International
Colombian Truth Commission hands over grim final report on civil conflict
AFP
Colombia’s Truth Commission, established to probe atrocities committed during the country’s near six-decade civil conflict, presented its final, 896-page report on Tuesday.
The document is the product of years of work that included hearing testimony from more than 14,000 victims of the fighting between leftist guerillas, far-right paramilitary groups and state agents.
Authorities say the conflict resulted in some nine million people either killed, disappeared or displaced.
Also included in the report are the accounts of former fighters who gave up arms or are prisoners today, as well as soldiers and former presidents.
Priest Francisco de Roux, who headed the commission, handed the monster report to President-Elect Gustavo Petro during a ceremony at a theater in Bogota.
It makes for grim reading — packed with accounts of forced disappearances, rape, massacres and torture, and concludes that Colombians suffer from “collective traumas” passed down “from one generation to another.”
The Truth Commission, an extrajudicial body, is one of the entities set up as a form of victim reparation that came out of the 2016 peace pact that disarmed the FARC guerrilla group.
There is also a court to investigate and punish the worst crimes, and a special unit to find missing victims.
The report entitled “There is no future if there is no truth,” will be published in chapters over the next two months, when the commission will officially cease to exist.
The priest handed the report to Petro with 19 recommendations to give full effect to the peace pact, including seeking peace with the ELN, the last guerrilla group operating in the country.
Outgoing President Ivan Duque, who was critical of the 2016 peace deal and of negotiating with guerrillas, did not attend Tuesday’s ceremony.
Petro has said he would resume talks with the ELN, which were suspended under his predecessor.
Violence has flared up again in Colombia despite the peace accord.
Areas abandoned by the now-defunct FARC guerrilla group have become battle grounds for control of drug and illegal mining resources between armed groups — including FARC dissidents — holding many rural communities in a state of siege.
International
7 in 10 mexicans born poor stay poor, new report finds
Seven out of ten Mexicans born into poverty remain poor throughout their lives, highlighting an urgent need for public policies focused on promoting social mobility through equal opportunity, according to civil society organizations.
The 2025 Social Mobility Report in Mexico, published by the Espinosa Yglesias Center for Studies (CEEY), reveals that 73% of individuals born into the bottom 20% of income households in Mexico — Latin America’s second-largest economy — continue to live in poverty based on income.
The report signals a worrisome stagnation in social mobility, defined as the ability of individuals to improve their socioeconomic standing compared to that of their parents. This lack of upward movement indicates that one’s economic origins are largely inherited, according to CEEY.
Geographically, disparities are stark:
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In northern Mexico, 37% of those born in poverty remain there.
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In the south, that number rises dramatically to 64%.
Gender gaps are also evident. Among those born in wealthier households, women experience less upward mobility, with a rate of 47% compared to 53% for men.
The report also notes that 48% of economic inequality in Mexico stems from inequality of opportunity — placing Mexico among the top ten countries with the highest opportunity inequality across 50 nations analyzed globally.
International
Spain hits record 46°C in June amid scorching heatwave
Spain registered a record-breaking temperature of 46°C (114.8°F) on Saturday, June 28, in El Granado, Huelva — a southern town near the Portuguese border — marking the highest temperature ever recorded in June in the country, according to Spain’s national meteorological agency, Aemet.
The temperature was officially recorded at 4:40 p.m. local time, surpassing the previous June record of 45.2°C (113.4°F)set in Seville back in 1965, also in the Andalusia region.
Like many parts of Southern Europe, Spain is experiencing a severe heatwave, with large areas of the country facing temperatures above 40°C even though summer has just begun.
As one of Europe’s countries most vulnerable to climate change, Spain has endured its three hottest years on recordfrom 2022 to 2024, marked by repeated heatwaves and temperature extremes.
Climate scientists have long warned that global warming is amplifying the intensity, frequency, and duration of extreme weather events such as heatwaves and droughts — trends now evident across the Iberian Peninsula and the broader Mediterranean region.
International
Trump administration sues Los Angeles over sanctuary city policies
The Republican administration of Donald Trump filed a lawsuit on Monday against Los Angeles officials, challenging the city’s sanctuary policies as illegal amid an intensifying federal immigration crackdown.
The Department of Justice accused the Democratic-led city of interfering with federal immigration enforcement, arguing that its sanctuary policies have contributed to “violence, chaos, and attacks on law enforcement” recently seen in Los Angeles.
“The sanctuary city policies were the cause of violence, chaos, and attacks on law enforcement that Americans recently witnessed in Los Angeles,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi in an official statement.
The lawsuit, filed in a California federal court, names Mayor Karen Bass, City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, and the entire City Council as defendants.
While Los Angeles had long been considered a sanctuary city for immigrants, the City Council officially adopted the designation through a municipal ordinance in November last year, following Trump’s election to the presidency.
The legal action seeks to limit local authorities’ cooperation with federal immigration agents under Trump’s policies.
With over one-third of its population being immigrants, Los Angeles has become a flashpoint in the battle against Trump’s anti-immigration agenda, which began with his campaign promise to deport millions.
Tensions in the city escalated earlier this month after an increase in workplace immigration raids, sparking mass protests downtown. The situation further intensified when Trump overrode California Governor Gavin Newsom and ordered the deployment of thousands of National Guard troops and 700 U.S. Marines to the area.
7 in 10 mexicans born poor stay poor, new report finds
Spain hits record 46°C in June amid scorching heatwave
Trump administration sues Los Angeles over sanctuary city policies
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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