International
Third hearing of former Colombian paramilitary leader held
May 16 |
This Monday, Salvatore Mancuso, former commander of the now defunct United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC), held his third hearing before the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), in which he confirmed his support for electoral campaigns and links with various officials.
Mancuso expanded the information on the links between paramilitaries, the Army, politicians and officials, as well as the influence and support of paramilitarism in electoral campaigns, including those of former President Álvaro Uribe (2002-2010).
“Your Honor, it is very important for you to know that many of these politicians came to the Self-Defense, to seek support (…) we basically sought out others when we were at the beginning of our political participation, to support them in some popularly elected positions,” he said.
This, he continued, with the aim of showing “that we had the capacity to appoint people to popularly elected positions at the national level, not only at the local and regional level”.
The AUC “intervened directly in the congressional elections of May 10, 2002 and also in the May 2002 presidential elections,” he said.
“There was also support in elections, for example, for Horacio Serpa, for President (Andres) Pastrana (1998-2002) and for Uribe,” revealed the former paramilitary leader, who gave his testimony before the JEP via videoconference from the United States (U.S.).
Mancuso is currently in a US prison serving a sentence of almost 16 years on drug trafficking charges. In Colombia, he is pending trial for more than 1,700 crimes.
The former paramilitary, who must be extradited to Colombia when his sentence in the U.S. ends, seeks to enter the JEP and submit to restorative justice, with the intention of obtaining sentence reductions in this South American country.
In past hearings before the JEP, Mancuso revealed the disappearance of more than 200 people in crematorium ovens, as well as in mass graves in Venezuelan territory.
He also acknowledged contacts with Venezuelan military and politicians to execute a coup plan against then President Hugo Chavez.
This Tuesday will be Mancuso’s fourth and last single truth hearing, in which he is expected to talk about the links between the now defunct Administrative Department of Security (DAS) and criminal groups.
International
Trump says Jimmy Kimmel show suspension due to poor ratings, not politics
U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed any political motive behind ABC’s suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s show, stating that the decision is due to “poor viewership ratings” and not a reaction to Kimmel’s comments about the death of Charlie Kirk.
The suspension of Kimmel’s program was announced yesterday and coincided with the comedian’s remarks regarding Kirk’s death and the reactions of prominent Republican figures in the United States.
However, Trump, on his social media platform Truth Social, emphasized that the cancellations of both Kimmel’s and Stephen Colbert’s shows are due to low ratings and limited audience reach.
“Good news for the United States: Jimmy Kimmel’s show, with terrible ratings, has been canceled! Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to make this decision. Kimmel has no talent, and his ratings are even worse than Colbert’s, if that’s possible. Now only Jimmy and Seth remain, two failures, on the fake news network NBC. Their ratings are also catastrophic,” Trump wrote.
ABC announced on Wednesday that Jimmy Kimmel’s variety show will be taken off the air “indefinitely,” following threats of legal action from the U.S. government after the host made comments on the political repercussions of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
International
Padilla and Durbin seek oversight as deportation of Guatemalan minors sparks legal concerns
Democratic Senators Alex Padilla and Dick Durbin have demanded explanations from President Donald Trump’s administration regarding its plans to deport dozens of unaccompanied Guatemalan children in U.S. custody, without allowing them the chance to defend their immigration cases.
The lawmakers said on Wednesday that they have requested oversight hearings in the Senate to compel the White House to respond about the planned deportations, which were initially scheduled for August 31 but remain on hold due to a court order.
According to lawyers representing ten children aged 10 to 16 who filed a lawsuit, the administration violated due process by ignoring ongoing immigration cases and disregarding the special protections granted to minors who crossed the border from Mexico alone.
Under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA), unaccompanied immigrant children in the U.S. generally have the opportunity to appear before an immigration judge before being deported.
Padilla and Durbin’s demand comes after a report by the Government Accountability Project (GAP) alleged that the Trump administration misrepresented the safety of unaccompanied Guatemalan children under its care in order to justify removing them from the country.
The report revealed that at least 30 of the 327 Guatemalan children the administration attempted to deport “show signs” of having been victims of abuse, including death threats, gang violence, human trafficking, or expressed fear of returning to Guatemala.
However, Angie Salazar, director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), which maintains custody of the children, testified in court under penalty of perjury that these children showed no evidence of abuse or neglect by a parent or guardian.
International
Trump criticizes Putin, calls Ukraine war “one of the deadliest conflicts”
U.S. President Donald Trump expressed his disappointment on Thursday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, stating that the war in Ukraine would have been easier to resolve due to the personal relationship they share, but has instead become one of the deadliest conflicts.
During a press conference following a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the official Chequers residence, Trump said he has successfully negotiated the end of seven armed conflicts, though he admitted that the war in Ukraine has been particularly challenging.
The president noted that he initially thought the Russia-Ukraine conflict would be “one of the easiest” to negotiate. However, he cautioned that “you never know in war” and often things “happen in the opposite way than expected.”
When asked why he was disappointed, Trump stated that Putin “is killing a lot of people,” adding that “Russian soldiers are being killed in greater numbers than Ukrainians.”
Prime Minister Starmer emphasized that the United Kingdom continues to work alongside the United States to halt “the killing in Ukraine.” He noted that in recent days, Putin has revealed his true intentions by ordering the most devastating attack since the invasion began in 2022, resulting in more civilian casualties and new violations of NATO airspace.
“President Trump and I have discussed how we can strengthen our defenses, maintain support for Ukraine, and increase international pressure to force Putin to accept a lasting peace agreement,” Starmer said.
The joint statement came on the second day of President Trump’s state visit to the United Kingdom, from the Chequers country residence in Aylesbury, about 60 kilometers from London.
Trump says Jimmy Kimmel show suspension due to poor ratings, not politics
Padilla and Durbin seek oversight as deportation of Guatemalan minors sparks legal concerns
Trump criticizes Putin, calls Ukraine war “one of the deadliest conflicts”
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