International

Petro on US deportees: First they arrive without wives and then we talk about business

The President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, said on Tuesday that migrants deported from the United States must arrive in their country without being handcuffed and that once this happens, they will talk about business, while telling his US counterpart, Donald Trump, that his government does not kneel “for the merchandise.”

“Trump thinks we kneel for the merchandise, he thinks we are like him. Watch out! We are different, we are not him, we can understand each other yes, I am not saying no, he has to understand the difference. Progressiveness puts the person above the merchandise. First they arrive without handcuffs and then we talk about business, not the other way around,” Petro said in a council of ministers.

On January 26, Petro did not accept the arrival of two US planes with deported migrants because they were handcuffed.
That triggered a diplomatic crisis that escalated to the point that Trump ordered the imposition of tariffs of 25% on all Colombian products, in addition to other travel and immigration sanctions, and Petro responded with a similar tariff measure.

That same day at night the two governments reached an agreement by which Colombia, according to the White House, accepted “all the terms of President Trump, including the unrestricted acceptance of all illegal foreign immigrants from Colombia returned from the United States, including in military aircraft, without limitations or delays,” but the tension persists in the bilateral relationship.

That is why the Colombian president insisted on Tuesday that his “Government does not kneel” and “follows an international principle”, which is “life” because “Colombia is the heart of the world and therefore must be a world power of life.”

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“Do we kneel before oil, before the power of oil? Don’t we realize what we are? Did we (the Liberator Simón) forget Bolívar, who believed that this was going to be a great power beyond Colombia precisely because we were exuberant? (…) I don’t kneel,” Petro said.

He also invited Latin America to “instead of defending the merchandise”, defend “the person”.

The Trump Administration has launched a campaign against the more than 11 million undocumented migrants in the United States, calling them “criminals” and promising to carry out the largest deportation campaign in the history of that country.

International

Two killed in shooting at restaurant near Frankfurt Airport

Two people were shot dead early Tuesday at a restaurant in Raunheim, near Frankfurt Airport, according to local police.

Preliminary findings indicate that an armed individual entered the establishment at around 03:45 local time (02:45 GMT) and opened fire on the victims, who died at the scene from their injuries.

The suspect fled and remains at large, while the motive behind the shooting is still unclear, German media reported. Authorities have launched a large-scale search operation.

International

U.S. counterterrorism chief resigns over opposition to war in Iran

Joe Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, announced Tuesday that he has resigned from his post, citing his opposition to the ongoing war in Iran.

In a post on X, Kent said he could not, “in good conscience,” support the conflict, arguing that Iran did not pose an imminent threat to the United States. He also claimed that the war was driven by pressure from Israel and its lobbying influence in Washington.

In a resignation letter addressed to Donald Trump, Kent alleged that at the start of the current administration, senior Israeli officials and influential figures in U.S. media carried out a disinformation campaign that undermined the “America First” platform and fostered pro-war sentiment aimed at triggering a conflict with Iran.

Kent further stated that he could not support sending a new generation of Americans to “fight and die in a war that provides no benefit to the American people and does not justify the cost in American lives.”

Since the United States and Israel launched attacks against Iran on February 28, at least 13 U.S. service members have been killed, while 10 others have been seriously wounded and around 200 have sustained minor injuries, according to a report published by The Wall Street Journal.

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International

German president warns Iran war could spread and disrupt Strait of Hormuz

The president of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, warned Monday that the war involving Iran could expand and further disrupt shipping through the strategic Strait of Hormuz. He urged a swift end to hostilities between Iran, United States and Israel.

Speaking in Panama City during a joint appearance with Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino, Steinmeier said available information suggests Iran has significant capacity to disrupt maritime traffic through the key oil route.

“Iran has considerable potential to interfere with shipping through the Strait of Hormuz,” Steinmeier said through an interpreter. “We should therefore reach an end to the hostilities as soon as possible and call on all parties involved to make that happen.”

The remarks came during Steinmeier’s visit to Panama, the first by a German president to the Central American nation.

The German leader described the possibility of the conflict spreading as “very dangerous,” saying recent developments indicate that such a scenario cannot be ruled out.

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Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump urged allied nations to help ensure safe passage for ships through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran moved to block the waterway in response to U.S. strikes. However, several allies—particularly in Europe—have shown little support for the proposal.

“Some are very enthusiastic, others are not, and some are countries we have helped for many years,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “We have protected them from terrible external threats, and they’re not that enthusiastic. And the level of enthusiasm is important to me.”

Meanwhile, Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s top diplomat, said the Strait of Hormuz falls “outside NATO’s scope” and stressed that “the war involving Iran is not Europe’s war.”