International
Five mining villages in Peru left in rubble by mudslides
February 8th
Five villages in southern Peru were left in rubble after landslides caused by constant rains on Sunday and Monday, which washed away mud, water and rocks and swept away precarious facilities and homes in an area dedicated to informal gold mining.
Residents of the Mariano Nicolás Valcárcel municipality, settled in the foothills of a mining area, were looking for their belongings buried in the mud on Tuesday, while others with muddy shoes and desperate faces came from remote villages to ask for help.
One of them was Mauro Noa, leader of the Posco Miski village, who asked for help and food to assist more than a thousand residents trapped since Sunday on the side of a mountain. They cannot cross because an immense body of mud and stones has formed in the form of a river that surrounds the hill. “They are hungry and thirsty, no one remembers them,” he told The Associated Press.
Noa said that in 18 years he has never seen an avalanche like the one that fell Sunday in Posco Miski. He added that they have compiled a list of 14 residents of Posco Miski whose whereabouts are unknown. “People reacted in disarray, neighbors who could not leave their homes were carried away by the wave of mud,” Noa said. “Children have been traumatized, with the rain and the mudslide,” he added.
Police dispatched 15 rescuers who were scheduled to arrive in Secocha late in the afternoon because the road is blocked by mud, said agent Giancarlo Vizcarra.
The agent indicated that after arriving in Secocha carrying stretchers and ropes they will try to climb up to the most remote villages to look for bodies under the mud and for that purpose they were transporting two specialized dogs that work in earthquakes looking for people in the rubble.
A local Civil Protection official reported the day before that at least 36 people had died, however, a prosecutor told The Associated Press on Tuesday that they only had confirmation of 12 dead and three missing. The federal government has not given any new figures, although the president was touring the area to see the disaster and receive the latest reports.
The avalanche that fell on Sunday from the highest mountains swept away houses and everything in its path. Residents could only scream and wail as they watched the dense torrent of brown water and mud slide with force.
“We are isolated,” Arturo Muñoz, who lives high above the village of La Eugenia, where the mudslide began Sunday, told The Associated Press by phone Tuesday. The affected mining villages are in the municipality of Mariano Nicolas Valcarcel, in the province of Camana, Arequipa region.
Rescue tasks could not yet be deployed on Tuesday due to the difficulty of accessing the area with the relevant machinery, according to the local head of Civil Defense.
The main street of another of the settlements, Secocha, was still covered on Tuesday with a muddy mass that had penetrated through doors and windows. In that street, called Los Angeles, some people were cleaning the kitchens, refrigerators and televisions that until the weekend were working without problems in restaurants, hotels, clothing and food stores.
The prosecutor in charge of the event, Luis Supo, rectified the death toll that had been published on Monday, when it was said that 36 bodies had been recovered in the remote village of Posco Miski. The count was made known by Wilson Gutiérrez, Civil Defense official of the Mariano Nicolás Valcárcel municipality, to the local radio station RPP.
However, prosecutor Supo assured that as of Tuesday they had only received 12 bodies rescued from the avalanches and that three other people were missing.
Civil Defense also indicated on Monday that the landslides affected bridges, water intakes, irrigation canals, roads and houses and around 630 houses were left unusable. The impact of the landslides in the five affected villages was due to the fact that it is a downhill area of about 48 kilometers where miners have been installed for two decades to extract gold from pits.
Constant rains are frequent in February in Peru, a time when precipitation causes landslides that affect homes, but also public infrastructure, including bridges and roads.
International
Colombia to Send High-Level Delegation to Ecuador to Ease Trade Tensions
Colombia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Friday that, at the instruction of President Gustavo Petro, a high-level delegation will travel to Ecuador in an effort to normalize bilateral relations, which have deteriorated following the imposition of reciprocal tariffs.
“In line with Colombia’s policy of good neighborliness and the spirit of cooperation and integration that guides its foreign policy,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement, adding that the delegation will be led by Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio and Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez.
