International
37 people killed in Gaza in Israel’s attacks in the last 24 hours
At least 37 people died and 68 were injured in the Israeli attacks of the last 24 hours in the Gaza Strip, according to the count of the Gaza Ministry of Health, controlled by Hamas.
In its daily report on the data collected by the hospitals of the Strip, the ministry reported “four massacres against families” in the Palestinian enclave.
At least nine people from the same family, six of them children, died in one of the attacks that hit a residential building in the Tel Sultan neighborhood, in the west of the southern city of Rafah.
The dead are Abdel Fatah Sobhi, 42 years old; Majla Ahmed, 37; Rawan Sobhi, 26; Sama Ibrahim, 16 years old; Hamza Ibrahim, 7 years old; Alaa Ahmed Hassan and Lin Abdel Fatah, 5 years old each; Amer Abdel Fatah, two years old and Naya Abdel Fatah, one year old.
Their bodies were taken to the morgue of the Abu Yusef al Nayar hospital, where family and friends gave them the last goodbye between moments of anguish and despair, as EFE could see.
Thus, since the war between Israel and Hamas began, on October 7, 34,049 people have died and 76,901 have been injured in the Israeli offensive.
According to the official Palestinian news agency, Wafa, in the last morning alone at least ten people lost their lives in Israeli attacks in the south of the enclave: nine in the bombing in the city of Rafah and one in an attack on a house near the cemetery east of the same town.
For its part, the Israeli Army said today that it had destroyed a rocket launch site in the Beit Hanoun area, in northern Gaza, from where attacks on the Israeli town of Sderot had been detected.
Most of the victims were women and children, according to the media, which cites correspondents on the ground.
They also detailed that their troops slated down an alleged militiaman in a confrontation in the center of the enclave.
More than one and a half million people have been forced to leave their homes since the Israeli offensive began, most of whom are in the town of Rafah, on the border with Egypt.
Israel has announced that it plans to invade Rafah to eliminate four Hamas battalions that are allegedly hiding in the area, but a large part of the international community – including the United States, Israel’s main military ally – has warned that a land invasion in the south would cause an even greater humanitarian catastrophe.
Israel has announced that it plans to invade Rafah to eliminate four Hamas battalions that are allegedly hiding in the area, but a large part of the international community – including the United States, Israel’s main military ally – has warned that a land invasion in the south would cause an even greater humanitarian catastrophe.
Likewise, the Israeli Army said that it has killed “ten terrorists” during a raid that began on Thursday night in the Nur Shams refugee camp, in the town of Tulkarem, in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli forces also arrested eight people, destroyed an explosives laboratory and confiscated numerous weapons and military material, according to a military statement.
Eight soldiers and a border police officer were injured during the operation.
The Palestinian president, Mahmud Abbas, on Saturday described the United States’ veto in the UN Security Council to prevent Palestine’s entry into the United Nations as a full member of “flagrant aggression” against the rights of the Palestinian people and “challenge to the will of the international community.”
Abás also stressed that after this blockade he will reconsider bilateral relations with the United States, to ensure the protection of the interests of the Palestinians, their rights and their cause.
“We will reconsider bilateral relations with the United States to ensure the protection of the interests of our people, our cause and our rights,” said the president of the Palestinian National Authority (ANP), in an interview with the Palestinian news agency WAFA.
On Thursday, the US vetoed the resolution, which received the support of 12 members, the abstention of two (United Kingdom and Switzerland) and only Washington’s vote against.
The president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, met this Saturday in Istanbul with the head of the political bureau of Hamas, Ismail Haniye, assuring him of his support to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and finally a Palestinian state, the Turkish Presidency said in a statement.
The Turkish president received Haniye in the Dolmabahçe palace on the banks of the Bosphorus, the usual place of work meetings with foreign dignitaries, around 2.30 p.m. local time (11.00 gmt) and the meeting lasted about two and a half hours.
The conversation focused on the Israeli attacks on Gaza, the need to send an uninterrupted amount of humanitarian aid to the Strip and the process to achieve a just and lasting peace, the Turkish statement says.
Erdogan assured his guest that Turkey is making all possible diplomatic efforts to emphasize the need for an urgent ceasefire that would lead to the establishment of a Palestinian State, “a condition for a lasting peace in the region,” according to the note.
International
Mexico and U.S. Launch New Bilateral Security Group to Combat Fentanyl and Organized Crime
The governments of Mexico and the United States officially launched the Bilateral Implementation Group (BIG) on Friday, a new initiative aimed at strengthening cooperation on security issues and enhancing joint efforts against transnational crime.
