, Rodríguez Llerena admitted to placing an explosive device at the Meliá Cohiba Hotel under the orders of anti-Castro exile leaders. He was arrested the following year when he returned to Havana with another load of explosives that failed to detonate.
“The Cuban government reiterates its commitment to combating terrorism, respecting human rights, and the need for the international community to hold accountable those who promote such acts,” the statement read.
He was released on August 15 and is the second Salvadoran to complete his sentence. In December of last year, another Salvadoran, Ernesto Cruz León, was released after planting bombs at tourist centers, one of which killed an Italian tourist identified as Fabio Di Celmo.
A third Salvadoran, Francisco Chávez Abarca, also received a 30-year sentence from Cuban courts in 2010 after being extradited from Venezuela through Interpol for actions against Cuba.
Rodríguez Llerena had requested conditional release in 2016, arguing that his actions had not caused any direct fatalities, but no further information was released about his situation until now.
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