International
10 dead in recent Colombia rebels clash: rights group
January 12 | By AFP |
At least 10 people are believed to have died in recent fighting between armed rebel groups in Colombia near the Venezuelan border, Human Rights Watch said Wednesday.
“The information we have received reports at least 10 deaths in the department of Arauca as a result of clashes between the ELN (National Liberation Army) and the dissidents of FARC,” the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, wrote Juan Pappier, a researcher with the international rights group, on Twitter.
The office of the ombudsman in Colombia, without specifying the number of fatalities, reported “the discovery of several bodies of men killed in fighting” that took place Monday and Tuesday in the small town of Puerto Rondo, in northeastern Colombia.
Neither the government nor military authorities have reacted to the announcements.
ELN fighters in the region are engaged in bloody conflict with FARC dissidents, with both groups having rejected a historic 2016 peace agreement with the government as well as a recent truce announced by the government of new President Gustavo Petro.
Petro, the country’s first leftist leader, had declared on New Year’s Eve that a temporary truce had been reached with the country’s five largest armed groups, including the ELN, from January 1 to June 30.
But the ELN a few days later said it had not agreed to any such measure, forcing the government to walk back its major declaration, a reversal that dampened hopes for an end to decades of violence that has continued despite the 2016 peace agreement with the FARC.
Insurgents and drug traffickers battle over remote areas of the South American country as they seek to expand their territory and control over the cocaine trade.
In January 2022 ELN and other rebels engaged in fierce fighting in Arauca, leaving 50 people dead.
Peace talks between the ELN and the government will resume later this month in Mexico City.
International
Four suspected PCC members killed in Police shootout in Florianópolis
At least four armed men, allegedly linked to an organized crime group, were killed Sunday night during a shootout with police officers at Ponta das Canas beach on the island of Florianópolis, capital of the southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina, local media reported on Monday.
According to the Santa Catarina Military Police, one of the men killed was a native of the state of São Paulo (southeast) and identified as a leader of the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), a gang that controls drug trafficking in the Papaquara community in northern Florianópolis, one of Brazil’s most popular tourist areas.
Police said officers were conducting a patrol in the Ponta das Canas neighborhood when they noticed a man entering a house in a hurry, raising suspicion. Upon entering the residence, they encountered four heavily armed individuals.
During the police operation, one of the suspects reportedly attempted to seize an officer’s rifle, triggering the exchange of gunfire. “Faced with the imminent threat and the criminals’ high firepower, the officers responded to stop the aggression,” the Military Police said on social media.
International
U.S. uses $4.65 billion in emergency funds to sustain SNAP benefits amid shutdown
The U.S. government will use $4.65 billion from an emergency fund to finance payments under SNAP, the country’s primary food assistance program, covering roughly “50% of benefits for eligible households,” according to a Department of Agriculture official in court filings.
The administration, however, does not plan to make up the funding shortfall through other resources, as noted in documents submitted to a federal court in Rhode Island.
This announcement follows a federal judge’s order in Providence — one of two issued last week — requiring the government to tap emergency funds to ensure the program remains operational.
The Trump administration argues that SNAP is running out of money amid a month-long federal government shutdown, triggered by a budget standoff between Democrats and Republicans who continue to blame each other for the crisis.
President Trump said on Friday that he was willing to release the necessary funds if the courts required it and emphasized that he does not want “Americans to go hungry.”
Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic minority leader in the House of Representatives, accused Trump and the Republican Party on Sunday of “weaponizing hunger” during the political dispute.
International
U.S. strike in Caribbean kills three suspected drug traffickers
A U.S. strike on a suspected drug-smuggling vessel in the Caribbean killed three people on Saturday, according to Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth, marking the latest in a series of attacks in international waters.
The United States has deployed ships to the Caribbean and sent fighter jets to Puerto Rico as part of a large military force that Washington says is aimed at curbing drug trafficking.
“This vessel, like all the others, was known to our intelligence for being involved in illicit narcotics smuggling,” Hegseth stated on X. “Three narcoterrorists were aboard the vessel during the attack, which took place in international waters,” he added.
Experts argue that the attacks, which began in early September, amount to extrajudicial executions, even if the targets are known traffickers.
Washington has yet to publicly provide evidence that the targeted individuals were actively smuggling drugs or posed a threat to the United States.
Hegseth said the U.S. would continue “hunting… and killing” suspected traffickers. He also shared video footage of the strike, showing the vessel being hit and engulfed in flames. As in previous videos, sections of the ship were blurred, making it impossible to verify the number of people on board.
The United Nations called on Friday for Washington to halt its attacks.
Four suspected PCC members killed in Police shootout in Florianópolis
U.S. uses $4.65 billion in emergency funds to sustain SNAP benefits amid shutdown
U.S. strike in Caribbean kills three suspected drug traffickers
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
International3 days agoFloods in Central Vietnam leave 28 dead, thousands displaced
-
International4 days agoHurricane Melissa kills over 30, leaves thousands displaced in the Caribbean
-
International4 days agoU.S. considering airstrikes on military sites in Venezuela, reports say
-
International5 days agoHurricane Melissa leaves Jamaican residents homeless as recovery efforts begin
-
International5 days agoUS Deputy Secretary criticizes Mexico’s call to end Cuba trade embargo at UN
-
International5 days agoVenezuela warns citizens who call for invasion risk losing nationality
-
International5 days agoTrump orders immediate U.S. nuclear testing, ending 30-year moratorium
-
International5 days agoMexico advances continental shelf claims at UN Commission in New York
-
International1 day agoAt least 23 killed in Sonora supermarket blast, including minors
-
International4 days agoTrump sets historic low refugee cap at 7,500, prioritizes white South Africans
-
International5 days agoBrazilian president defends coordinated anti-drug operations after deadly Rio raid
-
International4 days agoUNICEF: Over 700,000 children affected by Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean
-
International3 days agoFBI foils ISIS-Inspired attack in Michigan, arrests five teens
-
International4 days agoPope Leo XIV revives Global Compact on Education to confront cultural crisis
-
International4 days agoU.S. warns China over Taiwan during high-level defense talks in Kuala Lumpur
-
International5 days agoSimeón Pérez Marroquín, ‘El Viejo,’ detained for role in Miguel Uribe Turbay assassination plot
-
International1 day agoU.S. strike in Caribbean kills three suspected drug traffickers
-
International5 hours agoU.S. uses $4.65 billion in emergency funds to sustain SNAP benefits amid shutdown
-
International5 hours agoFour suspected PCC members killed in Police shootout in Florianópolis