International

Attack claims life of municipal prosecutor in Guerrero, Mexico

Photo: @24_morelos

December 6 |

José Casales, head of the Public Prosecutor’s Office in the municipality of Juan R. Escudero, located in the central zone of Guerrero, Mexico, died on Tuesday as a result of an attack perpetrated against him while he was traveling on the Chilpancingo to Acapulco highway, police sources reported.

The official was shot dead by armed individuals who intercepted him near the San José neighborhood, while the Guerrero Attorney General’s Office said in a statement that an investigation was opened for the crime of homicide.

Agents of the Ministerial Investigative Police and Expert Services went to the place of the facts, to carry out the corresponding acts of investigation to obtain the necessary evidence to clarify the circumstances of the death of the prosecutor.

A few weeks after this event, criminal gangs associated with drug trafficking murdered the director of the Municipal Police, Juan Carlos Vitrago Flores, and three officers while they were patrolling the main street of Tierra Colorada when they were confronted by armed individuals who shot at them.

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A few months earlier, on June 24, the bodyguard of the mayor of the municipality, Diana Carolina Costilla Villanueva, was also shot to death while entering a store. It also transpired that the mayoress was present at the time of the attack.

The municipality of Juan R. Escudero grabbed headlines and visits on social networks when a video was released in which five armed individuals threaten the inhabitants of Tierra Colorada with death if they leave their homes at night, which led to the suspension of the national holidays.

In addition, there have been aggressions, extortions, burning of buses against leaders and operators of public transportation, forcing a work stoppage for several days.

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.

International

Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition

he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.

Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.

Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”

International

Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may

The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.

The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”

The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”

Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.

The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.