International
Venezuelan government says it will defeat US “neocolonial claims” in elections
The Government of Venezuela said on Wednesday that it will defeat the “neocolonial claims” of the United States on Sunday, when the South American country will hold presidential elections, in response to a statement by Washington in which they considered that massive participation in these elections will favor the triumph of the opposition.
“The defeat that (US) has painted on his forehead, by the beating that his lackeys will take on July 28, is as great as the precariousness of his government management,” said in X the Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Yván Gil, before the statements of the head of the Department of State for Latin America, Brian Nichols.
The Venezuelan minister asked the American official to take care of his own affairs, relax and contemplate “how a free, revolutionary and democratic people turns their neocolonial pretensions to cosmic dust through the popular vote.”
“All fascist plans to ignore the popular victory will fail again,” Gil added, just 20 days after the Governments of Venezuela and the United States resumed a process of dialogue that had been paralyzed for several months.
During an audience in the U.S. Congress, Nichols assured that participation will be a key factor for the majority opposition – with Edmundo González Urrutia as a candidate – to win the presidential elections, which according to Washington represent “an opportunity” for the country to return to “democracy.”
Although Nichols acknowledged that there is “important evidence” that the government of Nicolás Maduro has interfered in the elections with arrests of opponents and disqualification of candidates, such as opposition leader María Corina Machado, the diplomat considered that the elections are “an opportunity for a better future” in the country.
Nichols also explained that the United States is in contact with its partners in the region to address the situation in Venezuela, among which he cited Brazil, whose president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Maduro’s historic ally, has criticized the recent statements of the Venezuelan president in which he predicted a “bloodbath” if he loses the elections.
Chavismo, which has governed since 1999, aspires to keep in power the current president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, who has held the presidential seat since 2013.
International
Spanish Government Targets ‘Big Tech Impunity’ in AI Image Scandal
The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, announced Tuesday that his government will ask prosecutors to investigate X, Meta and TikTok over the alleged creation and distribution of sexually explicit images involving minors generated through artificial intelligence.
In a post on X, Sánchez said the government would formally request that the Public Prosecutor’s Office examine potential crimes that these platforms may have committed by allowing or facilitating the use of AI tools to generate such content.
“These platforms are harming the mental health, dignity and rights of our children,” Sánchez wrote, adding that “the impunity of the giants must end.”
In recent weeks, the Spanish leader has publicly clashed with tech figures such as Elon Musk and Pavel Durov after announcing on February 3 his intention to ban social media access for minors under the age of 16.
Sánchez also signaled plans to amend legislation so that platform executives could be held legally responsible for certain violations committed on their websites.
According to figures released Tuesday by the government, one in five young people in Spain — particularly girls and teenage minors — say they have experienced the circulation of AI-generated fake nude images of themselves while underage.
International
Father Faces Murder Charges in Georgia School Shooting Case
Colin Gray, 55, appeared in court Monday facing charges of murder and involuntary manslaughter in connection with the September 4, 2024, shooting at Apalachee High School, carried out by his son, Colt.
Two 14-year-old students and two teachers were killed, and nine others were injured in the shooting in Winder, Georgia. Colt Gray, who was 14 at the time and is now 16, has been charged as an adult and is awaiting a trial date.
During opening statements, prosecutors alleged that Gray gave his son the AR-15-style rifle used in the attack as a Christmas gift in 2023, despite prior warnings that the teenager had threatened to carry out a school shooting.
According to the FBI, local authorities interviewed Colt and his father in May 2023 after receiving anonymous reports about online threats made by the teen.
“This case is about this defendant and his actions—allowing a minor in his custody to have access to a firearm and ammunition after being warned that the minor intended to harm others,” said Brad Smith, the Barrow County prosecutor.
Defense attorney Brian Hobbs told jurors that Colin Gray was unaware of his son’s intentions and had sought help for the teenager’s declining mental health.
School shootings remain a recurring issue in the United States, where firearms outnumber people and regulations governing the purchase of even high-powered, military-style rifles are relatively permissive.
Central America
Guatemala’s Attorney General Consuelo Porras Loses Bid for Constitutional Court Seat
Guatemala’s attorney general, Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by the United States over corruption allegations, lost a key vote on Monday in which a public university selected two of the 10 magistrates for the country’s highest constitutional court. However, she could still seek a seat through another nominating body.
The election of five full magistrates and five alternates to the Corte de Constitucionalidad (CC) is taking place gradually over more than two months and is considered crucial in the ongoing struggle for control of Guatemala’s judiciary, which critics say has long been influenced by a political and economic elite accused of corruption.
According to results announced at a press conference, the governing council of the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC) rejected Porras, who had applied as either a full or alternate magistrate, and instead chose two candidates aligned with the university rector. The vote was held at a hotel in Antigua, about 35 kilometers from the capital.
Despite the setback, Porras — whose term as attorney general ends on May 16 — could still be nominated to the Constitutional Court by the Corte Suprema de Justicia, which appoints two magistrates. The remaining six are selected by the president, the bar association and Congress.
“It’s always a possibility,” the 72-year-old lawyer said days earlier when asked by reporters whether she would seek nomination through another institution if she lost the USAC vote.
Porras has been sanctioned by Washington and the European Union for allegedly attempting two years ago to block the inauguration of President Bernardo Arévalo and for pursuing legal actions against anti-corruption prosecutors, judges, journalists and social leaders since taking office in 2018.
The USAC vote was controversial because most members of the university’s governing council are serving beyond the expiration of their terms. Students, academics and social activists staged protests against Porras’ candidacy.
Spanish Government Targets ‘Big Tech Impunity’ in AI Image Scandal
Father Faces Murder Charges in Georgia School Shooting Case
Guatemala’s Attorney General Consuelo Porras Loses Bid for Constitutional Court Seat
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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