International
Trump signs a decree to ban the teaching of race and gender theories in schools
US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday that prohibits the use of federal funds in schools that teach what he considers “critical race theory” and other content related to race and gender identity.
Those educational centers that do not comply with this measure could lose their federal funding.
The order, aimed at schools for students between 5 and 18 years old, states that federal funds cannot be allocated to the “indoctrination” of children with “anti-American ideologies”, such as “radical gender ideology and critical theory of race”.
“Imposing anti-American, subversive, harmful and false ideologies on the children of our nation not only violates in many cases the civil rights laws against discrimination, but also usurps the basic authority of the parents,” says the document signed by Trump.
The term “critical race theory” has been used by conservative sectors of the US to encompass a wide variety of educational content that they reject. However, in the academic field, this theory studies how racism is rooted in American laws and institutions.
In addition, the order instructs the future Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon, and other senior government officials to develop, within 90 days, a strategy to “eliminate indoctrination” in schools.
McMahon, an executive of the wrestling company World Wrestling Entertainment, has yet to receive Senate approval to assume the position of Secretary of Education.
During his campaign for the November elections, Trump promised that as soon as he arrived at the White House he would sign an executive order, like the one signed today, to cut federal funding for schools that promote the critical theory of race or content that he considers inappropriate.
The federal government, however, has limited power in the day-to-day life of schools in the United States, which receive the most funding from state and local sources.
Trump signed an executive order to identify foreign students and faculty who participated in pro-Palestinian university protests in order to deport them.
The document instructs the Secretaries of State, Education and Homeland Security to request U.S. universities to monitor and report on activities of foreign students and professors who may be considered anti-Semitic, in order to take action in accordance with the law and, if appropriate, act to expel them from the country.
The order establishes several provisions on anti-Semitism, but focuses especially on the protests that broke out in April 2024 on campuses throughout the United States against the war in Gaza and Washington’s support for Israel, which lasted for about three months and left a balance of about 3,100 detainees.
In the text, Trump emphasizes that he decided to sign this executive order on anti-Semitism after returning to the White House on January 20, noting that “Jewish students, in particular, faced anti-Semitic harassment in schools and university campuses.”
Although the document assumes that the demonstrators committed anti-Semitic acts, they have denied that their protests had that intention or that they supported Hamas in any way, and maintain that they demonstrated against the Israeli military offensive in Gaza, which has left more than 47,000 dead.
The Islamic-American Relations Council (CAIR), one of the country’s main organizations in defense of the rights of Muslims, warned that if the order is implemented it will be challenged in court.
International
Mexican authorities bust Meth Lab and seize tons of drugs and chemicals in multiple states
Mexican authorities dismantled a clandestine laboratory containing 2.5 tons of methamphetamine in the southeastern state of Chiapas, seized a warehouse with more than four tons of chemical precursors in Guerrero (south), and intercepted a trailer in Tijuana attempting to cross into the United States with 2.7 tons of drugs.
Omar García Harfuch, head of the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection (SSPC), reported on Saturday via social media that agents from the Criminal Investigation Agency of the Attorney General’s Office (FGR), along with representatives from the Defense Secretariat, Navy (Semar), National Guard (GN), and SSPC, disabled the methamphetamine production lab in Chiapas and confiscated 2.5 tons of the drug.
A statement specified that the agents secured 2.5 tons of methamphetamine, barrels containing substances used to manufacture synthetic drugs, a firearm, and four trucks. In another operation in Guerrero, authorities located over four tons of chemical substances.
The discovery took place on a property in the community of Margarita Maza, Juárez, used to store materials for synthetic drug production. Sufficient evidence was collected and presented to a control judge who authorized the intervention of the property.
In Chiapas, authorities also seized more than 300 barrels and containers with chemicals for making synthetic drugs, as well as various metal containers and devices.
International
Maduro gains support from Venezuelan Assembly amid U.S. drug trafficking accusations
The National Assembly of Venezuela expressed its support this Saturday for President Nicolás Maduro, condemning the United States’ increase in the reward offered for his capture as an “act of aggression.”
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced on Thursday that Washington had doubled the reward to $50 million for Maduro’s capture, labeling him as one of the “world’s largest drug traffickers.”
“We reject the absurd and desperate actions announced by the U.S. Attorney General’s Office, which are clearly illegal and lack any real basis, beyond being a delirious attempt of aggression against the president (…) and against our rebellious and brave people,” said the Assembly leader, Jorge Rodríguez, while reading a letter he said was unanimously approved by the deputies.
“It is precisely President Nicolás Maduro (…) the protector of the strong democracy that shelters us and the leader who firmly upholds the rule of law and justice,” Rodríguez continued. He is also Venezuela’s chief negotiator in talks with Washington.
Bondi accused Maduro of using “terrorist organizations like the Tren de Aragua, the Sinaloa cartel, and the Cartel of the Suns to introduce lethal drugs and violence” into the United States.
“In 25 years of revolution, we have resisted and advanced despite constant imperialist aggressions. They have not succeeded, and will not succeed, with crude sanctions, criminal blockades, or senseless threats in diverting the noble path the Venezuelan people charted in the free elections of July 28, 2024, in which Nicolás Maduro was elected President of the Republic,” the statement read.
The Venezuelan opposition alleges fraud in those elections and claims victory, and as a result, has boycotted the 2025 legislative, regional, and municipal elections.
International
U.S. doubles bounty on Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro to $50 million
In February, the United States designated eight Latin American criminal organizations as “global terrorist” groups, including Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua, and the MS-13 gang. In July, it added the Cartel of the Suns to the list — a group Washington claims is led by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Last Thursday, U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration doubled the reward for information leading to Maduro’s arrest, raising it from $25 million to $50 million, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced on social media platform X.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio explained that labeling the Cartel of the Suns as a terrorist organization allows for a strategic shift in dealing with the Venezuelan regime, as it is now also considered a direct threat to U.S. national security, according to El Espectador.
In an interview with The World Over on EWTN, Rubio said the designation enables the U.S. to “use intelligence agencies, the Department of Defense, or any other element of American power to go after them.” He stressed this is no longer just a law enforcement matter, but a national security operation.
When asked at the White House whether he believes it is worth sending the military to combat Latin American drug cartels, Trump responded:
“Latin America has many cartels, a lot of drug trafficking, so, you know, we want to protect our country. We have to protect it.”
Mexican authorities bust Meth Lab and seize tons of drugs and chemicals in multiple states
Maduro gains support from Venezuelan Assembly amid U.S. drug trafficking accusations
U.S. doubles bounty on Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro to $50 million
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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