International

Petro launches ‘Mission Cauca’ strategy to guarantee security in southwestern Colombia

The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, and the Minister of Defense, Iván Velázquez, presented this Friday ‘Mission Cauca’, a strategy that seeks to transform the region and guarantee security in this convulsive area of the southwest of the country.

The operation will focus on “strengthening military and police operations in the department in order to neutralize organized armed groups and organized criminal groups, as well as their illicit economies mainly associated with drug trafficking, illicit mineral extraction and extortion,” the Presidency said in a statement.

This initiative, which is part of the National Development Plan and will be carried out by the State, the communities, local authorities and the private sector, aims at a territorial transformation including economic, productive, cultural and social aspects to “guarantee full security and integral development in the region.”

The head of state ordered that the Military Forces be responsible for building roads, hospitals, schools, university headquarters and drinking water aqueducts in the conflict zones of the department (province).

He pointed out that the resources for these works will be provided by the General Budget of the Nation, while stressing that “the military take better care of the money than the politicians.”

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The director of the National Planning Department (DNP), Alexander López, pointed out during the presentation that the initiative “has a strictly social component, which is linked to guaranteeing the security and rights of the population,” and added that this mission is the articulation for the transformation of the department of Cauca.

For his part, Minister Velásquez stressed that the objective is to have an “effective” control of the territory in which citizen security can be promoted, in addition to fighting against illicit economies (narcotrafficking) by cutting their financing, not only with military confrontation.

The departments of Cauca and Valle del Cauca have been the scene for two months of terrorist actions of the Central General Staff (EMC) – dissidents of the extinct FARC guerrillas – against military and police facilities, which have left them dead and injured.

Just last week, the EMC, which is currently spart into two groups previously commanded by ‘Iván Mordisco’, intensified the number of violent actions in Cauca that began with four coordinated attacks that left a civilian and two policemen injured.

Likewise, Sigifredo Márquez, father of the Colombian vice president, Francia Márquez, was the subject of an attack on Sunday when he was traveling with a six-year-old nephew of the high official, between the towns of Timba, in Cauca, and the Robles hamlet, a rural area of Jamundí, in the interior of Colombia.

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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.