In a statement, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson announced that he and Deputy Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco addressed officials from both countries who will lead what he described as a “new phase of bilateral cooperation.” The initiative seeks to curb the flow of fentanyl and other illicit drugs, illegal firearms, and human trafficking across the shared border.
Earlier this week, Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had confirmed that senior security officials from both nations would meet in Mexico City on June 12 to review and advance existing cooperation agreements.
Through social media, Ambassador Johnson explained that the new bilateral group is designed to improve coordination between the two governments by placing greater emphasis on implementation, accountability, and measurable results. The effort will also focus on combating transnational criminal organizations operating across North America.
“The participation of 15 U.S. government agencies, working alongside their Mexican counterparts, reflects the seriousness of this effort and our shared commitment to delivering measurable results,” Johnson said.
The ambassador also highlighted several achievements that he attributed to ongoing bilateral cooperation. According to Johnson, maritime drug trafficking into the United States has declined by more than 95 percent, while overdose deaths have fallen by 35 percent.
He further noted that Mexican authorities have seized more than 400 metric tons of illegal drugs and dismantled over 2,300 clandestine laboratories as part of their efforts to combat organized crime and narcotics production.
The launch of the Bilateral Implementation Group marks the latest step in the security partnership between Mexico and the United States, as both countries seek to address shared challenges related to drug trafficking, arms smuggling, human trafficking, and the activities of criminal networks operating across the region.
International
‘El Chapo’ Guzmán again asks Mexican president to seek his return from U.S. prison
Convicted drug trafficker Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán has once again appealed to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum to intervene on his behalf and seek his transfer from the United States to Mexico, where he hopes to serve the remainder of his prison sentence.
Guzmán, the former leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, is currently serving a sentence of more than 50 years in the United States after being convicted in 2019 on multiple charges, including drug trafficking and money laundering.
According to reports, the latest request was made in a letter dated June 2, one of several messages that Guzmán has reportedly sent to Sheinbaum in recent months in an effort to secure his repatriation. In the letter, he expresses hope that the Mexican government can support the efforts of his legal team.
Written in English and by hand, the letter asks that he be allowed to complete his sentence in Mexico, arguing that such a transfer would enable him to receive visits from family members more easily.
Guzmán is currently being held at the United States Penitentiary Administrative Maximum Facility in Florence, Colorado, commonly known as the “Alcatraz of the Rockies,” one of the most secure prisons in the United States.
As in previous communications, the former cartel leader complained about his prison conditions, stating that he remains in near-total isolation and has little to no contact with other inmates.
He also reiterated his long-standing claim that he did not receive a fair trial in the United States and argued that the Mexican government bears responsibility for much of the violence associated with organized crime in the country.
In the letter, Guzmán maintains that his actions were motivated by a desire to protect himself and his family amid the violence linked to criminal organizations in Mexico.
Mexican authorities have not publicly indicated whether they plan to respond to the request. Guzmán remains one of the most notorious figures in the history of international drug trafficking and is serving his sentence under some of the strictest security measures in the U.S. prison system.
Central America
U.S. Authorities Accuse Guatemalan Nationals of Using False Information to Sponsor Migrant Minors
Senior officials from the U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday criminal charges against three Guatemalan citizens accused of using false information to sponsor migrant children who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border without a parent or guardian.
According to an indictment filed in Ohio, Maritza Cahuec Coc allegedly submitted at least 12 sponsorship applications, several of which were filed under aliases or contained materially false statements intended to secure custody of the minors.
Under U.S. procedures, unaccompanied migrant children apprehended at the southern border are placed in the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services, which is responsible for their care until they can be released to a qualified sponsor, such as a parent or relative living in the United States.
Prosecutors allege that Cahuec Coc, who reportedly entered the United States illegally in 2018, received payments between late 2020 and 2023 for helping bring 12 migrant minors into the country. Authorities claim she submitted fraudulent documents and misleading information to obtain approval for the sponsorship requests.
The case was announced during a joint press conference led by Acting Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin. However, officials provided limited details about the investigation and instead focused much of their remarks on criticizing immigration policies implemented under the previous administration.
Republican lawmakers and Trump administration officials have frequently pointed to the increase in unaccompanied migrant children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border during President Joe Biden’s term, arguing that the government failed to adequately oversee their care and placement.
During Thursday’s briefing, A. Tysen Duva, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, alleged that Cahuec Coc used the identities of other individuals and falsely claimed family relationships in order to obtain custody of the children.
“Maritza submitted sponsorship applications using other people’s identities and falsely represented that the minors were the children of close relatives in order to secure their release,” Duva said.
The case remains under investigation, and federal authorities have not yet disclosed additional information regarding the other two Guatemalan nationals charged in connection with the alleged scheme.
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