International
At least 7 Palestinians killed and 12 injured in an Israeli raid in Yenin, in the northern West Bank
Seven Palestinians were killed on Tuesday in clashes unleashed in an Israeli Army rad in the Yenin refugee camp, in the north of the West Bank, one of the bastions of the Palestinian militia movement.
In addition, twelve Palestinians are injured, two of them in serious condition, according to the Ministry of Health.
Local sources informed the Palestinian agency Wafa that a journalist, Amr Manasra, was injured in the back in the vicinity of the Yenin hospital by shrapnel of Israeli bullets. Its state is stable, according to the latest information.
Among the dead are a surgeon from the Yenun hospital, Aseed Jabareen, “attacked at the entrances to the medical center,” teacher Allam Jadarat and a student who were in a school, according to the director of the hospital cited by the official Palestinian agency Wafa.
Wafa assures that Israeli forces broke into the Yenin camp with armored vehicles, which unleashed armed clashes both in the countryside and in other neighborhoods of the city and in the nearby village of Burqin.
For its part, the Israeli Army has limited itself to confirming its operation in Yenin, which it defined as “anti-terrorist.”
“These crimes will not stop the resistance of our people and their persistent quest to liberate their land, their holiness and achieve their national rights,” said the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in a statement on what they consider an extension of the war in Gaza.
Likewise, the group reproached the international community for “its silence” for not “condemning the aggressions” against its people and for not taking “deterrent measures” against Israel to assume the responsibilities of its “massacres.”
The occupied West Bank is experiencing its greatest spiral of violence since the Second Intifada (2000-05). So far this year, at least 184 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, most of them alleged militiamen or attackers, but also civilians, including more than thirty minors, according to the EFE count.
On the Israeli side, ten people have been killed in eight Palestinian attacks in 2024, including four uniformed personnel and six civilians, three of them settlers.
In Lebanon, the Israeli Army confirmed that it had killed a Hizbulah commander, Qasam Saqlawi, in charge of rockets and missiles, in an attack in the Tyre area.
“Yesterday, Monday, in the Tyre area of Lebanon, an Air Force plane attacked and eliminated the terrorist Qasam Saqlawi, commander of the set of rockets and missiles in the coastal sector of Hizbulah,” a military statement reported.
The Army attributes to Saqlawi the responsibility of planning and executing numerous rocket attacks against Israel, as well as anti-tank missiles.
Hezbollah – who yesterday claimed up to 13 attacks on Israel with missiles, rockets and artillery – confirmed this morning the death of a member of the same name, without offering details about his position or the circumstances of his death.
The border between Israel and Lebanon is experiencing its highest peak of tension since 2006 with an intense exchange of fire since October, which has claimed the lives of at least 423 people, most of them on the Lebanese side and in the ranks of Hezbollah, which has confirmed 286 militia casualties, some in Syria.
In northern Israel, 23 people, 13 soldiers and 10 civilians have died.
International
Senate Bipartisan Vote Moves Measure to Block Further U.S. Military Action in Venezuela
The U.S. Senate took a significant step on Thursday toward limiting President Donald Trump’s military authority in Venezuela, advancing a bipartisan war powers resolution that would block further military actions without explicit congressional approval, lawmakers said.
In a 52-47 procedural vote, the measure moved forward after five Republican senators joined all Democrats in supporting the effort. The resolution aims to require presidential authorization from Congress before the United States can engage in any new hostilities against Venezuela, a rare rebuke of Trump from both sides of the aisle following the controversial military operation that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
If ultimately passed, the legislation would obligate the administration to withdraw U.S. forces from any imminent hostilities in or against Venezuela unless Congress explicitly authorizes such actions. However, the measure’s future remains uncertain as it heads next to the House of Representatives, where a Republican majority is less likely to approve it, and any final version would likely face a presidential veto. Overriding a veto would require a two-thirds majority in both chambers, a high threshold in the current political landscape.
President Trump has sharply criticized Republican senators who broke ranks to support the resolution, saying they should not be re-elected and arguing that the measure undermines his authority to act in national defense. Nevertheless, the vote signals growing bipartisan concern in Congress about unchecked executive military action in the absence of legislative authorization.
International
Petro and Trump Agree on Joint Action Against ELN Guerrillas After Tense Diplomacy
Colombian President Gustavo Petro and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump agreed on “joint actions” to combat the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla group operating along the Colombia–Venezuela border, Colombia’s Interior Minister Armando Benedetti said on Thursday.
The announcement came after a period of heightened diplomatic tension triggered by recent U.S. airstrikes in Venezuela, the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and threats of possible U.S. military action in Colombia. The phone call Wednesday evening was the first direct conversation between Petro and Trump since both leaders took office, and it helped ease the strained relationship.
During the call, both presidents committed to carry out joint efforts against the ELN, a guerrilla group that has repeatedly attacked Colombian security forces and is accused of kidnapping soldiers. In December, the ELN declared a “armed strike,” confining civilians in areas under its control in response to perceived threats of U.S. intervention.
According to Benedetti, Petro welcomed Trump’s invitation to meet in Washington and asked for U.S. support to “strike hard” against ELN positions along the porous border with Venezuela, where guerrillas often flee after clashes with Colombian forces.
The border region is a longstanding flashpoint, where armed groups, drug traffickers and illegal mining networks compete for control. Previous attempts by Petro’s government to negotiate peace with the ELN have stalled after a major offensive in Catatumbo that left hundreds dead and displaced thousands.
International
Lula Vetoes Bill That Would Have Shortened Bolsonaro’s Prison Sentence
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva vetoed on Thursday a bill that would have significantly reduced the prison sentence of his far-right predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently serving time for attempting a coup d’état.
Despite the veto, the conservative-majority Congress retains the power to override the decision through a vote.
In September, following a landmark trial, Brazil’s Supreme Court sentenced Bolsonaro to 27 years in prison after finding him guilty of conspiring to remain in power in an “authoritarian” manner following his defeat to Lula in the 2022 presidential election.
The 70-year-old former president has been incarcerated in a Brasília prison since late November. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court rejected a request for house arrest on health grounds.
Under the current legal framework, Bolsonaro would be required to serve approximately eight years before becoming eligible for sentence leniency. However, a bill passed by Congress in December could have reduced that period to just over two years, prompting Lula’s veto.
Senate Bipartisan Vote Moves Measure to Block Further U.S. Military Action in Venezuela
Petro and Trump Agree on Joint Action Against ELN Guerrillas After Tense Diplomacy
Lula Vetoes Bill That Would Have Shortened Bolsonaro’s Prison Sentence
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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