International

The Venezuelan Parliament presents a draft agreement on the rupture of relations with Spain

The Parliament of Venezuela, controlled by Chavismo, presented on Tuesday the draft agreement with which it will urge the Government to “evaluate” the rupture of diplomatic and commercial relations with Spain, in response to the decision of the Spanish Congress to recognize the opponent Edmundo González Urrutia – exiled in the European country – as elected president.

The document, read during the session, urges “the national Executive to evaluate, in a perempontory time, the rupture of diplomatic and commercial relations with the Kingdom of Spain, as reciprocal action for the rude and interventionist proposal” of the Spanish Congress against “Venezuelan constitutionality.”

On September 11, Congress, with the vote against the ruling Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), approved a non-law proposal promoted by the Popular Party (PP) in which it asks the Government to recognize González Urrutia as president of Venezuela, who arrived in Madrid on the 8th of this month to seek asylum in the face of the persecution he claims to have suffered in his country.

In that sense, the Venezuelan National Assembly (AN, Legislative) rejects, according to the draft agreement, “the disastrous resolution promoted by the fascist right of the Congress” of the European country, and urges Spanish parliamentarians to “respect the decision of the Venezuelan people who elected, sovereignly,” Maduro as “re-elected president” in the elections of July 28.

That result, announced by the National Electoral Council (CNE) based on results that are still unknown in a disaggregated way, was rejected and pointed out as “fraudulent” by the majority opposition – the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD) – and widely questioned by much of the international community, which demands the publication of the minutes.

The AN project points to the decision of the Spanish Congress as an “action that aims to ignore the democratic institutionality” of Venezuela, in addition to the “sovereign will of an entire people.”

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He also says that, in recent years, the “Spanish ultra-right has sheltered criminals, fascists and convicted and confessed terrorists, who together with the Venezuelan right, have promoted failed coups d’état” in the Caribbean country and “the explosion of violence to generate political and social destabilization.”

“We will never accept that any foreign government or international body imposes conditions and interferes in our internal affairs,” the document adds.

The project was presented at the request of the president of the Legislature, Jorge Rodríguez, who, last week, asked to write a resolution, which is waiting for approval, to urge the Executive to break “all diplomatic, consular, economic and commercial relations” with Spain.

Rodríguez demanded that the resolution establish that “all commercial activities of Spanish companies be ceased immediately,” in response to what he considered as “the most brutal abuse” of Spain against Venezuela “since the times” when the Caribbean country fought for its independence, in reference to the decision of the Congress of the European nation.

International

Peruvian presidential candidate Napoleón Becerra dies in campaign road accident

Presidential candidate Napoleón Becerra, representing the Partido de los Trabajadores y Emprendedores (PTE) in Peru, died in a traffic accident while traveling to a campaign event, local authorities confirmed Sunday.

Becerra, who also served as president of the centrist political party, ranked among the lowest in opinion polls in a crowded field of more than 30 candidates competing in the presidential election scheduled for April 12.

Recent surveys place Rafael López Aliaga at the top of voter preferences.

The accident occurred near the town of Ayacucho, in southern Peru, when the vehicle carrying the candidate overturned for reasons that remain under investigation.

“The candidate Becerra has died,” Balvin Huamani, mayor of the district of Pilpichaca, told RPP radio.

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According to Huamani, he personally transported the 61-year-old candidate to a local health center, where doctors confirmed his death.

The Jurado Nacional de Elecciones (JNE) expressed condolences over Becerra’s passing and wished a speedy recovery to the three people who were traveling with him and were injured in the crash.

International

Noboa intensifies anti-cartel crackdown as violence persists in Ecuador

A close ally of Washington, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has pursued a hardline security strategy against cocaine cartels for more than two years, yet homicide, disappearance and extortion rates remain high across the country.

Between Sunday night and the morning of March 31, Ecuador’s armed forces will launch a “very strong offensive” with “advisory support” from the United States, Interior Minister John Reimberg announced Tuesday.

The government has kept details of the operation confidential and has not confirmed whether U.S. troops will be deployed on Ecuadorian soil, as has occurred at times during Noboa’s administration.

As part of the security measures, residents in the coastal provinces of Guayas, Los Ríos, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, and El Oro will be subject to a nightly curfew from 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. local time for the next two weeks.

“We are in a war,” Reimberg said, urging citizens to remain indoors. “Do not take risks. Stay home and allow the security forces and our allies to do the work that must be done.”

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Although Ecuador does not produce cocaine, it has become a major departure point for drugs heading to the United States. Meanwhile, the violence associated with trafficking has increasingly affected the local population.

Bordering the world’s largest cocaine producers, Colombia and Peru, Ecuador has gone from being considered a relatively peaceful country to recording one of the highest homicide rates in Latin America—52 killings per 100,000 inhabitants—according to the **Observatory of Organized Crime.

International

Peruvian presidential candidate proposes death penalty amid crime surge

Peru is facing an unprecedented surge in crime ahead of its presidential election scheduled for April 12, with violence fueled by extortion networks and a wave of contract killings linked to organized crime.

Police data show that 2,200 homicides tied to organized crime were recorded in 2025, while extortion complaints increased by 19%, underscoring the growing security crisis in the South American nation.

Amid this backdrop, presidential candidate Álvarez has proposed reinstating the death penalty if elected, arguing that extreme measures are needed to curb the violence.

To implement the proposal, Álvarez said Peru would withdraw from the American Convention on Human Rights—also known as the Pact of San José—which the country signed in 1978. The agreement prevents member states that have abolished capital punishment from reinstating it.

Currently, Peruvian law only allows the death penalty in cases of treason during wartime.

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“We have to leave the Pact of San José and apply the death penalty in Peru because those miserable criminals don’t deserve to live,” Álvarez told AFP during a campaign stop at a market in Callao, the port city neighboring Lima.

“An iron fist against those criminals,” he added, proposing to declare hitmen as military targets.

During the campaign event, Álvarez walked through stalls selling vegetables, groceries, and fish, greeting vendors while musicians played cumbia music nearby.

The 62-year-old candidate, who spent more than four decades working in television as a comedian, is a newcomer to politics and is running for president under the País para Todos party.

Polls place him fifth in voter preference with nearly 4% support in a fragmented race featuring 36 candidates.