International

Drought affects 62 municipalities in Brazilian Amazon

Photo: EFE

October 30 |

The severe drought in the Brazilian state of Amazonas extends to its 62 municipalities, of which 60 have already been declared in an emergency situation and the remaining have entered a state of attention which has affected 608,000 people and 152,000 families, authorities in the area reported on Sunday.

According to witnesses, this is the longest drought recorded in 121 years in the city of Manaus, the state capital, while the elevation of the Rio Negro has remained since Friday at 12.7 meters, the lowest recorded since 1902. The record for the highest elevation of the riverbed was 30.02 meters on June 16, 2021.

According to the Civil Defense, from January to October 25, 2023, 18,170 hot spots have been registered throughout the state, 2,500 of them in the metropolitan region of Manaus, and in the last month alone there have been 3,368, more than double the number of the same period in 2022.

The scenario responds to the increasingly marked influence of the El Niño phenomenon, characterized by the weakening of the trade winds and the abnormal warming of surface waters in the eastern portion of the equatorial region of the Pacific Ocean, which influences behavioral changes and sudden death of animals.

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These variations in the interaction between the ocean and the lower atmosphere occur at time intervals that vary between three and seven years, bringing negative consequences for the climate in different parts of the planet.

This phenomenon is also due to the adoption of new patterns of moisture transport, affecting the temperature and distribution of precipitation of air masses in the Pacific Ocean.

International

Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka

Japanese police arrested a man on Thursday after he rammed his car into a group of seven schoolchildren in an apparent deliberate attack in the city of Osaka.

The children, who were on their way home from school, sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. All seven remained conscious, according to local authorities.

An Osaka police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspect is a 28-year-old man from Tokyo. The officer shared statements the man made after his arrest: “I was fed up with everything, so I decided to kill people by driving into several elementary school children,” the suspect reportedly said.

The man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.

The injured children, aged between seven and eight, included a seven-year-old girl who suffered a fractured jaw. The six other children—all boys—suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scratches and were undergoing medical evaluation.

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Witnesses described the car as “zigzagging” before hitting the children. One witness told Nippon TV that a girl was “covered in blood” and the others appeared to have scratches.

Another witness said the driver, who was wearing a face mask, looked to be in shock when school staff pulled him from the vehicle.

Violent crimes are rare in Japan, though serious incidents do occur from time to time. In 2008, Tomohiro Kato drove a two-ton truck into pedestrians in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, then fatally stabbed several victims. Seven people were killed in that attack.

Internacionales

Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages

May Day protests in France were marked by a heavy police presence and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in several cities.

In Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, thousands took to the streets to demand better wages, fairer working conditions, and to voice their dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron’s government.

While the majority of the demonstrations remained peaceful, isolated confrontations broke out in some areas. Protesters threw objects at the police, prompting the use of tear gas and resulting in several arrests.

Videos showing police crackdowns circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism from labor unions and human rights advocates, who denounced the authorities’ response to the protests.

International

Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.

During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.

“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.

“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”

Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.

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On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.