International
Mulino: If the situation in Venezuela worsens, migration will grow “in a very short time”
The president of Panama, José Raúl Mulino, warned on Thursday that if the “political situation” of Venezuela “worsens” after this Sunday’s elections, they must be prepared, because the flow of migrants through the Darién, the border jungle with Colombia used as a migratory route, will increase “in a very short time.”
“We are three days away from the solution or the worsening of the political situation in Venezuela. I advocate a democratic solution that respects the will of the people. If that turns out to be the case, I feel that we will have an improvement in the condition, because Venezuela is 66% of migrants. That country contributes a significant share of people to the transit,” the president of Panama said at his weekly press conference.
And he explained: “If the situation (in Venezuela after the elections) improves, it can be deduced that much fewer people will want to venture into that risk of transit through that jungle (of the Darién). If the political situation worsens, in another scenario, let’s prepare because that (the migratory flow) will increase in a very short time.”
According to Mulino, this Sunday’s elections in the South American country “would already be one of the last chances (opportunities) of Venezuela to open up to a democratic and peaceful world (so that) the people (find the) solution that they consider most appropriate.”
Last Thursday – also at that press conference he plans to offer every week – the Panamanian president said that “well-conducted” elections in Venezuela will possibly reduce the flow of migration through the Darién jungle, since most of the passers-by who go through it are from that South American country.
Venezuela will have its elections on July 28, in which ten candidates will participate, including President Nicolás Maduro, who seeks his re-election, and the main leader of the opposition and the polls, Edmundo González Urrutia, instead of the disqualified María Corina Machado.
Panama is trying to reduce migration through that dangerous jungle and since Mulino’s arrival in power, several measures have been taken, such as the installation of “perimeter barriers” (barred fences) in some points of Darién to close unauthorized passages and “channel” the flow, in addition to the signing of an agreement with the United States to return migrants who cross that jungle by plane.
So far this year, more than 216,000 migrants have crossed the dangerous Darién jungle, most of them Venezuelans, who seek to reach the United States or Canada in search of better living conditions, while in all of 2023 there were more than 520,000, an unprecedented figure, according to official data from Panama.
International
U.S. to Limit Visa Duration for Foreign Students and Journalists
The United States has announced new limits on the legal length of stay for foreign students and journalists, marking the latest tightening of immigration policies under President Donald Trump.
The changes, outlined in an administrative rule published on Thursday, are expected to take effect in September, unless Congress blocks the measure.
Under the new policy, holders of student visas will be allowed to remain in the United States for no more than four years.
Foreign journalists will be limited to 240-day stays—approximately eight months—with the possibility of applying for extensions of the same duration.
The policy imposes even stricter rules on Chinese journalists, whose visas will be capped at 90 days.
More than 100 international news organizations and press freedom groups, including Agence France-Presse (AFP), criticized the measure in an open letter, arguing that it would reduce both the quantity and quality of international coverage of events in the United States.
The Republican Party, led by President Trump, currently holds a majority in Congress and has pledged to curb both illegal immigration and certain forms of legal immigration.
Previously, the United States generally issued student visas for the full duration of an academic program, while foreign journalists could receive visas valid for up to five years.
Central America
Nicaragua Cuts Diplomatic Ties With Italy Over Red Brigades Dispute
The Nicaraguan government announced on Thursday that it is severing diplomatic relations with Italy following criticism from the Italian government over Nicaragua’s long-standing decision to shelter Alessio Casimirri, a former member of the Red Brigades convicted in Italy for the 1978 kidnapping and murder of former Prime Minister Aldo Moro.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani criticized the administration of co-presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo on Wednesday for continuing to provide refuge to Casimirri, who was sentenced in Italy to six life terms for his role in Moro’s abduction and killing.
In a statement issued Thursday, Nicaragua’s Foreign Ministry said it was ending all diplomatic relations with Italy, describing Tajani’s remarks as “unjustified, aggressive, and irresponsible.”
Tajani made the comments during a gathering of conservative leaders from Europe and Latin America held in Madrid.
“We have absolutely nothing in common with the positions of extremist governments such as Nicaragua, a country that continues to harbor dangerous Red Brigades terrorists like Alessio Casimirri,” Tajani said, according to Italian media.
The diplomatic break marks a new escalation in tensions between the two countries over the decades-old case involving Casimirri, who has lived in Nicaragua for many years despite repeated calls from Italy for his extradition.
International
U.S. Strikes Hit Areas Near Strait of Hormuz as Tensions With Iran Escalate
Several U.S. strikes targeted areas near the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, according to Iranian state media citing local authorities, as hostilities between the United States and Iran intensified.
Officials in Iran’s Hormozgan Province said the island of Qeshm was struck multiple times by what they described as U.S. missiles during the evening. The reports were carried by the Iranian news agencies Fars and Tasnim.
Iranian state television also reported that the Bandar Abbas region, located on the Iranian coast overlooking the Strait of Hormuz, was the target of what authorities described as an “enemy U.S. air attack.”
According to local officials quoted by state television, no casualties have been reported following the strikes.
The reported attacks come amid renewed military tensions between Washington and Tehran, although U.S. authorities had not immediately commented on the reported operations.
U.S. to Limit Visa Duration for Foreign Students and Journalists
Nicaragua Cuts Diplomatic Ties With Italy Over Red Brigades Dispute
U.S. Strikes Hit Areas Near Strait of Hormuz as Tensions With Iran Escalate
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