“Following instructions from the Presidency of the Republic, and as has been publicly reiterated, the Colombian delegation expects to reaffirm Colombia’s offer of support to the Republic of Ecuador to strengthen control over phenomena stemming from transnational organized crime,” the statement said.
The Foreign Ministry noted that the delegation will attend the meeting with a full willingness to engage in dialogue and to seek concrete solutions to the unilateral measures that have affected the longstanding relationship between the two neighboring countries.
Trade tensions between Ecuador and Colombia escalated on January 21, when Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboaimposed a 30% tariff on Colombian products, citing a lack of cooperation in anti-drug efforts. Colombia responded with similar measures and the suspension of energy exports, while Ecuador increased transportation costs for Colombian crude oil.
Business associations in both countries have warned that the dispute is harming both economies and have called on the governments to resolve their differences through dialogue.
International
Super Bowl Halftime Show Puts Bad Bunny—and Immigration Politics—Back in the Spotlight
The long-standing argument that sports and politics should not mix may be put to the test on Sunday during the Super Bowl halftime show, which will be headlined by Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny, a choice that has sparked backlash from segments of the U.S. right wing.
Just one week after his headline-making appearance at the Grammy Awards—where he sharply criticized the United States’ anti-immigration policies—Bad Bunny will once again take center stage on the global spotlight with his performance at the NFL final in Santa Clara, California.
Beyond the expectations surrounding the show itself, speculation has grown over whether the artist could again use the platform to protest policies associated with the administration of former President Donald Trump, in front of an audience expected to exceed 120 million viewers in the United States alone.
In fact, one of the most popular Super Bowl prop bets this year revolves around whether the Puerto Rican singer will deliver a direct message against ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement), similar to the one he delivered at the Grammys last Sunday.
While few expect Bad Bunny to repeat such a pointed statement, the mere speculation highlights the delicate balance the NFL must manage during the most-watched broadcast of the year.
The world’s most powerful sports league has drawn criticism from the MAGA movement since announcing in September that Bad Bunny would headline a halftime show largely performed in Spanish.
Trump himself declined to attend the matchup between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks, despite having made history last year as the first sitting U.S. president to attend a Super Bowl. He described the musical lineup—which also includes outspoken critics such as Green Day—as “a terrible choice” that would “sow hatred.” In response, his supporters have organized an alternative event dubbed the “All-American Halftime Show,” featuring like-minded artists such as Kid Rock.
International
Venezuela Debates Broad Amnesty Law Covering 27 Years of Chavismo
Venezuela’s Parliament began debating on Thursday a sweeping amnesty bill that would cover the 27 years of Chavismo in power, while explicitly excluding serious human rights violations and crimes against humanity.
The proposed legislation, titled the “Amnesty Law for Democratic Coexistence,” was introduced by interim President Delcy Rodríguez, who assumed power following the capture of Nicolás Maduro during a U.S. military operation.
The legislative session was convened for Thursday afternoon, with lawmakers holding an initial discussion focused on the general principles of the bill. This phase precedes a consultation process with civil society, after which the proposal will move to a final debate examining each article individually.
According to a draft of the bill obtained by AFP, the amnesty would apply to individuals accused of crimes such as “treason,” “terrorism,” and “incitement to hatred,” charges that were frequently brought against political prisoners over the past decades. The scope also includes offenses ranging from acts of rebellion to punishments imposed for social media posts or messages sent through private messaging services.
The bill’s explanatory text emphasizes reconciliation, stating that it seeks to move away from “vengeance, retaliation, and hatred” in favor of “opening a path toward reconciliation.”
However, the proposal explicitly excludes from its benefits crimes such as “serious human rights violations, crimes against humanity, war crimes, intentional homicide, corruption, and drug trafficking.”
These exclusions, the text notes, are based on strict compliance with the Venezuelan Constitution, which already prohibits granting amnesties or pardons for such offenses.
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